Taipei, Dec. 18 (CNA) Scholars had mixed feelings about the development of human rights and democracy in China Saturday but agreed that Taiwan could serve as a good example and should do more for its neighbor across the Taiwan Strait.
Various signs showed that some high level officials within the Communist Party of China (CCP) were ready for the introduction of judicial and human rights reforms, but it all came down to the top leader and the implementation of the law, said Jerome Cohen, Co-director of the U.S.-Asia Law Institute of the New York University School of Law.
Cohen, a respected law professor who had spent decades observing Taiwan and China, made the comments in a symposium on China's human rights development, organized by Taipei Bar Association, Lei Chen Human Rights Foundation and Hong Kong-based China Human Rights Lawyers Concern Group.
The Chinese leaders always said they supported human rights, but the human rights they supported were ones with "Chinese characteristics, " which were different from the Western standards, Cohen said.
"I always advised them that Taiwan, South Korea and Japan have all overcome the odds (when promoting human rights)," he said, adding "History is not an excuse for violating human rights."
A self-proclaimed optimist, Cohen said he could not afford to be too optimistic about China's future human rights development before China's political system changes because "within the CCP, it's very hard to tell the real thinking and mindset of the Chinese leader before he seizes the complete power."
Cohen, who met President Ma Ying-jeou -- his student at Harvard University in the 1970s -- yesterday, also said "the Taiwan government should not avoid talking with China about human rights issues".
Taiwan should demand protection of Taiwanese businessmen in China since now the cross-strait negotiations have touched upon the human safety issues, he said, referring to the recently stalled talks of a bilateral investment protection agreement.
Hsu Szu-chien, a researcher at Academia Sinica, urged Taiwan's non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to partner with their Chinese counterparts in offering assistance and sharing experiences.
Hsu also called on authorities on both sides of the strait to launch a human rights dialogue, saying that the move would be helpful to China's grassroot human rights and democracy movement.
"It seems to me that the power of a rising China grows stronger every day. But at the same time, its moral position keeps falling back, " Hsu said, because it can no longer persuade its people with the same excuses and the people of China no longer believe everything the government says.
"What will happen to China in the future? I don't know, " Hsu said.
"I see the potential and momentum right there. What Taiwan can do is to help the Chinese society to be ready for the moment when opportunities come, " he said. (By Chris Wang) enditem/jc