| CHINA People's Republic of China Zhonghua Renmin Gongheguo Joined United Nations: 24 October 1945 Human Rights as assured by their constitution Click here Updated 01/20/11 |
| CAPITAL |
| POPULATION |
| CHIEF OF STATE |
| SELECTION PROCESS |
Beijing
1,330,141,295 (July 2010 est.)
Wen Jiabao
Premier since 16 March 2003
Premier since 16 March 2003
President and vice president elected by the National People's
Congress for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); elections
last held 15 March 2008
Next scheduled election: March 2013
Congress for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); elections
last held 15 March 2008
Next scheduled election: March 2013
HEAD OF GOVERNMENT
SELECTION PROCESS
Premier nominated by the president, confirmed by the National
People's Congress; elections last held 15 March 2008
Next scheduled election: 2013
People's Congress; elections last held 15 March 2008
Next scheduled election: 2013
| DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS |
| ETHNIC GROUPS |
Han Chinese 91.5%, Zhuang, Manchu, Hui, Miao, Uyghur, Tujia, Yi, Mongol, Tibetan, Buyi, Dong, Yao, Korean, and other
nationalities 8.5% (2000 census)
nationalities 8.5% (2000 census)
| RELIGIONS |
Daoist (Taoist), Buddhist, Christian 3%-4%, Muslim 1%-2%
note: officially atheist (2002 est.)
note: officially atheist (2002 est.)
| GOVERNMENT STRUCTURE |
Communist state with 123 provinces (sheng, singular and plural), 5 autonomous regions (zizhiqu, singular and plural), and 4 municipalities
(shi, singular and plural); Legal system is based on civil law system; derived from Soviet and continental civil code legal principles;
legislature retains power to interpret statutes; constitution ambiguous on judicial review of legislation; has not accepted compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction
Executive: President and vice president elected by the National People's Congress for a five-year term (eligible for a second term);
elections last held 15 March 2008 (next to be held in mid-March 2013); premier nominated by the president, confirmed by the National
People's Congress
Legislative: Unicameral National People's Congress or Quanguo Renmin Daibiao Dahui (2,987 seats; members elected by
municipal, regional, and provincial people's congresses, and People's Liberation Army to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held December 2007-February 2008; date of next election - late 2012 to early 2013
Judicial: Supreme People's Court (judges appointed by the National People's Congress); Local People's Courts (comprise higher,
intermediate, and basic courts); Special People's Courts (primarily military, maritime, railway transportation, and forestry courts)
(shi, singular and plural); Legal system is based on civil law system; derived from Soviet and continental civil code legal principles;
legislature retains power to interpret statutes; constitution ambiguous on judicial review of legislation; has not accepted compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction
Executive: President and vice president elected by the National People's Congress for a five-year term (eligible for a second term);
elections last held 15 March 2008 (next to be held in mid-March 2013); premier nominated by the president, confirmed by the National
People's Congress
Legislative: Unicameral National People's Congress or Quanguo Renmin Daibiao Dahui (2,987 seats; members elected by
municipal, regional, and provincial people's congresses, and People's Liberation Army to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held December 2007-February 2008; date of next election - late 2012 to early 2013
Judicial: Supreme People's Court (judges appointed by the National People's Congress); Local People's Courts (comprise higher,
intermediate, and basic courts); Special People's Courts (primarily military, maritime, railway transportation, and forestry courts)
| LANGUAGES |
Standard Chinese or Mandarin (Putonghua, based on the Beijing dialect), Yue (Cantonese), Wu (Shanghainese), Minbei (Fuzhou),
Minnan (Hokkien-Taiwanese), Xiang, Gan, Hakka dialects, minority languages (see Ethnic groups entry)
Minnan (Hokkien-Taiwanese), Xiang, Gan, Hakka dialects, minority languages (see Ethnic groups entry)
| BRIEF HISTORY |
What is now China was inhabited by Homo erectus more than a million years ago. Two pottery pieces were unearthed at Liyuzui
Cave in Liuzhou, Guangxi Province dated 16,500 and 19,000 BC. The Neolithic age in China can be traced back as early as
10,000 B.C. Early evidence for proto-Chinese millet agriculture is carbon-dated to about 7,000 BC. The early history of China is
complicated by the lack of a written language during this period coupled with the existence of documents from later time periods
attempting to describe events that occurred several centuries before. The earliest comprehensive history of China, the Records of
the Grand Historian written by Chinese historiographer Sima Qian in the 2nd century BC, and the Bamboo Annals trace Chinese
history from about 2800 BC, with an account of the Three August Ones and the Five Emperors. These rulers were semi-mythical
sage-kings and moral exemplars. Tradition regards one of them, the Yellow Emperor, as the ancestor of the Han Chinese people.
The historian Sima Qian (145 BC-90 BC) and the account in the Bamboo Annals date the founding of the Xia Dynasty to 4,200
years ago, but this date has not been corroborated. The Shang and Zhou people had existed within the Xia Dynasty since the
beginning of Xia. The earliest discovered written record of China's past dates from the Shang Dynasty in perhaps the 13th century
BC, and takes the form of inscriptions of divination records on the bones or shells of animals—the so-called oracle bones. Chinese
historians living in later periods were accustomed to the notion of one dynasty succeeding another, but the actual political situation in
early China is known to have been much more complicated. By the end of the 2nd millennium BC, the Zhou Dynasty began to
emerge in the Yellow River valley, overrunning the Shang. The Zhou appeared to have begun their rule under a semi-feudal system.
In the 8th century BC, power became decentralized during the Spring and Autumn Period, named after the influential Spring and
Autumn Annals. In this period, local military leaders used by the Zhou began to assert their power and vie for hegemony. The
Spring and Autumn Period is marked by a falling apart of the central Zhou power. China now consists of hundreds of states, some
only as large as a village with a fort. After further political consolidation, seven prominent states remained by the end of 5th century
BC, and the years in which these few states battled each other is known as the Warring States Period. Historians often refer to the
period from Qin Dynasty to the end of Qing Dynasty as Imperial China. The Qin Dynasty is well known for beginning the Great
Wall of China, which was later augmented and enhanced during the Ming Dynasty. The Han Dynasty emerged in 206 BC. It was
the first dynasty to embrace the philosophy of Confucianism, which became the ideological underpinning of all regimes until the end
of imperial China. Under the Han Dynasty, China made great advances in many areas of the arts and sciences. Though the three
kingdoms were reunited temporarily in 278 by the Jin Dynasty, the contemporary non-Han Chinese ethnic groups controlled much
of the country in the early 4th century and provoked large-scale Han Chinese migrations to south of the Chang Jiang. Many ethnic
groups were involved, including ancestors of the Turks, Mongolians, and Tibetans. Most of these nomadic peoples had to some
extent been "Sinicized" long before their ascent to power. Signaled by the collapse of East Jin Dynasty in 420, China entered the era
of the Southern and Northern Dynasties. An increasing number of nomadic people in Northern China adopted Confucianism as
personal life guidance and state ideology while becoming gradually assimilated into the Han Chinese civilization. The Sui Dynasty,
which managed to reunite the country in 589 after nearly four centuries of political fragmentation, played a role more important than
its length of existence would suggest. On June 18, 618, Gaozu took the throne, and the Tang Dynasty was established, opening a
new age of prosperity and innovations in arts and technology. Buddhism, which had gradually been established in China from the
first century, became the predominant religion and was adopted by the imperial family and many of the common people. The period
of political disunity between the Tang and the Song, known as the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period, lasted little more than
half a century, from 907 to 960. Jurchen tribes' Jin Dynasty, whose names are also rendered "Jin" in pinyin, was defeated by the
Mongols, who then proceeded to defeat the Southern Song in a long and bloody war, the first war where firearms played an
important role. During the era after the war, later called the Pax Mongolica, adventurous Westerners such as Marco Polo travelled
all the way to China and brought the first reports of its wonders to Europe. Throughout a short-lived Yuan Dynasty, there was
strong sentiment, among the populace, against the rule of the foreigners, which finally led to peasant revolts. The Mongolians were
pushed back to the steppes and replaced by the Ming Dynasty in 1368. The Qing Dynasty 1644–1911) was founded after the
defeat of the Ming, the last Han Chinese dynasty, by the Manchus . The Manchus were formerly known as the Jurchen and invaded
from the north in the late seventeenth century. An estimated 25 million people died during the Manchu conquest of Ming Dynasty
(1616-1644). Even though the Manchus started out as alien conquerors, they quickly adopted the Confucian norms of traditional
Chinese government. They eventually ruled in the manner of traditional native dynasties. The Manchus enforced a 'queue order'
forcing the Han Chinese to adopt the Manchu queue hairstyle and Manchu-style clothing. Britain's desire to continue its opium trade
with China collided with imperial edicts prohibiting the addictive drug, and the First Opium War erupted in 1840. Britain and other
major powers, including the United States, France, Russia, Germany, and Japan thereupon forcibly occupied "concessions" and
gained special commercial privileges. Hong Kong was ceded to Britain in 1842 under the Treaty of Nanjing. At the start of the 20th
century, the Boxer Rebellion threatened northern China. This was a conservative anti-imperialist movement that sought to return
China to old ways. Frustrated by the Qing court's resistance to reform and by China's weakness, young officials, military officers,
and students—inspired by the revolutionary ideas of Sun Yat-sen —began to advocate the overthrow of the Qing Dynasty and
creation of a republic. A revolutionary military uprising, the Wuchang Uprising, began on October 10, 1911 in Wuhan. The
provisional government of the Republic of China was formed in Nanjing on March 12, 1912 with Sun Yat-sen as President. In the
1920s, Sun Yat-Sen established a revolutionary base in south China, and set out to unite the fragmented nation. With Soviet
assistance, he entered into an alliance with the fledgling Communist Party of China After Sun's death from cancer in 1925, one of
his protégés, Chiang Kai-shek, seized control of the Kuomintang (Nationalist Party or KMT). During the Long March, the
communists reorganized under a new leader, Mao Zedong . The bitter struggle between the KMT and the CPC continued, openly
or clandestinely, through the 14-year long Japanese invasion (1931-1945), even though the two parties nominally formed a united
front to oppose the Japanese invaders in 1937, during the Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945) portion of World War II. The war
between the two parties resumed following the Japanese defeat in 1945. By 1949, the CPC occupied most of the country. Chiang
Kai-shek fled with the remnants of his government to Taiwan in 1949 and his Nationalist Party would control the island as well as a
few neighboring islands until democratic elections in the early 1990s. Since then, the political status of Taiwan has always been
under dispute. Since the 1990s, the Republic of China government that governs Taiwan along with associated islands as well as
some small islands off the coast of Fujian has been pushing to gain greater international recognition, while the People's Republic of
China vehemently opposes involvement by third parties, and insists that foreign relations not deviate from the One-China policy.
