DATE=3/8/2000
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=CHINA-HUMAN RIGHTS (L-ONLY)
NUMBER=2-259987
BYLINE=LETA HONG FINCHER
DATELINE=WASHINGTON
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: Congress conducted a special hearing Wednesday
on the State Department's latest reports on human
rights practices in 1999. The spotlight was on China
and as V-O-A's Leta Hong Fincher reports, many
lawmakers are saying they will oppose President
Clinton's proposed trade deal with China because of
Beijing's poor human rights record.
TEXT: The hearing before the U-S House of
Representatives Subcommittee on International
Operations and Human Rights covered a wide range of
countries, but lawmakers focused their questioning on
China. Assistant Secretary for Democracy, Human
Rights and Labor, Harold Koh, testified that China's
human rights record deteriorated sharply in 1999.
/// KOH ACT ///
In China, authorities broadened and intensified
their efforts to suppress those perceived to
threaten government power or national stability.
Citizens who sought to express openly dissenting
political and religious views faced widespread
repression.
/// END ACT ///
Mr. Koh pointed to widespread arrests of political
dissidents, to a nationwide crackdown against the
spiritual group, Falun Gong, to mistreatment of
prisoners and to repression of minorities such as
Tibetans and Uighurs. As a result of the worsening
human rights situation, Mr. Koh said the State
Department is pushing for a resolution against China
at the United Nations Human Rights Commission in
Geneva.
But despite the strong language of the State
Department's human rights report, Mr. Koh was
criticized by subcommittee members for not being harsh
enough on China. Representative Christopher Smith,
the chairman of the Subcommittee, accused the State
Department of not being aggressive enough in its
report on China's one-child family planning policy,
which Mr. Smith says has resulted in forced abortions,
female infanticide and a high female suicide rate.
/// SMITH ACT ///
I have been sickened by the international
community's pooh-poohing of the issue, glossing
it over, saying that was yesterday, not today,
there's always light at the end of the tunnel,
even though the internal documents that we keep
getting copies of and the evidence being
manifested in the field, shows that women are
being dealt with so cruelly.
/// END ACT ///
Mr. Smith said the United States still has a long way
to go to integrate human rights into the mainstream of
its foreign policy, and called on fellow lawmakers to
deny permanent normal trade relations status to
Beijing.
Despite such opposition, Clinton administration
officials as well as Republican Party leaders in
Congress say they believe there are enough votes to
approve the new trade deal with China. (Signed)
NEB/LHF/ENE/JP
08-Mar-2000 16:21 PM EDT (08-Mar-2000 2121 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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