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Re: Human Rights Concerns in China

Dear President Tusk,

Dear President Juncker,

We write on the occasion of the European Union-China summit to be held in Brussels on June 29, 2015. We urge that you express both publicly and privately to senior Chinese leaders the EU’s concerns about the deteriorating human rights environment in China.

In its strategic framework on human rights and democracy, the EU pledges that human rights, democracy, and rule of law will be promoted “in all areas of the EU's external actions without exception” and that the EU will “place human rights at the center of its relations with all third countries including strategic partners.” Such commitments ought to place human rights at the core of EU-China relations.

The Summit follows within weeks of the 26th anniversary of the June 4, 1989 Tiananmen Massacre, an event for which there has never been accountability. Chinese authorities still deny justice around this event, and those who continue to try to mark the occasion—ranging from the public actions of the Tiananmen Mothers to human rights activists and scholars seeking to mourn in private—are subject to harassment, detention, and prosecution on baseless charges. We urge that the EU leverage its arms embargo, imposed as a direct result of Beijing’s excessive use of force against unarmed protesters, to press China to investigate government killings, appropriately prosecute those responsible, compensate victims and their families, and halt persecution of those seeking accountability and avenues to mourn their loved ones. Achieving such goals regarding Tiananmen could have a transformative effect on human rights in China more generally.

Since assuming office in March 2013, the government of President Xi Jinping has cracked down harshly on independent voices, proposed disturbing new legislation on counterterrorism, foreign civil society groups operating in China, and national security. Harsh policies and crackdowns on peaceful protest in Tibet and Xinjiang do little to mitigate grievances in those regions. And torture in criminal detention, as documented in our recent report, remains alarmingly common despite recent legal protections.

Yet there appears to be little consistent willingness on the EU’s part to implement its own human rights pledges and no effective and sincere strategy on how to exert maximum pressure on the Chinese government to improve its human rights record. While we are encouraged by the EU’s statements about individual cases, such as the five Chinese feminists arbitrarily detained by Beijing police, or interventions on the highly problematic draft law restricting the activities of foreign nongovernmental organizations in China, we were disappointed by the noticeable lack of forceful public rhetoric by EU High Representative Federica Mogherini during her recent visit to Beijing.

As president of the European Council and of the European Commission, you represent the highest ideals and priorities of the EU as a whole, and will interact with the senior-most officials in the Chinese government. As such it is imperative that that you make unambiguous the EU’s commitment to human rights, as outlined in its Strategic Framework, by giving them priority in your Beijing discussions. If you do not make clear the EU’s concerns, other EU interventions on human rights, such as those at the United Nations Human Rights Council or statements by the EU High Representative, are likely to be given significantly less serious consideration by the Chinese government.

The EU has diverse goals in China, including a commitment to human rights promotion made at the highest levels. Yet none of those goals can be accomplished without the Chinese government tolerating a non-politicized judicial system, the free flow of information, and peaceful criticism. The concerns raised by the EU Chamber of Commerce in China revolve around the lack of rule of law, surveillance, and discrimination against foreign companies; efforts to combat terrorism are hindered by the Chinese government’s deeply politicized use of the security forces and legislation. Bilateral cooperation on issues ranging from product safety to environmental protection cannot progress if independent voices from China continue to persecuted rather than welcomed into policy debates.

Quite simply, European interests in China are best served by securing progress on human rights and the rule of law.

In this spirit, we urge that you:

- Explain to your Chinese government counterparts the relationship between human rights protections in China and the overall strength of the EU-China relationship. Make clear that the two cannot cooperate more closely on bilateral initiatives when Chinese citizens who wish to peacefully argue for policy reforms are imprisoned. Emphasize that the long-term health of the bilateral economic relationship depends on the free flow of information, and the ability of the domestic and international media to report freely.

- Publicly call on your Chinese counterparts to withdraw or revise in conformity with international standards proposed legislation on counterterrorism, national security, and the management of foreign nongovernmental organizations. Explain that effective cooperation on international law enforcement or counter-terrorism efforts cannot be pursued until and unless China revises its laws and practices to conform with international standards that protect human rights.

