The Dragon and selective diplomatic disapproval PDF Print E-mail
Written by Mark   
Monday, 06 July 2009 00:00

Today's story:

140 slain as Chinese riot police, Muslims clash in northwestern city

Protest in Urumqi
Shen Qiao / New China News Agency
Firefighters douse a bus in Urumqi, the main city in Xinjiang, where China's ethnic Uighur minority is concentrated. Eight hundred people were injured and hundreds held as demonstrations against racial discrimination erupted into street violence.
Eight hundred people are injured and hundreds are reported arrested in Urumqi. The Uighur demonstrators were protesting against racial discrimination...
Earlier from the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade:
"Canada condemns the decision of the Iranian authorities to use violence and force against their own people..."
“Canada condemns the coup d'état that took place over the weekend in Honduras..."
Don't hold your breath waiting for something about Chinese treatment of the Uighurs.  After all one wouldn't want to upset the China-lovers at the Globe and Mail, would one?  Though the Dragon may not be such a great yellow hope for our trade after all.
Update: The government has been publicly quiet since 2007 about a Canadian Uighur imprisoned for life in China.  But now:
1)
...Prime Minister Stephen Harper and his ministers initially criticized the Chinese government when Mr. Celil, a Canadian citizen from China's Uyghur minority, was sentenced to life in prison in 2006 after a closed-door trial on terrorism charges. But as they have attempted to thaw chilled relations with China in recent months, their criticisms regarding Mr. Celil and other rights cases have been less public...

2)

Relations between Ottawa and Beijing had been seriously strained when the Conservatives came to power in 2006, following a series of statements and policy moves that rankled the Chinese.

...Canada was actively protesting the imprisonment of Chinese-Canadian Huseyin Celil...

But the lack of almighty dollars in a world wracked by a financial crisis has made the government even more sensitive to trade and investment -- in which China plays a critical role.

The business community came down hard on the Conservatives for the chill in relations with China.

Harper recently dispatched Trade Minister Stockwell Day and Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon to China for high-profile tours...
Not too many almighty dollars for us in Honduras and Iran, I guess.  Ah, those Conservative principles.
Upperdate: More photos.
Uppestdate: Have the Uighurs themselves been responsible for most of the casualties?
Mark
Ottawa
Comments (1)add comment

OMMAG said:

OMMAG
 ...
The only thing in this mess that I care about is the fact that some knobs in Ottawa think it`s a good idea to bash Honduras.

July 06, 2009 | url

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Last Updated on Monday, 06 July 2009 00:32