The report cited what it called "the authorities' intolerance of dissent, fear of unrest and the continuing absence of laws protecting basic freedoms." The result, it said, was that "All public dissent against party and government was effectively silenced by intimidation, exile or the imposition of prison terms, administrative detention or house arrest."
This damning assessment can't help but complicate the administration's fence-mending efforts, undertaken after relations with Beijing plummeted. This followed the decision to send two aircraft carriers to Taiwan in response to China's attempts to intimidate Taiwan's voters in the presidential election last March. The fact that the report is undeniably true won't make it any more palatable to the Communist mandarins whom Washington is trying to mollify.
The newly installed secretary of state, Madeleine Albright, has said she will pursue a policy of inclusion toward China and does not want to hold the overall relationship hostage to one issue. That was also the policy in Clinton's first term after the president wisely retreated from his early threat to repeal China's most-favored-nation trade status.
There is no question that China's human rights record is deplorable, but antagonizing the Communist leadership by taking a hard line on the issue could backfire. China is an emerging power in both economic and military terms and the United States does not want to make it an enemy.
Finding the proper balance between appeasement and confrontation in dealing with this unabashedly repressive regime is a difficult task. The main value of the State Department assessment is to point out just how difficult that task will be.
The debate before the City Council has more to do with politics than science or public health. The fact that most voters don't smoke or own restaurants is what propels this overzealous legislation. Being in the minority can be very hazardous.
Waivers may be justified in some cases, but the current law goes too far and should be revised if not repealed altogether.
Rupert E. Phillips, CEO
John M. Flanagan, Editor & Publisher
David Shapiro, Managing Editor
Diane Yukihiro Chang, Senior Editor & Editorial Page Editor
Frank Bridgewater & Michael Rovner, Assistant Managing Editors
A.A. Smyser, Contributing Editor