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China Cracks Down on Sudan? |
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News from China:
China has issued an unusually energetic call to its ally, Sudan, to do more to stop fighting in Darfur. The “humanitarian disaster” in the region was a grave concern to China’s government, said its envoy Liu Guijin. Mr Liu called for Khartoum to do more to speed up the arrival of peacekeepers in the region but he also criticised Darfur’s rebel groups.
China is a key ally of the Sudanese government - buying its oil, selling it weapons and using its weight at the UN. Mr Liu has just returned from a trip to Sudan which included Darfur. He said he had been profoundly affected by things he had seen in the province. He said he was also moved by the stories he had heard from Darfuris forced to flee their homes after five years of conflict.
The BBC speculates that this is the latest attempt by China to improve its global image, amidst fears of poor publicity surrounding this summer’s Beijing Olympics. A number of high-profile human rights organizations, Olympic athletes, and Hollywood celebrities such as Steven Spielberg, George Clooney, and Mia Farrow have publicly lambasted China for its close ties with Khartoum. In addition to buying over $4 billion worth of oil from Sudan in 2007, China is thought to be Sudan’s largest arms supplier.
In light of its own human rights record, there can be little doubt that China is unconcerned about the violence in Darfur. But will China’s increasing efforts to appear concerned end with the Olympics, or are they a longer-term instance of international pressure — specifically world trade — motivating a country to improve its behavior?
The Seminal welcomes your thoughts…
