On Sunday, the Chinese premier visited the Longbridge MG car plant in Birmingham, now owned by the Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC). Members of the Falun Gong spiritual group stood outside the plant displaying banners calling on Wen to bring to justice former CCP leader Jiang Zemin, who initiated China’s persecution of Falun Gong, and other high-level officials implicated in human rights abuses.
During a joint press conference in London, Mr Cameron said, “We believe that the development of civil society, freedom of expression, the rule of law and respect for human rights underpin stability and prosperity for us all.”
Wen responded by saying: “On human rights, China and the UK should respect each other, respect the facts, treat each other as equals, engage in more cooperation than finger-pointing and resolve properly our differences through dialogue, enhance mutual understanding.”
The Chinese regime has clamped down on dissenters this year in the face of a series of protests, riots, and online calls for a “Jasmine Revolution”. The regime enhanced its internet censorship, and mobile phone users have been prevented from sending text messages to multiple recipients.
In an apparent bid to reduce pressure on human rights issues, Chinese artist Ai Weiwei, who designed Beijing’s Olympic bird’s nest stadium, was released on probation last Wednesday, but is subject to travel restrictions and a media gag order. On Sunday morning, high-profile dissident and AIDS activist Hu Jia, was released from jail after completing a three-and-a-half-year sentence on subversion charges.
Shao Jiang, a PhD student at Westminster University who participated in the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests, told The Epoch Times: “I protest here to request the CCP to step down, to end the dictatorship. Let Chinese people decide their own fate, as they are able to determine their own fate. The CCP has hijacked the Chinese for 62 years.
“When you invest with the CCP now, the gain is short-term, but in the long run, you will lose more, lose your economic principles and human rights. You will lose job opportunities. You help communism expand.”
Philippa Carrick, chief executive of the Tibet Society, told The Epoch Times, “We feel very strongly that despite the fact that obviously trade and engagement has to happen and continue, it can’t be at the price of ignoring human rights and people’s freedoms to be able to speak out.”
Speaking of the release of Ai Weiwei and Hu Jia, she said: “We say that release is a misnomer. Hu Jia had reached the end of his sentence so he was going to be released unless they thought up another charge. Ai Weiwei has only been released on bail and he is under an enormous amount of restrictions and the Chinese authorities are still saying that they’re are looking into various matters. So I would hardly say that he has been released.
“It is just a nod to try and take pressure off, but it doesn’t actually mean anything and it doesn’t take away from the fact that an enormous amount of human rights defenders are still in jail or disappeared, and likewise inside Tibet a large number of Tibetan writers and human rights activists have disappeared or are under detention.”
Falun Gong spokesman Dr Liu Wei said, “The reason we are here is to send a message: stop persecuting Falun Gong. The CCP has already persecuted Falun Gong practitioners for 12 years. The cruelness of the persecution is beyond our imagination. We demand that the CCP stop the persecution at once.
“Meanwhile, we hope that Western governments which are trading with CCP don’t forget the serious human rights problems regarding Falun Gong in China and mention that when Wen Jiabao visits them.
“We hope that more and more people can learn the facts about the CCP’s persecution of Falun Gong, know about Falun Gong’s situation, thereby stopping the persecution as soon as possible.”
Before visiting the UK, Wen made a trip to Hungary where he promised China would support the eurozone and continue buying European government bonds.
Hungarian police had banned protests planned by Falun Gong (also known as Falun Dafa) practitioners in connection with the visit. An open letter issued by the president of the Hungarian Falun Dafa Association asserts that the banning of the protests is due to pressure from the Chinese regime.
Wen said at a press conference in Hungary: “I have confidence in European economic development. China is a long-term investor in Europe’s sovereign debt market. In recent years we have increased by a quite big margin holdings of euro bonds. In the future, as we have done in the past, we will support Europe and the euro.”
China Review News quoted Chinese economist Sun Lijian as saying, “China buys European debt now, clearly not for investment returns, but to lend more support to Eastern European countries, so that China can get more support in global affairs.”
Sun said European debt is not the best investment, and he does not recommend it.
He said the US debt can offer more stable returns and better cash flow. But the United States has maintained certain positions in international affairs, and China wants to use European connections to contain the US.
Additional reporting by Shang Yan and Li Yue
