Sponsored by the Open Society Institute and Human Rights in China
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BACKGROUND
In April 2001, Human Rights in China convened a meeting, funded by the Open Society Institute, to try to generate innovative strategies for outside actors concerned with improving the human rights situation in China.
The meeting was motivated by the conviction that the human rights situation in China is worsening and the influence of outside actors – governments, NGOs, multilateral institutions, and others – is diminishing. China has blocked diplomatic initiatives, co-opted the “dialogue process,” isolated human rights NGOs from the mainstream of China policy making, and set Western business communities against human rights NGOs. It has turned much of domestic Chinese opinion against the international human rights movement. It has made individual political prisoners into hostages for exchange, without altering its overall strategy of repression. China’s ideological and public information strategies have made news of human rights abuses routine or marginal in the international media while continuing to suppress such information in the domestic press, creating the widespread perception that the human rights situation is better. For an analysis of China’s human rights situation and strategies, see Appendix A.
The international human rights movement faces a difficult challenge in China, and needs to explore new strategies. To start this process, the study group met in New York on April 26-27, 2001. It consisted of 25 individuals with diverse perspectives and types of expertise. The group’s mandate was to consider strategies that were innovative and that might be of interest to the broadest community of relevant actors. A steering group of six persons discussed the proceedings of that meeting over the course of several weeks and refined its suggestions to create this report. For a list of participants, see Appendix B.
The report is not a consensus recommendation, but instead represents the ideas that the steering committee drew from the discussion. It consists of ideas for new strategies and projects, some using traditional methods of human rights work, some involving innovative approaches, which we offer for the consideration of all interested groups and individuals, to develop and use in whatever way they see fit. The projects are not presented here as proposals for funding; such proposals might be developed after further refinement by HRIC or other organizations that want to conduct the work.
In suggesting new strategies, we do not mean to imply that existing strategies should be abandoned. On the contrary, our recommendations are based on the premise that the existing approaches of human rights groups working on China will continue.
STRATEGY OBJECTIVES:
1) To address issues that affect large social groups of ordinary Chinese people in their daily lives.
2) To promote growing rights consciousness in Chinese society.
3) To build institutions that protect human rights.
4) To exploit the twin opportunities of China’s opening and the development of information/communication technologies.
5) To focus on human rights goals that the Chinese government has set for itself in its laws or through its ratification of international treaties.
6) To work both within Chinese society and from outside.
7) To engage with China but maintain pressure.
STRATEGIES:
The eleven strategy suggestions cluster into four groups:
Group A: Putting human rights back into development
1. Defending the most neglected: rights of rural residents
2. Labor rights: Subcontracting, corporate responsibility, and socially responsible investing
Group B: Institutionalizing accountability
3. Ending the extra-legal punishment system of “Administrative Detention”
4. Ending impunity, seeking accountability
5. International support for prisoner of conscience legal defense
Group C: Promoting a culture of rights
6. Online human rights resource center
7. Independent human rights monitoring in the PRC: the HRIC Office in Hong Kong
8. Chinese in diaspora coalition-building project
Group D: Strengthening international scrutiny
9. Monitoring engagement
10. Using standing bodies
11. Tapping into Asian solidarity
