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The EU says “the link between investment and labour is undeniable” and pledges to use the Comprehensive Agreement on Investment to put pressure on China over forced labour and other worker issues. Photo: AFP

China-EU investment deal: Beijing relents on human rights but will it shift on trade unions?

  • The European Union sees the Comprehensive Agreement on Investment as a tool to improve workers’ right to organise and collectively bargain
  • China’s history of resisting trade union reform, including cracking down on labour activists, does not bode well, says Amnesty International
China will pursue the ratification of key global human rights conventions starting next year as a compromise on a forced labour controversy that once stalled investment deal talks with the European Union, according to EU documents of their ongoing negotiations.

But analysts remain concerned that Beijing is unable to live up to international standards on forced labour, collective bargaining and the right to freely form trade unions, issues that Brussels has demanded be included as part of their investment agreement.

China “agreed to work towards ratification of all four outstanding International Labour Organization fundamental conventions, and, in particular, to make continued and sustained efforts to ratify the two ILO fundamental conventions on forced labour that it has not ratified yet”, according to a document seen by the South China Morning Post.

The document hailed Beijing’s pledge to ratify the ILO conventions as a breakthrough and an “unprecedented outcome”.

It is also expected that Chinese legislators would ratify the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights in March next year, the Post reported this week. In 1998, Beijing signed the convention – which includes clauses agreeing that no one shall perform forced or compulsory labour – but has not ratified it.

Beijing has denied the existence of forced labour camps in Xinjiang, and says actions rolled out in the region are educational measures to tackle terrorism.

But while China appears to have relented over forced labour conventions, Beijing may have pushed back on requirements around the formation of independent unions and the right to collectively bargain with employers.

China to crack open market to EU firms, but restrictions remain under deal

An EU official speaking on the condition of anonymity told the Post that it had failed to get Beijing to commit to two major areas: ILO covenants concerning freedom of labour unions and the right to collective bargaining, which Vietnam has agreed to; and the setting up of a new mechanism to protect European investors in China.

The EU will “remain uncompromising” and use all possible instruments to eradicate any form of forced labour, the document said. And “the link between investment and labour is undeniable and CAI [Comprehensive Agreement on Investment] has a role to play”.
The ILO identified eight fundamental conventions, covering subjects that are considered to be basic principles and rights at work, including freedom of association and the effective recognition of the right to collective bargaining, elimination of all forms of forced or compulsory labour and abolition of child labour and discrimination in employment.

According to the ILO, China has not ratified conventions on forced labour, freedom of association and protection of the right to organise, the right to organise and collective bargaining and the abolition of forced labour.

Reinhard Bütikofer, chairman of the European Parliament’s delegation for relations with China, called for a definite timeline for ILO core convention ratification and said EU leaders should raise human rights issues in talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Beijing has been confronted by mounting accusations from around the world this year over alleged forced labour in Xinjiang. China has firmly denied the accusations but the issue has hit Beijing’s global image and diplomatic relations with Western countries. This month, China’s envoy to the EU said claims about forced labour in Xinjiang were “false and ridiculous”, according to a statement from the Chinese mission in Brussels.

European companies operating in China have been under growing pressure to resist any use of forced labour in their supply chain.

But the EU will also need additional tools to tackle human right issues, including launching a blacklist of companies and individuals found abusing or violating human rights, according to the document.

Chinese state media denies BBC reports of Xinjiang forced labour

Wang Yiwei, a professor of European studies at Renmin University in Beijing, said that behind the human rights demand was the EU’s frustration at its lagging progress in digital technology, including artificial technology and big data, which have gained significance during the pandemic.

“The protection of labour rights matters greatly to a country’s competitiveness,” Wang said. “There is a lack of political trust, but the EU also needs to cooperate with China.”

But ratifying and enacting ILO conventions on collective bargaining and freedom of association are not realistic expectations for China in the near future, according to Geoffrey Crothall, communications director at Hong Kong-based labour rights group China Labour Bulletin.

“China’s trade union is first and foremost a party organisation, and it’s not going to go away any time soon. The [Communist Party] is simply not going to allow any kind of alternative labour organisation to exist,” Crothall said.

The All-China Federation of Trade Unions (ACFTU), China’s official union, is the only legally recognised trade union organisation in the country, and is considered a “mass organisation” under the leadership of the party.

“Ideally, the EU should continue to push for freedom of association and collective bargaining, but we shouldn’t hold [our] breath on ratification,” he said.

William Nee, business and human rights analyst at Amnesty International, said China’s history of targeting activists advocating for trade union reform and collective bargaining did not bode well for enacting the ILO principles.

“Since China has arrested countless people from independent workers’ rights groups and individuals, there is absolutely nothing to suggest that China plans to fundamentally change its views of labour relations to come into line with international standards in the near future,” he said.

China detained dozens of labour activists in a nationwide crackdown in December 2015, many of whom advocated for stronger collective bargaining and changes to the ACFTU.

“There remains a major concern regarding China … whether its current political and legal system allows effective implementation of the ILO conventions,” said Surya Deva, associate professor of law at City University of Hong Kong.

“Independent trade unions are critical to prevent forced labour but China is far from giving its workers such freedom. Similarly, there is very limited space for the media and civil society to expose abuses. So, even if China ratifies the forced labour convention, things may not change on the ground – at least there will be no system of independent verification and monitoring,” he said.

This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: China relents on human rights in talks on EU deal
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