but still calls for giving “freedom of expression” includes “freedom of information” and “law of the state” and “transparency”.
That crosses the line from epidemic control to political freedom that the Chinese Communist Party cannot back.
Because the existence of the party lies in its ability to control and direct the political activities of society.
It is possible that the calls for political freedom of the younger generation who have come out to join the protests are far from the calls for democracy from the Chinese students at the event. Tiananmen Square was heavily suppressed on June 4, 1989.
But it seems that when we see and hear these calls in many places, the main cities of China for the past few days It is also a reflection of the past 33 years ago.
The only difference is that today’s new generation has summarized the lessons of 1989 and learned to adapt to the current situation.
For example, civil disobedience is protesting by holding a blank piece of paper in public to claim that they have done nothing illegal.
Or sing along to China’s national and patriotic songs… to avoid the authorities claiming that this is a move that undermines national security.
A student shouted in the middle of the protest
“We sing the national anthem, it’s not illegal. The Communist Party meeting also started with the national anthem.”
Three allegations have been made by Tsinghua University students to the authorities that are not being addressed. Political freedom and democracy in a wider picture
But it is mostly limited to protests about COVID measures.
That is, one, to let the arrested protesters be released unconditionally, recognizing that the “legality” of this protest was done in a legal way for legality’s sake.
Second… state in writing that these protesters will not be held accountable in any way. And there will be no “checking bill” later.
and three…for central and local governments to enact legislation to impose very strict measures to control the spread of COVID-19. By enacting a law and passing the People’s Congress, which will be held in March next year.
It’s all in that claim. Students insist that this must be done in official writing.
because they no longer believe in verbal promises…because there were examples in the past that the promises made by government officials to solve immediate problems were not sincere and were not taken seriously in any way
The key point is Local authorities must strictly implement COVID measures. Refuse to be lenient according to the situation in each area for fear of being punished by the central government
Government officials are more afraid of their own bosses in Beijing than the troubled citizens.
Everyone wants to maintain their own chair. Because the people of the community are not their destiny. Rather, he was the head of his area of work in the capital.
It is the source of the same rules for all areas, even though the situation of each community is quite different.
The big question today is whether Xi Jinping will take the same approach as Deng Xiaoping, who sent out tanks and anti-riot squads to suppress the protesters.
If choosing between “solid wood” and “soft wood”, I think Xi Jinping is more inclined to use solid wood.
Because any gesture of support or compromise with the protesters can be interpreted as a “weak Leader”
While for the past 10 years, Xi Jinping has tried to consolidate his power on himself almost entirely.
He wanted to portray the image of being “Strong Leaders People Can Depend On”
instead of “a leader who is liked by the people and is ready to share power with the voice of the owner of the country”.
But that is the difficulty for Xi Jinping.
Because he would realize that the new generation that is coming out to protest this time is something he never expected to happen.
Because over time, Xi Jinping has expressed the understanding that he has led the country to advance in technology which has opened up opportunities for a new generation of young people to build prosperous careers.
from the speeches of past Chinese leaders This leads us to believe that they are confident that the younger generation of China is not like the youth of the West…to the point that the young people of China these days are proud to be Chinese. and they don’t have faith in “Freedom of expression” or “democracy” like the West, but how?
But the demonstrations of the protesters on this round of COVID have not been the way the Chinese leaders had expected.
Because the call for personal political freedom rather than emphasizing The “security of Chinese society” without challenging the powers of the state and party is something outside the scope of the Chinese Communist Party.
It is particularly interesting that when Xi Jinping, who wants to highlight a “new era of China that is different from the West” faces demands for “Freedom of expression” to stand at the “junction” he must choose to walk
The leader’s decision to choose where to travel will also have a significant bearing on China’s future direction.
