“Human Rights in China” by Samitha
Hettige, PhD at the Asia Progressive Forum of the Communist Party of Sri Lanka.
(2022 March 21 Waters Edge, Colombo).
On the 65th Anniversary of China – Sri
Lanka Diplomatic Relations.
The Right to Life in China is recalled in the word Rénkǒu for
“population” written in Chinese.
The word reminded the emperor on 'how
many mouths have to be fed'.
The word became Jinkō in Japanese, for
the Japanese Language is based on Chinese characters.
The Peoples Republic of China was
established in 1949, on October 01. Famine was the main reason for the
revolution. By 1951, the PRC had a rice surplus. In 1952, Sri Lanka too was
facing a crisis.
2022 is the 70th anniversary of the
Rubber Rice Pact (RRP). The Communist Party of Sri Lanka played a key
role in pushing the UNP Dudley Senanayaka government to sign the RRP.
To this date China had helped us to
fight famine while protecting its own 1.5 billion population.
Chinese civilization has grown rice for
more than 10,000 years. In 1973, the
PRC invented the first hybrid rice (Yuan Lingping is called the founder of
hybrid rice).
By 2020, China harvested more than
500KG per hectare using their fertilizer. China is still helping us to fight
famine.
History says that during 1970-77,
certain persons instigated by certain colonial powers, ensured that sand is
mixed to the rice which was imported to Sri Lanka at the harbour to create
conflict.
The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor
(CPEC) is being built to extend the 21st Century Silk Road (The Belt and Road
Initiative), from western China to the Indian Ocean.
It will raise the Pakistani masses
above poverty level. Prime Minister Imran Khan refers to China as an
All-Weather Friend.
Now we hear that his life is in danger.
The CPEC was used to deliver much
needed fertilizer to the suffering Afghan farmers, after the USA left the
country freezing its forex assets.
A good friend is one who walks in when
the rest of the world walks out – Chinese Proverb
The Right to Work has a long history in China.
In the 2nd Century B.C., a competitive
examination was held to recruit officers to the imperial service.
Candidates answered a question paper
with questions on nine subjects based on the teachings of Confucius. China had
paper and ink by that time. Answer Scripts were rewritten by another
person to prevent examiners recognizing the candidate from hand writing.
The Communist Party of China was established on 23rd July 1921. Its first centenary
goal was to eradicate poverty in China. By 2020, independent evaluators outside
of the Chinese government proved that all provinces in China have been raised
above the poverty line.
China has managed to raise approx. 100
million persons above the poverty line to reach this goal, within 7 years.
China is one of the few countries where
forest cover has increased during the passed decade.
They used those living below the
poverty line, as “Rangers”.
This gave them employment, protected
forests and gave clean air to the world at large.
China is a member of the “Paris
Agreement” which has more than 200 members. The USA is the only country which
left it in 2020, since the Paris Agreement conditions were blocking the US coal
industry making profits.
China gave us the Port City. It was suspended for a few years after 2015.
You may know people who lost employment
due to that suspension?
The Right to Health – The BRI network supported most countries with
medical supplies during the COVID pandemic.
Chinese trains carrying medical
supplies were called “Metal Camels”. China protected its citizens and humans in
most countries through donating vaccines. That helped us to re start our
lives.
Human
Rights in Tibet:
When the Indian Army took control of
Goa from the Portuguese and Pondicherry from France: not many were worried
about human rights.
In 1959, the PLA moved into Tibet and
some are still worried about human rights.
Democracy or socialism was known in
Tibet before the 1960s. After 62 years, democratic reforms have added
value to more than 3.5 million Tibetans.
It has taken them out of feudal
political oppression and poverty. On average the Tibetans have an average
of 10 years schooling. Before transformation education was a luxury to children
of the slaves. Most living in remote areas has moved into new housing
units made of concrete which withstand the rough weather conditions of that
region.
In 1959, the average life expectancy
was 35 years it is 71 years at present.
In Tibet green coverage increased by
47%. The GDP grew from 174 million Yuan in 1960 to 180 billion Yuan in
2020.
It was the first autonomous region in
China to provide free education until a person is 15 years. The literacy rate
among young/ middle aged is now 99%. The entire population enjoys
medical-insurance cover.
What
is happening in Xinjiang?
Xinjiang is an important link in the
BRI (a development plan stretching through Asia and Europe).
China hopes to eradicate separatist
activity to continue its development of Xinjiang.
It is home to China’s largest coal and
natural gas reserves (www.cfr.org).
Ma Ling is a Hui Muslim teacher at an
educational institution in Changji, Xinjiang (about 25 miles west of Urumqi).
The school has employees from eight communities (Han, Hui, Uyghurs, and Korean
Chinese etc). As per Ma “Everyone is just like relatives,” emphasizing human
credentials. “Xinjiang is not as gloomy as the Western governments say,” he
insisted. Ma said he visited the “so-called concentration camps mentioned by
Westerners… these are no more than training schools.” “On the contrary, if they
don’t have this study experience in the training schools, they may only stay at
home in the poor villages on the border, and they will become prey to Afghan
terrorists, and maybe finally become jihadis in the future.”(www.thediplomat.com).
Human
Rights of Chinese in Canada, USA and under Japanese rule:
When the United States of America (USA)
and Canada were constructing their first ever railroads, thousands of Chinese
slaves were taken across the Pacific by the colonial rulers to work in these
mega projects.
Thousands of Chinese peasants died
constructing railroads in the Americas.
To this date extremely few have ever
appreciated the contribution of Chinese slaves to build railroads in the
Americas.
The railroads constructed by the
Chinese slaves have contributed immensely to the development of the USA and
Canada, and they still play a pivotal role in the supply chains and economic
development of these countries.
It was after the PRC was established
that the large scale exploitation of Chinese labour by western multinationals
came to an end.
Japan used Chinese peasants as
laboratory rats to develop biological weapons during World War II.
Women’s
Rights in China:
As per the English medical journal “The
Lancet”, a study was conducted over 70 years about the women's health in China.
It proves that the Chinese system of
administration has actually ensured that 'Children are the future and hope of
the motherland’.
According to the study there is a sharp
reduction of deaths during childbirth from 1,500 to 17.8 per 100,000 births
since the establishment of the PRC in 1949 till 2019. The study also states
that in India the numbers have only reduced from 1,000 to 145 during the period
1949-2019.
Democracy combines the Greek words
"demos (people)" and "kratos (rule) symbolizing "people
rule." Democracy therefore, is linked to human rights or "people's
rights.
The USA's Summit for Democracy was held
on 9th and 10th of December 2021 in the USA. At the event it has been argued
that the rights of Indian women are superior to Chinese women as Indian women
live in a "Parliamentary System or a Republic.
As per statistics, nearly one fifth of
human population is the women in India and China.
According to the Lancet, the
achievements in China are largely due to the strong political will and the
improvements ushered in gender equality.
Therefore, it is clear the human rights
of Chinese women are far more protected than Indian women although China was
not invited for the summit.
Hong Kong (HK) and Macao were given
back to China in 1997 and 1999 by those who leased the SARs from China.
Democratic elections were never held in
HK under British occupation.
China never took the USD reserves of HK
to the mainland.
Those who voiced concerns about
extradition issues when China rules HK have signed many extradition treaties
with most countries.
Then why is it a problem to sign
extradition treaties with China?
Thank
you!
