Should Chinas Human Rights Record Prevent Permanent Normal Trade Relations :: Human Rights Essays

Background Since the initial warming of U.S.-mainland China traffic in the early 1970s, indemnitymakers have had difficulty balancing conflicting U.S. policy concerns in the Peoples Re unexclusive of China. From Nixon to Clinton, presidents have had to reconcile shelter and clement rights concerns with corporations desires for expanded scotch relations between the two countries. plot the U.S. regularly objects to Chinas adult male rights violations, the Chinese brass counters with complaints that the American concerns represent unjustified American intrusion into its internal affairs.In 1989 the Tiananmen Squ be massacre displace public attention to the inconsistent character of U.S.-China policy. A wave of public indignation with Chinas repressive practices forced the Bush administration to adopt a sterner posture toward human rights violations and to impose sanctions, including restrictions on bilateral and multilateral forethought. scarce these measures have not satis fied some critics of Chinas human rights practices, who contend that the U.S. should accommodate even more rigid trade restrictions against China. Specifically, some critics insist that the U.S. government not give China permanent normal trade relations status, which would free Chinas government from an annual review of its human rights record by Congress.Many critics say PNTR standing should be linked to improvements in Chinas human and labor rights practices - a policy that has been rejected by the Clinton administration. Rather than denying China normal trading status because of human rights violations, the Clinton administration has opted for a policy of comprehensive engagement, which holds that long-term U.S. goals such as human rights improvement are more likely to be achieved through sustained contact and free trading than by further isolating China.Yet Chinese human rights practices, including respect for political and labor rights, continue to fall well under internatio nally accepted standards. In perhaps the stickiest issue, the White House warned at long last week that there was little chance of PNTR for China without legislation put up a watchdog commission to monitor Beijings human rights practices. China, even opposes any plans by the U.S. to monitor human rights as a civilise to granting PNTR.On One Hand...American businesses should not be coddled at the put down of human rights. Despite expressions of concern for human rights conditions, the U.S. government has allowed narrow economic interests, particularly those of corporate investors, to guide its China policy. So far, the U.S. government has been opposed to jeopardize U.S. economic relations by adopting stricter human rights conditions on aid and trade.Chinas trade status is currently reviewed annually by Congress.