Der Parson's rant

If you can't fix the problem, try bullying....

Asians Say Trade Complaints Bring Out the Bully in China - washingtonpost.com

By Ariana Eunjung Cha
Washington Post Foreign Service
Wednesday, September 5, 2007; Page A01

JAKARTA, Indonesia -- After hearing about dangerous Chinese products elsewhere, Indonesia this summer began testing popular Chinese-made items on its own store shelves. What it found has added to the list of horrors: mercury-laced makeup that turns skin black, dried fruit spiked with industrial chemicals, carcinogenic children's candy.

The Chinese government called up in August saying it had a possible solution. Husniah Rubiana Thamrin Akib, head of Indonesia's top food and drug safety agency, was pleased and welcomed her counterparts to her office.

But according to Husniah, the Chinese suggested Indonesia lower its safety standards. Husniah said she was "very upset and very surprised." "I said to them, 'I respect your standards for your country. I hope you respect ours,' " Husniah said.

In dealing with product safety complaints from the United States, China has sought to convince a concerned American public that it has reformed and is doing all it can to ensure the safety of its products. But its dealings with other, less-developed countries or those in vulnerable political positions are a different story, according to Husniah and officials in the Philippines and Malaysia.