Caroline Fleay

Transnational activism, Amnesty International and human rights in China: the implications of consistent civil and political rights framing

This article explores Amnesty Internationals consistent focus on civil and political rights in its campaigning on China. Such a focus has been evident from the beginning of Amnesty Internationals attention to human rights in China in the late 1970s to the present, despite the decision in 2001 that the organisation would work to promote all categories of human rights. This suggests that the early framing of human rights as particular civil and political rights by the organisation continues to be a somewhat settled frame of meaning in the case of China. The implications of this framing include that while it elevates certain abuses within China, abuses that local activists face considerable domestic constraints to highlight, it inevitably marginalises other abuses and obscures more complex understandings of human rights in China.

Engaging in Human Rights Diplomacy: The Australia–China Bilateral Dialogue Approach

Abstract Through adopting the bilateral human rights dialogue process in 1997, Australia changed its human rights policy regarding China from public support for resolutions on China at the UN Commission on Human Rights to private annual meetings on human rights issues and a technical cooperation programme (TCP). With its aim of bringing about practical improvements in human rights through training activities for Chinese officials, the TCP has become the centrepiece of Australias human rights policy on China. According to the spiral model of Thomas Risse, Stephen Ropp and Kathryn Sikkink, support for the growth of Chinese human rights NGOs is considered necessary to encourage the Chinese government to bring about further human rights improvements. Cross-cultural dialogue is one method that may contribute to this. While TCP training activities have largely been cross-cultural exercises, these activities have mostly engaged with Chinese government officials and not Chinese human rights NGOs, limiting their support for these groups. However, the TCPs engagement with middle-level and some senior Chinese officials gives it some potential to support reformist elements within the Chinese government.

Exploring physical activity engagement and barriers for asylum seekers in Australia coping with prolonged uncertainty and no right to work

This paper explores the engagement in physical activity as a potential coping strategy for asylum seekers living in the Australian community without the right to work and with prolonged uncertainty, and benefits or barriers to undertaking such activity. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were held with 29 asylum seekers who had arrived to Australia by boat and were living in the community in the cities of Perth, Sydney or Melbourne in July-October 2013 after their release from immigration detention. The ratio of the numbers of men and women interviewed (23 men and 6 women) was comparable to the ratio of men and women who came by boat to Australia seeking asylum in 2012-2013. Nine participants reported that they participated in physical activity as a coping strategy. Seven other participants were so worried about their future and their families that they did not have the mental or physical energy to engage in physical activity. A further six wanted to participate in physical activity but faced a number of barriers to doing so. The seven remaining participants were either not asked about their physical activity engagement because they focused their discussion on other challenges or did not elaborate on why they were not engaging in physical activity. The findings suggest that physical activity, coupled with other coping strategies, are important for some asylum seekers in trying to manage the distress of being denied the right to work and living with prolonged uncertainty. In addition, these findings highlight the critical barrier that government policy plays in disabling engagement in physical activity, which further compounds social exclusion. This includes the lack of welfare support provided, which hinders peoples financial ability to access activities and support in the community.