John Kamm Remembers

Encounters with China since 1972

John Kamm Remembers is a collection of stories written by Dui Hua founder about his encounters with China since its opening in 1972. Kamm’s behind-the-scenes accounts chronicle his dealings with officials and dissidents, his visits to prisons and courts, and the evolution of his methodology of finding prisoner names and advocating for them.

Kamm’s journey spans three distinct periods: 1972-1989; 1990-1999; and 1999-present.

Latest story “When Dialogue is Derailed: Hurdles in Hubei” [published February 11, 2025]

Read all JKR stories by date of publication

JKR: Encounters with China Podcast

John Kamm Remembers: Encounters with China is a collection of stories by Dui Hua's founder John Kamm about his encounters with China since its reopening in 1972. The stories recount his journey navigating US-China relations to promote human rights through dialogue. As Dui Hua enters its 25th year, we've launched a podcast series to explore Dui Hua’s unique form of advocacy as well as issues affecting US-China relations.

Listen Now Subscribe

JKR: Kang Yuan Means John Kamm (1972-1989)

In 1972, President Nixon visited China, becoming the first sitting US president to do so. That same year, a young John Kamm journeyed to Macau, hoping to use his Chinese language skills. Also known as Kang Yuan (a pen name Kamm adopted for his China writings), Kamm found himself in the midst of historic events in the right place at the right time with the right people.

JKR: Mixing Business & Human Rights (1990-1999)

In the aftermath of June 4, 1989, many were unsure how and if to engage with China. John Kamm had an idea: focus on releasing political prisoners. The next decade would see US-China relations resume, Hong Kong's return to China, the Taiwan Strait Crisis, the launching of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, and the formal delinking of human rights from trade with China. Using the capital obtained from advocating for market access for China, he set an example for businesspeople to raise names of political prisoners to the Chinese government.

JKR: Dui Hua Means Dialogue (1999-present)

As the world hurtled towards the new millennium, Kamm’s approach to advocacy was garnering attention after several prisoner releases. As the dynamic between the two powers changes, with China becoming the largest US foreign creditor and the world’s second largest economy, Kamm founded Dui Hua to continue his prisoner accounting work and expand human rights dialogue with China.

JKR: 50 Years of Dialogue with China

John Kamm Remembers stories have been published for years and in different iterations. You can find all of the stories in the order they were published, starting with the most recent one.