Human Rights Groups Call on Hillary Clinton Ahead of China VisitThursday, 13 February 2009, 1:47 p.m.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton/File photo

Dharamshala: A group of leading human rights groups have urged the US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to raise issues of improving human rights during her upcoming visit to China, while expressing hope that her visit will set the tone for the US-China relationship in the new Obama administration.The first overseas trip of Secretary Clinton, scheduled from 16 – 22 February, will take her to Japan, Indonesia, South Korea and China. In the letter dated 12 February, signed by human rights group such as Human Rights Watch, International Campaign for Tibet and Amnesty International, Secretary Clinton was urged to raise issues of indiscriminate crackdowns in Tibet and Xinjiang, and press censorship.The rights groups said Tibetans and Uighurs continue to suffer indiscriminate crackdowns on their rights, typically on the grounds that their peaceful calls for genuine autonomy are in fact a cover for “separatist activity.”They called on secretary Clinton to press Beijing “to end the criminalization of peaceful advocacy in and to engage in constructive dialogue over the future of both regions”.The rights groups said secretary Clinton should urge Beijing to put in place mechanisms whereby alleged incidents of torture are consistently and impartially investigated and evidence procured through torture excluded.Expressing concern over the use of extrajudicial forms of detention by the Chinese police such as house arrest, residential surveillance, and administrative detention, the rights groups urged Clinton to ask the Chinese government to abandon the use of these illegal tactics.“We strongly urge that you raise these issues early in your tenure as Secretary. We are acutely aware that the US’s agenda with China is a broad one, but we believe that the desired economic, security, and diplomatic progress can be reinforced through more vigorous and public defense of human rights,” the rights group said.Ahead of the visit, the US State Department has indicated that the subjects of human rights and Tibet could well come up during the talks between secretary Clinton and the Chinese leadership.Related reports:Tibet on Hillary Clinton’s Agenda during China Visit: US State Department