(Clearwisdom.net) US Congressman Frank Wolf gave a speech on the floor of the House of Representatives on July 16 that strongly condemned the Chinese Communist authority's human rights violations, the persecution of Falun Gong, and organ harvesting. Congressman Wolf said, "And despite all of these abhorrent acts, China was still awarded the honor of hosting the 2008 Olympics. The Olympic Games: an event designed to lift up 'the educational value of a good example and respect for universal, fundamental, ethical principles,' according to its own charter. Does China's behavior sound like a 'good example' to the rest of the world? Or that it is reflecting "fundamental, ethical principles" that all nations should aspire to? "
US Congressman the Honorable Frank Wolf
Congressman Wolf said, "America must be a country that stands up for basic decency and human rights. America must speak out on behalf of those who cannot speak for themselves--men and women who are being persecuted for their religious or political beliefs. Our foreign policy must be a policy that helps promote human rights and freedom. Not a policy that sides with dictators who oppress their own citizens."
Congressman Wolf continued, "China of today is worse than the China of yesterday, or of last year, or of the last decade.
"Imagine a country where factory workers have no workplace safety, labor or environmental protections, and are required to work 80 hour-weeks for no more than $110 per month to produce goods for export.
[...]
"Imagine a country which tortures and imprisons Catholic bishops, Protestant church leaders, Muslim worshipers, Falun Gong followers, and Buddhist monks and nuns just because of their faith and systematically destroys churches and confiscates Bibles.
"Imagine a country which has a thriving business of harvesting and selling for transplant kidneys, corneas, and other human organs from executed prisoners who are thrown in prison with no trial or sentencing procedures.
"Imagine a country which maintains an extensive system of gulags--slave labor camps, also known as the "laogai"--as large as existed in the former Soviet Union, that are used for brainwashing and 'reeducation through labor.'
"Sadly, none of this is imaginary. Such a nation exists. It is the People's Republic of China.
"Sadly, too, that's just part of the list of egregious actions."
He talked about human rights and trade, "There are some who assert that
human rights are something that should come once stability has been attained.
They say that protection of human rights comes second to attaining economic
power and wealth. We must reject that notion.
"During the debate over granting China permanent normal trade relations
status, proponents argued that economic liberalization would lead to political
liberalization in China, that exposing China to the West's ideas and values
would lead them to play a more constructive role in the international community,
and that the US and other industrialized nations could influence China through
economic activity to better respect the rights of its citizens to fundamental
human rights and the unfettered practice of their faith.
"Instead, we have seen why the protection of basic liberties should not
come second to economic growth. The China of today is worse than the China of
yesterday, or of last year, or of the last decade. China is not progressing. It
is regressing. It is more violent, more repressive, and more resistant to
democratic values than it was before we opened our ports to freely accept
Chinese products.
[...]
"And despite all of these abhorrent acts, China was still awarded the
honor of hosting the 2008 Olympics. The Olympic Games: an event designed to lift
up 'the educational value of a good example and respect for universal,
fundamental ethical principles,' according to its own charter. Does China's
behavior sound like a 'good example' to the rest of the world? Or that it is
reflecting 'fundamental ethical principles' that all nations should aspire to?
"Amnesty International reports that the Chinese government is rounding up
people in the streets of Beijing that might 'threaten stability' during the
Olympic Games and is detaining them without trial. Human Rights Watch reports
that the Chinese government is tightening restrictions on domestic and foreign
media in an effort to control what information leaks out about China's
repressive and violent nature during coverage of the Olympics.
"China's desperation to conceal its true character leading up to the
Games smacks of the Nazi bid for the Olympic Games. Analysts are likening the
2008 Beijing Olympics to the 1936 Olympics, in which Nazi Germany soft-pedaled
its anti-Semitic agenda and plans for territorial expansion, fooling the
international community with an image of a peaceful, tolerant Germany under the
guise of the Olympic Games.
"Like the Nazi regime in 1936 Berlin, the Chinese government is preparing
for the Olympics by hiring US firms to handle public relations and marketing for
the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
"Where is the outrage over China's unacceptable behavior? The facts are
before us. The United States can no longer say that things are improving in
China.
"America must be a country that stands up for basic decency and human
rights. America must speak out on behalf of those who cannot speak for
themselves--men and women who are being persecuted for their religious or
political beliefs. Our foreign policy must be a policy that helps promote human
rights and freedom. Not a policy that sides with dictators who oppress their own
citizens."
He emphasized, "China poses a threat not only to its own citizens, but to
the entire world," and "The United States government and American
consumers must be vigilant about protecting the values that we hold dear."
