SECTION C—International Issues - PowerPoint Presentation

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SECTION C—International IssuesSTUDY THEME 3B: THE PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA

3__Human Rights Issues, reform and impactSlide2

Learning Intentions:Understand Human Rights abuses in China.

Give examples of abuse.Give examples of government’s responses on human rights issues.Slide3

Religion: Falun Gong

Falun Gong is a controversial Chinese Qigong (chi kung) practice which is supposed to improve the mind, body and spirit. Its leaders claim that they are a peaceful law-abiding group. The government of China is concerned by the group’s ability to organise groups of people and claims that it is an “evil” cult that deceives people. Whether this is true or not has been the subject of much debate.

In 1998 the Chinese government said on state-owned TV that the number of practicing Falun Gong members was about 70-100 million. Falun Gong has been persecuted in mainland China since July 1999. Some argue that this happened because the number of practising members in China grew to a larger number than the membership of the Communist Party of China. However, others argue that groups similar to Falun Gong have suffered less or little persecution.

In January 2001 some people, including a 13 year old boy, who claimed to be Falun Gong members doused themselves in petrol and set fire to themselves in Tiananmen Square in protest at the government persecuting the group. Since killing is against what the group believes some people think they were not from the movement at all but was an attempt by the Chinese government and media to discredit the group. Whether this is true or not the incident helped turn public opinion against the group and Falun Gong is no longer an influential force in mainland China. However outside of China there are still many believers.

Video

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=1q1CIxCrkRsSlide4

Activities:

What

is the movement?

Why was the government concerned by it?

How do the Chinese government and Falun Gong supporters differ on what the movement is?

What happened in January 2001 and what has been the result in terms of support for the movement?

Explain why Falun Gong can be used as an example of China breaching people’s human rights.Slide5

IMPACT ON RELIGION

In

general unregistered religious groups continued to experience varying degrees of official interference, harassment, and repression. Members of some unregistered religious groups, including Protestant and Catholic groups, were subjected to increased restrictions, including, in some cases, intimidation, harassment, and detention; however, the degree of restrictions varied significantly from region to region.

In some localities, "underground" religious leaders reported increased pressure either to register with the Religious Affairs Bureau (RAB) and to be affiliated with and supervised by official party organizations linked to the legally recognized churches or to close their facilities. While four religions are officially recognised - Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, Christianity (Protestantism & Catholicism)--these are only allowed to organise under the control and scrutiny of the authorities. For example, Catholicism in China exists in the form of the Patriotic Catholic Church of China, which is not united with Rome and its Bishops are chosen by Beijing and not by the Pope. Members of the Roman Catholic Church in China are heavily persecuted, as are members of any other church not among those recognised by the state. In July 2003, more than a dozen house churches were reportedly destroyed and at least 300 Christians arrested, some were reportedly ill-treated and beaten.Slide6

Create 5 heads & tails statements using the previous information.Slide7

Summary of Religious issues…

Not allowed to worship a religion which does not pledge loyalty to the Communist Party (the Chinese Catholic Church, is not recognised by the Pope.)

Followers of Falun Gong are place in mental institutions or sentence to hard labour (re-education camps called

Laogai

.)

Religious freedom and freedom of speech is actually guaranteed in the constitution – though not always upheld.

The government claims that they are protecting the state and its people – Falun Gong is an evil cult.The Chinese constitution does guarantee freedom of religious belief, but the government keeps a very close check on religious activities. The government only allows religious freedom for members of religious groups which are recognised by the government. There are four groups which are given permission by the Chinese Communist Party to practice their religion; Buddhism, Islam, Christianity and Taoism. Anyone who practises their religion outside these four groups is considered by the government to be a threat to the security and stability of China.

Falun Gong is just one religious group that is targeted by the government, who see their faith as a threat to communism

.

Use the above information to add to your mind map of ChinaSlide8

Using the previous slides what issues are there in china with regards to religion and what improvements or things that could be used as balancing points in an essaySlide9

Further Reading : China Daily MailSlide10

Muslim population and Xinjiang

The area of Xinjiang has a mainly Muslim population but migration of ethnic Chinese (Han) is encouraged and they now form half of the population. Following 11 September, President Jiang been expressing full support for President Bush's coalition against terror.

China's Communist rulers have their own motives for supporting America in its fight against the Taleban. For years Beijing has been fighting its own, little-publicized conflict with Muslim separatists in its far western province of

Xianjiang

. The people of

Xianjiang are called Uighurs. They are closely related to the Uzbeks and other Turkic-speaking peoples of Central Asia. With their bright green eyes, long flowing beards and aquiline features they have little in common with - and little affection for - their Chinese masters.  Since 11 September, China has officially labelled its fight against Uighur separatism as a fight against terrorists - no different, it says, from America's fight against the Al Qaeda. While some think that some of these people are terrorists there is some evidence that human rights abuses are being committed against the people in the area. There is growing evidence that arrests of those merely suspected of political dissent in Xinjiang have been dramatically stepped up.

