Published by: World Tibet Network News, Tuesday, February 20, 1996

From: CTC and TRC

Montreal, January 20, 1996

[The following is a message to Tibet NGOs interested in participating in the lobby effort for the United Nations Commission on Human Rights.]

TIBET NGOS PREPARE FOR THE 52ND SESSION OF THE=20

UNITED NATIONS COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS:

i.) Background

ii.) Strategy this year

iii.) How to get involved

i.) Background:

During the past year Tibet has been thrust into the world's headlines by unfair play at the Fourth World Conference on Women and by controversy surrounding the issue of the Panchen Lama. However, while media attention has increased public awareness of the situation in occupied-Tibet, there has been little resulting success within the UN system.

Most governments, having effectively de-linked trade and rights, are reluctant to raise the case of Tibet in multilateral fora fearing negative repercussions to the development of business relations with China. Human Rights Watch stated in its recently released report on human rights in the APEC region, that "by the end of 1995, Beijing had successfully insulated its economic and political relations and ambitions from being seriously affected by its human rights record."

Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are now facing the intimidation governments have already succumbed to. At the February 1996 meeting of the UN Committee on NGOs, China led a coalition of nations in questioning the right of NGOs with consultative status to "infringe upon the sovereignty" of member states by questioning their human rights record. As a result, the status of several NGOs may now be reviewed. In particular organizations which have supported the Tibetan struggle, such as Human Rights Advocates and Pax Christi, have been specifically targeted.

Tibetans look to the annual Commission on Human Rights (CHR), which takes place in Geneva, as the best hope for multilateral support for their cause. In 1995 the European Union, the United States and other CHR members successfully brought forward a resolution condemning human rights violation s in China and Tibet. That cooperative effort resulted in near passage of the resolution - losing by only one vote.

Tibet supporters and Chinese democracy activists hoped that 1996 could be the year in which their efforts would finally result in the passage of a CHR resolution on China and Tibet. However it now appears that although the United States will likely co-sponsor the China resolution with the European Union, tensions resulting from the US/China trade war and the status of Taiwan may de-rail the active lobbying necessary to ensure success of the resolution. Although the US Congress may well threaten the Administration with revocation of China's MFN status in a bid to push the resolution forward, China is already clearly ahead in the process of wooing votes from new CHR members and last year's undecided.

Although the text of the 1995 resolution was considered to be quite mild, proposed wording for 1996 is currently being circulated among the diplomatic missions in Geneva in an attempt to water it down even further. NGOs following the process fear that as part of a bargaining process, specific reference to Tibet may be removed or compromised by referring to Tibetans as a "minority of China". International Tibet NGOs are lobbying their own governments in an effort to retain the Tibet wording and other basic components of a China resolution such as compliance with fundamental human rights standards and cooperation with the Commission's special rapporteurs and working groups.

In a strange twist, China is sending diplomatic messages that it may in fact comply with these very demands in a bid to avoid introduction of the resolution. A Canadian delegation of Foreign Affairs Ministry officials visited China in January 1996 with a mandate to discuss various human rights issues. According to representatives of the Human Rights and Justice Division of Canada's Department of Foreign Affairs, Chinese officials were willing to discuss political prisoners within the framework of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, mentioned possible ratification of the two UN Covenants and are considering a visit to China by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. The Chinese government has also agreed to an unprecedented visit by the CHR Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, although it is not known yet if the working group will visit Tibet.

The promise of such actions whether they actually occur or not, may well delay vigorous pursuit of the China resolution at the 52nd session of the CHR, ensuring that it will fail even if introduced.

ii.) Strategy this year:

Tibet NGOs, while continuing to lobby for the resolution, believe that other venues within the CHR must be identified in order that the issue of Tibet be raised and studied in a manner which leads to action.

CHR delegates base their findings on research compiled by single-issue specialists known as Special Rapporteurs. Special Rapporteurs, and in fact the CHR as a whole, are extremely under- funded and over-worked. They rely on the non-governmental community for properly documented materials and evidence.

