As
I read that a well-known Chinese lawyer has been sentenced to 12 years – yes,
12 years – in jail because of some spurious accusation about fraud, I recalled
my words of last week to my students. Basically, I emphasised then, in my
seminar on peace and security, that human rights should always be a top
priority in any political dialogue. I even said that in many cases they should
be the entry point for a meaningful discussion.
Some
people in the audience challenged my approach. Their argument was that it is
sometimes very difficult to raise the issue when facing some tough governments.
And they mentioned the Chinese, among others.
Well,
not really. The leaders in Beijing might not like it. But the country has signed
the Universal Convention on Human Rights. They might not fully respect it
today. But that should not prevent us from calling their attention to the
Convention and its principles, and also from expressing our dismay for its blatant,
and repeated, violations.
No comments:
Post a Comment