Dui Hua Completes First 2009 Mission
Executive Director John Kamm spent the month of March engaged in an intercontinental advocacy trip to Asia and Europe. He gave several presentations, met with delegates of major Chinese government bodies, and consulted with representatives from more than a dozen countries.
Kamm began his trip in Hong Kong, where he delivered two talks. In his March 6 speech hosted by the American Chamber of Commerce, “Human Rights in China and America: A Constructive and Realistic Approach,” Kamm identified areas where the two countries can work together on human rights issues, including juvenile justice. In this speech and in remarks delivered at other gatherings, Kamm argued for a special pardon for long-serving prisoners to mark the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China.
From Hong Kong, Kamm traveled to mainland China, where he met up with Senior Manager of Research and Hong Kong Operations Joshua Rosenzweig. Kamm was also accompanied in China by a senior program officer from a major US foundation. The group stopped in Nanjing, Shanghai, and Beijing. In Nanjing, Kamm spoke at the Hopkins-Nanjing Center, an international graduate center jointly administered by Johns Hopkins University and Nanjing University. In Shanghai, the US Consulate General hosted a lunch for Kamm where guests included several of the city’s leading legal scholars. In Beijing, Kamm met with the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Supreme People’s Court, and also representatives from several countries, including the United States, Norway, Canada, the Netherlands, Italy, Switzerland, Denmark, Sweden, Germany, the Czech Republic, and France as well as representatives of the European Commission.
From Asia, Kamm flew to Europe, with stops in Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland. In Oslo, Kamm addressed the Interdepartmental China Group of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and had fruitful discussions with the Nobel Institute, the Rafto Foundation, the Helsinki Committee, and the Norwegian Center for Human Rights.
Kamm closed out his trip with meetings in Stockholm, Geneva, and Berne. In each city, he met with government representatives and senior Chinese diplomats. In Geneva, sessions were held with the senior staff of the UN Human Rights Council, including several involved in the Special Procedures Division, and a distinguished member of the Committee on the Rights of the Child, Professor Jean Zermatten. Kamm also exchanged opinions with senior staff of the International Committee of the Red Cross.
Dui Hua Strengthens Contacts Through Hong Kong Office
Since moving to Hong Kong last May to head Dui Hua’s branch office in the SAR, Joshua Rosenzweig, senior research manager, has frequently carried out a central function of the office: providing a convenient point of contact for individuals traveling in and out of China who are interested in the foundation’s work.
In recent months, Rosenzweig has met with diplomats from Norway, Denmark, Canada, the Netherlands, and the Czech Republic to discuss human rights issues concerning China, and he meets regularly with journalists, academic researchers, and representatives of other NGOs visiting and working in Hong Kong. Rosenzweig also introduced Dui Hua’s mission and programs to a group of Danish travelers about to embark on an educational tour of China. Dui Hua values these communications as a way to enter into exchange with others monitoring and working on issues tied to China’s human rights and criminal justice system.