Attacking the dragon where it hurts the most – Framing a human-rights based approach to tackle China

The tragic death of 20 Indian soldiers in the Galwan Valley, during a face-off with China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has rightfully ignited growing discontent against China. In response to the unpardonable death of 20 Indian brave hearts, there have been calls to boycott and ban Chinese products. There have also been calls to end imports from China, and end India’s dependence on Chinese goods - be it electronics, medicinal equipment or raw materials.

What is forgotten here is that exports to India constitute only 3% of China’s total exports. Also, a majority of our imports from China are for intermediate goods, which are used as raw materials, and not for finished goods. Companies prefer importing such intermediate goods from China as they are comparatively cheaper to other markets such as Europe. Hence, a blanket ban on imports from China shall raise the cost of production, and may affect Indian producers more - when compared to the damage done to the Chinese economy.

Another aspect that is ignored here is that for certain categories of products such as smartphones, a significant market share is held by companies and brands that have roots in China. For instance, in the Indian smartphone market, brands which have their roots in China (such as Xiaomi, Vivo, Oppo, Realme, OnePlus etc.) account for around 70% of the market share. In fact, if one were to exclude these brands altogether from the smartphone market, the only prominent brands that shall be left for us as consumers are Samsung and Apple.

Excluding Chinese products may hence reduce consumer choice for multiple products. Such a move will also not have a significant impact on the Chinese economy, as exports to India constitute only a fraction of China’s total exports. The impact shall be felt more by companies that have their roots in China, and by Indian producers and consumers. Calling for a blanket boycott or a ban is hence counterproductive, and shall harm Indian interests more. But, at the same time, exclusion of Chinese investments may be necessary in certain sectors such as Telecom, where there is a possibility of spying and surveillance.

For instance, excluding Chinese telecom giant Huawei from India’s 5G trials may be necessary, as Huawei reportedly has close links with the Chinese establishment and has also been accused of espionage, in countries such as the US. In fact, after the Galwan Valley face-off, the Department of Telecom directed BSNL to avoid using Chinese equipment in upgrading its 4G networks, and directed BSNL to rework its tender accordingly. Telecom is one sector where there is a possibility of spying and surveillance, and policy measures to keep Chinese firms away from this sector is justified.

Indian intelligence agencies have also red-flagged 53 China-based mobile applications, which are said to be extracting data out of India, and compromising privacy and data security. The list includes popular apps such as TikTok and SHAREit. We need to create more awareness of the privacy and data security concerns associated with such apps, and let users take an informed call on whether they wish to continue using them.

Chinese involvement should hence be restricted in areas where there is a possibility of spying or surveillance, which compromises data privacy and security. Such a human-rights centered approach, to safeguard data privacy and security is more beneficial, as it focuses on safeguarding our fundamental rights, and simultaneously sends a strong message across the border. Our human-rights centered approach must also have another important prong. We must use international forums to highlight multiple human rights atrocities that are being committed by China.

The most prominent example of this is China’s inhumane treatment of Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang province. Uyghurs have been sent to concentration camps and re-education camps, and the Chinese establishment was also illegally harvesting their organs for treating other coronavirus patients. In fact, on 18^th June, Donald Trump signed the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act, which was passed by the US Congress to impose sanctions on China for its torture of Uyghur Muslims. Human rights is China’s Achilles’ heel, and India must up the ante on such gross human rights abuses committed by the Chinese establishment.

Along with this, India should also try to build global consensus against the new national security law, which China proposes to impose over Hong Kong. The proposed law grants the Chinese establishment greater powers over Hong Kong’s independent legal system, thereby crippling Hong Kong’s autonomy under the ‘one country, two systems’ principle. The law also aims to cripple civil and political freedoms by granting Chinese security organs the power to exercise jurisdiction in Hong Kong, during undefined circumstances that may jeopardize national security. India should aim to be the frontrunner in creating global consensus against this proposed national security law, which aims to suppress dissent in Hong Kong.

Finally, India should also aim to generate consensus on the need for an impartial investigation of the manner in which the novel coronavirus originated in Wuhan. This is in light of multiple reports which show that China suppressed information about the novel coronavirus, and also silenced doctors who highlighted the emergence of a new virus in Wuhan in December 2019.

In the month of May, the World Health Assembly also passed a resolution moved by Australia, which called for a comprehensive investigation of the origins of Covid-19. As India has now assumed leadership of the WHO Executive Board, it is in a position to build global consensus for beginning a fair and impartial investigation – which remains free from Chinese interference.

India hence has significant scope to build global consensus over China’s recent track record of suppressing human rights and fundamental freedoms. Such a human-rights based approach should form an integral part of our efforts to tackle China at the international stage. The presence of democracy and fundamental freedoms is India’s greatest advantage over China, and instead of calling for blanket boycotts, we must leverage this to our benefit.