Jiang Zemin defends his nation's record
BEIJING - President Bush urged Chinese students to embrace faith and freedom today, assuring them that "change is coming" to their country.
In a speech broadcast live throughout the world's most populous nation, Bush outlined his vision of a China that accepts all religions, elects its leaders and follows the rule of law. The speech, Bush's last major event in a six-day Asian tour, capped a two-day visit to China with a call to action for a new generation of leaders.
"China has made amazing progress - in openness, and enterprise and economic freedom," Bush said in remarks prepared for delivery at Tsinghua University in Beijing. "Change is coming. . . . My prayer is that all persecution will end, so that all in China are free to gather and worship as they wish."
Bush delivered his remarks a day after Chinese President Jiang Zemin defended China's record on religious freedom in an extraordinary exchange with Western reporters.
'Abide by the law'
"Whatever religion people believe in, they have to abide by the law," Jiang said at a joint news conference Thursday with Bush in the Great Hall of the People. "Some of the lawbreakers have been detained because of their violation of law, not because of their religious belief." Jiang addressed the topic after pointedly ignoring two questions from American reporters about his government's detention of more than 50 Roman Catholic clerics. Bush, who earlier had seemed to enjoy reporters' efforts to pin Jiang down, registered his disbelief at the answer by pressing his lips together and gazing away from his host.
In his speech to the university students, Bush gave a personal testimonial to faith in offering his view of life in America.
"America is a nation guided by faith," he said. "Ninety-five percent of Americans say they believe in God, and I'm one of them. . . . Freedom of religion is not something to be feared, but to be welcomed."
Bush also sought to counter negative impressions of the United States as a country consumed by greed and arrogance.
He invoked the Statue of Liberty - a symbol with special meaning in China - to make the case that freedom should be welcomed, not feared.
In 1989, student-led protesters demanding reform erected a version of the statue in Tiananmen Square. The government dispatched tanks and troops to dislodge the demonstrators in an outbreak of violence that stunned the world.
"In a free society, diversity is not disorder. Debate is not strife. And dissent is not revolution," Bush said.
Although White House officials declared Bush's visit a success, some of his diplomatic victories were limited.
While Jiang paid lip service to Bush's war on terrorism, he refused to stop China's sales of missile technology to Iran and other nations. White House officials had hoped to leave China with a firm commitment from Jiang to restrict technology that could be used for weapons of mass destruction.
Partners in theory
U.S. officials contend that Chinese leaders, by helping Pakistan with its missile program and by selling equipment or technology to North Korea, Iran and Libya, have ignored a pledge to limit sales made in November 2000. "The talks have been going better. . . . But there isn't an agreement," National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice said.
Jiang also declined to embrace Bush's denunciation of Iraq, Iran and North Korea as an "axis of evil."
"All in all, in handling state-to-state relations, it is important to resolve the problems through peaceful means," he said at Thursday's joint news conference. Jiang counseled patience in the war on terrorism by citing two Chinese proverbs: "More haste, less speed" and "One cannot expect to dig a well with one spade."
Bush said he asked the Chinese leader to use his influence with North Korea to encourage negotiations, but White House officials said later that Jiang did not make any firm commitment.
The dramatic high point of Bush's visit was Jiang's defense of China's record on religious freedom.
The incident captured in a single moment just how much China has changed and how much remains in the same in a country that still displays a giant-size photo of Mao Tse-tung overlooking Tiananmen Square. Although Jiang hosted the news conference to highlight China's new openness, he seemed unsure how to deal with a press corps that was beyond the reach of government pressure.
At first, Jiang simply ignored unwelcome questions, looking around the room in an awkward silence. Then, toward the end of the session, he tried another approach.
"When it comes to meeting the press, I think President Bush has much more experience," he joked in English. "I will do my best to answer your question."