No more appeasement, West must push China to democracy!
Peter Terpstra
No more appeasement, West must push China to democracy!
The West made a strategic error in adopting different approaches to the Soviet
Union and communist China. Ronald Reagan identified the Soviet Union as an
evil empire and accelerated the arms race with the Star Wars program, thus
bogging down the Soviet Union's fragile economy, which led to its eventual
defeat. At that time, China was still played as the "China card" to reinforce
US strength against the "evil empire".
The West assumed China was developing into a friendly economy and dropped its
guard. This was a big mistake.
China has the same capacity as the Soviet Union did to become a formidable foe
of Western democracies. China has been allowed to strengthen its power in a
clandestine way under the guise of a "peaceful rise". Its power has
infiltrated the world and is now much more difficult to address.
For Bill Clinton, China was a "strategic partner". For George Bush it has been
a "strategic competitor". I believe both of these classifications are wrong.
China is, ideologically, diametrically opposed to democracy.
International economies are swarming to China to compete for its huge market
and their governments are rushing to appease the repressive Chinese leadership
- all for the price of a trade dollar. Those eager to do business in China may
believe the country is changing and their trade and investment are helping to
bring political liberalisation.
But as the Olympic Games in Beijing approach, China has jailed two human
rights activists, Hu Jia and Yang Chunlin, and suppressed the peaceful protest
of monks in Tibet by force.
China retains the repressive, undemocratic nature of a one-party political
system, and this situation needs to be re-evaluated as a potential threat to
international stability and security. Western democracies, headed by the US,
must create a sound global vision, identify their objectives for the coming
century and develop a strategy to prevent the unexpected happening.
What will the world face once China has completed its "peaceful rise"?
China will have become an important world economic and military power, and it
will still operate as an unaccountable repressive regime that does not respect
human rights and democratic values.
Using the 1988 Seoul Olympics as a model, the International Olympic Committee
awarded China this year's Olympic Games, giving it a chance to improve itself.
The 1988 Games were regarded as the impetus for South Korea to take its first
step on the road to democracy. But South Korea is not China.
South Korea was responsive to international political pressure, and it has
advanced accordingly. China is obstinate and resilient to international
criticism, and does not relent in its uncompromising policies.
China's Olympic bid was also politically motivated, allowing it to cement its
reputation as an emerging economic and political powerhouse and to showcase
Beijing as a world-class capital city. At home, the Communist government can
point to this international recognition to legitimise the regime.
The belief that China would become more open once the Olympics had been
awarded was wishful thinking. There was no substantial evidence to support
this assumption. The Olympics is not moving the country to greater political
liberalisation; rather, it is allowing it to hold political power in its grip.
To date there has been very little meaningful, constructive international
pressure on China to address its problems, due to the lure of the trade
dollar.
The Cold War has gone, but the battle between democracy and autocracy is far
from over. It is essential democratic leaders act with courage and moral
conscience when they make decisions that have global ramifications. It is also
essential the public votes with a strong moral conscience to ensure the
accountability of their leaders.
It is worth remembering the appeasement adopted by Neville Chamberlain and
Edouard Daladier, which resulted in the tragedy of World War II. Their silent
consent to the Nazis provided a short-term remedy but led to a long-term
catastrophe.
We must leave no stone unturned in pushing China to become a multi-party
democracy. It is time to call for an end to the West conveniently overlooking
China's human rights abuses and opposition to democracy. It is time to act
against a permanently communist China before it is too late.
About the Author
Chin Jin is an M.A. graduate of the University of Western Sydney and Chair of
the Federation For A Democratic China, Australia.
http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=7396&page=2
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Amnesty International Report 2009 on China:
http://report2009.amnesty.org/en/regions/asia-pacific/china