Jiang Zemin Faces Human Rights Issue during Visit to Germany

Jiang Faces Human Rights Issue during Visit to Germany

DPA: (Deutsche Presse Agentur) Reports: Human Rights Groups to Protest Jiang's Visit

Berlin (dpa) - In reporting on Chinese President Jiang Zemin's visit to Germany, DPA (Deutsche Presse Agentur) noted that representatives of the "Red-Green Coalition" [a political party] urged the German government to highlight the human rights situation in China.

Mrs. Christa Nickels, a member of the Green Party and chairperson of the human rights section of Germany's parliament made this comment to representatives of the "Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung," (Frankfurt General News on Sunday), "I expect that the questions regarding human rights will be openly addressed during this visit." Similar comments were heard from Mr. Rudolf Bing, spokesperson for human rights in the SPD, Germany's Socialist Party.

Critical comments were also voiced from among the ranks of the CDU (Christian Democratic Union) and FDP (Freie Deutsche Partei) [both are political parties]. One expert, Mr. Hermann Groehe (CDU) said, "China's government actions are dramatically lacking in its statements that 'human rights have been given a new meaning'." Amnesty International, a premier human rights organization, has accused the [Jiang's] government of tailoring and ignoring human rights in favour of world-strategic and economic interests.

Human rights organizations have already announced protest plans during Jiang's visit as a show of solidarity for persecuted Falun Gong practitioners in China.

(Original in German)

BBC Reports that Jiang Cannot Avoid the Human Rights Issue During his Visit to China

A BBC report stated that while both the Chinese and German governments have attempted to give a low priority to human rights issues and concentrate on educational and cultural matters, the media in Germany has paid a great deal of attention to China's human rights record in the period leading up to Jiang's visit. The leader of the Green Party (ruling party) has urged the government to raise questions about China's human rights problems openly and publicly, while other opposition parties have made similar requests.

On Monday, nearly 400 Falun Gong practitioners meditated and demonstrated at Alexanderplatz (a famous Plaza in Berlin).

Amnesty International and The Association for Endangered Peoples held press conferences which attracted much media attention over China's human rights record.