Dark days for China’s democracy dream – Daily Nation
Wednesday July 19 2017
People attend a candlelight march for the late Chinese Nobel laureate Liu Xiaobo in Hong Kong on July 15, 2017. His ashes were buried at sea on Saturday, depriving his supporters of a place to pay tribute to the pro-democracy dissident. PHOTO | DALE DE LA REY | AFP
The death of Liu Xiaobo deprives China's dissident movement of a crucial figurehead at a time when political activism on the mainland is being forced ever deeper underground, and pro-democracy forces in Hong Kong are under threat.
The world had not heard from Nobel laureate Liu since he was jailed in 2009 for writing a petition calling for political reform, but he remained an influential heavyweight of China's democracy movement and an inspiration for opponents of the Communist-ruled system.
His death in custody from cancer last week triggered rage and frustration among the dissident community but also a sense of hopelessness as they face hardened repression under China's President Xi Jinping.
"When the Chinese authorities can so easily control life and death, people are more afraid to fight," said activist Su Yutong, who fled to Germany after being repeatedly detained and questioned over her work at an NGO.
"They see that even a Nobel Peace Prize winner can die in jail."
There are fears that Liu's supporters will now be targeted, particularly his wife Liu Xia, who has been under house arrest since 2010.
Veteran China specialist Willy Lam said most of Liu's friends were already under 24-hour surveillance and that the dissident community in general was "highly demoralised".
"They realise they are going through a long winter with no light at the end of the tunnel," said Lam, a politics professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong.
The fact that support from the international community is outweighed by the desire of foreign governments to keep Beijing onside has also hit hard, said Teng Biao, a human rights lawyer and visiting scholar at Princeton University.
"If the West is reluctant to anger China, there will be no hope," Teng told AFP.
However, some say they will brave it out.
One of the country's most prominent social activists Hu Jia, 43, has vowed not to leave China despite being under police surveillance since his release from prison six years ago.
"I want to stay and make an impact on the country," he told AFP.
Liu's death prompted an outpouring of grief in semi-autonomous Hong Kong, where pro-democracy forces must also contend with an increasingly assertive Beijing.
"We have to face the same political system and oppression," said pro-democracy lawmaker Eddie Chu.
"There used to be some distance, but now it's more intimately felt."
A day after Liu died, Hong Kong's High Court disqualified four pro-democracy lawmakers from parliament following an unprecedented intervention from Beijing over the way they incorporated protests into their oaths of office last year.
Two lawmakers who advocate complete independence for Hong Kong a concept that infuriates China had already been ousted from the legislature.
Hong Kong still enjoys freedoms unseen on the mainland thousands gathered for a memorial march to Liu on Saturday, while over the border even online tributes to him were removed.
But a string of incidents, including the disappearance of a city bookseller and a reclusive mainland tycoon, have heightened concerns of Beijing's political overreach.
When it was handed back to China by Britain in 1997 under a semi-autonomous "one country, two systems" deal, some hoped Hong Kong's colonial institutions, such as an independent judiciary and partially elected legislature, would lead to liberalisation over the border.
However, as China's wealth and global clout skyrocketed, Hong Kong's influence waned. Now it is seen by Beijing as a hotbed of subversion, particularly since mass protests calling for more democratic reform in 2014.
Xi warned any challenge to Beijing's control over Hong Kong crossed a "red line" earlier this month when he visited the city to mark 20 years since the handover.
Jonathan Sullivan, director of the China Policy Institute at the University of Nottingham, described the current political environment as "increasingly circumscribed".
"It remains to be seen if (the democracy movement) feels it can advance its agenda through the 'legitimate' political process. And if not will there be a resurgence of street politics?" asked Sullivan.
The movement itself is struggling for direction, having splintered between veteran activists calling for change across China and younger Hong Kong-centric "localists" who say the city must just fight for itself.
Analysts agree that by-elections for the seats of the ousted lawmakers will prove whether or not the pro-democracy message is alive and kicking.
Lawmaker Chu says the movement needs a clearer vision, but must also accept that change will not come quickly.
"Liu Xiaobo persevered, sacrificing even his life, not because he knew he would succeed but because he saw himself as part of a long-term process," Chu told AFP.
