ICYMI: Sen. Cruz Op-Ed in National Review: ‘Learning the Lesson of Tiananmen Square - and Reminding China’
“You do not change authoritarian regimes by enriching them while leaving their crimes against their own people unmentioned”
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) today penned an op-ed for National Review marking the 27th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre. In it, Sen. Cruz commends the Senate for unanimously passing his bill renaming the street in front of the People's Republic of China's embassy after the jailed pro-democracy dissent and Nobel Peace laureate Dr. Liu Xiaobo and urges the the U.S. House of Representatives to do the same and President Obama to sign it into law. He also makes the case that telling the truth about an authoritarian regime’s human rights record must not be disregarded when attempting to encourage reform or engage in diplomacy.
An excerpt of the Senator's op-ed is below. Full article may be viewed here.
Learning the Lesson of Tiananmen Square — and Reminding China
National Review Online
By: Sen. Ted Cruz
June 3, 2016
Twenty-seven years ago, thousands of brave protesters gathered in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square to demand political liberalization in the People’s Republic of China. The PRC’s brutal response was clear evidence that interaction with capitalist economies would not automatically result in political reform. The Communist Party, all too happy to reap the financial benefits the West offered, nonetheless refused to relinquish its authoritarian power.
The situation came to a head in the spring of 1989 when, mourning the death of reformer Hu Yaobang, the Chinese people tried to take matters into their own hands. Their demands were simple: a commitment to democracy, freedom of the press, accountability for government officials — the sorts of liberties we take for granted all too often in America.
At first the PRC reacted with caution, no doubt mindful of the simultaneous breakdown of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and its satellites in Eastern Europe and recalling the strong support that Soviet dissidents had received from the Reagan administration. But there was no similar outpouring in support for Tiananmen Square — no American leadership demanding that the walls oppressing the Chinese people be torn down. Emboldened, the PRC signaled that reprisals were coming, labeling the protesters dangerous subversives. The campaign against them culminated in the terrible massacre of June 3–4, 1989.
…
Liu’s courage poses a challenge to the free world, and the liberty he champions is possible for all the Chinese people. From Tiananmen Square to Taiwan, the evidence is clear that they desire — and are capable of — democracy. We must not marginalize Dr. Liu and his brave fellow dissidents but rather should make their plight central to our dealings with the PRC.
We should follow the example of Ronald Reagan, who stood up to the Soviet Union’s oppression of dissidents. He understood that the upholding of human rights was not a disinterested good deed — it was a vital edge that the Americans had over the Soviets. In 1984, President Reagan worked with Congress to rename the street in front of the Soviet embassy “Andrei Sakharov Plaza,” to provide the Soviet government a constant reminder of this advantage.
…
In this tradition, and in solidarity with the Chinese people, I introduced legislation to name the portion of International Plaza in front of the PRC embassy in Washington, D.C., “Liu Xaiobo Plaza.” Earlier this year, the Senate passed this legislation unanimously. The House should do the same.
If it is passed into law, the Chinese ambassador would look at this street sign each day. This address would be on every piece of correspondence going into and out of the embassy.
The process to re-name International Plaza was initiated two years ago, on the 25th anniversary of the massacre. The Senate has acted, in a bipartisan and united voice. If the House follows the Senate’s lead, this important legislation will go to President Obama’s desk.
…
The lesson of Tiananmen Square is that you do not reform authoritarian regimes by enriching them while leaving their crimes against their own people unmentioned. You do it by raising these issues again and again, even if it causes occasional discomfort in diplomatic circles. It is well past time that we recognize this truth, and I hope and pray that next year we can honor this anniversary under a sign bearing Liu Xiaobo’s name.
Full article may be viewed here.
###
