Carlton Williams is a member of SFT's Board of Directors. He also moonlights for Amnesty International. On a grim day this spring, he and a team of Tibet supporters gained access to a speech by US Trade Representative Charlene Barshefsky in Boston. This is the report he sent in the following day.

The e-mails were sent and the calls made. The people who needed to know, knew. She was coming.

"She" is Ambassador Charlene Barshefsky. the United States Trade Representative. At least that is what her business cards probably say. More appropriately for activists' concerns, she ts more than anyone else the living embodiment of the United States' commitment to China's World Trade Organization (WTO) accession and the mouthpiece tbr Permanent Normal Trade Relation status (PNTR) with China. This makes her a prime target for human rights activists, Tibet supporters, Tibetans, environmentalists, and labor activists. They were all present on John F Kennedy Street outside Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government last night for Ambassador Barshefsky's speech. They chanted, they marched, and they flyered passers by. They kept vigil outside for almost two hours and then most people trickled away. The nearly 50 Tibetans present. ranging in age from 5 to 60, all went inside to hear what Ms. PNTR had to say. The Tibetans, Students for a Free Tibet (SFT) members, and others were positioned way up on the rear balcony of the ARCO Forum of the Kennedy school. We didn't even get seats.

The battle was on!

Ms. I-Love-the-WTO began her speech after a warm introduction from a Kennedy School faculty member. Her strategy from the beginning was clear. She was going to bore us to death. She actually began her speech by talking about Boston shipping practices in the 1700's.

I admit, this literally floored about a dozen of our troops. They nestled in on the floor of the balcony with their heads in their hands and a glazed look about them. After about an hour of this drudgery her speech was coming to an end. Chris Williams. activist powerhouse, had just entered the building. He. therefore, was unaffected by Amb. Barshefsky's stupendous ability to bore people stiff. The time was now! The Ambassador said her thank yous. Chris mumbled under his breath, to avoid catching the attention of the 20 or so US Secret Service agents that were positioned all over the hall, "What is up? Are we gonna do this'?" Then he said "Awright f--- this s---. Ready'? One! Two Three!" The words swelled in volume. "Freeeeee Tibbbbbetttttt!" was the call he bellowed. "Before Free Trade!" was the answer from Tibetans, SFTers, and supporters, with a volume that even surprised me. I turned to see Tibetans young and old on their feet with their fists in the air, howling for their country.

"Free Tibet... Before Free Trade!" the chant continued, again and again.

I spun around again to see what the US Crown Princess of Trade's reaction to all of this was. Amb. Barshefsky was one cool cat. She was just taking her seat and acting like she couldn't hear scores of people screaming their larynxes out. Cameras were flashing to catch the moment, the entire crowd was watching. Except our target. She was unperturbedly drinking a glass of water.

"Free Tibet,,. Before Free Trade!" The battle cry continued.

For about 30 seconds, which seemed like several eternities, the chant continued. The moderator, himself a pretty smooth operator said. "Well, lets have a chance for some discussion on all of these matters." He then asked for questions. ! volunteered to be the first asker. As I stepped to the microphone I noticed that my voice (and probably my larynx) were gone. Mental note: Don't scream really REALLY loud before addressing Ambassador-level officials.

The enemy was engaged! I said "My name is Carlton Williams and I am with Students for a Free Tibet, or maybe you heard that. Ms. Barshefsky, you have discussed why we need to have so-called 'nornial' trade relations with China, but not why those relations need to be permanent. Why must we as Americans give up having this dialogue every year'?" A blow was struck!

Barshefsky quickly fell back on her boredom strategy. She actually started talking about the Helsinki Commission in the early 1970 and about pre and post Communism Russia. A sheer bureaucrat! She said nothing to answer my question and sidetracked the issue entirely'. I was infuriated. I barked, "That has nothing to do with the "P" in the "PNTR" debate. Why are we giving away the people's democratic right to annually discuss with their Representatives and Senators China's human !rights record'?"

She replied that other structures could be set up in which Congress could debate China's human right record as often as it liked. "Yes. but I am concerned with the PEOPLE why are we giving away the democratic forum the PEOPLE now have to discuss these issues with their elected officials'?"

Bang! Pop! Crack!

She stammered and paused at the third time I asked the question She went into some rant about how human rights advocates sav the situation in China is getting worse--it seems to be her position that it is getting better. If this is the case. she asked, then isn't the NTR debate worthless in solving human rights issues'? I must admit it was sheer political art for her to create an assumption that I 'must' hold and then attack it. Beauty'. She finished by saying that the annual NTR debates does not aid human rights in China or Tibet.

Pop!

I was floored and I had already taken up too much mic time. according to some unseen guy that was yelling at me to give someone else a chance to ask questions. I was reeling from her ability to twist-and-spin.

I stepped to the mic a final time (not sure why thev didn't have the sound guy turn it off by then). I said: "Wei Jingsheng said he was fed in prison because the NTR debates were going on at the time."

Shortly afterwards we left the hall.

PNTR may or may not pass. WTO accession for China is a pretty much done deal. The World Bank is still on the fence about funding China's dilution of the Tibetan population. But Tibetans and Americans are getting their voices heard. Activism is having a rebirth iii America. Seattle was America's Tiananmen and A 16 was Tiananmen II

The fight has just begun!