CHRONICLE OF AN ANNOUNCED DEFEAT. THE DIVIDED RESPONSIBILITY OF THE EUROPEAN UNION ON HUMAN RIGHTS.

As we had announced prior to the commencement of the works of the UN Commission in Geneva, the European Union has, unfortunately, confirmed its inability to find a common internal ground on the question of human rights in China. France was the first to renounce a coherent policy that would condemn the grave and systematic violation of human rights by the Peking authorities, and was followed in its decision by Bon, Rome, and Madrid, all of whom opted for a policy of "constructive dialogue." This is a euphemism which actually stands for "renunciation policy" and

"politics of selfishness." It is a grave episode in the deficits of federalism and of the absence of a European presence, as well as a confirmation of the slow but constant process of internal division.

It is an episode upon which to reflect: reflect on how we will proceed in our actions, in particular in those nations where a politics of "two truths" is operative, where a politics of human rights and democracy and of markets that must be conquered at any cost. In particular, in regards to France and Italy, we can no longer practice economics after a serious reflection upon the difference that exists between the consistency of Parliamentary support for concrete initiatives in favor of Tibet or human rights in China and the foreign policy that is practiced by those nations. It is an episode that forces us to reflect upon the urgency of relaunching the federalist European battle and, most of all, the battle for the birth of true policies of foreign affairs and common security.

We must be prepared to react to this episode. This is the sense one gains from the work which the Transnational radical Party has continued in recent weeks, from the work done for the European Parliament's approval of a first serious resolution on Eastern Turkestan and the defense of Hong Kong, to the important resolution of the Geneva Commission concerning a universal moratorium on capital punishment.

These are minor yet important steps towards a stronger mobilization directed at Western Governments and the international organizations so that the Peking government initiate a series of reforms in the area of civil liberties and human rights; in other words, for democracy in Tibet, Inner Mongolia, Eastern Turkestan, and all of China.

One thing can be done immediately: re-contact the mayors who have supported the "Flag for Tibet" campaign and activate with them the procedure to name a street or plaza of their city for Tibet.

Good work.

(From FREEDOM FOR TIBET/DEMOCRACY IN CHINA ! - Number 56 - April 15th, 1997)