Source: Wikipedia: History of China
Cave in Liuzhou, Guangxi Province dated 16,500 and 19,000 BC. The Neolithic age in China can be traced back as early as
10,000 B.C. Early evidence for proto-Chinese millet agriculture is carbon-dated to about 7,000 BC. The early history of China is
complicated by the lack of a written language during this period coupled with the existence of documents from later time periods
attempting to describe events that occurred several centuries before. The earliest comprehensive history of China, the Records of
the Grand Historian written by Chinese historiographer Sima Qian in the 2nd century BC, and the Bamboo Annals trace Chinese
history from about 2800 BC, with an account of the Three August Ones and the Five Emperors. These rulers were semi-mythical
sage-kings and moral exemplars. Tradition regards one of them, the Yellow Emperor, as the ancestor of the Han Chinese people.
The historian Sima Qian (145 BC-90 BC) and the account in the Bamboo Annals date the founding of the Xia Dynasty to 4,200
years ago, but this date has not been corroborated. The Shang and Zhou people had existed within the Xia Dynasty since the
beginning of Xia. The earliest discovered written record of China's past dates from the Shang Dynasty in perhaps the 13th century
BC, and takes the form of inscriptions of divination records on the bones or shells of animals—the so-called oracle bones. Chinese
historians living in later periods were accustomed to the notion of one dynasty succeeding another, but the actual political situation in
early China is known to have been much more complicated. By the end of the 2nd millennium BC, the Zhou Dynasty began to
emerge in the Yellow River valley, overrunning the Shang. The Zhou appeared to have begun their rule under a semi-feudal system.
In the 8th century BC, power became decentralized during the Spring and Autumn Period, named after the influential Spring and
Autumn Annals. In this period, local military leaders used by the Zhou began to assert their power and vie for hegemony. The
Spring and Autumn Period is marked by a falling apart of the central Zhou power. China now consists of hundreds of states, some
only as large as a village with a fort. After further political consolidation, seven prominent states remained by the end of 5th century
BC, and the years in which these few states battled each other is known as the Warring States Period. Historians often refer to the
period from Qin Dynasty to the end of Qing Dynasty as Imperial China. The Qin Dynasty is well known for beginning the Great
Wall of China, which was later augmented and enhanced during the Ming Dynasty. The Han Dynasty emerged in 206 BC. It was
the first dynasty to embrace the philosophy of Confucianism, which became the ideological underpinning of all regimes until the end
of imperial China. Under the Han Dynasty, China made great advances in many areas of the arts and sciences. Though the three
kingdoms were reunited temporarily in 278 by the Jin Dynasty, the contemporary non-Han Chinese ethnic groups controlled much
of the country in the early 4th century and provoked large-scale Han Chinese migrations to south of the Chang Jiang. Many ethnic
groups were involved, including ancestors of the Turks, Mongolians, and Tibetans. Most of these nomadic peoples had to some
extent been "Sinicized" long before their ascent to power. Signaled by the collapse of East Jin Dynasty in 420, China entered the era
of the Southern and Northern Dynasties. An increasing number of nomadic people in Northern China adopted Confucianism as
personal life guidance and state ideology while becoming gradually assimilated into the Han Chinese civilization. The Sui Dynasty,
which managed to reunite the country in 589 after nearly four centuries of political fragmentation, played a role more important than
its length of existence would suggest. On June 18, 618, Gaozu took the throne, and the Tang Dynasty was established, opening a
new age of prosperity and innovations in arts and technology. Buddhism, which had gradually been established in China from the
first century, became the predominant religion and was adopted by the imperial family and many of the common people. The period
of political disunity between the Tang and the Song, known as the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period, lasted little more than
half a century, from 907 to 960. Jurchen tribes' Jin Dynasty, whose names are also rendered "Jin" in pinyin, was defeated by the
Mongols, who then proceeded to defeat the Southern Song in a long and bloody war, the first war where firearms played an
important role. During the era after the war, later called the Pax Mongolica, adventurous Westerners such as Marco Polo travelled
all the way to China and brought the first reports of its wonders to Europe. Throughout a short-lived Yuan Dynasty, there was
strong sentiment, among the populace, against the rule of the foreigners, which finally led to peasant revolts. The Mongolians were
pushed back to the steppes and replaced by the Ming Dynasty in 1368. The Qing Dynasty 1644–1911) was founded after the
defeat of the Ming, the last Han Chinese dynasty, by the Manchus . The Manchus were formerly known as the Jurchen and invaded
from the north in the late seventeenth century. An estimated 25 million people died during the Manchu conquest of Ming Dynasty
(1616-1644). Even though the Manchus started out as alien conquerors, they quickly adopted the Confucian norms of traditional
Chinese government. They eventually ruled in the manner of traditional native dynasties. The Manchus enforced a 'queue order'
forcing the Han Chinese to adopt the Manchu queue hairstyle and Manchu-style clothing. Britain's desire to continue its opium trade
with China collided with imperial edicts prohibiting the addictive drug, and the First Opium War erupted in 1840. Britain and other
major powers, including the United States, France, Russia, Germany, and Japan thereupon forcibly occupied "concessions" and
gained special commercial privileges. Hong Kong was ceded to Britain in 1842 under the Treaty of Nanjing. At the start of the 20th
century, the Boxer Rebellion threatened northern China. This was a conservative anti-imperialist movement that sought to return
China to old ways. Frustrated by the Qing court's resistance to reform and by China's weakness, young officials, military officers,
and students—inspired by the revolutionary ideas of Sun Yat-sen —began to advocate the overthrow of the Qing Dynasty and
creation of a republic. A revolutionary military uprising, the Wuchang Uprising, began on October 10, 1911 in Wuhan. The
provisional government of the Republic of China was formed in Nanjing on March 12, 1912 with Sun Yat-sen as President. In the
1920s, Sun Yat-Sen established a revolutionary base in south China, and set out to unite the fragmented nation. With Soviet
assistance, he entered into an alliance with the fledgling Communist Party of China After Sun's death from cancer in 1925, one of
his protégés, Chiang Kai-shek, seized control of the Kuomintang (Nationalist Party or KMT). During the Long March, the
communists reorganized under a new leader, Mao Zedong . The bitter struggle between the KMT and the CPC continued, openly
or clandestinely, through the 14-year long Japanese invasion (1931-1945), even though the two parties nominally formed a united
front to oppose the Japanese invaders in 1937, during the Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945) portion of World War II. The war
between the two parties resumed following the Japanese defeat in 1945. By 1949, the CPC occupied most of the country. Chiang
Kai-shek fled with the remnants of his government to Taiwan in 1949 and his Nationalist Party would control the island as well as a
few neighboring islands until democratic elections in the early 1990s. Since then, the political status of Taiwan has always been
under dispute. Since the 1990s, the Republic of China government that governs Taiwan along with associated islands as well as
some small islands off the coast of Fujian has been pushing to gain greater international recognition, while the People's Republic of
China vehemently opposes involvement by third parties, and insists that foreign relations not deviate from the One-China policy.