- Publicly call for the release or end to harassment of peaceful government critics, anti-corruption activists, lawyers and journalists, including imprisoned 2009 Nobel Peace Prize winner Liu Xiaobo; five women’s rights activists—Li Tingting, Wei Tingting, Wang Man, Zheng Churan, and Wu Rongrong—released in mid-April after a month in detention but on bail for their efforts to raise awareness about sexual harassment; and Uighur economist Ilham Tohti, now serving a life sentence on baseless charges of “separatism.” High-profile activists such as public intellectual Guo Yushan, lawyer Pu Zhiqiang, and legal activist Guo Feixiong, who have been detained for months despite the lack of credible evidence of any illegal activities, would also benefit from your publicly calling for their release.

- Make clear that the issues identified in the EU’s Item 4 statement at the March 2015 session of the UN Human Rights Council, including the crackdown on human rights defenders and the situations in Tibet and Xinjiang--will be topics of discussion at the EU-China Summit later this year; and

- Commit to finding ways to convey to public audiences in China and Europe the nature of these discussions; doing so creates essential transparency and helps demonstrate EU support to those struggling to protect their human rights in China.

We believe that such steps are essential to strengthening meaningful bilateral relations; a China that respects human rights is a fundamentally better diplomatic, economic, and strategic partner. The EU’s own credibility as a principled promoter of human rights is buttressed when it confronts powerful and intransigents governments.

We wish you a productive meeting during which you will, through actions and words, show that promoting business, good relations, and respect for basic human rights are not mutually exclusive but go hand in hand.

Thank you for your attention and please do not hesitate to contact us for any additional information you may need.

Sincerely,

 

Lotte Leicht                                                   

EU Director                                                   

Human Rights Watch        

                           

Sophie Richardson

China Director

Human Rights Watch

 

CC:

High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy / Vice-President of the Commission, Ms. Federica Mogherini

Secretary-General of the European External Action Service (EEAS), Mr. Alain Le Roy

Deputy Secretary General for the European External Action Service (EEAS), Ms. Helga Schmid

Deputy Secretary General for the European External Action Service (EEAS), Mr. Maciej Popowski

Commissioner for Better Regulation, Interinstitutional Relations, the Rule of Law and the Charter of Fundamental Rights / First Vice-President of the Commission, Mr. Frans Timmermans

Commissioner for Trade, Ms. Cecilia Malmström

Head of Cabinet of the President of the European Council, Mr. Piotr Serafin

Chief Foreign Policy Advisor to the President of the European Council, Ms. Riina Kionka

Head of Cabinet of the President of the European Commission, Mr. Martin Selmayr

Diplomatic Adviser to the President of the European Commission, Mr. Richard Szostak

Head of Cabinet of the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy / Vice-President of the Commission, Mr.Stefano Manservisi

Deputy Head of Cabinet of the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy / Vice-President of the Commission, Mr. Oliver Rentschler

Head of Cabinet of the Commissioner for Better Regulation, Interinstitutional Relations, the Rule of Law and the Charter of Fundamental Rights / First Vice-President of the Commission, Mr. Ben Smulders

Head of Cabinet of the Commissioner for Trade, Ms. Maria Åsenius

Deputy Head of Cabinet of the Commissioner for Trade, Mr. Miguel Ceballos Barón

Chair of the EU’s Political and Security Committee, Ambassador Mr. Walter Stevens

Ambassadors to the EU Political and Security Committee

EU Special Representative for Human Rights, Mr. Stavros Lambrinidis

Head of the Delegation of the European Union to China, Amb. Hans-Dietmar Schweisgut

Acting Managing Director for Asia and Pacific, EEAS, Mr. Ugo Astuto

Head of Division for China, EEAS, Mr. Ellis Mathews

Director for Human Rights and Democracy, EEAS, Mr. Silvio Gonzato

Chair of the EU’s Working Party on Asia (COASI), Mr. Boguslaw Majewski

Members of the EU’s Working Party on Asia (COASI)

Chair of the EU’s Working Party on Human Rights (COHOM), Mr. Engelbert Theuermann

Members of the EU’s Working Party on Human Rights (COHOM)

President of the European Parliament, Mr. Martin Schulz

Vice-President of the European Parliament responsible for Democracy and Human Rights, Mr. Alexander Graf Lambsdorff

Vice-President of the European Parliament of the European Parliament, Ms. Ulrike Lunacek

Chair of the European Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee, Mr. Elmar Brok

Chair of the European Parliament’s Subcommittee on Human Rights, Ms. Elena Valenciano

Chair of the European Parliament’s Delegation for relations with the People's Republic of China, Mr. Jo Leinen

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