By Ariel Lin
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

BEIJING, China – China issued a human rights action plan, promising to improve the protection of civil liberties.  “China has a long road ahead in its efforts to improve its human-rights situation,” the plan acknowledges.  The two-year plan promised broader access to social security, health care and education.  It also calls for measures to discourage forced confessions by torture and the mistreatment of detainees.  Furthermore, the death penalty will be “strictly controlled and prudently applied,” the plan states, and that defendants will be entitled fair trials.  According to the document, the plan’s drafters asked for input from Chinese government ministries, domestic colleges and nongovernmental human-rights organizations.

China’s action is welcomed by many International rights groups.  A research manager for the Dui Hua Foundation, Joshua Rosenzweig says, “the plan was notable because it seemed to have more input from academics, activists and other elements of civil society than the government’s previous human rights reports.”  He also said issuing a plan with benchmarks, instead of a report summing up past progress, was also an “important step.”

The deputy program director for Asia and the Pacific at Amnesty International, Roseann Rife, said the plan is a step forward for the Chinese government.  She thinks it is also good there are some concrete benchmarks with 2010 as a deadline.  Nevertheless, she indicated, there are very serious abuses omitted from the plan such as abuses for people who challenge the authorities in China.  She says the plan is more like a “right of urban and rural residents to a basic standard of living.”

However, some groups think the plan is too vague and dodged key issues such as curbs on freedom of speech and of religion.  Phelim Kine, a researcher for Human Rights Watch, called the plan “a grab bag of policy prescriptions and existing laws and regulations and commitments to human rights which are already out there.” He said the plan failed to address real issues, including illegal detentions and curbs on freedom of religion and speech.

For more information, please see:

AFP – China pledges to improve human rights – 14 April 2009

AP – China releases first human rights action plan – 14 April 2009

New York Times – China Releases Human Rights Plan – 14 April 2009

Reuters – China sets human rights agenda for sensitive year – 13 April 2009

Wall Street Journal – Beijing Issues Plan to Improve Rights – 14 April 2009