Source: Wikipedia: History of China
| ECONOMIC OVERVIEW |
Economic development has progressed further in coastal provinces than in the interior, and approximately 200 million rural laborers
and their dependents have relocated to urban areas to find work. One demographic consequence of the "one child" policy is that
China is now one of the most rapidly aging countries in the world. Deterioration in the environment - notably air pollution, soil
erosion, and the steady fall of the water table, especially in the north - is another long-term problem. China continues to lose arable
land because of erosion and economic development. The Chinese government is seeking to add energy production capacity from
sources other than coal and oil, focusing on nuclear and alternative energy development. In 2009, the global economic downturn
reduced foreign demand for Chinese exports for the first time in many years, but China rebounded quickly, outperforming all other
major economies in 2010 with GDP growth around 10%. The economy appears set to remain on a strong growth trajectory in
2011, lending credibility to the stimulus policies the regime rolled out during the global financial crisis. The government vows to
continue reforming the economy and emphasizes the need to increase domestic consumption in order to make the economy less
dependent on exports for GDP growth in the future, but China likely will make only marginal progress toward these rebalancing
goals in 2011. Two economic problems China currently faces are inflation - which, late in 2010, surpassed the government's target
of 3% - and local government debt, which swelled as a result of stimulus policies, and is largely off-the-books and potentially
low-quality.
Source: CIA World Factbook (select China)
and their dependents have relocated to urban areas to find work. One demographic consequence of the "one child" policy is that
China is now one of the most rapidly aging countries in the world. Deterioration in the environment - notably air pollution, soil
erosion, and the steady fall of the water table, especially in the north - is another long-term problem. China continues to lose arable
land because of erosion and economic development. The Chinese government is seeking to add energy production capacity from
sources other than coal and oil, focusing on nuclear and alternative energy development. In 2009, the global economic downturn
reduced foreign demand for Chinese exports for the first time in many years, but China rebounded quickly, outperforming all other
major economies in 2010 with GDP growth around 10%. The economy appears set to remain on a strong growth trajectory in
2011, lending credibility to the stimulus policies the regime rolled out during the global financial crisis. The government vows to
continue reforming the economy and emphasizes the need to increase domestic consumption in order to make the economy less
dependent on exports for GDP growth in the future, but China likely will make only marginal progress toward these rebalancing
goals in 2011. Two economic problems China currently faces are inflation - which, late in 2010, surpassed the government's target
of 3% - and local government debt, which swelled as a result of stimulus policies, and is largely off-the-books and potentially
low-quality.
Source: CIA World Factbook (select China)
| POLITICAL CLIMATE |
Central government leaders must increasingly build consensus for new policies among party members, local and regional leaders,
influential non-party members, and the population at large. However, control is often maintained over the larger group through
control of information. The Chinese Communist Party considers China to be in the initial stages of socialism. Many Chinese and
foreign observers see the PRC as in transition from a system of public ownership to one in which private ownership plays an
increasingly important role. Privatization of housing and increasing freedom to make choices about education and employment
severely weakened the work unit system that was once the basic cell of Communist Party control over society. China's complex
political, ethnic and ideological mosaic, much less uniform beneath the surface than in the idealized story of the Propaganda
Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, resist simple categorization.
As the social, cultural and political as well as economic consequences of market reform becoming increasingly manifest, tensions
between the old -- the way of the comrade -- and the new -- the way of the citizen -- are sharpening. Some Chinese scholars such
as Zhou Tianyong, the vice director of research of the Central Party School, argue that gradual political reform as well as repression
of those pushing for overly rapid change over the next thirty years will be essential if China is to avoid an overly turbulent transition
to a middle class dominated polity.
Source: Wikipedia: Politics of People's Republic of China
influential non-party members, and the population at large. However, control is often maintained over the larger group through
control of information. The Chinese Communist Party considers China to be in the initial stages of socialism. Many Chinese and
foreign observers see the PRC as in transition from a system of public ownership to one in which private ownership plays an
increasingly important role. Privatization of housing and increasing freedom to make choices about education and employment
severely weakened the work unit system that was once the basic cell of Communist Party control over society. China's complex
political, ethnic and ideological mosaic, much less uniform beneath the surface than in the idealized story of the Propaganda
Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, resist simple categorization.
As the social, cultural and political as well as economic consequences of market reform becoming increasingly manifest, tensions
between the old -- the way of the comrade -- and the new -- the way of the citizen -- are sharpening. Some Chinese scholars such
as Zhou Tianyong, the vice director of research of the Central Party School, argue that gradual political reform as well as repression
of those pushing for overly rapid change over the next thirty years will be essential if China is to avoid an overly turbulent transition
to a middle class dominated polity.
Source: Wikipedia: Politics of People's Republic of China
| INTERNATIONAL DISPUTES |
Continuing talks and confidence-building measures work toward reducing tensions over Kashmir that nonetheless remains
militarized with portions under the de facto administration of China (Aksai Chin), India (Jammu and Kashmir), and Pakistan (Azad
Kashmir and Northern Areas); India does not recognize Pakistan's ceding historic Kashmir lands to China in 1964; China and India
continue their security and foreign policy dialogue started in 2005 related to the dispute over most of their rugged, militarized
boundary, regional nuclear proliferation, and other matters; China claims most of India's Arunachal Pradesh to the base of the
Himalayas; lacking any treaty describing the boundary, Bhutan and China continue negotiations to establish a common boundary
alignment to resolve territorial disputes due to cartographic discrepancies; Chinese maps show an international boundary symbol off
the coasts of the littoral states of the South China Seas, where China has interrupted Vietnamese hydrocarbon exploration; China
asserts sovereignty over the Spratly Islands together with Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam, and possibly Brunei; the 2002
"Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea" eased tensions in the Spratly's but is not the legally binding "code of
conduct" sought by some parties; Vietnam and China continue to expand construction of facilities in the Spratly's and in March
2005, the national oil companies of China, the Philippines, and Vietnam signed a joint accord on marine seismic activities in the
Spratly Islands; China occupies some of the Paracel Islands also claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan; China and Taiwan continue to
reject both Japan's claims to the uninhabited islands of Senkaku-shoto (Diaoyu Tai) and Japan's unilaterally declared equidistance
line in the East China Sea, the site of intensive hydrocarbon exploration and exploitation; certain islands in the Yalu and Tumen
rivers are in dispute with North Korea; North Korea and China seek to stem illegal migration to China by North Koreans, fleeing
privations and oppression, by building a fence along portions of the border and imprisoning North Koreans deported by China;
China and Russia have demarcated the once disputed islands at the Amur and Ussuri confluence and in the Argun River in
accordance with their 2004 Agreement; China and Tajikistan have begun demarcating the revised boundary agreed to in the
delimitation of 2002; the decade-long demarcation of the China-Vietnam land boundary is expected to be completed by the end of
2008, while the maritime boundary delimitation and fisheries agreements in the Gulf of Tonkin, ratified in June 2004, have been
implemented; citing environmental, cultural, and social concerns, China has reconsidered construction of 13 dams on the Salween
River, but energy-starved Burma, with backing from Thailand, remains intent on building five hydro-electric dams downstream
despite regional and international protests; Chinese and Hong Kong authorities met in March 2008 to resolve ownership and use of
lands recovered in Shenzhen River channelization, including 96-hectare Lok Ma Chau Loop; Hong Kong developing plans to
reduce 2,000 out of 2,800 hectares of its restricted Closed Area by 2010
militarized with portions under the de facto administration of China (Aksai Chin), India (Jammu and Kashmir), and Pakistan (Azad
Kashmir and Northern Areas); India does not recognize Pakistan's ceding historic Kashmir lands to China in 1964; China and India
continue their security and foreign policy dialogue started in 2005 related to the dispute over most of their rugged, militarized
boundary, regional nuclear proliferation, and other matters; China claims most of India's Arunachal Pradesh to the base of the
Himalayas; lacking any treaty describing the boundary, Bhutan and China continue negotiations to establish a common boundary
alignment to resolve territorial disputes due to cartographic discrepancies; Chinese maps show an international boundary symbol off
the coasts of the littoral states of the South China Seas, where China has interrupted Vietnamese hydrocarbon exploration; China
asserts sovereignty over the Spratly Islands together with Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam, and possibly Brunei; the 2002
"Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea" eased tensions in the Spratly's but is not the legally binding "code of
conduct" sought by some parties; Vietnam and China continue to expand construction of facilities in the Spratly's and in March
2005, the national oil companies of China, the Philippines, and Vietnam signed a joint accord on marine seismic activities in the
