HONG KONG CONTACTS DISCUSS THE MEANING OF "WEI

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 HONG KONG 002908 SIPDIS NOFORN SIPDIS DEPT FOR EAP AND EAP/CM NSC FOR DENNIS WILDER E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/17/2031 TAGS: PGOV PHUM PINR PREL HK CH SUBJECT: HONG KONG CONTACTS DISCUSS THE MEANING OF "WEI QUAN" REF: A. CPP20051228501005 ¶B. CPP20060510515011 Classified By: E/P Chief Simon Schuchat. Reasons: 1.4(b,d). ¶1. (C) Summary: According to Consulate contacts, the Chinese term "wei quan" is being used with increasing frequency to describe a broad range of protests occurring in China, as well as the work of a group of mainland lawyers and citizens/activists involved in these protests. While there is no direct English translation, it has been variously described as "defense of rights," China's "civil rights movement," and even a possible euphemism for human rights ("ren quan"). One contact contended that as Chinese citizens had become more aware of their rights, they had become more willing to speak out and protest against perceived violations of those rights. While some contacts felt that "wei quan" was a lawyer-led movement, others saw "wei quan" as a more organic movement, with no real leaders at the moment. According to one journalist, several "wei quan" lawyers have been harassed or detained, but that on the whole, the Beijing authorities appeared to tolerate the use of the term "wei quan." The Hong Kong-based "Wei Quan" Lawyers and Movement Concern Group recently issued a communique that called for an end to the harassment of "wei quan" lawyers and called for the implementation of the basic rights of the citizens as stated in the PRC constitution. End Summary. "Wei Quan" -- What Does It Mean? -------------- ¶2. (C) In recent weeks, poloff met with a number of NGO contacts and journalists to discuss "wei quan," an indigenous Chinese term used with increasing frequency to describe the work of a group of mainland lawyers and citizens/activists involved in protests against a variety of alleged injustices, including unpaid wages, land grabs, unsafe work conditions, environmental abuses, etc. While there is no direct English translation, the term has been variously defined as "defense of rights" or even a "civil rights movement." No two contacts agreed on a definition, its impact on China's human rights situation, or on whether it should be called a movement; however, all agreed that the increased willingness of Chinese citizens, with assistance from some dedicated lawyers, to demand their legally guaranteed rights was overall a positive development. ¶3. (C) In recent years, by the PRC Government's own admission, PRC citizens have participated in tens of thousands of protests against a variety of injustices. Although the origins of these protests are unique and different, mainlanders increasingly describe them collectively as "wei quan." During a June 16 meeting, Director of Research & Communications Robin Munro of China Labour Bulletin portrayed "wei quan" as an indigenous movement and an important development in China's human rights field. He contended that as ordinary citizens had became more aware of their constitutional rights and had those rights violated by corrupt local officials or "local power holders," they had became more willing to speak out and protest against perceived injustices. A Code Word for Human Rights? -------------- ¶4. (C) Most contacts who defined "wei quan" in human rights terms believed it had some advantages over "ren quan," which is the usual Chinese term for human rights. Historically, said Munro, the human rights movement on the mainland had never fully developed because of accusations that it had foreign origins. Unfairly or not, "ren quan" was perceived as an external term which had been forced into the Chinese lexicon. The origin of "wei quan," on the other hand, was indigenous and clearly Chinese. Liu Baopu, the son of Zhao Ziyang's aide Bao Tong, speculated to poloff on June 21 that "wei quan" was an abbreviation for "wei hu ren quan" or "uphold/defend human rights." According to Liu, the Chinese term "wei quan" had "a few nice features: 1) If "wei hu ren quan" (uphold/protect human rights) was politically sensitive, then the abbreviation "wei quan" would not sound so sensitive, although it had the same meaning; and 2) It was not, initially, on the key word list used by the Chinese internet police. Ironically, said Mark Allison, Researcher for Amnesty International during a July 12 meeting with poloffs, a Chinese citizen's human rights ("ren quan") are HONG KONG 00002908 002 OF 004 guaranteed by the constitution, but the Chinese term had, unfortunately, become politically sensitive. "Wei quan," although perhaps a euphemism for human rights, appeared to be tolerated by the mainland authorities for now. Lawyers Leading the "Wei Quan" Phenomena ... -------------- ¶5. (C) Several mainland lawyers have played an important role in the "wei quan" movement and have been credited with leading the movement. For example, during the June 4 candlelight vigil in Hong Kong, a recorded message from Tiananmen Square leader Wang Dan was broadcast to the crowd. Wang paid tribute to the lawyers by saying, "We also see that the "wei quan" movement, led by the lawyers, has already developed on a spectacular scale." ¶6. (C) James Wang, a reporter for "Yazhou Zhoukan" (a Hong Kong-based Chinese-language political affairs weekly magazine) also sees the "wei quan" lawyers as a crucial component of the movement. The magazine's December 25, 2005 issue named China's "wei quan" lawyers the "person of the year" (a summary of the article is located at ref A). Wang told poloff on July 3 that most of the lawyers he interviewed had not intended to be part of a cause or even get involved in human rights work -- some would never even think of referring to themselves as "wei quan" lawyers. Instead, many of them, with background in commercial law, might have begun by helping an individual file a lawsuit to recover lost wages, but later realized that the individual case was part of a bigger picture, at which point issues such as upholding the rule of law or an individual's constitutionally guaranteed rights assumed greater meaning. Many of the "wei quan" lawyers pursue their cases at great personal risk and come under official scrutiny, said Wang, but have begun to rely on other "wei quan" lawyers for moral support. ¶7. (C) Wang said that most of the lawyers he spoke with were extremely "rational" and moved forward with their cases cautiously. Wang said he considered Gao Zhisheng to be a little reckless in his actions (i.e. submitting an open letter to President Hu Jintao criticizing abuse of Falun Gong adherents). While Gao has attracted attention from the international media for cases that he has litigated, he has also been the target of official harassment. Wang speculated that Gao was purposefully being provocative towards the Chinese authorities in order to be arrested and become a "martyr." It appeared to Wang that Gao sought greater publicity, even at the expense of a possible arrest or even detention. Wang has heard from sources that mainland authorities are trying their best to refrain from arresting Gao, because doing so might bring him even greater moral authority. ¶8. (C) Separately, Allison told poloff that "wei quan" lawyers had to be very careful about the cases they pursued. Perhaps aware that more mainland lawyers were taking on civil cases to test the legal limits of the system, the PRC lawyers association had issued a new directive restricting the number of clients a lawyer could accept in a single case. Allison speculated that this essentially would prevent "wei quan" lawyers from pursuing class action suits. ... or Capitalizing on "Wei Quan" Cases? -------------- ¶9. (C) Not all of our contacts were convinced that lawyers were at the forefront of the "wei quan" movement. Roseann Rife, Hong Kong Program Director of Human Rights in China (HRIC),told poloff on June 30 that there was still a lack of understanding about how Chinese citizens defined "wei quan," and she did not believe lawyers necessarily were leading the movement. She opined that the "wei quan" protests were a healthy way for ordinary citizens to vent their frustrations, but was concerned that if Chinese citizens began to rely solely on court judgments for justice, then they might get caught up in an endless cycle of lawsuits against corrupt officials or landlords. Even a court ruling in a citizen's favor would not guarantee payment of a settlement, which might lead to an increase in people's overall frustration levels. Simply focusing on the legal angle of "wei quan" protests was not sufficient; it also was important to truly understand the phenomenon itself before labeling it a lawyer-led movement, said Rife. To that end, HRIC was planning to survey "wei quan" blogs and publish a report on the issue. (Note: Poloff conducted an informal survey of "wei quan" websites on "google.cn" and got results for over 7 HONG KONG 00002908 003 OF 004 million websites. End Note.) ¶10. (C) Journalist and veteran China analyst Johnny Lau took a more cynical view of the emerging "wei quan" movement in a June 12 conversation with poloff. While acknowledging the positive aspects of ordinary citizens demanding protection of their life, property, health, and other rights, Lau cautioned that the Central Government might see the "wei quan" movement as "rebellious," especially if protestors made efforts to organize on a broader scale. Lau also offered a more supply-sided explanation to the proliferation of the "wei quan" term: mainland lawyers were educating more citizens about their