Chairs Write to ABA President, Seek Information on Whether Fear of Offending China Led to Book Project Cancellation


Chairs Write to ABA President, Seek Information on Whether Fear of Offending China Led to Book Project Cancellation

Say if reports are true they are “deeply concerning” and “not worthy of the values and principles for which the ABA stands.”   

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April 19, 2016

(Washington DC)—In response to reports this past weekend that the American Bar Association (ABA) rescinded an offer to publish a book by prominent Chinese human rights lawyer Teng Biao, the Chairs of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC), Representative Chris Smith and Senator Marco Rubio, sent a letter to the ABA seeking additional information about whether the book project was canceled because of fears that ABA projects would be adversely affected in China or from actual threats to ABA projects and partnerships in China.   The Chairs invited the ABA to submit testimony to an upcoming May 2016 CECC hearing that will examine the Chinese government’s global efforts to silence and punish its critics.   

The full text of the letter is included below. 

 

April 19, 2016

Paulette Brown
President
American Bar Association

 

Jack L. Rives
Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer
American Bar Association

 

Dear Ms. Brown and Mr. Rives,

We write to you as the chairs of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC) to seek additional clarification about a recent report in Foreign Policy (FP) that the American Bar Association (ABA) rescinded an offer to publish a book proposed by Chinese human rights lawyer Teng Biao. We seek from you information to determine whether or not the book project was canceled because of fears that ABA projects would be adversely affected in China or from actual threats to ABA projects and partnerships in China. We invite you to respond in writing or by submitting testimony to a CECC hearing next month that will examine the Chinese government’s global efforts to silence and punish its critics.   

As a frequent witness before the CECC since his arrival in the United States in 2014, we have no doubt that Teng Biao’s proposed book would have offered an insightful window into the perils facing China’s legal professionals and rights advocates, something which the Commission documented at length in its 2015 Annual Report.  We are also deeply concerned about the unrelenting pressures faced by Chinese civil society and foreign nongovernmental organizations operating in China, particularly if the draft Overseas Nongovernmental Organizations (NGO) Management Law is enacted in its current form. 

We hope you can provide further clarification on both the pressures faced by the ABA from the Chinese government that reportedly led to the cancellation of Teng Biao’s book and the explanatory statement made by Mr. Robert T. Rupp, Associate Executive Director for the Business Services Group of the ABA, asserting that “the reasons resulting in the decision were miscommunicated to Mr. Teng,” and claims instead that “market research and sales forecasting conducted by the association’s publishing group,” were the determining factors. 

Many questions remain unanswered and we would be most grateful if you would provide details to the following queries:

  • Did the ABA receive any indication from the Chinese Government or any other individuals that the programs it facilitates in China would be jeopardized if, in fact, this book project was pursued?
  • Do such calculations routinely enter in to ABA publishing decisions, either overtly, or indirectly?
  • Was the ABA’s decision regarding Mr. Teng’s book influenced by concerns over the security and safety of ABA ROLI staff in China or potential retaliation against the partnerships and work of its commissions and individual members?
  • Did the ABA receive updated marketing information between December 2014, when the book was commissioned, and January 2015 when Teng Biao was notified of the offer being withdrawn?

As reported, the circumstances surrounding the cancellation of Teng Biao’s book are deeply concerning and not worthy of the values and principles for which the ABA stands.  Along with the inadequate statement made by the ABA last August in the wake of a major Chinese government crackdown on dozens of human rights lawyers, this latest incident seems to indicate that the ABA is unable to coordinate robust support for fellow legal professionals for fear of offending the Chinese Communist government. We look forward to your reply and welcome any additional information you are able to provide about this troubling case.

Sincerely,

Congressman Chris Smith
Chair

Senator Marco Rubio
Cochair

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