17:57, December 29, 2009
China on Tuesday expressed its strong dissatisfaction and resolute opposition to Britain's accusation of its handling of a British drug smuggler.
Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu made the comments at a regular press conference, in response to relevant questions.
Akmal Shaikh, a British national who was convicted of smuggling drugs into China, was executed by lethal injection on Tuesday in Urumqi, capital of northwestern Xinjiang Ugyur Autonomous Region, after approval from China's Supreme People's Court (SPC).
"Such accusation was groundless, to which China expressed its resolute opposition," Jiang said. "We urge the British side to correct its wrongdoing to avoid causing damages to bilateral relations."
Jiang said the case was an individual criminal case, and Chinese judicial authorities had always handled the case independently in accordance with China's law and legal procedures.
She said the defendant's litigation rights and legitimate treatment had been fully guaranteed in the trial.
China attached great importance to its relations with Britain and hoped this case would not affect the bilateral relations, Jiang said, noting "We hope the British side can rationally treat the case, and not create new obstacles for the bilateral relations."
China is a country under the rule of law. The judicial authorities of China handle cases in strict accordance with law and China's judicial independence brooks no interference from the outside, said Jiang.
Source: Xinhua
Execution row escalates as China dismisses UK criticism
A defiant China shrugged off condemnation from Gordon Brown and other senior politicians todayand insisted it was fair and humane to execute a British man despite concerns about his psychiatric condition.
As China's ambassador to London was summoned to the Foreign Office for a dressing down, officials in Beijing said the UK had no right to meddle in the case of the convicted drug smuggler Akmal Shaikh and warned that "unreasonable criticism" could harm relations between the two countries.
The dispute intensified early today when it was confirmed that China had ignored pleas for clemency from the British government and executed the 53-year-old from north London. Campaigners insisted Shaikh had a severe personality disorder and had been duped by gangsters into carrying 4kg of heroin in a suitcase.
The prime minister, who had called China's premier, Wen Jiabao, to urge him to halt the execution, said he was "appalled and disappointed" at the execution.
In a "difficult" meeting at the Foreign Office, the UK minister Ivan Lewis told the Chinese ambassador Fu Ying that her government had failed in its basic human rights responsibilities by ignoring representations about Shaikh's mental health. "It's a deeply depressing day for anyone with a modicum of compassion or commitment to justice," Lewis said.
The response from the Chinese government was swift and dismissive. An annual meeting between the two countries, scheduled for January in Beijing to discuss human rights, was cancelled.
Jiang Yu, a spokeswoman for the Chinese foreign ministry, told a press briefing in Beijing: "No one has the right to comment on China's judicial sovereignty. It is the common wish of people around the world to strike against the crime of drug trafficking. We express our strong dissatisfaction and opposition to the British government's unreasonable criticism of the case. We urge the British to correct their mistake in order to avoid harming China-UK relations."
Lewis said the execution made him feel "sick to the stomach". Twenty-seven separate representations had been made at ministerial level on Shaikh's behalf to the Chinese authorities, he said.
But he admitted there was little Britain could do other than be vocal in its criticism of China. "I'm not going to make idle threats, this morning is not the time for a kneejerk reaction. It's true we must and will continue to engage with China," he said.
This acceptance to fight with words and not actions is a marked contrast to other diplomatic disputes in recent years, such as Britain's decision to expel four Russian diplomats in 2007 after Russia's refusal to extradite the former KGB agent Andrei Lugovoi to stand trial for the murder of Alexander Litvinenko.
Lewis said: "China cannot expect to receive the respect they yearn [for] from the international community until they abide by minimum standards of human rights. Engagement with China is non-negotiable and any alternative strategy is simply not credible. But by being so clear in our public criticism of China's handling of this case we are demonstrating that it is not business as usual."
The Chinese embassy in London said Shaikh, who used to run a minicab firm in Kentish Town, north London, had no previous medical record of mental illness and that his rights and interests had been properly respected.
But campaigners said his mental health was never assessed while he was in prison and that the Chinese authorities repeatedly refused access to a forensic psychologist who offered to conduct a free assessment.
The legal charity Reprieve, which took on Shaikh's case, said todaythat China ignored evidence from six witnesses who came forward on Monday with tales of his vulnerability. These included a nun and a priest who worked at a centre for asylum seekers in Warsaw, where Shaikh moved five years ago as his mental state declined.
In a statement today, the Chinese embassy said: "During the legal process, Mr Shaikh's rights and interests were properly respected and guaranteed and the concerns of the British side were duly noted and taken into consideration by the Chinese judicial authorities.
"Out of humanitarian consideration, visas were granted to the two cousins of Mr Shaikh on Boxing Day, and they were given access to Mr Shaikh in China."
The statement said Shaikh, who was arrested in September 2007 in Urumqi, north-west China, was convicted of "serious" drug trafficking. "The amount of heroin he brought into China was 4,030g, enough to cause 26,800 deaths, threatening numerous families," it said.
But Clive Stafford-Smith, director of Reprieve, said if this calculation was correct, about 60% of the world's population (4.2bn people) would be killed annually from heroin.
Shaikh learned of his imminent execution only on Monday. He was informed by two cousins who had flown to China seeking a reprieve. "We are deeply saddened, stunned and disappointed at the news of the execution of our beloved cousin," said Soohail and Nasir Shaikh in a statement.
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