Protests in China in 2011
The 2011 protests in China began in late February. They were peaceful protests against the communist government there.
The protests were inspired by the “Jasmine Revolution” in Tunisia in the wake of the Arab Spring . At the same time, the protests represented the continuation of the underground reform movements of the Beijing Spring and the Chinese democracy movement of 1989.
Historical background
China has been pushing for economic opening since the 1980s, which, unlike Mikhail Gorbachev's reform policy in the former Soviet Union, has not been accompanied by political liberalization. The economic rise led to a need for political pluralism , a multi-party system , freedom of expression and press, and democracy among the majority of the population .
The democracy movement in China was bloodily suppressed in the Tian'anmen massacre in 1989 . Around 2,600 people died in the process, and numerous participants were arrested, went underground or went into exile. Since then, the Chinese government has been sensitive and vigilant to attempts to reorganize protests.
Reasons for protest 2011
There is resentment among the Chinese population about the sharp rise in prices, especially for food, growing income disparity and the now unaffordable prices for housing for many. In addition, one-party rule , arbitrariness , corruption , censorship , lack of freedom of expression and disregard for human rights are criticized. The underground democratic movement called on February 19, 2011 through the website of Chinese exiles, boxun.com, to protest every Sunday at 2:00 pm in certain public places in twelve, later thirteen, Chinese cities. Addressed everyone who has “a dream for the future”.
course
February 20, 2011
On the first day of the protest, February 20, 2011, around 200 people gathered in Beijing and around 100 people in Shanghai in front of the Peace Cinema. There was a massive police presence, numerous government-loyal thugs in civilian clothes and an equally strong international media presence. A protester said that China is not a constitutional state, that there are expropriations and that there are also deaths. Individual demonstrators were arrested. Camera crews were beaten, forcibly driven into vehicles, kidnapped into nearby buildings, detained for several hours and interrogated. Some of the images were confiscated. The security forces forced the media to sign a statement saying they had broken Chinese law and apologizing for it. Only then were the representatives let go again.
February 27, 2011
Based on the experiences of the first day of the protest, the movement went underground. Slogans should explicitly no longer be shouted in order not to endanger your own safety. New, creative forms of civil protest were proposed: silent walks, ordering menu number 3 in fast food restaurants or jasmine tea. "We invite everyone to take a walk by, watch or just pretend to come by by chance." The mere participation scares the authoritarian government. On February 27, a protest movement against the suppression of the protests developed in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region . People laid branches of jasmine in solidarity, waved banners and often resisted police orders.
March 2, 2011
The regulations, which were enacted in the run-up to the Beijing Olympics in early 2007 and hailed as progress, read: "To interview organizations or individuals in China, foreign journalists only need to get their prior consent." stricter regulations for journalists. The police officer Ma Tao explained to a German ARD correspondent: "You need a permit at any place, anywhere in China, before you are allowed to do interviews." This must be issued by the relevant authority. Media representatives who do not comply are threatened with withdrawal of accreditation and expulsion.
Also on March 2, the organizers of the movement declared their three-phase strategy: In the first phase, which could last “a few weeks, months, a year or longer”, walks and signs like the same restaurant orders are planned. The second phase would include "holding jasmine flowers and playing the folk song Mo Li Hua" (German: "Beautiful jasmine blossom") on cell phones. In the third phase, the "street movement is irreversible", people would criticize the government openly and fearlessly.
Protest day March 6, 2011
Against the background of the meeting of the National People's Congress in China, demonstrators were organized again.
Government reactions
Around 25 human rights lawyers, activists and bloggers have been arrested or disappeared since the protests began. Around 200 people were under increased surveillance and even house arrest. Among the detainees were the artist Ai Weiwei , who reported on restrictions in the wake of the Jasmin protests, and the lawyer Ni Yulan , who has been dependent on walking aids since her last time in prison. Above all, she campaigned for dispossessed citizens. Her husband was arrested at the same time. The were also arrested blogger Ran Yunfei and the author Liu Xianbin .
According to a study by Harvard University, around 17% of all Internet sites in China were blocked. The protests sparked renewed censorship measures. Blog and Twitter posts were deleted and pages containing the word "jasmine" were blocked. The organizers therefore switched to common terms, such as “two conferences” (chin. 两会), which does not mean the two conferences, but the jasmine movement.
International reactions
The blows against foreign journalists in Beijing sparked international outrage. The EU condemned the "physical violence, intimidation and arrests without explanation", US Ambassador Jon Huntsman spoke of illegal arrests: "This kind of harassment and intimidation is unacceptable and extremely worrying." Human rights groups also criticize the "massive repression" on the part of the Chinese State power. Civil rights activists operate in a "hostile and dangerous environment," said the Hong Kong-based organization Chinese Human Rights Defenders (CHRD) in its annual report. Activists are "routinely the target of arbitrary arrests, torture and forcible abductions." For 2010, the organization documented 3,544 arbitrary detentions, 118 cases of torture and 36 forcible abductions. "The regime is reacting once again with a new wave of massive repression targeting those activists who call for a 'jasmine revolution'," said CHRD Director Renee Xia. “The international community must do more.” The situation has worsened since the imprisoned civil rights activist Liu Xiaobo was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in October .
The US-based organization Human Rights Watch criticized the violent crackdown on foreign journalists in Beijing and spoke of an "escalation of censorship". The intimidation of correspondents must come to an end. The violent incidents should also be investigated.
Web links
- www.boxun.com - Government-critical exile website (English)
- The new word: Jasmine Revolution. East Asia Institute of the Ludwigshafen University of Applied Sciences.
- The Chinese authorities have cracked down on a small pro-democracy rally apparently modeled on the protests sweeping the Arab world . ITN News London, February 20, 2011, accessed March 3, 2011. (English video documentation)
Individual evidence
- ^ Esther Felden: Internet call for nationwide protests in China. In: Deutsche Welle. February 19, 2011, accessed February 21, 2011 .
- ^ Esther Felden: Another call for protests in China. In: Deutsche Welle. February 23, 2011, accessed March 15, 2011 .
- ↑ 第二 轮 茉莉花 集会 香港 警民 激烈 冲撞. In: VOANews.com. February 27, 2011, Retrieved April 4, 2011 (Chinese).
- ↑ Stricter rules - China threatens journalists. In: n-tv.de. March 3, 2011, accessed March 3, 2011 .
- ↑ Will Clem: The flowering of an unconventional revolution. In: South China Morning Post. March 3, 2011, archived from the original on March 3, 2011 ; Retrieved March 3, 2011 .
- ↑ a b Ruth Kirchner: China warns against interference in the Ai Weiwei case. In: rbb, ARD-Studio Beijing. April 7, 2011, archived from the original on July 23, 2011 ; Retrieved April 8, 2011 .
- ↑ Press in China - Beijing forbids foreign reporters to conduct free research. In: Spiegel Online. Retrieved March 3, 2011 .
- ↑ "Jasmine Protests": China uses violence against critics of the regime. In: Handelsblatt. Retrieved March 1, 2011 .