Spratly Islands; China occupies some of the Paracel Islands also claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan; China and Taiwan continue to
reject both Japan's claims to the uninhabited islands of Senkaku-shoto (Diaoyu Tai) and Japan's unilaterally declared equidistance
line in the East China Sea, the site of intensive hydrocarbon exploration and exploitation; certain islands in the Yalu and Tumen
rivers are in dispute with North Korea; North Korea and China seek to stem illegal migration to China by North Koreans, fleeing
privations and oppression, by building a fence along portions of the border and imprisoning North Koreans deported by China;
China and Russia have demarcated the once disputed islands at the Amur and Ussuri confluence and in the Argun River in
accordance with their 2004 Agreement; China and Tajikistan have begun demarcating the revised boundary agreed to in the
delimitation of 2002; the decade-long demarcation of the China-Vietnam land boundary is expected to be completed by the end of
2008, while the maritime boundary delimitation and fisheries agreements in the Gulf of Tonkin, ratified in June 2004, have been
implemented; citing environmental, cultural, and social concerns, China has reconsidered construction of 13 dams on the Salween
River, but energy-starved Burma, with backing from Thailand, remains intent on building five hydro-electric dams downstream
despite regional and international protests; Chinese and Hong Kong authorities met in March 2008 to resolve ownership and use of
lands recovered in Shenzhen River channelization, including 96-hectare Lok Ma Chau Loop; Hong Kong developing plans to
reduce 2,000 out of 2,800 hectares of its restricted Closed Area by 2010
| REFUGEES AND INTERNALLY DISPLACED PERSONS (IDPS) |
Refugees (country of origin): 300,897 (Vietnam); estimated 30,000-50,000 (North Korea)
IDPs: 90,000 (2007)
IDPs: 90,000 (2007)
| ILLICIT DRUGS |
Major transshipment point for heroin produced in the Golden Triangle region of Southeast Asia; growing domestic consumption
of synthetic drugs, and heroin from Southeast and Southwest Asia; source country for methamphetamine and heroin chemical
precursors, despite new regulations on its large chemical industry (2008)
of synthetic drugs, and heroin from Southeast and Southwest Asia; source country for methamphetamine and heroin chemical
precursors, despite new regulations on its large chemical industry (2008)
| HUMAN RIGHTS STATEMENTS, ANALYSIS AND CRITIQUES |
2009 Human Rights Report: China (includes Tibet, Hong Kong, and Macau)
Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
2009 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices
March 11, 2010
The People's Republic of China (PRC), with a population of approximately 1.3 billion, is an authoritarian state in which the Chinese
Communist Party (CCP) constitutionally is the paramount source of power. Party members hold almost all top government, police, and
military positions. Ultimate authority rests with the 25-member political bureau (Politburo) of the CCP and its nine-member standing
committee. Hu Jintao holds the three most powerful positions as CCP general secretary, president, and chairman of the Central Military
Commission. Civilian authorities generally maintained effective control of the security forces.
The government's human rights record remained poor and worsened in some areas. During the year the government increased the severe
cultural and religious repression of ethnic minorities in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region (XUAR).Tibetan areas remained under
tight government controls. The detention and harassment of human rights activists increased, and public interest lawyers and law firms
that took on cases deemed sensitive by the government faced harassment, disbarment and closure. The government limited freedom of
speech and controlled the Internet and Internet access. Abuses peaked around high-profile events, such as the 20th anniversary of the
Tiananmen Square uprising, the 50th anniversary of the Tibetan uprising, and the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People's
Republic of China.
As in previous years, citizens did not have the right to change their government. Other serious human rights abuses included extrajudicial
killings, executions without due process, torture and coerced confessions of prisoners, and the use of forced labor, including prison
labor. The government continued to monitor, harass, detain, arrest, and imprison journalists, writers, dissidents, activists, petitioners,
and defense lawyers and their families, many of whom sought to exercise their rights under the law. A lack of due process and
restrictions on lawyers, particularly human rights and public interest lawyers, had serious consequences for defendants who were
imprisoned or executed following proceedings that fell short of international standards. The party and state exercised strict political
control of courts and judges, conducted closed trials, and continued the use of administrative detention. Prolonged illegal detentions at
unofficial holding facilities, known as black jails, were widespread.
Individuals and groups, especially those deemed politically sensitive by the government, continued to face tight restrictions on their
freedom to assemble, practice religion, and travel. The government failed to protect refugees and asylum-seekers adequately, and the
detention and forced repatriation of North Koreans continued. The government increased pressure on other countries to repatriate
citizens back to China, including citizens who were being processed by UNHCR as political refugees. Nongovernmental organizations
(NGOs), both local and international, continued to face intense scrutiny and restrictions. The government failed to address serious social
conditions that affected human rights, including endemic corruption, trafficking in persons, and discrimination against women,
minorities, and persons with disabilities. The government continued its coercive birth limitation policy, in some cases resulting in forced
abortion or forced sterilization. Workers cannot choose an independent union to represent them in the workplace, and the law does not
protect workers' right to strike.
In April the government unveiled its first National Human Rights Action Plan. The 54-page document outlined human rights goals to be
achieved over the next two years and addressed issues such as prisoners' rights and the role of religion in society. However, the plan has
not yet been implemented.
On July 5, riots broke out in Urumqi, the provincial capital of Xinjiang, after police used force to break up a demonstration reportedly
composed mostly of Uighur university students who protested the killing of Uighur migrant workers by Han co-workers in Guangdong
Province. Violence erupted leaving approximately 200 people dead and 1,700 injured. According to official sources, most of the dead
were Han Chinese. On July 7 and September 4, groups of Han Chinese engaged in retaliatory violence, resulting in more deaths. At year's
end Urumqi remained under a heavy police presence and most Internet and international phone communication remained cut off.
Click here to read more »
Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
2009 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices
March 11, 2010
The People's Republic of China (PRC), with a population of approximately 1.3 billion, is an authoritarian state in which the Chinese
Communist Party (CCP) constitutionally is the paramount source of power. Party members hold almost all top government, police, and
military positions. Ultimate authority rests with the 25-member political bureau (Politburo) of the CCP and its nine-member standing
committee. Hu Jintao holds the three most powerful positions as CCP general secretary, president, and chairman of the Central Military
Commission. Civilian authorities generally maintained effective control of the security forces.
The government's human rights record remained poor and worsened in some areas. During the year the government increased the severe
cultural and religious repression of ethnic minorities in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region (XUAR).Tibetan areas remained under
tight government controls. The detention and harassment of human rights activists increased, and public interest lawyers and law firms
that took on cases deemed sensitive by the government faced harassment, disbarment and closure. The government limited freedom of
speech and controlled the Internet and Internet access. Abuses peaked around high-profile events, such as the 20th anniversary of the
Tiananmen Square uprising, the 50th anniversary of the Tibetan uprising, and the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People's
Republic of China.
As in previous years, citizens did not have the right to change their government. Other serious human rights abuses included extrajudicial
killings, executions without due process, torture and coerced confessions of prisoners, and the use of forced labor, including prison
labor. The government continued to monitor, harass, detain, arrest, and imprison journalists, writers, dissidents, activists, petitioners,
and defense lawyers and their families, many of whom sought to exercise their rights under the law. A lack of due process and
restrictions on lawyers, particularly human rights and public interest lawyers, had serious consequences for defendants who were
imprisoned or executed following proceedings that fell short of international standards. The party and state exercised strict political
control of courts and judges, conducted closed trials, and continued the use of administrative detention. Prolonged illegal detentions at
unofficial holding facilities, known as black jails, were widespread.
Individuals and groups, especially those deemed politically sensitive by the government, continued to face tight restrictions on their
freedom to assemble, practice religion, and travel. The government failed to protect refugees and asylum-seekers adequately, and the
detention and forced repatriation of North Koreans continued. The government increased pressure on other countries to repatriate
citizens back to China, including citizens who were being processed by UNHCR as political refugees. Nongovernmental organizations
(NGOs), both local and international, continued to face intense scrutiny and restrictions. The government failed to address serious social
conditions that affected human rights, including endemic corruption, trafficking in persons, and discrimination against women,
minorities, and persons with disabilities. The government continued its coercive birth limitation policy, in some cases resulting in forced
abortion or forced sterilization. Workers cannot choose an independent union to represent them in the workplace, and the law does not
protect workers' right to strike.
In April the government unveiled its first National Human Rights Action Plan. The 54-page document outlined human rights goals to be
achieved over the next two years and addressed issues such as prisoners' rights and the role of religion in society. However, the plan has
not yet been implemented.
