Hostage diplomacy, also hostage-diplomacy,[1] is the taking of hostages for diplomatic purposes.
Background and overview
The custom of taking hostages was an integral part of foreign relations in ancient China, of which the origin can be traced back to the Eastern Zhou period. At that time, vassal states would exchange hostages to ensure mutual trust. Such a hostage was known as zhìzǐ (質子, "hostage son"), who was usually a prince of the ruling house. During the Han dynasty, taking unilateral hostages consisting of zhìzǐ was a standard practice for the centralized monarchy to control smaller yí states.[2]
Chinese classic texts, however, were against the hostage system.[2] On the famous exchange of hostages between Zhou and Zheng (周鄭交質), the Zuo zhuan criticized the incidence:
If there be not good faith in the heart, hostages are of no use. If parties act with intelligence and with mutual consideration, their actions under the rule of propriety, although there be no exchange of hostages, they cannot be alienated. (信不由中,質無益也,明恕而行,要之以禮,雖無有質,誰能間之)[3]
In contemporary times, hostage diplomacy is the taking of hostages for diplomatic purposes.[4] It is an asymmetric tool of diplomacy.[5][better source needed] It often manifests as foreigners being arrested on trumped-up charges and then held as bargaining chips.[6]
Modern examples
China
According to The Guardian, China has a track record of hostage diplomacy but has repeatedly denied engaging in the practice.[6] From 1967 to 1969, the Chinese Communist Party kept two dozen British diplomats and civilians as de facto hostages. The British were able to effect the release of their personnel by decoupling the hostage situation from broader political and economic issues through protracted negotiation.[4]
In recent years, it has been speculated under the regime of Xi Jinping. It is widely believed that China detained two Canadians in response to the arrest of Meng Wanzhou.[7][8][9] In 2019, Australian Yang Hengjun's detention was also linked to a renewed effort at hostage diplomacy in response to the arrest of Meng Wanzhou. Prior to Hengjun's detention Australian government had sharply criticized the Chinese government for detaining the two Canadians.[10][11][12] The 2020 arrest of the Australian news anchor Cheng Lei has been viewed as a possible incidence of hostage diplomacy.[13] The February 2019 exit ban placed on Irish citizen Richard O'Halloran has also been considered a case of hostage diplomacy.[14]
The Lowy Institute has concluded that China's use of hostage diplomacy, among other things, undermine's their “peaceful rise” narrative.[15] The Taiwanese government has expressed concerns that the Hong Kong national security law will be used to facilitate further Chinese hostage diplomacy.[16] According to Taiwan News in 2020 China began practicing hostage diplomacy towards Taiwan, a target against which it hadn’t been used for some time.[17]
On 15 February 2021, 58 countries including Japan, Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States formed a coalition led by Canada, signed a non-binding declaration, and condemned the arbitrary detention of foreign nationals for diplomatic leverage. While China was not officially called out, Canadian and American officials said that China had been the subject of the statement. The Canadian foreign ministry said it was not targeting a single nation but was bringing diplomatic pressure on the issue. Shortly after, China's embassy in Canada released an article published by the state-backed tabloid Global Times, which dismissed the coalition's efforts as an "aggressive and ill-considered attack designed to provoke China".[18][19][20]
Turkey
According to Eric Edelman and Aykan Erdemir of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, hostage diplomacy has been widely used by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.[21] The case of Andrew Brunson, an American pastor working in Turkey imprisoned in 2016, has been widely referred to as a case of diplomatic hostage taking.[22]
Iran
Modern Iranian hostage diplomacy began soon after the Iranian revolution with the Iran hostage crisis.[23]
Iran's government has used hostage diplomacy as a key diplomatic tool. Hostages have included, Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, Jolie King, Kylie Moore-Gilbert, Morad Tahbaz, Kamal Foroughi, Aras Amiri, Kameel Ahmady, and Anousheh Ashouri.[24]
North Korea
North Korea has made wide use of hostage diplomacy as a tool against the US, South Korea, Japan, Malaysia and various European nations.[25][26][27] Those held hostage are often tourists or exchange students who are either charged with minor offenses or espionage.[28] In recent years it has been speculated that the regime of Kim Jong-un had evolved from using hostages to gain leverage to using hostages as human shields to protect against a feared American intervention.[29] The case of Otto Warmbier, which ended in Warmbier's death soon after his release, is a particularly well known example of North Korean hostage diplomacy.[25][26]
See also
References
- ^ Osofsky, Hari M. (1998). "Understanding "Hostage-Diplomacy": e Release of Wei Jingsheng and Wang Dan". Yale Human Rights and Development Law Journal. 1 (1): 143–147. Archived from the original on 18 December 2015. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
- ^ a b Yang, Lien-sheng (1952). "Hostages in Chinese History". Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies. JSTOR. 15 (3/4): 507–521. doi:10.2307/2718238. ISSN 0073-0548. JSTOR 2718238.
- ^ "春秋左氏傳/隱公". Wikisource (in Chinese). January 20, 2006. Retrieved February 16, 2021.
