China Accused of Hostage Diplomacy Amid Rising Detentions of Foreign Citizens
A new report highlights Chinas use of foreign citizens as diplomatic leverage, raising concerns over human rights violations.
Beijing, November 14 (Daily Kiran) : China is increasingly using foreign citizens as tools for diplomatic pressure, according to a recent report. The findings indicate a rise in the arrest and secret detention of foreigners by Chinese authorities, a practice critics are labeling as “hostage diplomacy.”
The report suggests that both the police and the Ministry of State Security (MSS) have become more aggressive in employing foreign nationals to further China’s foreign policy objectives.
Peter Dahlin, founder of the human rights organization Safeguard Defenders, highlighted several cases in an article for The Diplomat. These include a Czech national, two American citizens, a British citizen, and two Japanese businessmen linked to the rare earth minerals sector. Dahlin asserts that many of these individuals have been detained to exert political pressure.
He further noted a troubling trend: a long list of Chinese lawyers, journalists, and NGO staff have faced similar predicaments.
The report points out that a common thread among these cases is the use of a system known as Residential Surveillance at a Designated Location (RSDL). This arrangement allows individuals to be held in undisclosed locations, limiting access to their families and lawyers. Critics argue that this creates conditions akin to enforced disappearances.
Dahlin, who has experienced RSDL himself, states that all those detained share a disturbing common experience, having either been victims of enforced disappearance or remain in such a situation.
Human rights organizations and Western nations have previously accused China of using foreign citizens as bargaining chips in diplomatic negotiations. High-profile cases, such as that of Michael Kovrig, are frequently cited as examples of this hostage diplomacy. Recent studies focused on RSDL have also raised alarms about the increasing use of foreign nationals in this manner.
Dahlin argues that if foreign citizens are being detained to achieve foreign policy goals, it can indeed be classified as hostage diplomacy. However, China has consistently dismissed such allegations, claiming that its actions are in accordance with the law.
