Annual Report 2001
Chapter 2: CIVIL AND POLITICAL RIGHTS
A signatory to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) since 5 October 1998, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has been delaying the ratification of the Covenant. Its contention that “the right to subsistence is the most important of all human rights, without which the other rights are out of the question” 1 defeats the whole notion of the indivisibility of human rights as reiterated by the various UN bodies. The UN Commission on Human Rights in 2001 reaffirms, “The universality, indivisibility, interdependence and inter-relatedness of all human rights and fundamental freedoms and that promoting and protecting one category of rights should therefore never exempt or excuse States from the promotion and protection of other rights…”2 The PRC government claims that granting individual freedoms jeopardises its schemes to deliver economic security. This is a facade for its real purpose, which is that of all authoritarian states: to consolidate the power of the elite in the government and to bolster the country’s image on the world stage.
The Chinese government’s obligation to protect and promote the Civil and Political Rights of the people under its jurisdiction includes guaranteeing the following:
- The right to self-determination, life and liberty3
- Freedom from torture, arbitrary arrest and detention4
- The right to leave and enter ones own country5
- Freedom of thought, conscience and religion, expression, assembly and opinion6
- Protection of equality before the law7
- Freedom from denial of the right to enjoy ones own culture, religion and use ones own language8
The year 2001 heralded no sign of improvement in the human rights situation in Tibet. The continuing exodus of Tibetans is germane to the repressive policies the Tibetans have been subjected to. TCHRD received reports of the deaths of 10 Tibetans due to prison abuse and 37 new arrests. Tibetans are subjected to increased restrictions, including in some cases intimidation, harassment, and detention; however, the degree of restrictions varies significantly from region to region.
The year 2001 saw a massive crackdown on two institutes of Buddhist learning and practice in rural Sichuan. A total of 9,408 religious practitioners were expelled from their institutions over the year — 8,988 of whom were studying at the two Sichuan centres.
In addition, 57 monks and nuns were reportedly detained in 2001 and 11 received prison sentences of various durations.
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Freeom of Religous Belief and Practice --> ]
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