During the past year, Tibet NGOs have intervened directly with several of the Commission's Special Rapporteurs, specifically those which will give presentations to the CHR at its 52nd session.

The Tibetan Women's Delegation to the World Conference on Women in Beijing, has submitted a petition with over 35,000 names requesting that the Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women visit Tibet to investigate violence perpetrated by the State on female prisoners of conscience inside Tibet.While the Special Rapporteur will report on domestic violence to this year's CHR session, in 1996 she will travel to three countries to study the effects of armed conflict on women. The three countries have not yet been identified and will be decided upon by the Special Rapporteur herself who is said to have a specific interest in refugee exodus. A visit to the Tibetan settlement camps in India has therefore been proposed as an alternate mission, should permission to enter Tibet be denied.

Because the most critical issue currently facing the Tibetan people in 1995 was the disappearance of the six-year old Panchen Lama, Tibet NGOs have appealed in desperation to the Special Rapporteur on Religious Intolerance for assistance in assuring the safety of Gendhun Choekyi Nyima. Additionally, friendly governments have been asked to raise the issue under CHR agenda items #8 (the question of enforced or involuntary disappearances) #18 (elimination of intolerance based on religion) and #20 (the rights of the child).

Documentation on specific Tibetan prisoners of conscience has been forwarded to the Special Rapporteur on Extra-judicial, Summary or Arbitrary Executions. Independent research has been compiled and submitted concerning the case of 34 year-old Lodroe Gyatso, who is reportedly under sentence of death for murder, but is believed to have been singled out for his pro-independence activities.

Because the Habitat II conference will take place in June 1996, CHR members will hear with particular interest, the report of the Special Rapporteur on Housing Rights. The Special Rapporteur has prepared a lengthy report which links housing rights to other human rights, specifically women's rights and land rights, through the indivisibility of all human rights. Materials supporting the German-led "Lhasa 2000" project have been forwarded to the Special Rapporteur as well as a review of the denial of Tibet NGOs application for accreditation to the Habitat conference.

iii.) How to get involved:

Tibet NGOs working in various countries can make a contribution to Tibet's success at the CHR. Through Parliamentary support groups and established contacts at the Foreign Affairs ministry in your country, appeals can be submitted outlining why passage of a China resolution is important for the Tibetan people.

Tibet NGOs can also support the resolution by making appointments to meet Embassy representatives in your country, briefing those officials on the current situation inside Tibet and appealing for their government's support of the China resolution including the need to retain Tibet wording within it. Specific Embassies to target are the new CHR members from Africa; Guinea, Madagascar, Mali and Uganda as well as those who abstained last year; Brazi= l, Chile, Colombia and Mexico and Venezuela.

Tibet NGOs may also write letters to UN Missions in Geneva.

Tibet NGOs are encouraged to write to the Special Rapporteurs in support of the various initiatives outlined in this report MOST IMPORTANTLY THE SPECIAL RAPPORTEURS ON VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND ON RELIGIOUS INTOLERANCE.

Tibet NGOs can work with local human rights organizations to support other objectives which would positively affect the efforts of the Tibet lobby in coming years:

* under agenda item 6, to support the link between armed conflict and dis-enfranchisement of people in the context of their right to development;

* under agenda item 8, to support the draft optional protocol to the Convention against Torture, in particular the right to un-announced prison visits;

* under agenda item 20, to support the draft optional protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, in particular the rights of children in situations of armed conflict;

* to support the recommendation of Amnesty International, that the missions of Special Rapporteurs be combined and integrated.

You can keep your organization updated on developments and lobbying strategy for the resolution by visiting the web page created by the New York-based Human Rights in China, which focuses solely on the China resolution. Please contact us for the coordinates.

For more information, or news about developments at the CHR during its 52nd session March 18 - April 26, 1996, please send your email address to . Include a brief message indicating your name and organization name and that you want to work on the CHR. Your submissions describing the support activities being done by your organization will be distributed to the list of interested subscribers.

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Submitted by:

The Canada Tibet Committee (Montreal) The Tibetan Rights Campaign (Seattle)