On July 5, riots broke out in Urumqi, the provincial capital of Xinjiang, after police used force to break up a demonstration reportedly
composed mostly of Uighur university students who protested the killing of Uighur migrant workers by Han co-workers in Guangdong
Province. Violence erupted leaving approximately 200 people dead and 1,700 injured. According to official sources, most of the dead
were Han Chinese. On July 7 and September 4, groups of Han Chinese engaged in retaliatory violence, resulting in more deaths. At year's
end Urumqi remained under a heavy police presence and most Internet and international phone communication remained cut off.
Click here to read more »
28 August 2009
COMMITTEE ON THE ELIMINATION OF RACIAL DISCRIMINATION
Seventy-fifth session
3 – 28 August 2009
CONSIDERATION OF REPORTS SUBMITTED BY STATES PARTIES UNDER ARTICLE 9 OF THE CONVENTION
Concluding observations of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
THE PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA (including Hong Kong and Macau Special Administrative Regions)
A. Introduction
2. The Committee welcomes the submission of the tenth to thirteenth periodic reports of the People’s Republic of China including
Hong Kong and Macau Special Administrative Regions and the opportunity thus offered to resume the dialogue with the State party. It
also expresses its appreciation for the constructive dialogue held with the large and competent delegation and the comprehensive written
and oral responses provided to the list of issues and the questions posed by Committee members.
B. Positive aspects
3. The Committee welcomes the adoption of the National Human Rights Action Plan 2009-2010, which includes a chapter on the
protection of the rights of ethnic minorities.
4. The Committee notes with satisfaction the adoption of a range of laws at the national, provincial and local level to protect the
rights of minorities, in particular the revised Regional Ethnic Autonomy Law of the People’s Republic of China of 2001 and the Rules of
the State Council on the Implementation of that law adopted in 2005, as well as the Regulations on Ethnic Work in Cities and the
Regulations on the Ethnic Administrative Work.
Hong Kong and Macau Special Administrative Regions
7. The Committee welcomes the adoption of the Race Discrimination Ordinance (Chapter 602 of the Laws of Hong Kong), which
entered into force in 2009.
8. The Committee notes with satisfaction the adoption of Law 6/2008 on the Fight Against Trafficking in Persons, as well as Law
1/2004, establishing the Legal Framework on the Recognition and Loss of Refugee Status, in Macau SAR.
C. CONCERNS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
9. The Committee notes the lack of disaggregated statistical data regarding the socio-economic status of members of ethnic
minorities, non-citizens, asylum-seekers and refugees.
In accordance with its General Recommendation No. 8 (1990) and paragraphs 10 to 12 of its revised reporting guidelines
(CERD/C/2007/1), the Committee reiterates its request (A/56/18, para. 250) that the State party include, in its next periodic report,
updated and detailed statistical data on the socio-economic situation of the population, disaggregated by ethnic groups and nationalities.
In this regard, it recalls the importance of gathering accurate and up-to-date data on the ethnic composition of the population.
Click here to read more »
COMMITTEE ON THE ELIMINATION OF RACIAL DISCRIMINATION
Seventy-fifth session
3 – 28 August 2009
CONSIDERATION OF REPORTS SUBMITTED BY STATES PARTIES UNDER ARTICLE 9 OF THE CONVENTION
Concluding observations of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
THE PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA (including Hong Kong and Macau Special Administrative Regions)
A. Introduction
2. The Committee welcomes the submission of the tenth to thirteenth periodic reports of the People’s Republic of China including
Hong Kong and Macau Special Administrative Regions and the opportunity thus offered to resume the dialogue with the State party. It
also expresses its appreciation for the constructive dialogue held with the large and competent delegation and the comprehensive written
and oral responses provided to the list of issues and the questions posed by Committee members.
B. Positive aspects
3. The Committee welcomes the adoption of the National Human Rights Action Plan 2009-2010, which includes a chapter on the
protection of the rights of ethnic minorities.
4. The Committee notes with satisfaction the adoption of a range of laws at the national, provincial and local level to protect the
rights of minorities, in particular the revised Regional Ethnic Autonomy Law of the People’s Republic of China of 2001 and the Rules of
the State Council on the Implementation of that law adopted in 2005, as well as the Regulations on Ethnic Work in Cities and the
Regulations on the Ethnic Administrative Work.
Hong Kong and Macau Special Administrative Regions
7. The Committee welcomes the adoption of the Race Discrimination Ordinance (Chapter 602 of the Laws of Hong Kong), which
entered into force in 2009.
8. The Committee notes with satisfaction the adoption of Law 6/2008 on the Fight Against Trafficking in Persons, as well as Law
1/2004, establishing the Legal Framework on the Recognition and Loss of Refugee Status, in Macau SAR.
C. CONCERNS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
9. The Committee notes the lack of disaggregated statistical data regarding the socio-economic status of members of ethnic
minorities, non-citizens, asylum-seekers and refugees.
In accordance with its General Recommendation No. 8 (1990) and paragraphs 10 to 12 of its revised reporting guidelines
(CERD/C/2007/1), the Committee reiterates its request (A/56/18, para. 250) that the State party include, in its next periodic report,
updated and detailed statistical data on the socio-economic situation of the population, disaggregated by ethnic groups and nationalities.
In this regard, it recalls the importance of gathering accurate and up-to-date data on the ethnic composition of the population.
Click here to read more »
Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Clinton Speech Addresses Human Rights in China in Advance of State Visit
Washington
January 14, 2011
Freedom House applauds today’s speech by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on U.S.-China relations in which she clearly spoke
out about major human rights concerns in China and called for the release of Liu Xiaobo and the many other political prisoners. The
speech comes just five days before the official state visit of Chinese President and General Secretary of the Communist Party, Hu Jintao,
to the United States.
Freedom House recently signed a letter together with other leading human rights organizations criticizing the Obama administration for
downplaying human rights issues during previous official visits to China and calling on the Administration to take specific steps to show
its commitment to promoting human rights in China before and during the state visit. In the speech, Secretary Clinton challenged the
Chinese government to live up to its unfulfilled promise stating, “The longer China represses freedoms, the longer it will miss out on
these opportunities and the longer that Nobel Prize winners, [signified by] empty chairs in Oslo will remain a symbol of a great nation’s
unrealized potential and unfulfilled promise.”
“We hope this powerful speech marks a shift in U.S. policy that recognizes that while the U.S.-China relationship is the world’s most
important bi-lateral relationship, the United States can and must continue to publicly pressure the Chinese government to improve its
human rights record, while expressing solidarity with those in China fighting for their rights,” said David J. Kramer, executive director of
Freedom House. “We hope the administration will follow this excellent speech with other steps that demonstrate to China’s leaders that
they will not be shielded from concerns over human rights, particularly when they are on U.S. soil.”
The full letter to president Obama, signed by Freedom House, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International USA, and six other
prominent organizations follows:
Dear President Obama,
To be a success, the forthcoming US-China summit should demonstrate your administration’s commitment to human rights issues in
China. We welcome your and Secretary Clinton’s public comments in October and December 2010 regarding Liu Xiaobo and the Nobel
Peace Prize. Yet human rights issues have been downplayed in past official visits, such as your first visit to China in November 2009.
Taking clear action in advance of and during the forthcoming summit will signal that the United States takes seriously the multiple
challenges posed by the Chinese government’s stand on human rights, and will prioritize human rights issues during the remainder of
your presidency.
We urge that on the occasion of Chinese President Hu Jintao’s visit to Washington next week you indicate a shift in US policy by:
* Personally meeting with prominent Chinese, Tibetan, and Uighur critics of Beijing’s human rights violations in the White House in
advance of the summit;
* Speaking frankly and publicly about the deteriorating human rights environment in China, ideally with reference to Tibet and
Xinjiang, tightening restrictions on the freedom of expression, enforced disappearances, a profoundly politicized judicial system, and the
death penalty;
Click here to read more »
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Clinton Speech Addresses Human Rights in China in Advance of State Visit
Washington
January 14, 2011
Freedom House applauds today’s speech by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on U.S.-China relations in which she clearly spoke
out about major human rights concerns in China and called for the release of Liu Xiaobo and the many other political prisoners. The
speech comes just five days before the official state visit of Chinese President and General Secretary of the Communist Party, Hu Jintao,
to the United States.
Freedom House recently signed a letter together with other leading human rights organizations criticizing the Obama administration for
downplaying human rights issues during previous official visits to China and calling on the Administration to take specific steps to show
its commitment to promoting human rights in China before and during the state visit. In the speech, Secretary Clinton challenged the
Chinese government to live up to its unfulfilled promise stating, “The longer China represses freedoms, the longer it will miss out on
these opportunities and the longer that Nobel Prize winners, [signified by] empty chairs in Oslo will remain a symbol of a great nation’s
unrealized potential and unfulfilled promise.”
