Date: 1994-08-09
Speaker: EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Chairman. the people of China should be treated fairly. The extension of most4avorednation trading status for China should be continued in order to ensure that America can irnprove the human rights situation in that nation through a positive working relationstip with the people of China and the Chinese Government. During debate on the MFN status of China. statements were made on the floor of the House which claimed that although Chinq needs us. we dont need them. We have needed them. and we continue to need China as a friend of the United States. President Richard Nixon needed China to drive a wedge in the Communist bloc. We need China now to help advance American interests on the Korean peninsula. In this globally interdependent economy. it is highly likely we will need China in the future. Many may be misled by the term mostfavorednation status. because it implies that China is getting some special treatment from the United States in our trade relationship. In fact. MFN..is the standard way the United States does business- around the world. China would be no more favored than any other nation around the. world with whom we have a normal trade -elationship. Obviously. human rights are a crucial concem with regard to Americas foreign policy. But just as obviously. the use of trade sanctions is not an effective vehicle for influencing the human rights policy of foreign nations. Again and again. the use of trade sanctions to improve human rights in distant lands. has been tried. and. again and again. the attempt has failed. Trade sanctions hurt the working class. not the wealthy leaders of nations. In Haiti. where America is using trade sanctions. small businesses are being destroyed. and the common citizen is being deprived of human and economic rights. On the other hand. the influence of America. properly applied. has been very successful in improving the human rights conditions of many nations around the wodd. South Korea and Argentina are but two examples of the achievement of the United States in improving human rights through interaction with the people and government of these nations. In China itself. fantastic changes have occurred since the opening of the nation in the early 1970s. This opening has allowed interaction between American and Chinese businesses. and American technology has allowed the people of China to improve their economic standing. With improvement in technology comes more access to information. The power of information will effect change in China. as it already has. Whose information? That provided by America and our allies. which. as long as we continue to trade with China. will continue to filter through to each and every Chinese citizen. American ideals. as always. can best be advanced by exposing others to our values and our successes. If we close down our trade with China. who profits? Not the citizens of China. whose economic freedoms will likely decline. and whose access to American information and ideals will be shut off. Not the American worker. who will no longer have access to the enormousChinese market We may feel a little better for a short time. and think that we have done what is right But when China begins to fall backward in human rights. our brief good feeling will die. The common citizen of China. and his or her human rights. should be the focus of our human rights policy. What does that common citizen want? During my visits to China. I have talked to many of the citizens of China. and not once was I asked to revoke MFN status. Many. many times. however. I was asked to continue to work to improve the relationship between our two nations. This very point is what separates China and this situation from the past American policy toward South Africa. Essentially every South African who was not associated with the government of that nation cried out to the United States and to rest of the world to impose stringent economic sanctions against South Africa. This was the right thing to do. and I was proud to lead the effort in Texas to gain sanctions against South Africa. Our goal was to effect a total change in the governing body of the nation. and we succeeded. In so doing. we destroyed the economic infrastructure of the nation. which we ar now helping to rebuild. In China. the circumstances are very different. Our goal. as stated by many Members. is to improve the situation of the common citizen of China. not to force a change in government. We do not have the support of the world. In fact. should we decide not to trade with China. many other nations will jump in to * take our place. Then. highpaying American jobs will be lost as European aeronautical firms move into supply aircraft. and as other nations rush to supply Chinas technological needs. Human rights conditions will not be improved. and the ability of America to exert positive influence will be lost. This is not South Africa. and although Europeans agreed that "We aint gonna play Sun City." you can be sure that the European Union will be only to happy to play Beijing. My colleagues and I do agree that human rights policy is of utmost importance to this Nation. and America should do all it can to improve the way other nations treat their citizens. What we need to realize is that American can do more to help these people by interacting with them than by ignoring them.