An ‘honour’ we can do without

An excellent letter by in the December 3rd, JEP, on the moral dangers of doing business with China. Well worth a wider audience, so I'm posting it on my blog.

An 'honour' we can do without
From Wayne Le Cuirot.

IT was good to see a note of integrity in the letters page over the weekend
from Amnesty International Jersey Group's chairman concerning the recent
Chinese visit.

Madam Fu Ying's trip here in her role as Chinese Ambassador was described in
the JEP's leader column as an 'honour'. The paper showed much guffawing over
the presentation to her of a 'cuddly Jersey cow' and proceeded to quote her
fatuous comment that 'Jersey is not a tax haven, but a low tax place'.

It would have been pleasant to imagine that at some part of her visit
someone might have made pertinent comments regarding any future relationship
with the Peoples' Republic which might have washed the smile off this woman's
face.

We are in reality dealing with a regime which has little regard for human
rights.

Doubtless you have had little contact with the Uighur majority in Xinjang
who see themselves crowded out of their own country by the Han Chinese.
Recent executions have signalled what will happen to any future protestors
there.

Everyone must surely be aware of the fate of Tibet, occupied by the Chinese
in 1950 and having their culture and way of life systematically destroyed
ever since.

As a consequence of packing peasantry into large factories, paying little
regard to their well being and subsequently undercutting the world, the
regime is now in the fortunate position, for example, of holding $800
billion in US Treasury securities and is predicted soon to be the world's
largest economy.

There does appear to be this horrible logic being postulated that we can
merrily ignore the EU and instead choose to associate with the Chinese,
whose disregard for democracy and freedom of speech, their sale of arms to
dictatorial regimes throughout the world, while also being classified as the
world's worst polluter, means presumably it's just a case of money yet again
over morals.

Does anyone else feel slightly queasy over this prospective arrangement?