Even leader sees that time's running out on non-confrontational 'middle way'

Christian Science Monitor Nov 24, 08 1:07 PM CST
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Tibetans still support the Dalai Lama’s “middle way” policy of negotiating for greater autonomy under Chinese rule, the Christian Science Monitor reports, but a conference of Tibetan exiles that ended today in India revealed many are growing impatient with Beijing’s endless foot-dragging. Members of the conference said there was a limit to their support for the middle way.
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Hu Jia is serving a prison sentence for 'subversion'

Daily Telegraph (UK) Oct 23, 08 3:26 PM CDT
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A move by the European Parliament to award a major human-rights prize to a Chinese dissident has Beijing outraged on the eve of a summit on the economic crisis, the Telegraph reports. The government denounced as “gross interference in China's domestic affairs” news that the jailed Hu Jia had won prestigious Sakharov Prize; a delegation including French president Nicolas Sarkozy arrives in Beijing tomorrow.
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President talks human rights with leaders hosting Beijing visit

AFP Aug 8, 08 2:47 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Nicolas Sarkozy says the relationship between France and China had been “set right again” in talks today with the Chinese leadership, AFP reports. "I had a lunch and a meeting with the Chinese president and a meeting with the prime minister. I talked about human rights, I handed over lists" of jailed political prisoners, Sarkozy said.
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President lands in Beijing for opening ceremonies

Bloomberg Aug 7, 08 8:19 AM CDT
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President Bush landed in Beijing today for the Olympics’ opening ceremony, but not before outlining his “deep concerns” about human rights in the Chinese regime. “America stands in firm opposition to China's detention of political dissidents, human-rights advocates, and religious activists,” Bush said in a speech in Bangkok hours before boarding the plane.
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President's speech tomorrow will express 'deep concern,' US' 'firm opposition'

New York Times Aug 6, 08 4:08 PM CDT
(Newser)
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President Bush will urge the Chinese government toward greater openness and civil freedom, according to excerpts from a speech he’s scheduled give tomorrow in Thailand, the New York Times reports. Bush will keep his criticism mild, not wishing to use his visit to the Olympics to blast Beijing on its human-rights record—as some groups have wished.
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Dynamic economy means people's freedoms are slowly growing

New York Times Aug 2, 08 9:40 AM CDT
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With the Olympics casting an unflattering spotlight on the state of human rights in China, the New York Times takes a longer view, reporting that freedoms have gradually expanded over decades of economic reform. Repression remains in public expression and assembly, but Chinese people can now often live where they choose and travel abroad. Even with heavy censorship, technology allows them far more information than in the past.
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Herzog defends decision to design for China

Der Spiegel Jul 30, 08 9:15 PM CDT
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There’s no shame in designing a cultural icon for China’s government, says Jacques Herzog, the man behind the already famous “Bird’s Nest” Olympic stadium in Beijing. Though he deplores the regime’s political record, Herzog saw taking the project as a way to change more in China than he would have by declining—and was able to sneak some subversive capabilities into its design, he told der Spiegel .
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White House steps up support for human rights before Olympics

New York Times Jul 30, 08 6:03 AM CDT
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President Bush welcomed five prominent Chinese dissidents to the White House yesterday, a week before he leaves for the Olympics. The invitation was one of several moves to intensify pressure on Beijing to respect human rights. Earlier in the day, Bush urged the Chinese foreign minister, who was meeting with national security adviser Stephen Hadley, to relax restrictions on individual freedoms.
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Pitches for Adidas, Amnesty conflict—and inflame China opinion

Wall Street Journal Jul 14, 08 10:18 AM CDT
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A major advertising firm finds itself in an awkward predicament, the Wall Street Journal reports, after realizing it produced ads to drum up patriotic support for Chinese athletes in the Beijing Olympics as well as graphic spots criticizing China's human-rights record for Amnesty International. New York-based TBWA Worldwide has renounced the controversial Amnesty ads, but Chinese bloggers are pushing a boycott.
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Washington 'disappointed' by decision

AFP Jun 20, 08 8:20 AM CDT
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The European Union has agreed to lift sanctions against Cuba, much to the annoyance of the White House. "We see encouraging signs in Cuba and I think that we should show the population in Cuba that we are ready to work with them," an EU official tells the AFP. It's a largely symbolic victory for Cuba and Spain—which lobbied for the change—because sanctions have been suspended since 2005.
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ANALYSIS
Landmark ruling could be lightning rod for focus on the court's direction

New York Times Jun 14, 08 10:45 AM CDT
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The Supreme Court's ruling on Guantanamo detainees may put the court in the election spotlight for the first time in decades, Linda Greenhouse writes in the New York Times . The dramatic language of Antonin Scalia's dissent could be a signpost for conservatives worried about the court's course; because of the one-vote margin, liberals are just as concerned.
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GOP's Wolf, tough on human rights, says FBI traced cybercrime

Los Angeles Times Jun 11, 08 3:00 PM CDT
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Chinese hackers infiltrated four computers belonging to a member of Congress who is an outspoken critic of that country's human rights record, the Los Angeles Times reports. The FBI discovered that Republican Rep. Frank Wolf's machines had been "compromised" by hackers stationed in China, beginning as early as 2006; other House members could also have been targeted, Wolf said today.
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Prisoners held far from courts and scrutiny, human rights group charges

Guardian (UK) Jun 2, 08 5:07 AM CDT
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The US has detained terror suspects on some 17 naval ships that have been used as secret "floating prisons" around the world since 2001, according to a study by the human rights organization Reprieve. At least 50 prisoners were held on a