After the Lyceum Seminar (2)

Responding to Rauth, my math teacher

l # Will the Party send someone to follow you or Blacklist you?

Well, I don't think I’m so important. Moreover, China is not forty years ago.

Yes, the CCP's control over speech is a significant issue. Harry Wu, the founder of the Laogai Foundation, and Yongyi Song, founder of the Database, are both people that the CCP doesn’t welcome. Song was temporarily put in jail in the late 1990s because he collected materials for his Database. And as you know, in China, you only have a China-wide web, not a worldwide web.

But, I would like to point out that speech freedom has improved a lot since the end of the Cultural Revolution. The 1980s were most free. Then there was Tiananmen Square. However, there are still some liberals within the CCP. In 1991, "Yanhuang Chunqiu" (China History) was founded, aiming to search for the truth. My grandfather was a loyal subscriber to this periodical. Much has been published like what I'm discussing today. Unfortunately, in 2016, it was banned. Today, there are still active historians who pursue the truth, though subdued sometimes. For example, Yang Kuison reexamined the Party's history. Shen Zhihua changed people’s understanding of the Korean War completely.

I have a feeling that after so many years of opening up, the pursuit of freedom and truth is unlikely to be extinguished totally. Studying abroad is possible and I can stand here, talking with you. The window to the outside world is not closed. After all, 5% of internet users regularly surfed the outside world via VPN. Authors opposing Communism, like Hayek, are still popular in China.

Finally, and most importantly, China, like all the other countries, is not unchangeable. It, to a large extent, depends on people’s will and actions. As a Chinese student who has the opportunity to see the outside world, I find it an obligation to think independently and speak up.

l # What do you think of the Xinjiang issue?

I understand your association. The idea and practice of reforming dissidents through labor still exists, though in a more subtle and moderated way.

I do pay attention to the situation in Xinjiang, but I am not qualified to express my opinion. First of all, I don't have a direct connection to Xinjiang and don’t have devoted enough time to study the issue. Second, Xinjiang's issue is more complex and beyond my current ability to digest.

Perhaps, I can offer some perspectives. I know many Americans think it is chauvinistic to teach the Chinese language and culture in Xinjiang. I’m afraid it is too simple and stereotypical.

Many eastern Chinese cities, including Shenzhen where I'm from, establish Xinjiang Classes in certain high schools that recruit students from Xinjiang. I didn't do much research, so I only get the statistics in 2008. That year, the eastern city offered 10,000 seats for Xinjiang Students, while 84,000 applied and took the admission tests. Grasping Mandarin and Integrating into the mainstream culture bring them a better life. So, why is offering language and culture classes in Xinjiang considered a totally bad thing? Grasping Mandarin and integrating into the mainstream culture, indeed, improve the life of Xinjiang people. Sure, the benefit comes with a price that Xinjiang people have to sacrifice lots of their traditions.

Similarly, Chinese students compete fiercely for an opportunity to study in the US. But, on the other side, many accuse the United States of exporting Western values and corroding Chinese thoughts. Peace Corps, which was discontinued last year, was an example.

To be fair, sticking to the tradition and more difficult life, or abandoning the tradition for a better life, is an eternal question when cultures with different degrees of development meet. Americans may think twice.