STATE security agents put dozens of dissidents under virtual house arrest yesterday to silence support for Charter 08 – a new manifesto for Chinese democracy – as Hillary Clinton made her first visit to Beijing as US secretary of state.

The crackdown emerged as Amnesty International condemned Clinton for saying that human rights could not interfere with talks on the financial crisis, global warming and North Korea.

As foreign minister Yang Jiechi welcomed her with a broad smile, he observed that it was “a bit chilly” in Beijing but promised Clinton she would see “the biggest number of smiling faces”.

Yang told the British press last year that Chinese police would “offer a cup of tea” to any protesters at the Beijing Olympics, yet dozens of Chinese were jailed for trying to protest.

Clinton told a joint news conference that the two would have “frank discussions” on human rights, Tibet, religious freedom and freedom of expression. She thanked China for continuing to invest in US government debt. Yang responded that China would allocate its $20 trillion of foreign currency reserves as it saw fit.

Outside in the snow, security agents in Beijing surrounded the homes of writers and thinkers behind Charter 08, the boldest public petition for Chinese freedom in 20 years. Some contacted reporters by text message to say they could not go out.

Amnesty International said Clinton had sent the wrong signal to the Chinese regime because the US was one of the few countries strong enough to stand up to China on human rights.

“Half a million people are currently in labour camps,” it said in a statement. “Women face forced abortion and sterili-sation as part of China’s enforcement of its one-child policy.”

Human Rights Watch said Clinton’s strategy seemed to play into the hands of the Chinese government by “segregating human rights issues into a deadend dialogue of the deaf”.

The criticism gave Clinton a rough ride on her first excursion abroad to present the new face of American foreign policy under President Barack Obama.

Up to her arrival in China, the secretary of state had displayed a virtuoso command of her dual roles as icy diplomat and global celebrity.

In the first role, she issued a warning to North Korea to cease its warlike threats in language no cold warrior could have faulted.

In the second, she charmed young audiences in Seoul, Tokyo and Jakarta with her political savvy and common-sense talk about how women everywhere strive to balance work and family.

In China, however, a government nervous of the Obama administration’s worldwide approval ratings did not offer its distinguished visitor a chance to shine. Clinton’s schedule included the standard stiff poses with Chinese leaders and a visit to a power plant, and she was due to head home today.

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