CYIL vol. 13 (2022)

CYIL 13 ȍ2022Ȏ THE ATTITUDE OF THE PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA TOWARD INTERNATIONAL LAW Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), as alternative institutions to the Bretton Woods institutions. 47 China was invited to join the World Trade Organization (WTO) and became a member in 2001. China was granted preferential treatment as a developing economy. China has used that status to its advantage and has exploited this loophole in WTO rules to evade playing by the rules of international trade. Today China is the second-biggest economy in the world but continues to benefit from its initial status as a developing economy. China has been accused of engaging in unfair trade practices and manipulating trade rules to discriminate against foreign competitors. China has also been accused by Western nations of stealing the intellectual property rights of western companies or forcing them to divulge trade secrets if they want to operate in the Chinese market. As a major power, China now plays a more assertive role in the progressive development of international law. Chinese members sit on the International Law Commission (ILC), the International Court of Justice (ICJ), and several UN affiliate agencies. Chinese nationals are heads of several United Nations Specialized Agencies. And as a Permanent Member of the United Nations Security Council, China has enormous influence on issues of international peace and security, which is wide-ranging. China holds membership in the various committees of the General Assembly, particularly the Third, Fourth, and Six Committees. China has also served on the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) where it played a pivotal role in blocking efforts by the council to investigate and condemn its human rights practices. 48 Although nationals on international tribunals and agencies serve in their capacity, it is difficult to distinguish between the personal and official capacities in which Chinese nationals serve in these organizations. Chinese legal professionals and high ranking Chinese nationals in various positions in international organizations do not operate independently; they must conform to the official Chines Communist Party line, or risk being recalled by Beijing. They are all members of the Communist Party and must pledge allegiance to the CCP to be sponsored to serve in UN agencies. However, China is not unique in the role it plays in international institutions. Other major powers do the same in placing their nationals in high positions in international organizations, but they do not wield as much influence over their nationals once they have been appointed. The United States and the EU have locked the leadership of the World Bank and IMF solely for their nationals, regardless of whether a national from another member state is more qualified. Other major powers pay the salaries of their nationals in high positions in various United Nations agencies in a practice called “Secondment.” This allows certain states to exert tremendous influence on the policies of the organizations they serve, and it allows these states to insulate themselves from scrutiny or condemnation by these organizations. There is great concern about China’s seeking to create a new world order with the strategy of placing Chinese nationals in high positions in UN agencies. Indeed, China is replicating what other major powers have done in the past to advance their foreign policy agendas and influence

47 SORNARAJAH, M., WANG, J. “China, India, and International Law: A justice Based Vision Between the Romantic and Realist Perceptions,” National University of Singapore, NUS LAWWorking Paper 2018/030, p. 25. 48 China’s membership on the UNHRC has been an obstacle to advancing the UN human rights agenda. Through threats or bribery, China has managed to get developing countries to support its stance on human rights and to vote against any resolution to condemn its human rights practices.

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