（社説）弁護士拘束 中国国民の権利損なう

--The Asahi Shimbun, July 19
EDITORIAL: 1.3 billion Chinese lose in Xi’s crackdown on human rights lawyers
（社説）弁護士拘束　中国国民の権利損なう

July 10 is now known as “Black Friday” by people concerned about human rights in China.
　中国の人権問題に関心を寄せる人々の間で７月１０日は「暗黒の金曜日」と呼ばれている。

On that day, police detained human rights lawyers and activists in various parts of the nation in a large-scale concerted crackdown on people working for the cause.
各地で人権派の弁護士、活動家が警察によって一斉に連行された。その後も摘発が続き、取り調べの対象者は２００人を超えた。見過ごせない暴挙である。

Chinese authorities have continued the roundup in the ensuing days, interrogating more than 200 people so far. This is an outrageous act that cannot be overlooked.
The main target of the crackdown is Fengrui, a law firm in Beijing. People linked to Fengrui are still being held in custody.
　主な標的となったのは北京の弁護士事務所で、その関係者は拘束されたままだ。

Those who were rounded up in other parts of the nation, such as Hunan province, Shanghai and Henan province, are suspected to have links to Fengrui.
ほかに湖南省、上海、河南省など各地で取り調べを受けた人々は、この事務所と関係があると見なされたようだ。

These civil-rights lawyers have been acting as defenders of the rights of ordinary people petitioning the authorities in various cases, including forced evictions from their homes.
　弁護士らは、立ち退きなど様々な問題に巻き込まれて役所に陳情する庶民に寄り添ってきた。

The lawyers play an important role for improving the human rights situation in China, and such an attack on these lawyers and activists could cause serious damage to the rights of the entire Chinese public.
中国社会の人権を巡る状況を改善していくうえで貴重な担い手である。彼らを狙い撃ちにする行為は、ひろく国民の権利全体を損なうことにつながる。

Beijing has used the state-controlled media to demonize the law firm as “a criminal organization that has disturbed social order.”
　中国政府は国営メディアを通じ、この弁護士事務所に「社会秩序を乱す犯罪集団」のレッテル貼りをしている。

The accusation refers to Fengrui’s use of the Internet to draw public attention to cases of civil rights violations concerning disputes between police and local residents.
住民と警官とのトラブルを問題としてことさらに取り上げ、ネットで広めた行為などを指している。

According to the government’s logic, all protests against the actions of authorities qualify as “anti-government” activities.
政府の主張に沿えば、異議申し立てはすべて「反政府」になってしまう。

The latest move against civil-rights lawyers came just about two months after Pu Zhiqiang, a widely known human rights lawyer, was formally indicted in May.
　５月には良心的弁護士として広く知られた浦志強氏が起訴されたばかりだ。

Nearly 1,000 human rights activists were detained in China last year, according to some reports.
昨年中国で拘束された人権活動家は１千人近くに上ると言われる。

The administration of President Xi Jinping has been suppressing, with unprecedented harshness, people working for the protection of human rights in the country.
習近平（シーチンピン）政権になってからの弾圧ぶりはかつてない厳しさだ。

Since China started reforming its economy and opening its door to the outside world, two main forces have been fighting each other for dominance.
　改革開放以後、中国では二つの力がせめぎ合っている。

One is the newfound power of citizens supported by the rising standards of living and education. While they certainly have a conservative side, Chinese citizens have grown increasingly conscious of their life-related rights and have acquired the ability to take action.
　一つは生活水準や教育水準の向上を背景とする、市民の力だ。彼らは保守的な一面を持ちながらも、生活にかかわる権利意識があり、行動する力量を備えてきている。

Pitted against the power of citizens is the Communist Party’s political power to suppress dissenting voices in order to protect its one-party rule. This political power has been asserted aggressively by the Xi administration.
　これに対するものが、一党支配を守ろうと異論を抑え込む力だ。習政権に顕著なものだ。

China’s 2004 constitutional amendments added a provision stipulating, “The state respects and preserves human rights.” The Constitution also guarantees freedom of speech, assembly and association.
　中国は０４年の憲法改正で「国家は人権を尊重し、保障する」という条項を加えた。もとより言論や集会、結社の自由も規定されている。

But there is no system in place to ensure that these constitutional provisions are enforced. As a result, they are effectively dead provisions.
だが、実効あるものにする制度はなく、空文に等しい。

Meanwhile, a sweeping new national security law that came into force on July 1 could only reinforce the government’s inclination to restrict the rights of citizens under the pretext of national security. In early July, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al-Hussein expressed concern about the human rights implications of the new security law.
　逆に、今月１日に施行された国家安全法は、安全の名のもとに市民の権利を制限する傾向を助長しかねず、さきに国連人権高等弁務官も懸念を表明した。

In a key party conference held last autumn, the Xi administration pledged to promote wholeheartedly national governance based on law.
　習政権は昨年秋、共産党の会議で「法にもとづく国家統治の全面的推進」を打ち出した。

If what is happening in China is any indication, however, the law here actually means a stick to suppress citizens rather than a shield to protect them.
起きていることを見る限り、そこで言う法とは、市民の権利を守る盾ではなく、市民を抑え込むこん棒である。

We are deeply concerned about the prospect that China’s 1.3 billion people will remain trapped in a miserable human rights situation that is far from the rule of law.
１３億人が法治にほど遠い状況に置かれ続けることを深く憂慮する。