- ^ a b Mark, Chi-Kwan (2009). "Hostage Diplomacy: Britain, China, and the Politics of Negotiation, 1967–1969". Diplomacy & Statecraft. 20 (3): 473–493. doi:10.1080/09592290903293803. S2CID 154979218.
- ^ Rezaian, Jason. "Iran's hostage factory". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 17 December 2019. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
- ^ a b Davidson, Helen. "foreign policy 'Tit-for-tat': China's detention of Australian Cheng Lei is ringing alarm bells". theguardian.com. Archived from the original on 3 October 2020. Retrieved 12 October 2020.
- ^ Fullerton, Jamie (2019-12-08). "Canadians mark one year in Chinese detention as 'diplomatic hostages'". The Telegraph. The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 25 December 2019. Retrieved 21 January 2020.
- ^ Ong, Lynette. "China Is Shooting Itself in the Foot Over Huawei". foreignpolicy.com. Foreign Policy. Archived from the original on 16 December 2019. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
- ^ Kuo, Lily (2019-01-15). "'Hostage' diplomacy: Canadian's death sentence in China sets worrying tone, experts say". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 16 January 2020. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
- ^ Medcalf, Rory. "Arrest of Yang Hengjun drags Australia into China's hostage diplomacy". nsc.crawford.anu.edu.au. Australian National University. Archived from the original on 16 December 2019. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
- ^ Dixon, Robyn (2019-01-24). "China's arrest of Australian writer is called 'hostage diplomacy'". latimes.com. The Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 16 December 2019. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
- ^ Panda, Ankit. "China's 'Hostage Diplomacy' Cannot Be Allowed to Stand". thediplomat.com. The Diplomat. Archived from the original on 17 December 2019. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
- ^ "'Tit-for-tat': China's detention of Australian Cheng Lei is ringing alarm bells". the Guardian. 2020-09-05. Archived from the original on 2020-09-07. Retrieved 2020-09-08.
- ^ "'This could go on and on': Irishman held in China". RTE. 2021-02-18. Retrieved 2021-02-19.
- ^ MICHAEL J. MAZARR, ALI WYNE and. "The real US–China competition: Competing theories of influence". The real US–China competition: Competing theories of influence. The Lowy Institute. Archived from the original on 4 February 2020. Retrieved 4 February 2020.
- ^ "Taiwan fears China 'hostage diplomacy' through Hong Kong security law". channelnewsasia.com. CNA. Archived from the original on 16 July 2020. Retrieved 16 July 2020.
- ^ Spencer, David. "China's hostage diplomacy will only provoke more international ire". taiwannews.com.tw. Taiwan News. Retrieved 16 October 2020.
- ^ Marson, James; McNish, Jacquie (15 February 2021). "West Unites Against Detention of Foreign Nationals in Signal to China". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
- ^ Ljunggren, David (February 15, 2021). "Canada launches 58-nation initiative to stop arbitrary detentions". Reuters. Retrieved February 15, 2021.
- ^ "抵制中國「人質外交」 加拿大發起58國聯合宣言". Taiwan News. Retrieved 2021-02-16.
- ^ Eric Edelman, Aykan Erdemir &. "Erdogan's Hostage Diplomacy: Western Nationals in Turkish Prison" (PDF). s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com. Foundation for the Defense of Democracy. Archived (PDF) from the original on 16 December 2019. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
- ^ CUPOLO, DIEGO (2018-05-06). "Turkey's Dangerous Game of 'Hostage Diplomacy'". theatlantic.com. The Atlantic. Archived from the original on 16 December 2019. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
- ^ Philip, Catherine. "Kylie Moore-Gilbert: Iran uses crises to get what it wants". thetimes.co.uk. The Times. Archived from the original on 27 January 2020. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
- ^ Staff, Foreign (2019-09-11). "Iran's 'hostage diplomacy': All the known detainees with British links". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 17 December 2019. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
- ^ a b Bock Clark, Doug. "The Untold Story of Otto Warmbier an American Hostage". gq.com. GQ. Archived from the original on 1 August 2018. Retrieved 17 December 2019.
- ^ a b Sang-Hun, Choe (2017-06-20). "Otto Warmbier's Death a New Wedge Between U.S. and North Korea". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 17 December 2019. Retrieved 17 December 2019.
- ^ "North Korea is holding our citizens hostage, says Malaysia's PM Najib, after tit-for-tat travel bans". scmp.com. South China Morning Post. 2017-03-07. Archived from the original on 17 December 2019. Retrieved 17 December 2019.
- ^ Min-yong, Lee. "https://thediplomat.com/2017/05/countering-north-koreas-hostage-diplomacy/". thediplomat.com. The Diplomat. Archived from the original on 17 December 2019. Retrieved 17 December 2019. External link in
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(help) - ^ Saphora Smith, Stella Kim and. "North Korea's 'Hostage Diplomacy': Kim Uses Detained Americans as Leverage". NBC News. Archived from the original on 2 November 2019. Retrieved 17 December 2019.