'Should we trade with China?' poll results/discussion

Former_MSE_Lawrence

Poll between 3 - 9 Feb 2009:

Should we trade with China?

Premier Wen Jiabao of China, the world's latest economic giant, is in the UK talking to Gordon Brown about strengthening trade. Yet everywhere he goes, there are protests about human rights issues.

Which of these is closest to your view?

A. Strengthen Trade. We're in recession, take every drop of trade regardless. [FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]37% (2054 votes)[/FONT]

B. Keep it as is. Every country has human rights abuses of one kind or another. [FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]20% (1083 votes)[/FONT]

C. Weaken trade. Keep it to a bare minimum, no more than necessary. [FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]18% (999 votes)[/FONT]

D. No Trade. Until human rights abuses stop, we shouldn't trade. [FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]25% (1350 votes)[/FONT]

Voting has now ended, but you can still click 'post reply' to discuss below. Thanks

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guidel

It's a shame people voting Strengthen Trade only think about their own country and themselves.....Selfish....If only you could put yourself in their position, you'll be sick to think that some people would rather be influenced by the financial aspect of their life rather than .....HUMAN RIGHTS. My own view, nothing else

m00head

Hold on, isn't this happening right here in Britain too?

Primark linked to UK sweatshops
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7824291.stm

Primark slaves in Manchester
http://www.newsoftheworld.co.uk/news/article123365.ece

southernscouser

MSE_Lawrence wrote: »

Should we trade with China?

I prefer porcelain myself.

bo_drinker

Keep to a minimum I say. We need to make things again and sharpish. Plus the human rights, they can not be trusted. Simple as.

teddyco

For the past two decades we have watched the 'Kings of the East' swallow almost every British job we have. Companies that have been around for three hundred years are at the point of closing their doors even after moving operations to China.

Most of Staffordshire pottery is almost gone, British steel is a distant memory and now the Chinese own Rover/MG, and we cheer to give them more?

I am getting sick and tired of going into Marks and Sparks and seeing every last stitch of clothing, shoes or housewares with 'made in china' plastered all over it.
To make matters worse, many of the stitching falls to pieces after one wash, soles on ladies shoes are cheap, cheap, cheap and require a re-sole after several months of wear, and strange chemicals in chocolate and children's toys are now cropping up.

I am sick to the back teeth of Indian/South African call center's and staff that don't speak English and am delighted when I actually get a person who speaks English and can understand my problem on the phone.

I think it's time that we shut the doors on Chinese trade until they get their act together while our government does something to fight for the protection of British jobs in THIS country.

Gordon Brown made the statement 'British jobs for British workers', but has continued to shake hands with companies who shift the majority of their operations overseas and I am ready to see this rascal GONE!

I would rather pay £10 more for a shirt of £15 more for a pair of shoes and do with fewer possessions knowing that industry, craftsmanship and jobs in this country were being protected for the betterment of British workers and their families.

stufai

m00head wrote: »

Hold on, isn't this happening right here in Britain too?

Primark linked to UK sweatshops
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7824291.stm

Primark slaves in Manchester
http://www.newsoftheworld.co.uk/news/article123365.ece

Every country has problems but it doesn't mean that we can condone human rights abuse in another country, especially on a much larger scale.

thebarefootchef

What an idiotic poll.

Where do you think almost everything comes from?

oldagetraveller

What a pity that when profit/greed takes over, human rights go right out of the window.
I'm amazed that people are voting to strengthen trade with this oppressive regime, you should hang your heads in shame. If you don't think they're oppressive, ask the people of Tibet who've been under their control for 50+ years!
And no, I'm not usually a tree hugging yoghurt knitting eco nazi either.

MakeitgoRIGHT

It is not a case of shall we buy Chinese goods? All those Chinese imports (clothes, electronics et al) have been imported from china and are sitting in our houses. We have to pay China for them. Our Chinese credit card is max'ed out and China wants payment.

So before all the politically correct humanitarians get on their tall horses, take a look at this country's balance of payments with the world -- we have the worst debt in the whole world save only one other country (USA), and are way ahead of the country in 3rd place. That is a mega flap for any country (Ta, Gordon).

mcgazz

Trade between the UK and China is not one-way. We sell them financial services (insert your own joke here), environmental technology and luxury and sporting goods. They also reprocess a lot of our domestic refuse. Cutting all ties with China would destroy UK jobs, lead to more rubbish processing (or even landfill) here, as well as leading to much higher prices and much less choice in things like clothes/shoes, toys, and consumer electronics. It's one thing to make high-minded statements on an internet messageboard, another to suffer a hefty drop in one's living standards.

Also, what country has a perfect human rights record? Are you going to boycott pretty much all of Africa, Central America, the Middle East, South Asia, Russia, a fair bit of Eastern Europe, and the USA (torture, tasers and Guantanamo Bay, anyone)? And what about the Western corporations involved in these human rights abuses (eg Coca Cola's murder of trade unionists in South America)? Will you boycott them as well? What countries are legit, here? As an example, OTOH, even uber-right-on Scandinavia isn't perfect - Norway's whale hunting, Sweden's harsh treatment of teenage anti-capitalist protesters and former programme of sterilising women with learning difficulties, the marginalisation of the Saami (Laplanders) in both countries, and religious intolerance in Denmark.

You'd still be a hypocrite, anyway - Britain's human rights record isn't that hot, either. We've got people interned without trial, freedom of speech is restricted, we've got more CCTV per head of population than any other country in the world, MPs' confidentiality isn't respected, and it's not that long ago that we were doing similar things in Northern Ireland and several former colonies to what China are alleged to be doing in Tibet now. I'm no fan of the Bible, but I think "let he who is without sin cast the first stone" is a cracking line.

If you want China's human rights record to change, the best way is to engage them on the issue, not throw a strop, engage in some hypocritical and unsustainable boycott and spend your free time hunting down Romanian-made jeans and Turkish shoes, while your children complain that they're bored with Lego being their only toy (you will, of course, have junked your TV/DVD/PSP/hi-fi because they will almost certainly contain Chinese-made components, even if they were largely assembled elsewhere).