This week President George Bush spoke out strongly about China's record on human rights and religious freedoms, just before flying to Beijing to attend the Olympic Games. According to Dubya, the American people are very concerned about China's shortcomings in these areas.
Also this week, Osama bin Laden's former driver, Salim Hamdan, was sentenced to 66 months in jail after a "fair" trial at Gulag Guantanamo. The sentence dismayed the prosecution (i.e. the Bush government), which had been pressing for a 30-year stretch, especially as "time served" means that Hamdan will be eligible for release only six months from now. No need to worry, though: the Pentagon has already made it clear that Hamdan will continue to be detained as an "illegal enemy combatant".
President Hu Jintao is probably too polite to express the Chinese people's concerns over the Bush government's human rights record -- more's the pity.
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