August 19, 1997
A Timely Message to China
American diplomatic design and the luck of Beijing's political calendar have given Washington its best chance in years to press for constructive change in Chinese policies at home and abroad.
The Clinton Administration has invited President Jiang Zemin to visit Washington in late October, enhancing his prestige at the very moment Chinese leaders are sorting out the succession to the late Deng Xiaoping. As that visit approaches, Mr. Jiang is eager to assure a harmonious meeting with President Clinton and to mute Congressional and public criticism over China's abuses of human rights and religious freedom.
Mr. Jiang's concerns give America the kind of leverage it has not enjoyed since Mr. Clinton abandoned his abortive early attempt to link China's trade status to progress on human rights. The Administration should make the most of this new opportunity, presenting Mr. Jiang and other Chinese leaders with a list of realistic and consistent steps Beijing could take to improve relations and avoid the repeated crises of recent years.
Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and Mr. Clinton's national security adviser, Samuel Berger, have already made a good start. Mr. Berger met Mr. Jiang in Beijing last week and suggested ways that China can contribute to a successful summit meeting. These include releasing jailed democracy advocates like Wei Jingsheng and Wang Dan, allowing Red Cross visits to Chinese prisons and inviting American religious leaders to visit China. Last month Ms. Albright reminded her Chinese counterpart of the importance Washington attaches to restraining Chinese nuclear exports, especially to Iran and Pakistan.
Improving relations also depends on wise American conduct. But most of the recent problems have resulted from provocative Chinese behavior. Although China is becoming an increasingly important economic and military power, its Government remains hypersensitive about its standing in world affairs and responds belligerently to perceived slights. Beijing particularly worries that Washington is trying to contain Chinese power.
On the contrary, the Clinton Administration until recently acted as if maintaining good relations required Washington to ignore Chinese human rights abuses and dangerous weapons transfers.
Both sides now appear to be learning from past mistakes. Mr. Jiang knows that he is considered inexperienced in foreign affairs and that he could burnish his reputation by leading the way to less acrimonious relations with Washington. The Clinton Administration now seems to recognize that trade, human rights and restraining the spread of nuclear and missile technology need not be conflicting objectives. Rather, Washington's ability to expand American economic relations with China is directly related to how well Beijing respects its treaty commitments abroad and the rule of law at home.
Beyond the immediate political calculations in Beijing, this is a particularly appropriate moment for Washington to take a more active stance on human rights issues in China. The Chinese political system is plainly evolving from a Leninist totalitarianism that tried to control all aspects of human life toward a dictatorship more narrowly focused on political repression.
As economic reform progresses, social controls on ordinary people tend to diminish, even as the regime tightens its grip on political dissent.
American policy should be aimed at consolidating these gains while encouraging the Chinese to extend them to the political sphere as well.
Copyright 1997 The New York Times Company