"Maybe Hong Kong is like this too. It's not about setting a goal for victory at a certain time."
University don-turned-politician clears the air on her relationship with Total Man.
How did the exceptionally rich Kenyan coastal forest ecosystem turn into a battleground?
See the rest here:
Dark days for China's democracy dream - Daily Nation
- Trump vs. Harvard: A battle that tests the strength of American democracy and the price of intellectual f - Times of India - July 30th, 2025 [July 30th, 2025]
- Shut down the saboteurs of democracy - The Globe and Mail - July 30th, 2025 [July 30th, 2025]
- DOJ Is Said to Plan to Contact All 50 States on Voting Systems - Democracy Docket - July 30th, 2025 [July 30th, 2025]
- #979: Is too much democracy hamstringing our schools? with Vlad Kogan - The Thomas B. Fordham Institute - July 30th, 2025 [July 30th, 2025]
- As Our Democracy Continues to Be Attacked, The John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act Will Help Protect Our Freedom to Vote - League of... - July 30th, 2025 [July 30th, 2025]
- The Erosion of Democracy Threatens Our Health - The Progressive - July 30th, 2025 [July 30th, 2025]
- David Froomkin Receives the 2025 Leonard D. White Award for Structuring Democracy - - Political Science Now - July 30th, 2025 [July 30th, 2025]
- Safeguarding Democracy Against Information Manipulation and Hybrid Threats - Visegrad Insight - July 30th, 2025 [July 30th, 2025]
- The power of opinion: Why local voices matter in todays democracy - Torrington Telegram - July 30th, 2025 [July 30th, 2025]
- American democracy is crashing out and it will be hard to reverse, international rights group warns - Salon.com - July 30th, 2025 [July 30th, 2025]
- Netanyahu Proposes Annexing Parts of Gaza Strip - Democracy Now! - July 30th, 2025 [July 30th, 2025]
- Iran is more prepared for democracy than many realize - The Japan Times - July 28th, 2025 [July 28th, 2025]
- To Fight Antisemitism and Preserve Democracy, Educators and the Jewish Community Must Partner Closely | Opinion - Newsweek - July 28th, 2025 [July 28th, 2025]
- Appeals Court Delivers Another Blow to Voting Rights Act - Democracy Docket - July 28th, 2025 [July 28th, 2025]
- Theme Panel: Democracy and the Populist Critique: Are We Too Concerned about Stability? - - Political Science Now - July 28th, 2025 [July 28th, 2025]
- Mass Deportation: Analyzing the Trump Administration's Attacks on Immigrants, Democracy, and America - American Immigration Council - July 28th, 2025 [July 28th, 2025]
- Are 16-year-old voters the key to future-proofing democracy? - RFI - July 28th, 2025 [July 28th, 2025]
- The decay within: Why the EU needs to help defend Bulgarias democracy - European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) - July 28th, 2025 [July 28th, 2025]
- Council Appoints Juarez to Serve Out Cathy Moores Term, Accusations Fly Over Democracy Voucher Collection - PubliCola - - July 28th, 2025 [July 28th, 2025]
- A Call for Realism, Love, Localism, and Democracy: Review of Rory Stewarts Politics on the Edge - providencemag.com - July 28th, 2025 [July 28th, 2025]
- Democracy is at stake in Harvards lawsuit against Trump - Salon.com - July 28th, 2025 [July 28th, 2025]
- California Governor Gavin Newsom calls GOP's push to redraw congressional maps in TX an 'existential crisis to democracy' - ABC13 Houston - July 27th, 2025 [July 27th, 2025]
- EPIC Teams Up with EFF, Protect Democracy Project to Support States Bid to Block DHS Access to Medicaid Data - EPIC Electronic Privacy Information... - July 27th, 2025 [July 27th, 2025]
- Haslag: 3 ideas for starting to dig our democracy out of its current hole | Opinion - Springfield News-Leader - July 27th, 2025 [July 27th, 2025]
