Remarks by U.N.S.G. Guterres on the online Conference with Chinese President Xi are questionable!
October 7th, 2020
Celebrating the 75th Anniversary of the United Nations, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres had an online conference with Chinese President Xi Jinping on September 23, 2020.
- The remarks by Chinese President Xi show marked differences between its external posture and the actual domestic reality in China
President Xi Jinping of People's Republic of China (PRC) expressed the following points during the on-line meeting with UNSG, based on the report by Chinese News Xinhua:
- He reaffirms to the international community to uphold multilateralism and abide by the commitments to the UN Charter.
- Noting that COVID-19 is still rampant in the world, China firmly supports the key initiatives of the UN system, especially the World Health Organization. China also firmly supports the UN system in strengthening international cooperation in COVID-19 prevention and containment. It will make COVID-19 vaccines a global public good after putting them into use, and also contribute to the vaccine accessibility and affordability in developing countries.
（3）Noting the emergence of many new problems amid the pandemic, these problems are related to peace and development in one way or another.
In this regard, the UN Security Council should play the role of a collective security mechanism, and the Security Council permanent members should play an exemplary role.
Pursuing unilateralism and seeking hegemony are unpopular and will surely be rejected.
The COVID-19 pandemic has magnified the problems of maladaptation and mismatch in the global governance system.
There is only one system in the world, namely the UN-centered international system, and only one set of rules — the basic norms of international relations based on the UN Charter.
China never pursues ideological confrontation, advocates 'decoupling' or seeks hegemony.
- China will not sit idly by and allow its national sovereignty, dignity and development space to be undermined. Instead, China will firmly safeguard its legitimate rights and interests and uphold international equity and justice.
All countries are called on to rise above differences between countries, nationalities, cultures and ideologies so as to promote efforts in building a community with a shared future for humanity.
Although his remarks may be well received basically by the international community including the United Nations, most of them sound to be quite different from the actual situation inside China, which adopts One-Party Democracy and a Socialism Market Economy among other things.
2、Courteous yet accommodating response by UN Secretary-General Guterres
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, while listening cheerfully to Chinese President Xi, stressed the importance of multilateralism, international cooperation, and a powerful United Nations as the world faces challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic and climate change.
He expressed his gratitude to China's consistent and firm support for multilateralism. And he welcomed a series of important initiatives and measures President Xi announced at the UN General Assembly in September, 2020, in such spheres as the practice of multilateralism, coping with climate change and promoting sustainable development.
He also expressed his support for China's efforts to promote jointly in building ‘a Silk Road of Green Development’.
He highly appreciated China's role in safeguarding the world peace.
UN Secretary-General Guterres said that the United Nations would support China in deepening cooperation with Africa and other developing countries, and expressed the UN’s willingness to strengthen cooperation with China and he expected that China would play a leading role.
It is quite natural for the UN Secretary-General to appreciate China’s role and his willingness to strengthen relations and cooperate with China, especially when the United Nations celebrates the 75th anniversary. But if we realize the clear differences between what Chinese President Xi was telling to the World and what the Chinese Government is actually doing inside China, including Tibet and Xinjiang Uygur, some of the remarks made by UN Secretary General Guterres are questionable and inappropriate. Or a lack of knowledge about actual China.
3、China’s external posture differs from its reality inside China
Although most of the remarks above made by Chinese President Xi are appreciated from the widely-shared international standard based on democracy, freedom, human rights, and free market economy, what he is saying to the World is different from what China has been doing inside China, including Tibet and Xinjiang Uygur, and, in part, Hong Kong.
- Delay of China’s detailed notice to the World, in particular, WHO on the Buhan-originated Corona Virus
While Chinese President Xi said that China would support the UN system in strengthening international cooperation in COVID-19 prevention and containment, it failed to provide to WHO accurate information immediately after the detection of Corona Virus in Buhan in January, 2020. Also it failed to stop the outgoing of foreign nationals and Chinese people from China, while it quickly restricted the movement of Chinese people from Buhan. Such delayed measures on the part of China let the Corona Virus spread outside China, and prevented WHO to recommend the World to take preventive measures as quick as possible, especially the closure of airports and others, and declare it as COVID-19 Pandemic.
