DATE=12/17/1999 TYPE=BACKGROUND REPORT TITLE=CONGRESS-CHINA TRADE NUMBER=5-45032 BYLINE=DAVID SWAN DATELINE=CAPITOL HILL CONTENT= VOICED AT: Intro: Every year since 1980, the U-S Congress has had to decide whether to renew China's trade benefits - once called "most-favored nation" status, and now just normal trade relations. And every year, this has meant a struggle between lawmakers over trade, human rights and the whole U-S / Chinese agenda. The debate next year (in 2000) may be the last one, but it could also be especially heated and unpredictable. V-O-A's David Swan reports. TEXT: /// Begin with Act - Seattle protestors chanting /// This is what happened the last time the White House tried to move forward on trade - a loud, sometimes violent protest at the World Trade Organization conference. In the aftermath of that failed meeting in Seattle, the Clinton administration is facing another challenge, not on the streets but in the House of Representatives and Senate. The showdown will take place when Congress examines the deal for China to join the World Trade Organization, or W-T-O. At a recent news conference, the president promised an all-out effort to finalize the accord, which came after long, hard bargaining by U-S and Chinese officials. Mr. Clinton says it will help the economy by opening China's vast market to American exports and will strengthen the nation's strategic position in the future. /// Clinton Act /// One of the great questions of the next several decades as China's economy grows to match the size of its population is whether China and the United States will have a constructive relationship or be at odds. I believe that just as we work together in the United Nations, even though we sometimes disagree, we will work together in the W-T-O. /// End Act /// Technically, the lawmakers have no vote on the W-T-O pact itself - but they could still sink it. The agreement hinges on China receiving permanent normal trade relations, or N-T-R, without the annual review required by current law. This provision, which Congress will vote on, gives opponents an opening to block the deal. Teamsters Union president James Hoffa Junior, whose members marched and rallied in Seattle, says they will fight the proposal again on Capitol Hill. /// Hoffa Act /// Well, the Great Wall of China will come tumbling down before we accede to this deal. The Teamsters Union is 100-percent committed to defeating permanent N-T-R (normal trade relations) status for China. /// End Act /// The unions charge the accord will cost American jobs while doing nothing to protect workers' rights in China. Those who are opposing the deal raise other familiar complaints about Chinese behavior, including human rights violations, threats against Taiwan and repression in Tibet. Dissident Harry Wu says the trade pact would strengthen what he calls a paranoid, totalitarian government. /// Wu Act /// This deal gives a timely boost to the Chinese Communist leadership. This blood transfusion to a dying Communist regime is both unwise and unnecessary. /// End Act /// Opponents also hope to build on what they consider a victory in the Seattle demonstrations to gather momentum for the struggle in Congress. But despite their new-found energy and confidence, the opponents are working against history. In 20 years, Congress has never refused normal trade or M-F-N status. Approval was granted even after 1989's Tiananmen Square crackdown and other crises. The annual fight has usually focused on the House, which is more fractious than the Senate and less sympathetic to free trade. The debate over permanent N-T-R is likely to follow the same pattern. Republican Congressman Philip Crane, chairman of the House trade subcommittee, believes the proposal will be approved once the benefits for American business become clear. He notes the short-term extensions of N-T-R have recently passed by wide margins. /// Crane Act /// It's always been a good bipartisan support (for N-T-R). And yet the benefits out of N-T-R status, normal trade relations with them under current law, do not begin to compare with the benefits of giving them permanent N-T-R status as a member of the World Trade Organization. /// End Act /// However, the decision will be made in a presidential and Congressional election year - which, as Mr. Crane points out, could complicate the process. /// Crane Act /// And the closer you get to the election, the more potentially political it can become. And that's not a good thing. /// End Act /// Other lawmakers say China must show good faith by living up to existing accords, including a recent deal to import more American wheat. Supporters of normal trade and W-T-O membership for China hope for a vote on the issue in May or June. (Signed) NEB/DS/JP 17-Dec-1999 11:41 AM EDT (17-Dec-1999 1641 UTC) NNNN Source: Voice of America .