“We hope this powerful speech marks a shift in U.S. policy that recognizes that while the U.S.-China relationship is the world’s most
important bi-lateral relationship, the United States can and must continue to publicly pressure the Chinese government to improve its
human rights record, while expressing solidarity with those in China fighting for their rights,” said David J. Kramer, executive director of
Freedom House. “We hope the administration will follow this excellent speech with other steps that demonstrate to China’s leaders that
they will not be shielded from concerns over human rights, particularly when they are on U.S. soil.”
The full letter to president Obama, signed by Freedom House, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International USA, and six other
prominent organizations follows:
Dear President Obama,
To be a success, the forthcoming US-China summit should demonstrate your administration’s commitment to human rights issues in
China. We welcome your and Secretary Clinton’s public comments in October and December 2010 regarding Liu Xiaobo and the Nobel
Peace Prize. Yet human rights issues have been downplayed in past official visits, such as your first visit to China in November 2009.
Taking clear action in advance of and during the forthcoming summit will signal that the United States takes seriously the multiple
challenges posed by the Chinese government’s stand on human rights, and will prioritize human rights issues during the remainder of
your presidency.
We urge that on the occasion of Chinese President Hu Jintao’s visit to Washington next week you indicate a shift in US policy by:
* Personally meeting with prominent Chinese, Tibetan, and Uighur critics of Beijing’s human rights violations in the White House in
advance of the summit;
* Speaking frankly and publicly about the deteriorating human rights environment in China, ideally with reference to Tibet and
Xinjiang, tightening restrictions on the freedom of expression, enforced disappearances, a profoundly politicized judicial system, and the
death penalty;
Click here to read more »
Hu is right: China needs a lot more to be done on human rights
By Sam Zarifi, Amnesty International’s Asia-Pacific Director
20 January 2011
Many are parsing Hu Jintao’s comments for something new. The fact is, he has not taken a different stand on human rights than the
Chinese government–or even he–has in the recent past. But he did talk about human rights on foreign soil, in the United States of
America, in the White House. That is significant for a Chinese president. We are happy to hear the him speak about the universality of
human rights, but there are so many other Chinese we wish we could hear from, because Chinese citizens who are attempting to
exercise those rights for the economic and social good of the country are still being jailed.
Said Hu yesterday:
“China recognizes and also respects the universality of human rights. And at the same time, we do believe that we also need to take into
account the different and national circumstances when it comes to the universal value of human rights.”
“China is a developing country with a huge population, and also a developing country in a crucial stage of reform. In this context, China
still faces many challenges in economic and social development. And a lot still needs to be done in China, in terms of human rights.”
Although it is no different to China’s usual position on human rights when it reports to the United Nations, we do see this as a positive
acknowledgement of how much more work China’s government still has to do on human rights.
The Chinese government feels the pressure from Chinese citizens pressing for improvement of the country’s human rights record.
Unfortunately, the Chinese government has responded by tightening restrictions on critics, in particular over the past three years.
Chinese authorities justify this approach by pointing to economic and social rights and the Confucian concept of ‘harmony’ as being
more important than civil and political rights in the context of the country’s development.
But more and more, Chinese citizens are seeking to defend their economic, social and cultural rights, and have been jailed for it – like
Zhao Lianhai, who tried to hold the Sanlu corporation accountable for the melamine poison baby-milk scandal; or Tian Xi, who
campaigned for compensation for people with HIV/AIDS infected by state hospitals.
There are many more journalists operating in China, but journalists who expose corruption and grassroots petitioners protesting
corporate abuses and forced evictions have been silenced and detained.
China’s first Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Liu Xiaobo remains incarcerated for the peaceful expression of his opinions, while his wife Liu
Xia is under arbitrary house arrest.
Click here to read more »
By Sam Zarifi, Amnesty International’s Asia-Pacific Director
20 January 2011
Many are parsing Hu Jintao’s comments for something new. The fact is, he has not taken a different stand on human rights than the
Chinese government–or even he–has in the recent past. But he did talk about human rights on foreign soil, in the United States of
America, in the White House. That is significant for a Chinese president. We are happy to hear the him speak about the universality of
human rights, but there are so many other Chinese we wish we could hear from, because Chinese citizens who are attempting to
exercise those rights for the economic and social good of the country are still being jailed.
Said Hu yesterday:
“China recognizes and also respects the universality of human rights. And at the same time, we do believe that we also need to take into
account the different and national circumstances when it comes to the universal value of human rights.”
“China is a developing country with a huge population, and also a developing country in a crucial stage of reform. In this context, China
still faces many challenges in economic and social development. And a lot still needs to be done in China, in terms of human rights.”
Although it is no different to China’s usual position on human rights when it reports to the United Nations, we do see this as a positive
acknowledgement of how much more work China’s government still has to do on human rights.
The Chinese government feels the pressure from Chinese citizens pressing for improvement of the country’s human rights record.
Unfortunately, the Chinese government has responded by tightening restrictions on critics, in particular over the past three years.
Chinese authorities justify this approach by pointing to economic and social rights and the Confucian concept of ‘harmony’ as being
more important than civil and political rights in the context of the country’s development.
But more and more, Chinese citizens are seeking to defend their economic, social and cultural rights, and have been jailed for it – like
Zhao Lianhai, who tried to hold the Sanlu corporation accountable for the melamine poison baby-milk scandal; or Tian Xi, who
campaigned for compensation for people with HIV/AIDS infected by state hospitals.
There are many more journalists operating in China, but journalists who expose corruption and grassroots petitioners protesting
corporate abuses and forced evictions have been silenced and detained.
China’s first Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Liu Xiaobo remains incarcerated for the peaceful expression of his opinions, while his wife Liu
Xia is under arbitrary house arrest.
Click here to read more »
Hu's Missing
Give China's disappeared a voice at U.S.-China summit
by Phelim Kine, Asia researcher for Human Rights Watch
Published in: The Washington Times
January 17, 2011
If President Obama can raise just one human rights issue at the summit this week with Chinese President Hu Jintao, he should speak for
China's disappeared.
On Dec. 19, 2009, 20 Uighurs - a Muslim ethnic minority in China who have long suffered from state discrimination and other abuses -
were forced onto a Chinese government plane in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, flown back to China and effectively disappeared into official
custody. Since then, the only whisper of the fate of the deported Uighurs - who included two infants - was an unconfirmed report in
mid-January 2010 that some of them had been sentenced by a Xinjiang court to verdicts that included the death penalty.
The group - which had sought refugee status in Cambodia - had been issued "persons of concern" letters by the United Nations High
Commission for Refugees; under international law, those documents should have provided them protection from deportation. The
Chinese government insisted that the 20 Uighurs were "criminals" to whom those protections did not apply. The Cambodian government
ignored the high likelihood that the Uighurs would face torture, disappearance and/or arbitrary detention upon return to China, and under
pressure from Beijing, Cambodia forced the Uighurs to return. Shortly after their plane left, Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping touched
down for a high-profile state visit to Cambodia, suggesting that Phnom Penh prioritized Beijing's demands over Cambodia's obligations
under international law.
In a report released Jan. 11 on the failures of China's first human rights "action plan," Human Rights Watch documented an alarming
variety of enforced disappearances in China. Ongoing efforts to locate dozens of Uighur men and boys disappeared by security forces in
Urumqi in the wake of the July 2009 protests there have yielded virtually no information as to their status or well-being.
Enforced disappearances are a favorite tool for purging China's petitioners - rural residents seeking legal redress for abuses of power at
the local level. Every year in Beijing alone, thousands of petitioners are abducted, detained and subjected to appalling abuses in a network
of secret, illegal detention facilities known as "black jails." Despite a recent spate of Chinese state media reports of these abuses, the
government has failed to publicly decry such violations or take decisive actions to halt them or punish the perpetrators.
China's high-profile dissidents are also subjected to enforced disappearances. Gao Zhisheng, a lawyer who took on some of China's most
controversial causes, including defending miners and religious minorities like the Falun Gong and underground Christians, was the victim
of an enforced disappearance in February 2009. Mr. Gao re-emerged in his Beijing apartment in early April 2010 but vanished again days
later, apparently back into official custody. Mr. Gao's location, health and circumstances remain unknown.
Click here to read more »
Give China's disappeared a voice at U.S.-China summit
by Phelim Kine, Asia researcher for Human Rights Watch
Published in: The Washington Times
January 17, 2011
If President Obama can raise just one human rights issue at the summit this week with Chinese President Hu Jintao, he should speak for
China's disappeared.
On Dec. 19, 2009, 20 Uighurs - a Muslim ethnic minority in China who have long suffered from state discrimination and other abuses -
were forced onto a Chinese government plane in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, flown back to China and effectively disappeared into official
custody. Since then, the only whisper of the fate of the deported Uighurs - who included two infants - was an unconfirmed report in
mid-January 2010 that some of them had been sentenced by a Xinjiang court to verdicts that included the death penalty.