- The Death of Democracy in America Is Boring - LEVEL Man - July 27th, 2025 [July 27th, 2025]
- Trump Signs Rescission Bill Clawing Back $9B for Foreign Aid and Public Broadcasting - Democracy Now! - July 27th, 2025 [July 27th, 2025]
- Catawba College and The Carter Center team up to bolster democracy in North Carolina - wfdd.org - July 27th, 2025 [July 27th, 2025]
- Constitution House of Tabriz: where Irans struggle for democracy has its roots in - Tehran Times - July 27th, 2025 [July 27th, 2025]
- Bots, buzzers and AI-driven campaigning distort democracy - East Asia Forum - July 27th, 2025 [July 27th, 2025]
- Why Is the World Letting It Happen?: U.K. Surgeon, Back from Gaza, on Starving Children - Democracy Now! - July 27th, 2025 [July 27th, 2025]
- League of Women Voters event to feature BadAss Grandmas for Democracy - InForum - July 27th, 2025 [July 27th, 2025]
- GUEST COMMENTARY: Avoiding your neighbor because of how they voted? Democracy needs you to talk to them instead - thetimestribune.com - July 27th, 2025 [July 27th, 2025]
- Lowering the vote to 16 can improve democracy, research shows - Australian Broadcasting Corporation - July 27th, 2025 [July 27th, 2025]
- China 'clearly' trying to interfere in Taiwan's democracy, Taipei says before recall vote - Reuters - July 24th, 2025 [July 24th, 2025]
- Intervening coalitions request preliminary injunction in Arkansas direct democracy lawsuit - News From The States - July 24th, 2025 [July 24th, 2025]
- Trumps Attack on Immigrants Is the Tip of the Spear for His Attack on Democracy - American Immigration Council - July 24th, 2025 [July 24th, 2025]
- Benjamin Garcia-Holgado Receives the 2025 Edward S. Corwin Award for The Judicial Bulwark: Courts and the Populist Erosion of Democracy - Political... - July 24th, 2025 [July 24th, 2025]
- The Homelessness Crisis Is a Crisis of Democracy - Jacobin - July 24th, 2025 [July 24th, 2025]
- One Meal Every Three Days: Journalist & Aid Worker Back from Gaza on Stark Reality on the Ground - Democracy Now! - July 24th, 2025 [July 24th, 2025]
- Press Release: Senator Roger Marshall Discusses Obama Administration's Alleged Threat to Democracy on Newsmax - Quiver Quantitative - July 24th, 2025 [July 24th, 2025]
- Dont give up on democracy: Edgar Lins mission rooted in family and experience - Madison365 - July 24th, 2025 [July 24th, 2025]
- 2025 Democracy Service Medal: Honoring the Legacy of Oswaldo Pay - National Endowment for Democracy - July 24th, 2025 [July 24th, 2025]
- Senator Marshall: The Obama White House Was the True Threat to Democracy - Senator Roger Marshall (.gov) - July 24th, 2025 [July 24th, 2025]
- MEDIA ADVISORY: The 13th High-Level Dialogue on Democracy, Human Rights, and Governance: Trends, Challenges, and Prospects, under the theme Justice,... - July 24th, 2025 [July 24th, 2025]
- Letter to the Editor: Term limits will save democracy and cure cancer! - Main Street Media of Tennessee - July 24th, 2025 [July 24th, 2025]
- In Brenda Wineapple's "Keeping the Faith: God, Democracy, and the Trial That Riveted a Nation" readers revisit The Scopes Trial - WAMC - July 24th, 2025 [July 24th, 2025]
- With Maine voter ID referendum, democracy is in the details | Opinion - The Portland Press Herald - July 24th, 2025 [July 24th, 2025]
- U.K. Police Arrest Another 100 for Supporting Banned Group Palestine Action - Democracy Now! - July 24th, 2025 [July 24th, 2025]
- Ricig joins Nestor and Dan Rodricks for coffee and democracy chatter at Zekes in Lauraville - baltimorepositive.com - July 24th, 2025 [July 24th, 2025]
- Editorial: Zelensky just betrayed Ukraine's democracy and everyone fighting for it - The Kyiv Independent - July 24th, 2025 [July 24th, 2025]
- How Anti-Affirmative Action Crusaders Are Escalating Their War on Inclusive Democracy - Balls and Strikes - July 24th, 2025 [July 24th, 2025]
