New York Times
Editorial
November 5, 2010
There’s apparently no limit to China’s arrogance, not to mention its tone-deafness. According to The Times’s Michael Wines, China this week formally asked European nations to boycott the Oslo ceremony where the Nobel Peace Prize will be awarded — in absentia — to the imprisoned Chinese democracy activist, Liu Xiaobo.
All governments should make it a point next month to send representatives.
The Chinese government is hungry for clout and respect. But bullying its own people and other governments (recently halting shipments of rare earth minerals to Japan in a territorial dispute) are unacceptable and won’t produce either. China first tried to bully the Nobel committee, warning that the award could harm relations with Norway, where the committee is based. The committee, rightly, was not intimidated.
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