Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2007-12-12-Speech-3-228"
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"en.20071212.27.3-228"2
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"Madam President, to come straight to the point, I believe the Olympic Games should go ahead in China, because we have a good opportunity to use these very games to step up our dialogue with China. That is in the joint statement too, Mr McMillan-Scott, and if you hold the opinion you have been expressing, you are against the joint statement.
Mrs Ferrero-Waldner, one of your former opposite numbers, Madeleine Albright, observed when she was US Secretary of State that it was naturally far more difficult to raise human rights issues in China than in Burma, because in China geopolitical factors were part of the equation. It is a fact that we need China as a partner in the quest for a solution to many global problems. That, however, must not prevent us from raising the question of human rights and discussing it in great depth, though not necessarily in the tone of schoolmasters or schoolmistresses who know it all. I am very pleased that the Charter of Fundamental Rights has been signed today, because many speakers have made the point that we have no right to speak about human rights issues unless we ourselves have a very good record of respecting human rights. We, indeed, are firmly convinced that it is in China’s interests not to trample human rights underfoot but to respect them properly.
China wants stability. How is China to remain stable if the question of human rights is not raised more emphatically? We do not want China to crumble. It makes no sense to build up Europe while seeking to destroy China, but failure to respect human rights puts China’s stability at risk. We want China to be governed in accordance with the principles of social justice. In the context of a monumental growth process, to which Mr Barroso also referred, the only way to safeguard stability is to take full account of social factors. It is impossible, however, to strive for social justice if human rights are not respected, if people cannot form trade unions or launch popular initiatives.
We want China to focus more sharply on environmental matters, because the environment is a major common global asset. We know that many initiatives are taking shape in China for the purpose of mass protest against the violation of minimum environmental standards. It would be a good thing for China if the nation listened to those voices. It would be a step forward for China.
For these reasons I believe it is not a matter of European arrogance but of protecting our common interests. In the interests of China we shall raise the question of human rights, and enlightened representatives of the Chinese political system would do well to listen to us and to this resolution, which is in China’s interests and which would help China to advance, something it cannot do unless it respects human rights."@en1
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