- PBS and NPR are generally unbiased, independent of government propaganda and provide key benefits to US democracy - The Conversation - July 22nd, 2025 [July 22nd, 2025]
- The Guardian view on votes at 16: democracy belongs to the young too | Editorial - The Guardian - July 22nd, 2025 [July 22nd, 2025]
- Terms of Engagement Democracy: The Worst Form of Government Except All the Rest? - Ash Center - July 22nd, 2025 [July 22nd, 2025]
- Democracy Vouchers are serving Chinatown-ID; lets renew them - International Examiner - July 22nd, 2025 [July 22nd, 2025]
- New York Citys Ranked Choice Voting: Democracy Thats Accountable to Voters - The Fulcrum - July 22nd, 2025 [July 22nd, 2025]
- Opinion | In Georgia, the EUs commitment to democracy is being tested and it may be failing - OC Media - July 22nd, 2025 [July 22nd, 2025]
- Democrats Endorse Omar Fateh to Be Next Mayor of Minneapolis - Democracy Now! - July 22nd, 2025 [July 22nd, 2025]
- Former EPA Official on Trump Gutting Science Research Office: People Are Not Going to Be Protected - Democracy Now! - July 22nd, 2025 [July 22nd, 2025]
- Democracy is pissed and shes raining - Illinois Times - July 22nd, 2025 [July 22nd, 2025]
- OPINION Assault on literacy: Banned books and the destruction of our democracy - Windy City Times - July 22nd, 2025 [July 22nd, 2025]
- How Western democracy died Real change is an illusion - UnHerd - July 22nd, 2025 [July 22nd, 2025]
- The EUs strategic compromises are blinding it to the ongoing fight for democracy in Serbia - ceps.eu - July 22nd, 2025 [July 22nd, 2025]
- Democracy in Crisis as Half of Young People Fail to Register to Vote - Byline Times - July 22nd, 2025 [July 22nd, 2025]
- Experts Issue Stark New Warning About Nuclear Weapons, 80 Years After Trinity Test - Democracy Now! - July 22nd, 2025 [July 22nd, 2025]
- Two Ultra-Orthodox Parties Leave Netanyahus Government Coalition - Democracy Now! - July 22nd, 2025 [July 22nd, 2025]
- The Next Phase in Destroying Israeli Democracy Begins: Ousting the Attorney General - Haaretz - July 20th, 2025 [July 20th, 2025]
- The Pollster Who Sensed Democracy Was Faltering - The Atlantic - July 20th, 2025 [July 20th, 2025]
- Whatever Evers decides, Wisconsin is heading into a high-stakes battle for democracy - Wisconsin Examiner - July 20th, 2025 [July 20th, 2025]
- Automatic voter registration: a huge step forward for democracy and a chance to bring missing millions into elections - The Conversation - July 20th, 2025 [July 20th, 2025]
- Opinion | We Need Human Connection to Heal Democracy and Build Shared Prosperity - Common Dreams - July 20th, 2025 [July 20th, 2025]
- All the States Where DOJ is Demanding Voting Data - Democracy Docket - July 20th, 2025 [July 20th, 2025]
- News - Updating the Arsenal of Democracy: Allies Embrace Co-Production Model - DVIDS - July 20th, 2025 [July 20th, 2025]
- A half year of devastation: Trumps first six months shakes American democracy - New York Daily News - July 20th, 2025 [July 20th, 2025]
- Emerging right-wing politics a threat to democracy - New Age BD - July 20th, 2025 [July 20th, 2025]
- This Week in Democracy Week 26: Soft on Child Abuse, Tough on Public Broadcasting - Zeteo - July 20th, 2025 [July 20th, 2025]
- Opinion | Defunding Public Media Makes Perfect Sense If Destroying Democracy Is the Goal - Common Dreams - July 20th, 2025 [July 20th, 2025]
- From military coups to elections: where is African democracy heading? - africanews.com - July 20th, 2025 [July 20th, 2025]
- Democracy Is Dying But Hey Nice Fireworks Funny 4th Of July T Shirt - roarmag.org - July 20th, 2025 [July 20th, 2025]
- Noto Democracy and the slow work of civic change - The Japan Times - July 20th, 2025 [July 20th, 2025]