Says Issue Cannot Be Separated From Economic and Security Policies
Washington, D.C. –Rep. Frank Wolf (R-VA) today again chastised the Obama Administration for its failure to champion human rights as a central part of American foreign policy.
In a speech on the House floor, Wolf, the co-chairman of the bipartisan Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission and long recognized for his work on human rights and religious persecution, expressed disappointment that a recent Wall Street Journalopinion piece co-written by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner outlining topics to be discussed in talks with the Chinese this week failed to mention human rights.

“Missing was any mention of the Chinese government’s suppression of journalists that prevented the world from learning about tainted baby formula being produced in China,” Wolf said. “There was no mention of the dozens of human rights lawyers across China who have been stripped of their licenses, arrested and harassed for defending Falun Gong practitioners and Protestant House church members. No mention of the approximately 30 Catholic bishops that languish in Chinese prison camps.”

“Human rights simply cannot and should not be separated from economic and security policy matters,” Wolf continued. “The Obama Administration has missed yet another opportunity to make human rights a fundamental component of U.S. foreign policy.”

Today’s floor statement was the third such statement Wolf has made this month. On July 9 he entered a lengthy statement in theCongressional Recordciting administration missteps in dealing with China, Cuba, Sudan, Iran, Egypt, North Korea, Vietnam and Russia. On July 22 he entered a statement in the record focusing specifically on the administration’s failure to bring up the issue of human rights when dealing with the government of North Korea. He also this month called on high ranking Obama Administration officials to meet with Chinese dissident Rebiya Kadeer to discuss the recent violence in western China.

Below is copy of Wolf’s statement today. His earlier statements are available online atwww.wolf.house.gov.
“In Monday’s Wall Street Journal, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Secretary of the Treasury Timothy Geithner co-authored an opinion piece outlining the issues to be discussed in the U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue this week. Notably missing was any mention of human rights.

“Missing was any mention of the Chinese government’s suppression of journalists that prevented the world from learning about tainted baby formula being produced in China.

“There was no mention of the dozens of human rights lawyers across China who have been stripped of their licenses, arrested and harassed for defending Falun Gong practitioners and Protestant House church members.

“No mention of the approximately 30 Catholic bishops that languish in Chinese prison camps.

“No mention of the Chinese government’s crackdown on the ethnic Uyghur Muslim population in Xinjiang which has prompted al-Qaeda to vow revenge on the Chinese government.

“No mention of how China continues to repatriate North Korean refugees seeking to escape the repressive regime of Supreme Leader Kim Jong-il.

“Human rights simply cannot and should not be separated from economic and security policy matters. The Obama Administration has missed yet another opportunity to make human rights a fundamental component of U.S. foreign policy.”