The group - which had sought refugee status in Cambodia - had been issued "persons of concern" letters by the United Nations High
Commission for Refugees; under international law, those documents should have provided them protection from deportation. The
Chinese government insisted that the 20 Uighurs were "criminals" to whom those protections did not apply. The Cambodian government
ignored the high likelihood that the Uighurs would face torture, disappearance and/or arbitrary detention upon return to China, and under
pressure from Beijing, Cambodia forced the Uighurs to return. Shortly after their plane left, Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping touched
down for a high-profile state visit to Cambodia, suggesting that Phnom Penh prioritized Beijing's demands over Cambodia's obligations
under international law.
In a report released Jan. 11 on the failures of China's first human rights "action plan," Human Rights Watch documented an alarming
variety of enforced disappearances in China. Ongoing efforts to locate dozens of Uighur men and boys disappeared by security forces in
Urumqi in the wake of the July 2009 protests there have yielded virtually no information as to their status or well-being.
Enforced disappearances are a favorite tool for purging China's petitioners - rural residents seeking legal redress for abuses of power at
the local level. Every year in Beijing alone, thousands of petitioners are abducted, detained and subjected to appalling abuses in a network
of secret, illegal detention facilities known as "black jails." Despite a recent spate of Chinese state media reports of these abuses, the
government has failed to publicly decry such violations or take decisive actions to halt them or punish the perpetrators.
China's high-profile dissidents are also subjected to enforced disappearances. Gao Zhisheng, a lawyer who took on some of China's most
controversial causes, including defending miners and religious minorities like the Falun Gong and underground Christians, was the victim
of an enforced disappearance in February 2009. Mr. Gao re-emerged in his Beijing apartment in early April 2010 but vanished again days
later, apparently back into official custody. Mr. Gao's location, health and circumstances remain unknown.
Click here to read more »
For Immediate Release
January 19, 2011
Press Conference with President Obama and President Hu of the People's Republic of China
East Room
1:27 P.M. EST
PRESIDENT HU: (As translated.) First, I would like to clarify, because of the technical translation and interpretation problem, I did not
hear the question about the human rights. What I know was that he was asking a question directed at President Obama. As you raise
this question, and I heard the question properly, certainly I’m in a position to answer that question.
President Obama and I already met eight times. Each time we met, we had an in-depth exchange of views in a candid manner on issues
of shared interest and on issues toward each other’s concerns. And on the issues we have covered, we also discussed human rights.
China is always committed to the protection and promotion of human rights. And in the course of human rights, China has also made
enormous progress, recognized widely in the world.
China recognizes and also respects the universality of human rights. And at the same time, we do believe that we also need to take into
account the different and national circumstances when it comes to the universal value of human rights.
China is a developing country with a huge population, and also a developing country in a crucial stage of reform. In this context, China
still faces many challenges in economic and social development. And a lot still needs to be done in China, in terms of human rights.
We will continue our efforts to improve the lives of the Chinese people, and we will continue our efforts to promote democracy and the
rule of law in our country. At the same time, we are also willing to continue to have exchanges and dialogue with other countries in
terms of human rights, and we are also willing to learn from each other in terms of the good practices.
As President Obama rightly put it just now, though there are disagreements between China and the United States on the issue of human
rights, China is willing to engage in dialogue and exchanges with the United States on the basis of mutual respect and the principle of non-
interference in each other’s internal affairs. In this way, we’ll be able to further increase our mutual understanding, reduce our
disagreements, and expand our common ground.
Click here to read more »
January 19, 2011
Press Conference with President Obama and President Hu of the People's Republic of China
East Room
1:27 P.M. EST
PRESIDENT HU: (As translated.) First, I would like to clarify, because of the technical translation and interpretation problem, I did not
hear the question about the human rights. What I know was that he was asking a question directed at President Obama. As you raise
this question, and I heard the question properly, certainly I’m in a position to answer that question.
President Obama and I already met eight times. Each time we met, we had an in-depth exchange of views in a candid manner on issues
of shared interest and on issues toward each other’s concerns. And on the issues we have covered, we also discussed human rights.
China is always committed to the protection and promotion of human rights. And in the course of human rights, China has also made
enormous progress, recognized widely in the world.
China recognizes and also respects the universality of human rights. And at the same time, we do believe that we also need to take into
account the different and national circumstances when it comes to the universal value of human rights.
China is a developing country with a huge population, and also a developing country in a crucial stage of reform. In this context, China
still faces many challenges in economic and social development. And a lot still needs to be done in China, in terms of human rights.
We will continue our efforts to improve the lives of the Chinese people, and we will continue our efforts to promote democracy and the
rule of law in our country. At the same time, we are also willing to continue to have exchanges and dialogue with other countries in
terms of human rights, and we are also willing to learn from each other in terms of the good practices.
As President Obama rightly put it just now, though there are disagreements between China and the United States on the issue of human
rights, China is willing to engage in dialogue and exchanges with the United States on the basis of mutual respect and the principle of non-
interference in each other’s internal affairs. In this way, we’ll be able to further increase our mutual understanding, reduce our
disagreements, and expand our common ground.
Click here to read more »
Tibet gov't chief says fight against Dalai Lama lasting and vehement
LHASA, Jan. 10, 2011
Tibet's top government official on Monday said the fight against the Dalai Lama clique is meant to be lasting, intense, complicated, and
sometimes fought vehemently.
"We are still facing an arduous task to fight secessionists and maintain stability in the region," Padma Choling, chairman of the Tibet
Autonomous Region, said in his first government report submitted to the local legislature for review on Monday.
The secessionist forces led by the 14th Dalai Lama were blamed for provoking the deadly riots in Lhasa and other Tibetan regions in
March 2008.
On another subject, Choling said the government's goal in achieving rapid development and long-term stability in Tibet also faces
challenges from lagging infrastructure construction, development gap between urban and rural areas, and lack of a system to ensure
long-term growth of residents' incomes.
Further, Choling noted that the region's economy grew 12.2 percent in 2010. Additionally, incomes for both urban residents and nomads
continued to grow and efforts to tame environmental hazards were strengthened while new roads and airports were built.
The central government has been pouring vast funding, personnel, and resources to assist Tibet's development over the past decades.
Much of these efforts can be seen in the complete makeover of Lhasa and other cities and towns in the region, along with their improved
transport links - including the landmark Qinghai-Tibet Railway which began connecting the region by rail with the rest of the country in
2006.
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LHASA, Jan. 10, 2011
Tibet's top government official on Monday said the fight against the Dalai Lama clique is meant to be lasting, intense, complicated, and
sometimes fought vehemently.
"We are still facing an arduous task to fight secessionists and maintain stability in the region," Padma Choling, chairman of the Tibet
Autonomous Region, said in his first government report submitted to the local legislature for review on Monday.
The secessionist forces led by the 14th Dalai Lama were blamed for provoking the deadly riots in Lhasa and other Tibetan regions in
March 2008.
On another subject, Choling said the government's goal in achieving rapid development and long-term stability in Tibet also faces
challenges from lagging infrastructure construction, development gap between urban and rural areas, and lack of a system to ensure
long-term growth of residents' incomes.
Further, Choling noted that the region's economy grew 12.2 percent in 2010. Additionally, incomes for both urban residents and nomads
continued to grow and efforts to tame environmental hazards were strengthened while new roads and airports were built.
The central government has been pouring vast funding, personnel, and resources to assist Tibet's development over the past decades.
Much of these efforts can be seen in the complete makeover of Lhasa and other cities and towns in the region, along with their improved
transport links - including the landmark Qinghai-Tibet Railway which began connecting the region by rail with the rest of the country in
2006.
Click here to read more »
12 January 2011
Annual Report 2010: Human Rights Situation in Tibet
The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) releases its Annual Report 2010: Human Rights Situation in Tibet. This
90-page report documents violation of right in Tibet in the area of Civil and Political Rights, Religious Freedom, Right to Education and
Right to Subsistence.
Civil and Political Liberties
During 2010, there is no let up by the government of PRC. As of 30 December 2010, there are 831 known political prisoners in Tibet
out of which 360 are known to have been legally convicted by courts and 12 Tibetans are serving life imprisonment term. During the
year, 188 known Tibetans have been arrested and detained, out of which 71 have already been sentenced by the courts. The crackdown
on intellectuals and cultural figures continued to take place this year also. Since 2008, over 60 Tibetan writers, bloggers, intellectuals and
cultural figures have been arrested. The authorities targeted prominent Tibetan figures during the year who were earlier looked upon as
exemplary individuals. On 23 August 2010, the Chinese government made an announcement of reforms being carried out in the
application of death penalty by removing the capital punishment for financial crimes. Although this reform is welcome, it does not have
any significant effect in Tibet. Since spring 2008, nine Tibetans have been sentenced to death with two already having been executed.
