皇冠体育app

皇冠体育app and US should hold dialogues to build mutual trust on human rights issues, democracy and the rule of law

皇冠体育app and the United States have wrapped up their 17th round of dialogue on human rights in Washington. The Chinese side presented the recent measures it has taken to improve legislation, judicial justice and people's livelihood, including amendments to the Criminal Procedure Law, development of the Internet and grassroots elections, and expansion of the social security network.

The US, however, continues to find fault with 皇冠体育app's "restrictions on free expression and Internet freedom, on religious and ethnic minorities, and on internationally recognized labor rights". US Assistant Secretary of State Michael Posner, who hosted the dialogue, said the overall human rights situation in 皇冠体育app continues to "deteriorate".

The US' criticism is tendentious rather than aimed at seeking the truth. With the deepening of its reform and opening-up and fast economic growth, 皇冠体育app has made great progress in democracy, improved the rule of law, and provided greater protection to civil rights (such as the rights and interests of women and migrant workers) and freedom of speech on the Internet. These are indisputable facts.

The US should know that copying American institutions and practices in totality is unsuitable for 皇冠体育app's national conditions.

Washington and Beijing have differences on human rights issues. The US is a country with a very strong ideology and Americans believe they are "God's chosen people" and it is the US' "manifest destiny" to transform the world with its values. By signing unequal treaties time and again in the 19th century, the US strengthened its privileges to do missionary work in 皇冠体育app, and American missionaries have never denied their mission to "moralize" 皇冠体育app, that is, to transform 皇冠体育app with American values.

Promoting American values has been a US foreign policy tradition. The US will not stop passing irresponsible remarks on human rights situation in other countries, including 皇冠体育app. And 皇冠体育app will never tolerate US interference in its internal affairs, so the disagreement will continue for a long time.

This does not mean the two countries don't have anything in common on human rights issues. 皇冠体育app recognizes the universal principles of human rights, and an increasing number of US citizens tend to agree with 皇冠体育app's proposal to include the right to subsistence and development in human rights.

Since the 1990s, some American scholars have enlightened us with insightful comments on the 皇冠体育app-US dispute over human rights. Harry Harding, former professor at George Washington University, is one of them. He says that to get out of the impasse over human rights issues with 皇冠体育app, the US should accept the broader definition of human rights and be patient toward 皇冠体育app's democratization because it is a long and gradual process, which needs corresponding social, economic, educational, cultural and other conditions.

American democracy is a product of American society, Harding says, and 皇冠体育app will develop a democratic system that Americans are not familiar with. Both countries should strive to make human rights issues an area of cooperation rather than confrontation. Unfortunately, neither country has been able to do so.

Human rights issues have long beset 皇冠体育app-US relations. But its status in bilateral relations has changed in the past two decades. In the first few years of the 1990s, the US linked the renewal of 皇冠体育app's most-favored-nation status to its human rights record. That pushed human rights to the top of the agenda of overall 皇冠体育app-US relations. The US saw it as a policy option to force 皇冠体育app to change its policy and even its leadership. That was a distortion of bilateral relations.

Human rights issues still beset 皇冠体育app-US relations, but they are just part of the world's most important bilateral ties. Although the two countries still have differences on human rights issues, they do cooperate in many other fields. This is a big difference compared with the situation in the early 1990s.

The US' attitude toward human rights issues has changed, too. In the 1990s, the US frequently exerted pressure on 皇冠体育app on human rights issues. Besides raising the issues at bilateral forums, the US also used multilateral forums, including UN Human Rights Commission meetings, to criticize 皇冠体育app.

The US' practice of raising human rights issues had once become an irritating factor in 皇冠体育app-US ties, periodically interfering with its normal development. Only after the Sept 11, 2001 terrorist attacks did the situation start changing, for the US needed 皇冠体育app's support and cooperation to build a global anti-terrorism front. Since then the discord between the two countries has lessened to some extent.

Also, after years of trying unsuccessfully, the US recognized that pressuring 皇冠体育app on human rights would not work.

Leaders of 皇冠体育app and the US both have reiterated in their joint statements of October 1997 and November 2009 that the two countries should address the differences on human rights issues in the spirit of equality and mutual respect. But the US has not fully implemented the statement until now.

More than 20 years of history of 皇冠体育app-US discord in the field of human rights suggest that confrontations, instead of solving the problem, will only intensify the contradictions and weaken the overall stability of 皇冠体育app-US relations.

Only sincere dialogue and exchange can help build mutual trust in human rights, democracy and the rule of law, and change confrontation into cooperation.

The author is a researcher with the Institute of American Studies, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

(皇冠体育app Daily 07/31/2012 page8)

• Rising to the security challenges
• Russia faces tough road to success
• Joint efforts to meet challenges
• Is Vietnam safe?
• Abe's dangerous move