CHINA'S ATTACKS ON ME MADE ME INTO more of a democratic hero than I deserved. The proposals we put forward were quite modest. I think that my major contribution in Hong Kong was to encourage a sense of citizenship and self-confidence about standing up for the freedoms of a liberal society. It was certainly the happiest period of my life professionally
COMMENTS (0)
More...
I REMEMBER THE VERY FIRST negotiations I had in Beijing [in 1992]. I tried to explain to my [Chinese] opposite what the rule of law meant. I pointed out that when I had been a British minister, I'd been taken to court on a number of occasions by citizens. I had never known from one day to the next whether the judge would find in my favor or not. I think my Chinese interlocutor thought I was pulling his leg.
THERE IS A PREVAILING SENSE among Western businessmen that, in order to do good business in China, you have to go along with whatever the Chinese authorities think politically. I think that’s complete rubbish. I think the Chinese are much more sophisticated about the way they do business.
ONE OF [PRIME MINISTER TONY] BLAIR’S MISTAKES has been to suggest that criticizing the Bush administration is tantamount to anti-Americanism. If that were true, more than half of the American population would be anti-American. It's a ridiculous argument. The truth is that because of Blair's policies, there is now stronger anti-Americanism in Britain than there has been in my lifetime. I deeply regret that.
SUBJECTS:
(0)
HIDE COMMENTS LOGIN OR REGISTER REPORT ABUSE