Emergency Dynamics
"Chen Guangchen has a long-established relationships with faculty at the NYU School of Law, and has an invitation to be a visiting scholar at NYU": statement by NYU spokesman
How perfectly awkward. The world's most respected protector of human rights caught off guard by a situation they would far have preferred not occur. Particularly at such an inauspicious time. But there you have it, this kind of thing erupts and it has to be dealt with. And in the 'dealing with it', fingers get burned, and people look fairly frantic who should be calm. Putting out fires is always a risky business.
Good move that, though. Go right to the gates of the U.S. Embassy and claim your right to safe haven. No point trying to find sanctuary in a church in China. The U.S. Embassy is the next-best alternative; nope, better. Chinese provincial authorities had a nuisance-noisy dissident under close surveillance and had no idea until four days later he had absented himself.
How could they even imagine such a thing? He's blind, after all, and not too well, and it's dark, the home is surrounded by seclusion-oriented security walls and guarded by a squadron of security personnel. How could anyone be so determined and persevering? Well, he was all of that; blind, unwell, determined and persevering. And a downright embarrassment without peer.
A stubborn and courageous man. One of many such in China. Who seem to believe that they have a right to expect that they and their countrymen should be treated humanely by their very own government. What utter foolishness.
And what a convergence of events. Mr. Chen presents himself, weary, desperate, in need of medical attention. There are outside sources who have been contacted through a web of intrigue, so this is anything but a secret occurrence no one has any knowledge of; it cannot be shrugged off and ignorance claimed. He must be welcomed, given assurances, haven and medical attention.
And diplomatic cables issued alerting the U.S. Secretary of State and Secretary of the Treasury what awaits them as they prepare to arrive in Beijing to discuss high level items of great import between the two countries; one the hyper-powerhouse of the world, the other aspiring to become just that, each suspicious of the other, yet highly dependent on the other.
Reunited with his wife and his child, Mr. Cheng changes his mind, and refutes that he wishes to remain in his country to challenge its record internally. For safety and security reasons he wishes now to depart, to leave China and take up residence in the United States, sending both countries into a diplomatic tizzy of considerable proportions.
Mutual face-saving dictates that the delicate matter of extending an invitation to study abroad be issued by an American university, and after berating the United States for its 'interference' in China's internal affairs, Beijing politely points out that it is, after all, quite routine for it to issue exit visas for its own, to permit them to study abroad...
"Over the course of the day progress has been made to help him have the future that he wants. We will be staying in touch with him as this process moves forward", declared the U.S. Secretary of State, as the quite reluctant and crestfallen Mr. Chen is ushered out of the Embassy, to a hospital, where he is solemnly under guard again.
Labels: China, Human Relations, Human Rights, That's Life, Traditions, United States, Values
posted by Pieface @ Tuesday, May 08, 2012
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