rights, which in turn brought in more business to these same lawyers. As individuals better understood their rights, it increased the probability they would hire a lawyer if they believed those rights had been violated. Moreover, some lawyers might reason that if they took on high profile "wei quan" cases, then the ensuing attention from the local and foreign media might help generate more business for their law practices, as well as offer some protection against possible arrest. Is "Wei Quan" a Movement? -------------- ¶11. (C) Han Dongfang, Director of China Labour Bulletin, was adamant in a recent newspaper column that the disparate "wei quan" protests were part of a broader movement forming in China and described it as "China's emerging civil rights movement." In a May 10 "South China Morning Post" article, Han wrote that "Chinese citizens are starting to stand up for their rights and they are doing so collectively" (ref B). "This loose but broad-based social movement" is a significant development in the field of Chinese human rights, said Han. "These have been prompted by a wide range of issues, all related to the growing problems of social injustice, economic inequality and poor governance that have come in the wake of two decades of economic reform." "The new movement's strength lies in its avoidance of political rhetoric and focus on issues of social justice, livelihood and local governance...A wide range of social actors -- rights lawyers, social scientists and academics, investigative journalists, and even some local legislators -- have begun supporting the local citizens' groups involved." Not all of our contacts agreed with Han's assessment that "wei quan" was an emerging civil rights movement. Roseanne Rife said she wanted to reserve judgment on the impact and significance of the numerous "wei quan" protests for now, but she believed the "wei quan" phenomena was much more organic and less organized than described by Han. Beijing Tolerant of "Wei Quan," So Far -------------- ¶12. (C) Beijing had not initiated a broad crackdown on the use of the term "wei quan" so far, said Han Dongfang. More worrying, in Han's opinion, has been the reaction by "local power holders" of hiring thugs to intimidate and threaten local protestors. In June 2005, for example, about 250 armed individuals launched a raid in Dingzhou, Hebei province against protestors camped out on land requisitioned without proper compensation by a power plant, killing at least six. A court later found that the Dingzhou party secretary had ordered the raid. Han worried that the use of thugs and violence to disperse "wei quan" protestors pointed to a trend toward lawlessness. Hong Kong Support for "Wei Quan" Movement -------------- ¶13. (C) On June 28, legislator and Democratic Party Vice Chairman Albert Ho and several Hong Kong academics convened a press conference to issue a communique, "To Pledge Support for the 'Wei Quan' Movement and 'Wei Quan' Lawyers Who Struggle on the Chinese People's Behalf for Their Right of Existence and the Development of Their Rights." The communique criticized the PRC government for protecting the interests of local officials and businessmen and for neglecting the rights of the peasants and workers. The communique called upon the Chinese government to stop persecution of "wei quan" leaders and lawyers and made the following appeals: 1) release blind activist Chen Guangcheng; 2) stop the harassment of "wei quan" lawyers; 3) investigate incidents in Shanwei and Panyu Taishi village as well as the planned torture of Falun Gong "wei quan" activists; and 4) implement the basic rights of the citizens as stated in the PRC constitution. The communique was signed by HONG KONG 00002908 004 OF 004 representatives of the "Wei Quan" Lawyers and "Wei Quan" Movement Concern Group. (Comment: The majority of Hong Kong democrats have been selective of the human rights issues they comment on for fear of retaliation from the PRC Government who views mainland human rights issues as politically sensitive. End Comment.) ¶14. (C) Law Yuk-kai, Director of the Hong Kong Human Rights Monitor, told poloff on June 28 that all of the media in Hong Kong had been invited to attend the event, but that the only media outlet to send a reporter was "Epoch Times" (a Falun Gong owned newspaper). Law speculated that the press conference and communique were not reported in the following day's newspapers because most Hong Kong editors would be reluctant to report on Chinese human rights issues, especially if it included mention of Falun Gong. Law said it was not at all surprising that the Hong Kong media did not cover the "wei quan" press conference. Besides, the editors would likely use the excuse that their reporters were busy covering Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Chairman Jia Qinglin's visit to Hong Kong. Sakaue