<http://online.wsj.com/article_print/0,,SB110679493547737658,00.html>
The Wall Street Journal
January 27, 2005
COMMENTARY
. . . But Don't Forget Democracy
By HU PING
January 27, 2005
U.S. President George W. Bush declared war on tyranny last week, and
Condoleezza Rice branded six countries as "outposts of tyranny." But
missing from this list was China.
That's probably because it's difficult to pinhole today's China into any
clear category. Of course, China remains a Communist autocracy, but it's
also one undergoing sweeping reforms. That's doubtless why Ms. Rice omitted
China from the list of tyrannies. It's widely believed that China's current
reforms are moving it along the road to freedom and democracy and the best
thing Western countries can do is support these reforms, while continuing
to apply pressure over human rights. The assumption is that China's reforms
are proceeding on a path that, with the passage of time, will bring China
closer to genuine freedom and democracy. That's why the West continues to
nurture hopes in each new Chinese leader who takes power.
But recent events pose serious challenges to such assumptions about China's
way forward. Former Communist Party chief Zhao Ziyang's death while still
under the house arrest imposed on him more than 15 years ago, for objecting
to the June 4, 1989 military crackdown on peaceful demonstrators in
Beijing's Tiananmen Square, is just the latest example of the darker side
of today's leadership. The fact that Chinese authorities never restored
Zhao's personal freedom, even when he was elderly and near death, signifies
the relentlessness of the authoritarian machinery in a country that is now
positioning itself for a dominant position on the world stage.
It comes in the wake of other recent disturbing developments. Authorities
have banned books, closed Web sites and renewed their campaign against
independent thinkers. Some have been detained and put on trial, others
dismissed from their jobs, or blacklisted from being mentioned in the
official media. The vast majority of the targets of this latest crackdown
were not involved in establishing opposition parties or any kind of
political groups. They were simply ordinary writers, scholars and
journalists who in many cases were not even directly criticizing the
authorities, but instead commenting on issues such as China's income
disparity and social injustice, or providing legal assistance to
disadvantaged groups. As a result, many of the high hopes of a more
enlightened leadership, that were raised when Hu Jintao succeeded Jiang
Zemin as China's top leader, have been dashed.
But that's precisely what Mr. Hu wants. Chinese leaders learned from the
events of June 4 that they need to take a hard line to nip any so-called
"ferment" in the bud. They understand they can only remain in power as long
as ordinary people fear to challenge them. If the Chinese public begin to
nurture hopes of a more enlightened leadership, they will only be
emboldened to speak up and press issues such as democracy and justice. That
will leave the authorities with no choice but to use greater force to
suppress these demands and stay in power. That's why Mr. Hu has presented
such a stern image since taking power. It's in his interest to suppress
expectations of a more enlightened leadership and maintain fear in the
authoritarian government's ability to "shock and awe."
Since assuming power, Mr. Hu has repeatedly expressed his concern for
disadvantaged groups. It follows that he should tolerate efforts by these
groups to protect their rights, but this is not in fact the case. For
example, a Beijing-based legal scholar, Li Boguang, has for some time been
offering legal assistance to protect the rights of peasants, but recently
he was detained by the local government as a criminal suspect. This
demonstrates that while the Hu Jintao government would like to improve the
conditions of the disadvantaged by ameliorating China's enormous income
disparity and reining in corruption, it still cannot tolerate ordinary
people gaining the ability to take independent collective action to defend
their own rights.
The Mao Zedong era is long past, and even the ruling elite has no desire to
return to it. But what should raise the greatest concern about today's
China is a form of oppression that is less rigid but possibly more
persistent and pervasive than in the Mao era: A government that adheres to
no ideology but wields enormous power, and is determined to use any means
necessary to maintain that power.
In the past 20 years, China's economy has grown at an astonishing rate, and
it has emerged onto the world stage. The Hu leadership, like his
predecessors, has used this to justify the 1989 massacre and the iron grip
it continues to exercise over dissent, while dismissing out of hand any
idea of "western-style" freedom and democracy. The danger is that the West
will fail to perceive the full extent of the threat posed by these "Chinese
characteristics."
President Bush's declaration of a war on tyranny is welcome -- but it
cannot ignore the struggle for freedom and democracy in China.
Mr. Hu is a prominent Chinese political commentator based in New York. He
is chief editor of the monthly magazine Beijing Spring, and a member of the
board of directors of Human Rights in China.
--
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The Internet Bearer Underwriting Corporation <http://www.ibuc.com/>
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"... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity,
[predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to
experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'
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