“If there is one message that echoes forth from this conference, let it be that human rights are women’s rights and women’s rights are human rights once and for all.”—First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton At the United Nations’ 4th World Conference on Women, which was held from September 4-15, 1995, several countries united in support… Read More "The Beijing Conference on Women"
Managing a Massacre: The Ramifications of Tiananmen Square
The Tiananmen Square Massacre of June 1989, and the subsequent months of intimidation, deception and violence, shattered the façade of Chinese political solidarity and severely damaged Sino-American relations. The crackdown followed weeks of protests after the death of reformist leader Hu Yaobang, when tens of thousands of peaceful protesters gathered in Tiananmen Square to demand… Read More "Managing a Massacre: The Ramifications of Tiananmen Square"
Easter with Newt Gringrich
Easter is a time of joy, a belief in miracles, and reconciliation. But some people draw the line at people from another political party, as Joe Borich, who served as Consul General in Shanghai from 1994 to 1997, recounts. This excerpt is taken from “Shanghai Stories,” commemorating 30 years of the U.S. Consulate in Shanghai. Read More "Easter with Newt Gringrich"
John S. Service – The Man Who “Lost China,” Part I
During the 1950’s hundreds of government employees, entertainers, educators, and union activists were accused of being communists by Senator Joseph McCarthy. Careers were ruined, reputations smeared as people found themselves on black lists and the victims of unjust persecution. In 1950, Senator Millard Tydings (D-MD) headed the Tydings Committee to investigate McCarthy’s claims of Communist penetration of the federal… Read More "John S. Service – The Man Who “Lost China,” Part I"
The U.S. De-recognizes Taiwan in Favor of Communist China — January 1, 1979
“The Government of the United States of America acknowledges the Chinese position that there is but one China and Taiwan is part of China.” With this Second Joint Communiqué of the U.S. and China, issued on January 1, 1979, the Carter Administration no longer recognized Taiwan as a sovereign state, but rather preserved the “cultural,… Read More "The U.S. De-recognizes Taiwan in Favor of Communist China — January 1, 1979"
John S. Service – The Man Who “Lost China,” Part II
John Service, the son of missionaries who grew up in China, was one of the Department’s “China hands,” an expert on the region who also served as a key member of the “Dixie Mission,” which met with Mao and other Communist Chinese in Yenan in 1944. He and a few others correctly predicted that Chiang Kai-Shek,… Read More "John S. Service – The Man Who “Lost China,” Part II"
The Civil War in China, Part II –The Dixie Mission and Losing China
After attempting to convince Washington that a civil war in China was imminent and that the Communists would be the likely victors, John S. Service and a group of other U.S. diplomats traveled to Yenan in July 1944 to meet with the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party. Nicknamed the Dixie Mission, the U.S. Army Observation… Read More "The Civil War in China, Part II –The Dixie Mission and Losing China"
The Civil War in China, Part I – The Bureaucratic Fight in Washington
Oftentimes the greatest foreign policy struggles are not with the host government but rather with the government bureaucracy back home. Such was the case with China in the 1940’s in a fight that would define geopolitics for a generation and would ultimately ruin the careers of those diplomats who were on the losing side. After… Read More "The Civil War in China, Part I – The Bureaucratic Fight in Washington"
Sorry Mao: It’s Pronounced “Truman”, not “Too-Lu-Mun”
In 1944, John Service, Colonel David Barrett, and a small group of diplomats and military staff went to Yenan to learn more about the Chinese Communists and the community they set up there. Throughout their time there, the Communists wanted to know a lot about what was going outside of Yenan, especially in the United… Read More "Sorry Mao: It’s Pronounced “Truman”, not “Too-Lu-Mun”"
As If Getting a Venereal Disease Weren’t Bad Enough…
Chas Freeman had an extraordinary career in the Foreign Service. He accomplished the unparalleled feat of becoming nearly bilingual in less than two years of training and served as one of President Nixon’s interpreters on his historic trip to China. He then helped open the Liaison Office in Beijing in the 1970s, where he had… Read More "As If Getting a Venereal Disease Weren’t Bad Enough…"