The remaining seven are serving death penalty with two years reprieve. This year three Tibetans, Sonam Tsering, Lama Lhaka and
Sodor of Kolu Monastery in Chamdo were given death sentence with two years reprieve. In May this year, China issued new regulations
saying evidence obtained illegally through torture cannot be used in death penalty cases and other criminal prosecutions. China
theoretically banned torture in 1996 but evidence obtained through duress was routinely accepted as the definition of illegal acts was
vague that police used various techniques to work around the ban. In restive regions like Tibet, torture is a regular feature in the
detention centres and prisons. The police use inhumane techniques and torture to present evidence before the courts.
Right to Education
During the year students in Tibet staged protests on several occasions in order to put forward their grievances and concerns over social
and policy issues. March and April 2010 saw a huge number of detentions and expulsions of Tibetan students and teachers from schools
and academic institutions in eastern Tibet. On 19 October 2010, thousands of Tibetan students from six different schools in Rebkong
(Ch: Tongren) County, Malho “Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture” (“TAP”) in Qinghai, took to the streets to protest against the proposed
changes in education system which intends to drastically sideline Tibetan language. The protests later spread to other areas in Tibet and
as far away as in the Minzu (Nationalities) University in Beijing where around 600 Tibetan students on 22 October 2010 demonstrated
for the protection of Tibetan language. The protests were sparked by an order by the Qinghai government that all lessons and textbooks
should be in Chinese language in primary schools by 2015 except Tibetan and English language classes. The government argued that the
proposal of enforcing Mandarin in schools will bring the Tibetan students on par with the other citizens, avail opportunities in the
economic life and integrate into the broader Chinese society. However, the Tibetans have been calling for the preservation of Tibetan
language as an identity of the Tibetan race and the foundation of religion and culture which connects to the wider issue of cultural and
ethnic identity. Unfortunately the authorities see the assertion and promotion of cultural uniqueness and pride as anti-state. The
enforcement of mandarin as the first language will soon be applied across Tibet which will negatively impact the lives of Tibetans
dramatically. China’s laws protect and promote ethnic minority languages, however, the reality suggest otherwise. In light of China’s
constitution, national and international laws, the state of PRC has the responsibility protect the Tibetan language. The proposed change in
the education system by the regional government of Qinghai absolutely contradicts all the legal provisions.
Click here to read more>>
Annual Report 2010: Human Rights Situation in Tibet
The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) releases its Annual Report 2010: Human Rights Situation in Tibet. This
90-page report documents violation of right in Tibet in the area of Civil and Political Rights, Religious Freedom, Right to Education and
Right to Subsistence.
Civil and Political Liberties
During 2010, there is no let up by the government of PRC. As of 30 December 2010, there are 831 known political prisoners in Tibet
out of which 360 are known to have been legally convicted by courts and 12 Tibetans are serving life imprisonment term. During the
year, 188 known Tibetans have been arrested and detained, out of which 71 have already been sentenced by the courts. The crackdown
on intellectuals and cultural figures continued to take place this year also. Since 2008, over 60 Tibetan writers, bloggers, intellectuals and
cultural figures have been arrested. The authorities targeted prominent Tibetan figures during the year who were earlier looked upon as
exemplary individuals. On 23 August 2010, the Chinese government made an announcement of reforms being carried out in the
application of death penalty by removing the capital punishment for financial crimes. Although this reform is welcome, it does not have
any significant effect in Tibet. Since spring 2008, nine Tibetans have been sentenced to death with two already having been executed.
The remaining seven are serving death penalty with two years reprieve. This year three Tibetans, Sonam Tsering, Lama Lhaka and
Sodor of Kolu Monastery in Chamdo were given death sentence with two years reprieve. In May this year, China issued new regulations
saying evidence obtained illegally through torture cannot be used in death penalty cases and other criminal prosecutions. China
theoretically banned torture in 1996 but evidence obtained through duress was routinely accepted as the definition of illegal acts was
vague that police used various techniques to work around the ban. In restive regions like Tibet, torture is a regular feature in the
detention centres and prisons. The police use inhumane techniques and torture to present evidence before the courts.
Right to Education
During the year students in Tibet staged protests on several occasions in order to put forward their grievances and concerns over social
and policy issues. March and April 2010 saw a huge number of detentions and expulsions of Tibetan students and teachers from schools
and academic institutions in eastern Tibet. On 19 October 2010, thousands of Tibetan students from six different schools in Rebkong
(Ch: Tongren) County, Malho “Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture” (“TAP”) in Qinghai, took to the streets to protest against the proposed
changes in education system which intends to drastically sideline Tibetan language. The protests later spread to other areas in Tibet and
as far away as in the Minzu (Nationalities) University in Beijing where around 600 Tibetan students on 22 October 2010 demonstrated
for the protection of Tibetan language. The protests were sparked by an order by the Qinghai government that all lessons and textbooks
should be in Chinese language in primary schools by 2015 except Tibetan and English language classes. The government argued that the
proposal of enforcing Mandarin in schools will bring the Tibetan students on par with the other citizens, avail opportunities in the
economic life and integrate into the broader Chinese society. However, the Tibetans have been calling for the preservation of Tibetan
language as an identity of the Tibetan race and the foundation of religion and culture which connects to the wider issue of cultural and
ethnic identity. Unfortunately the authorities see the assertion and promotion of cultural uniqueness and pride as anti-state. The
enforcement of mandarin as the first language will soon be applied across Tibet which will negatively impact the lives of Tibetans
dramatically. China’s laws protect and promote ethnic minority languages, however, the reality suggest otherwise. In light of China’s
constitution, national and international laws, the state of PRC has the responsibility protect the Tibetan language. The proposed change in
the education system by the regional government of Qinghai absolutely contradicts all the legal provisions.
Click here to read more>>
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Hu Jintao
President since 15 March 2003
President since 15 March 2003
| TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS |
Current situation: China is a source, transit, and destination country for men, women, and children trafficked for the purposes of
sexual exploitation and forced labor; the majority of trafficking in China occurs within the country's borders, but there is also
considerable international trafficking of Chinese citizens to Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, and North
America; Chinese women are lured abroad through false promises of legitimate employment, only to be forced into commercial
sexual exploitation, largely in Taiwan, Thailand, Malaysia, and Japan; women and children are trafficked to China from Mongolia,
Burma, North Korea, Russia, and Vietnam for forced labor, marriage, and prostitution; some North Korean women and children
seeking to leave their country voluntarily cross the border into China and are then sold into prostitution, marriage, or forced labor
Tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List - China is on the Tier 2 Watch List for the fourth consecutive year for its failure to provide evidence
of increasing efforts to combat human trafficking, particularly in terms of punishment of trafficking crimes and the protection of
Chinese and foreign victims of trafficking; victims are sometimes punished for unlawful acts that were committed as a direct result of
their being trafficked, such as violations of prostitution or immigration/emigration controls; the Chinese Government continued to
treat North Korean victims of trafficking solely as economic migrants, routinely deporting them back to horrendous conditions in
North Korea; additional challenges facing the Chinese Government include the enormous size of its trafficking problem and the
significant level of corruption and complicity in trafficking by some local government officials (2008)
sexual exploitation and forced labor; the majority of trafficking in China occurs within the country's borders, but there is also
considerable international trafficking of Chinese citizens to Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, and North
America; Chinese women are lured abroad through false promises of legitimate employment, only to be forced into commercial
sexual exploitation, largely in Taiwan, Thailand, Malaysia, and Japan; women and children are trafficked to China from Mongolia,
Burma, North Korea, Russia, and Vietnam for forced labor, marriage, and prostitution; some North Korean women and children
seeking to leave their country voluntarily cross the border into China and are then sold into prostitution, marriage, or forced labor
Tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List - China is on the Tier 2 Watch List for the fourth consecutive year for its failure to provide evidence
of increasing efforts to combat human trafficking, particularly in terms of punishment of trafficking crimes and the protection of
Chinese and foreign victims of trafficking; victims are sometimes punished for unlawful acts that were committed as a direct result of
their being trafficked, such as violations of prostitution or immigration/emigration controls; the Chinese Government continued to
treat North Korean victims of trafficking solely as economic migrants, routinely deporting them back to horrendous conditions in
North Korea; additional challenges facing the Chinese Government include the enormous size of its trafficking problem and the
significant level of corruption and complicity in trafficking by some local government officials (2008)
Li Keqiang, Hui Liangyu, Zhang Deijiang and Wang Qishan
Executive Vice Premier and Vice Premiers since 17 March 2008
Executive Vice Premier and Vice Premiers since 17 March 2008
Xi Jinping
Vice President since 15 March 2008
Vice President since 15 March 2008
