Lhasa, Tibet showing Barkhor Square. Photo taken October 2005, from Jokhang Chapel, containing the most revered Buddha in all Tibet.As a frequent visit to China, I try to stay up to date about the events occuring there. Read this, then re-read it again applying it to what is happening in America.
I found this on Danwei.org.
The following is a translation of a short post from journalist and Xiamen PX activist Lian Yue's blog:
1। Any power which tries to withhold information should be regarded as a bad power.
2। Any power that keeps people from getting information should be regarded as a bad power.
3. Any information released by a power that has monopoly over releasing information should be regarded as a lie.
4. A power that tries to distort and withhold information should be responsible for the consequences.
5. A power that keeps people from getting information does not have the credibility to tell people what is true and what is false.
6. Information being suppressed is the only cause of the worsening situation and deepening disagreement, because each side can say whatever they want and none of it is provable.
7. Extreme nationalism is passionate and irrational. It is nourished by the suppression of information. Tibetan supremacist, Han supremacist, anti-Japanese sentiment and anti-Taiwan sentiment run rampant in an environment where information is suppressed.
8. Mainland China is a place where [people with] extreme feelings are the biggest supporters of power, and these people and feelings prevent power from reforming itself.
9. Only freedom of information expression can dissolve extreme sentiments. Trying to withhold dangerous information is the most dangerous way to act.
Therefore, one important way to solve the problem is to give the media freedom to interview in Tibet.
The question I have is whether the Chinese government has learned how to suppress bad news by learning from the Bush Administration?
3 comments:
As much as I would like to give credit to the Bush administration, the Chinese are past masters at this.
I would have better advised to just point out the similarities of how governments surpress bad news.
It's like what you told me when you got back from Russia - the Russians expect that you are lying (or being deceptive in some way), because it's a way of life. China too.
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