Rights lawyer accuses Clinton of being inconsistent

Rights lawyer accuses Clinton of being inconsistent

JAKARTA (JP): President Bill Clinton's decision to renew most
favored nation (MFN) trade status for China shows that the United
States is inconsistent with its own commitment to defending human
rights, human rights lawyer Todung Mulya Lubis says.

"We all know that there is very much criticism against the
violation of human rights in China," Mulya, the president of the
Center for Human Rights Studies, said yesterday.

But a waffling Clinton decided to put the U.S. economic
interests before its political interests, he said during a panel
discussion to review the Indonesian version of David P.
Forsythe's book Human Rights and World Politics at the American
Cultural Center Library.

"We should be honest to ourselves. Human rights issues are
often used as an instrument of foreign policy," Mulya said.

Washington has also brought human rights pressure against
Indonesia in the past. It is currently reviewing whether or not
to withdraw the generalized system of preferences (GSP) facility
from Indonesia unless Jakarta improves its labor record.

A decision is expected in August, but Indonesian officials are
anticipating favorable ruling given the increasing economic
interests in the region on the part of the U.S.

American human rights policy is dictated by political
interests, and this was what had happened when the Washington
renewed China's MFN status, Mulya said.

Mulya said since the time of President Richard Nixon, U.S.
administrations have been inconsistent when it comes to human
rights and foreign policy, with political situations dictating
decisions.

He pointed out that Forsythe' book mentioned that it was
highly impossible for any U.S. administration to be fully
consistent with its human rights principles.

Any U.S. president will always face difficult choices and
living with double-standards is an inseparable part of high
government positions, he said.

It was also for this reason that Amnesty International, a
London-based human rights organization, is suggesting that
Clinton should now explain to the public that he made the
decision to protect American's economic interests, Mulya added.
(arf)