Create a

factfile

of the Uighurs.Slide11

Video 1 http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=iBnv-bKUbe8

Video 2

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=UzmmB0qRkMY&feature=related

Video 3

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=An44rq9Z0C4Slide12

Activities:

Explain the population make-up of Xinjiang

What has happened to Muslim communities in China since 9/11?

What are Uighurs and why is the Chinese government worried about them?

Why do some people say that the fight on terror by the Chinese government in the Xinjiang area is really being used as an excuse to persecute the people?Slide13

Question:

Under the prevailing condition and present circumstances now in Xinjiang, can China blame the Uighur people who they forced to the wall, if these people will fight back using all means available at their disposal?Who

are those “terrorists” in the eyes of China

?

Answer

:

They are the Uighur people who: either want an equal right with the Chinese (Han) majority, or who want to separate from China. Historically, in Xinjiang, the majority of the population are the Uighur, but as reported by Nathan VandelKlippe, “In remote Xinjiang province, Uighurs are under siege,” The Globe and Mail, August 15th:“Their home territory has, however, experienced tremendous change since the Communist Revolution in 1949. Briefly an independent state in the early 20th century, Xinjiang has in the past few decades become home to vast numbers of ethnic Chinese, many of them sent there by government settlement policies. “They now outnumber the Uighurs, and continue to arrive, drawn by

space

and the jobs that flow from a land rich in resources

. “

But the wealth hasn’t necessarily benefited the Uighur population. As the region’s oil and gas flows east, local filling stations routinely run short, with

line-ups

150 cars long

.” “

Xinjiang accounts for 28 per cent of China’s natural-gas

reserves. “

And for all the jobs that development has brought, the region has China’s highest rate of unemployed college graduates – 80 per cent of them minorities, many of them Muslim. Job postings sometimes demand Han Chinese outright. A former manager at a large Western company in Urumqi says that, of 400 employees, only 10 were Uighur

.”

The Xinjiang territory is important to the government because…

The Uighur people are frustrated because of…Slide14

Ilham

TohtiSlide15

Further Reading: Scotsman, Death Penalty and Uighurs

A prominent Uighur academic charged with separatism rejected evidence presented by Chinese prosecutors

on

the first day of a trial that has drawn criticism from international judicial and human rights activists

.

Authorities in China’s western Xinjiang region say

Ilham Tohti, an economics professor who championed the rights of the region’s Muslim Uighur people, had promoted its independence. He could face the death penalty if found guilty. Tohti’s case is seen as part of a government crackdown on dissent in Xinjiang, where tension between Uighurs and majority Han Chinese has led to violence.The United States and the European Union have called for

Tohti’s

release. His lawyers have also decried judicial abuses and mistreatment, from

Tohti

being incommunicado in detention to the withholding of food for more than a week at a time

.

China has said extremist groups in bordering south and central Asian countries are spurring the violence in Xinjiang and around China, though the government has produced little evidence of

this. Activists

counter that the government’s repressive policies, including controls on Islam, have provoked unrest, pitting Uighurs against China’s ethnic Han majority.Slide16

Video: Dalai Lama's New Year Message 2014Slide17

Case Study: Tibet

Tibet, officially, is a part of China. The Chinese Government claims that historically Tibet has been a part of China since the mid 13th century. The Tibetans dispute this and say that they were an independent country with the Dalai Lama as their spiritual leader. China sent troops into Tibet in 1951 to end Tibetan independence.

Countries who occupy another country often use the tactic, of plantation. Instead of maintaining a permanent occupying army, with all the human and monetary costs involved, it is far more effective to "plant" people from the occupying country into the occupied country. In other words have spies living in the country who are loyal to the occupying country. The recent protests against the Chinese government in Tibet were directed at China's "planted" communities; the Han Chinese and the

Hui

Muslims.

These two communities have settled in Tibet since the 1950s and benefit far more from the modernisation China has brought than the Tibetans do. The Huis have control of the meat trade and other commercial sectors. In other parts of Tibet, the Han Chinese own most of the businesses. China was reluctant to quash the Tibetan rebellions with brute force.

In the

run up to the Olympics

the government flooded

the streets with troops in the hope that intimidation would calm the angry protestors. It did, but riots spread to other parts of China, such as Gansu, Qinghai and Sichuan which have significant numbers of Tibetans. The result has been worldwide condemnation of China and increased sympathy for the Tibetans and their leader in exile, the Dalai Lama. The CCP claims that the Dalai Lama, exiled in

Dharamsala

, India, since 1959 is behind these protests.

