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PM should raise human rights concerns with China

• Published on 5/09/2007
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This week's 15th APEC Economic Leaders Summit provides a unique opportunity to pursue significant human rights matters with key States. Protection and promotion of human rights is central to economic and trade development, facilitating more open and transparent laws and financial systems, addressing corruption and promoting stability and security.

Amnesty International Australia has written to the Prime Minister to highlight several human rights issues of key concern in China, which we hope will be pursued during scheduled meetings with President Hu Jintao.

The letter

Amnesty International Australia encourages you to ulitise Australia's mature bilateral relationships with key APEC members during the Summit, particularly in meetings with Chinese President Hu Jintao.

These include:

Internet Censorship

The Chinese Governments system of internet censorship amounts to repression and breaches ''Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights', which provides for freedom of expression and opinion. The Chinese Government staff monitor individual citizen's internet usage, shut down blogs and block certain websites. New legislation requires users of internet cafes to register with their full name and cafes themselves are known to utilise further firewall software in fear of being closed down by authorities. Banned sites and search terms are not made public and peer censorship is encouraged. The Chinese Government's system is assisted by international technology companies; Google, Microsoft and Yahoo! who have agreed to a 'pledge' which outlines how they will operate in China.

People's ability to discuss their rights, share experiences of human rights abuse or to join religious, ethnic, democratic or spiritual networks or groups or chat rooms online is prohibited through the mutli-layered censorship system imposed by the Chinese Government. Restrictions extend to Chinese media and journalists who are not permitted to post articles on the internet relating to the above mentioned areas. Those who attempt to breach censorship laws have been subjected to extreme surveillance, jail and torture.

Laws restrict the media and access to information online is limited. Foreign media outlets are censored, domestic journalists encounter restrictions. Supporters of human rights, democracy, religious groups and ethnic minorities are silenced or fearful of expressing their opinions.

Amnesty International Australia encourages you to highlight human rights concerns regarding internet censorship in China highlight the need for fair trials and humane treatment of "cyber dissidents" accused of breaching censorship laws.

Death Penalty

In our view, acknowledgment and support for China's official statements citing their end goal of complete abolition of the death penalty from the highest offices of the Australian Government would be of great benefit.

Reforms recently implemented in January 2007 requiring the Supreme People's Court of China to review all cases where the death penalty applies are positive. However the implementation and practice of this reform remain questionable due to the lack of transparent reporting to assess the full impact of the reforms. Amnesty International Australia kindly requests your encouragement of transparent reporting to assess whether reforms are being applied in all provinces and also what level (if any) of legal representation is being permitted at the review stage.

Furthermore to keep in line with China's end goal of complete abolition of the death penalty China must reduce the number of crimes to which the death penalty applies. Non-violent crimes, including economic and drug-related offences are amongst those that should be removed from the present list of 68 crimes to which the death penalty applies.

Reeducation Through Labour

The substantial reform or abolition of re-education through labour (RTL) system has been on the legislative agenda of the National People's Congress for many years. Amnesty International Australia would welcome prompt implementation of reforms (leading to abolition) of this system and encourages Australia to raise this with China through the upcoming APEC meetings. Particular concerns over the RTL system relate to detention without charge (at police discretion), lack of judicial involvement in sentence or review, the reported conditions in the RTL 'camps' and the lack of transparency associated with the system.

It is of particular concern that, in a time when the Chinese Government's commitment to human rights is meant to be improving (based on China's own promises during the 2001 bid to host the 2008 Olympic Games), RTL's and other forms of administrative detention appear to be used to a greater extent than previously. We kindly encourage you to acknowledge China's agenda of substantial reform with President Hu Jintao and encourage progression of this agenda.

On behalf of Amnesty International Australia, I wish you a productive and successful APEC meeting in which key global challenges including human rights are addressed.

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