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Journalism of Courage
Diplomatic protocol that so obsesses foreign offices around the world has political meaning only when it is broken consciously or disrupted by unanticipated acts. Both happened during the ceremonial reception for Chinese President Hu Jintao at the White House lawns on Thursday.
As India and China closely watch the other8217;s relationship with the US, comparisons between the White House receptions for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh last July and Hu are inevitable.
Singh was among the few leaders whom President George Bush chose to offer a full ceremonial visit. Bush has been rather choosy about having pomp and ceremony for visiting leaders.
Most visits are usually treated as official or working visits that don8217;t involve the pageantry. The Chinese apparently insisted and got a full state visit for Hu.
But while Singh got a dinner banquet, Hu was offered only lunch, to the irritation of the Chinese. While this protocol difference was clearly a planned one, the protest by a Chinese woman produced an unexpected complication at Hu8217;s reception.
As Hu began to speak, the woman, who managed to get into the camera stand for the media directly facing the two leaders, began shouting.
In Chinese and heavily accented English she demanded: 8220;President Bush, stop him from killing8230; President Bush, stop him from persecuting the Falun Gong8221;.
The Falun Gong is a Chinese religious movement with a huge and powerful following in China and beyond8212;which the Communist government has banned.
Though security guards hastily removed the protester, the damage was already done. President Bush had to quickly offer regrets to the visiting Chinese President. Hu was apparently gracious in accepting the apology.
Religious freedom in China
Although the Presidential apology helped put aside the disconcerting protocol lapse, the protester succeeded in amplifying an important discord between Bush and Hu8212;the question of religious freedom in China.
Although religious freedom has always been an important issue for the United States, Bush, a strong believer, has elevated it to the top of the political agenda with China.
The Christian right in the US, which has expansive clout with the Republican Party and the White House, would not spare the Administration if it is seen as soft-pedaling the issue of religious freedom in China.
Last year when he went to China, Bush made it a point to attend a Sunday Church service in Beijing to underline American complaints on religious freedom for Chinese Christians and other believers.
Hu, who wanted a successful visit to Washington, was clearly prepared to address the issue8212;to the extent he could. Earlier this month, the Chinese organised the first-ever international religious conference on Buddhism.
The Chinese officials were also putting out the word that Beijing is ready to make peace with Roman Catholics. Beijing is now offering to establish diplomatic ties with the Vatican, if it breaks relations with Taiwan.
Although Hu has sought to inject flexibility into Chinese policies on religion, the Falun Gong is an entirely different matter and beyond the pale of discourse at home or abroad.
The Communist Party of China despises the Falun Gong and is prepared to crush what it sees as a dangerous cult by all possible means. But the Falun Gong, whose followers focus on breathing exercises and meditation, is no pushover.
The Power of Falun Gong
Anyone is free to demonstrate at the Lafayette Park8212;separated from the White House by the Pennsylvania Avenue. There were many doing precisely that during the reception for Hu.
But there is no precedent to a protest inside the White House compound. Thursday8217;s incident underlined the organisational sophistication of the Falun Gong. Security is so tight at White House receptions that protocol lapses are rare. But the Chinese protester found the weak link8212;the media. While the media personnel are intensely searched at the White House before being let in, no one really expects the journalists to become activists at such events.
The choice of timing and venue reminds one of the extraordinary mobilisation by the movement a few years ago in Beijing. In July 1999 and May 2000, the Falun Gong organised a breathtaking defiance of the Chinese authorities at the most intensely guarded spot in Beijing8212;the Tiananmen Square.
If they could converge in large numbers in Tiananmen Square and unfurl banners, the White House protest was small change for Falun Gong.
Established by Li Hongzhi, the group claims to have 100 million followers around the world, including 70 million in China. Official estimates in Beijing put the following at more modest 2 million in China.
Tibetans suspend protests
While Falun Gong has generated bad news from Hu8217;s US visit, Beijing has won a respite from the Tibetan protests that traditionally dogged Chinese leaders around the world.
Amid the ongoing talks between the representatives of the Dalai Lama and the Chinese government, the Tibetan leadership had formally asked for a restraint on protests during Hu8217;s visit to the US.
Several round of these talks have been held since 2002 and the Tibetans are optimistic of forward movement. Last month, the Dalai Lama made several political gestures towards Beijing and has publicly expressed his desire to travel to Buddhist holy sites in China. Beijing has not reacted too negatively.
Asked by the Time magazine recently on his decision to avoid protests, the Dalai Lama said: 8220;Since we already have some official contact with the Chinese, we believe it is very important to create impressions that we are very sincere, we are fully committed.8221;