The very swift and world-wide spread outside China of the Buhan-originated Corona Virus itself proves that there was certainly such a delay. In fact, President Xi apologized to the people in Buhan for the delay of prompt measures after the Chinese Government imposed the lockdown there. It seems, to a greater degree, that he owes an apology to the rest of the World for causing the worldwide spread of Buhan-originated corona virus, instead of denying it and criticizing other country.
The World community wants to know the fact first so that we could take measures as quick as possible. Denying it only magnifies doubt and distrust over the Chinese sincerity.
- China’s governing system is based on One-Party (Communist Party) Democracy and the Socialism Market Economy
Although we welcome China’s external posture to uphold multilateralism and abide by the commitments to the UN Charter, it firmly adopts One-Party- Democracy and the Socialism Market Economy internally. We don’t call One-Party -Democracy based on Communist Party a Democracy. Because it denies plural political parties and freedom of belief and speech, We don’t call the Socialism Market Economy, which is centrally managed and restricted, a Free Market Economy.
Therefore, the movement and activities inside China by not only Chinese people themselves but also foreign nationals are restricted in one way or another, while Chinese people are permitted free access to the international market and free movements within any countries in the world.
If China wants to keep such freedom of activities and movement externally, it should allow foreign people similar freedom in the spirit of reciprocity. If not, it is fair to say that all countries have the right to take similar restrictive measures to Chinese activities there to the extent their nationals’ activities are restricted in China.
While we certainly welcome China to be a member of the international community in principle, UN Secretary-General Guterres should also have invited China to accord to foreign nationals inside Chine similar freedom of activities and movement in the spirit of reciprocity and fairness.
- China’s massive military buildup and accelerated military activities especially in the East China Sea
Chinese President Xi claimed that “the UN Security Council should play the role of a collective security mechanism, and the Security Council permanent members should play an exemplary role.”
We are puzzled. Isn’t it China who made difficult for the Security Council to take prompt security measures by vetoing on many cases?
Isn’t it China who occupies the Spratly and Paracel Islands by force, whose territorial rights are claimed by as many as 6 neighboring countries, and were building militarily usable facilities on those islands? Isn’t it China who rejected the ruling of the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in 2016 that “there was no evidence that China had historically exercised exclusive control over the waters or resources, hence there was no legal basis for China to claim historic rights over the nine-dash line (the Spratly Islands area),” advocating unanimously the claim made by the Philippines. The tribunal also criticized China's land reclamation projects and construction of artificial islands in the Spratly Islands, destroying the vast coral reef. We don’t call such acts “exemplary.” On the contrary.
President Xi also urged that “pursuing unilateralism and seeking hegemony are unpopular and will surely be rejected.” If he really thinks so, he is invited to show a good example by accepting the ruling and settling other disputes with the countries concerned.
In this regard, I should like to propose a negotiation on Disarmament and Confidence Building in East Asia.
UN Secretary General should have asked Chinese President to settle those issues as quick as possible, while appreciating China’s positive role to be played on other issues as well. And he should not have expressed his support for China's efforts to build ‘a Silk Road of Green Development,’ which is in line with China’s recent strategy of “One Belt One Road,” stretching from China to Europe on the Eurasian Continent and the Sea, because it appears to be somewhat expansionistic and hegemonistic.
(4) China’s bothering human rights records and oppression of self-determination
Chinese President Xi called on all countries “to overcome differences between countries, nationalities, cultures and ideologies so as to promote efforts in building a community with a shared future for humanity”. We agree what he was saying in principle, but we are largely puzzled. We are largely puzzled because China has notorious records contrary to human rights and self-determination in Tibet and Xinjiang Uygur, and, in part, Hong Kong. There is a clear disparity in words and deeds.
Secretary General Guterres of the United Nations should have drawn President Xi’s attention that the United Nations was worried about the human rights situation in those areas. Without saying any of these, he must have given a wrong message to Chinese President Xi. (2020/10/07 M.K.)
Global Policy Group