China is afraid to make concessions to Tibetans in case this leads to demands for independence and democracy from others, such as Taiwan, in other regions of China. Instead of negotiating with the Dalai Lama, China's strategy appears to be one of simply waiting till he dies, in the hope that his successor will be less popular.

It also hopes that modernisation, jobs and prosperity, the new Tibet/China railway being a classic example, will persuade sufficient Tibetans that ties with China are preferable to being a separate country. Tibetan activists claim though that the railway has assisted Han immigration to Tibet, and is further threatening the Tibetan way of life.

Video: Huffington Post: Tribute to TibetSlide18

Heads

1. The Chinese Government claims that historically Tibet has been a part of

China…

2. The Chinese government is using the tactic of ‘plantation’…

3. The planted communities in Tibet are…

4. The Han Chinese and the

Hui Muslims…5. The CCP claims…6. China is afraid to make concessions to

Tibetans…

Tails

…

the Dalai Lama, exiled in

Dharamsala

, India, since 1959 is behind these protests.

…in case this leads to demands for independence and democracy from others, such as Taiwan, in other regions of China.

…

have benefited

far more from the

modernisation, they control

the meat trade and other commercial

sectors.

…this means they have spies living in the country who are loyal to the occupying country.

…since the mid 13th century

.

…the Han Chinese and the

Hui

Muslims.Slide19

There have been more than 100 self-immolations by Tibetan monks to protest China's disallowance of their culture.Slide20

Amnesty releases anti-spying program for activists

Amnesty International has released a program that can spot spying software used by governments to monitor activists and political opponents. Many repressive governments had been using spying software for some time and the programs were becoming increasingly popular with democratically elected governments too. Spying software has been found on the computers of activists in Bahrain, Syria, Ethiopia, Vietnam, Germany,

Tibet

, North Korea and many other nations. Slide21

Similarities and Comparisons

What similarities are there between Tibet and Xinjian

provinces?Slide22

Hong Kong 2014

The unrest is a consequence of Hong Kong's unique historical position - a territory on Communist China's soil, but a global and connected city where many believe direct democracy is the only fair system of government.

1997

the Union Flag was lowered in Hong Kong, marking the end of 150 years of British colonial rule.

Negotiations

between Britain and China left Hong Kong

the Basic Law, a de facto constitution that ensured the territory would be run under the principle of "one country two systems" until 2047. It would retain its capitalist system and preserve rights and freedoms mainland Chinese citizens did not have. Pro-democracy demonstrations have paralysed parts of Hong Kong since the end of September, amid a row about how the city's leader should be elected. Elections are due in 2017 - but the Chinese government has issued a ruling limiting who can stand as a candidate, which has angered activists who want full

democracy. China

has warned other countries not to support what it calls "illegal rallies".Slide23

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-29037654

Video: CNN - Introduction to Protests in Hong Kong

Video: CNN - Hong Kong ProtestsSlide24

POSITION OF WOMEN IN CHINA

As the status of women in China's major cities is improving, their counterparts in the countryside still have to eat in the kitchen when guests arrive, even if the visitors are their own friends. "For example, when it comes to social drinking, male officials who get drunk at the dinner table are praised for their honesty and integrity. But women officials who drink too much are criticised for their lack of self-discipline."

One popular cliché is that women are inferior to men because the overall quality of their education and lifestyles is low. The position of women in relation to human rights abuses is significant. Under the One Child Policy when it was rigorously applied women often became victims of the state. If they broke the law and had more than one child they were at risk of a forced abortion and forced sterilization. Many women died or suffered long term health problems as a result of the surgeries which were often performed in unsanitary conditions. Today the One Child Policy still exists, but it is illegal to forcibly sterilize or abort a woman’s baby. The policy has been relaxed somewhat, and usually wealthy people just pay the fine and have a second child.

Chen

Guangcheng, a blind activist known as the "barefoot lawyer", clashed with the authorities over the enforcement of China's one-child policy. He defended women whom he said were being forced into late-term abortions and being sterilised by over-zealous health officials in

Linyi

city, Shandong Province. He was freed in 2010 after serving four years in jail on charges of damaging property and disrupting traffic. The sentence drew international criticism, with campaigners and supporters claiming that the prosecution was politically motivated. Mr Chen has not spoken publicly since his reported release.Slide25

13. Chan Laiwa, Fu Wah International Group, $6.1 billion

Chan’s

Fu

Wah

International Group is one of Beijing’ s most prominent real estate owners, with properties including the Regent Beijing,

Jinbao

Tower and the Beijing Hong Kong Jockey Club. Slide26

Add issues and balancing points onto Human rights – Women - section of Mind MapSlide27

Reflect

In blue in your jotter summarise the key issues raised in this lesson cycle – where are the areas of human rights abuse and what has the governments response been.