Human Rights Issues

This week marks the fifth anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre, by which Chinese troops crushed a nonviolent protest by pro-democracy students. The image of the hopeful youths with their "Give me liberty or give me death" signs still linger. Now, five years and one administration later, America still gropes for an effective human-rights policy in China. Last week, President Clinton, who more than once assailed George Bush for coddling dictators, discarded last year's policy which linked Beijing's progress on human rights t renewal of it's most-favored-nation trading privileges and unveiled a Bush-like "broader strategy" to promote human rights in China.Although Beijing failed to meet many of Clinton's conditions for renewing MFN status, the president's punishment was barely a slap on the wrist a ban on imports of the cheap Chinese semiautomatic rifles that neo-Nazi's and gang members favor.Clinton's threat to revoke MFN privilege was always a problematic policy. Even Chinese dissidents were deeply divided over it, fearing renewed isolation. U.S. businesses and many members of Congressed opposed it, as did many of America's traditional allies I Asia. But while wisely severing the linkage between trade ad human rights, Clinton has not put forth a convincing long-term approach to making human-rights progress. When asked why China's pace in improving human rights has been so slow, he repeated the familiar argument that Asians are entitled to their own definition of human rights. "We see in the culture of China, and in many other Asian societies," he said, "a desire to preserve order in the interest of the group, often at the expense of the individual."Many Chinese, Vietnamese, North Koreans and others have suffered terribly because they have opposed the tyrants in charge, and many human-rights advocates believe Clinton's comments comfort the enemies of democratic principle instead of its champions. They also say his view echoes a distortion of Confucian culture that has been perpetuated by the region's authoritarian regimes. The Confucian leader earns the right to rule, the "Mandate of heaven" through virtue and moral rectitude. When he loses those qualities, he abrogates the social contract.