Trade and Investment, or Human Rights?

By Annie Padwick / June 19, 2014;

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and David Cameron at a press conference at the Foreign office in London
Photo: Reuters

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and 200 Chinese business leaders arrived in the United Kingdom on June 17 to begin three days of economic talks with UK Prime Minister David Cameron and government representatives. Expectations of this visit were high, as China and Britain were set to sign around 40 economic cooperation and investment agreements worth an estimated £18 billion ($30billion). Yet already on the first day of the visit, negotiations took a turn as deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg said he could not ignore “the very large scale human rights abuses that still occur” in China.

Chinese-British economic relations soured in 2012 after the British Prime minister met the Dalai Lama. China’s retort was that no officials would be available to meet a British delegation on their visit to China the same year. Chinese ambassador to Britain, Liu Xiaoming, speaking ahead of the visit, said “Many opportunities were missed in the last year and we all know the reasons behind it”. He maintained he was positive about further economic co-operation, but also warned the UK not to “point the finger” at human rights in China if they wanted economic co-operation. Previously Chinese diplomats had also threatened to cancel their visit unless the Chinese Premier was granted an audience with the Queen.

David Cameron and Nick with His Holiness the Dalai Lama in 2012
Photo: dailymail.com

Nick Clegg has criticised the Communist country for abuse of human rights, persecution of journalists and widespread use of the death penalty, yet argues that Britain should not “sever ties” with China, because in the long run “commercial prosperity in China, economic transformation in China will lead to an ever increasing pressure for social and political emancipation as well.”

Downing Street has distanced itself from Clegg’s comments and a Conservative business minister has stated that human rights should not be allowed to get in the way of growing trade links. However a variety of protesters have gathered at the government headquarters in light of the Chinese Premier’s visit. Padma Dolma from Students for a Free Tibet said, “We are not asking for Britain to stop any economic ties with China, what we are asking for is to resist the bullying tactics that China is carrying out towards the UK government […] What we are asking is to find a meaningful and peaceful resolution for the crisis in Tibet.”