Zhao Ziyang (
In the light of its repressive tactics, the regime is obviously still fearful of democracy and freedom. Many old friends of Zhao's were unable to pay their final respects to him and offer condolences to his family members. Only a handful of the powerful in government could communicate with Zhao's family, while members of the public eager to pay their respects were savagely beaten by police.
Although Jia Qinglin (賈慶林), chairman of the People's Political Consultative Conference, attended the funeral and represented the Chinese government in expressing condolences, Zhao is still defined by the government as a comrade who made a grave mistake amid the political upheavals of the summer of 1989.
Beijing's reluctance to rehabilitate Zhao's reputation shows that although China is adopting a liberal approach in economic development, it remains an authoritarian regime and is ignorant of the concepts of democracy and human rights. China's leadership will not ignore any force that could possibly challenge the rule of the Communist Party. Beijing's animosity toward the Falun Gong -- the so-called "evil cult" -- is the result of its own instability, and in the face of the 1989 Tiananmen Square Massacre. But democratic change, embodied by Zhao, is certainly a threat.
This side of the Taiwan Strait is quite familiar with China's psychological responses to moves toward reform. Taiwan has seen the 228 Incident, the Sun Li-jen (孫立人) and Lei Chen (雷震) cases, and the Kaohsiung Incident -- all examples of injustice that have taken place here. These injustices were covered up by the former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) regime.
It may be that the governments responsible for these types of injustices feel uneasy, but under an authoritarian regime, the truth rarely emerges. But when a dictator loses power or dies, these injustices spring up like seeds after spring rain, and the heavier the force that presses down on them, the stronger they will push upward. The revelation of past injustices here has left indelible scars on the record of the Chiang family's rule.
China's head-in-the-sand approach towards Zhao's political record is an indication of its willingness to deny reality, and of the gulf that separates it from the values that characterize civilized nations. Because of what Zhao represents, his passing could serve as a platform on which the Chinese government could show to its people and the international community that it is capable of facing up to historical errors, and that it is willing to correct past mistakes. Beijing has missed this opportunity.
Zhao was not treated fairly. This was a matter of regret for him personally, and also a matter of regret for the Chinese people and for their current leaders.
"A grave mistake," will not be the final judgement on the Tiananmen Square Massacre and Zhao's trying to prevent it. Zhao's death is akin to an insect hibernating beneath the earth, waiting for spring. When democracy eventually takes hold in China, history will remember how its present rulers conducted themselves.
Concerns that the US might abandon Taiwan are often overstated. While US President Donald Trump’s handling of Ukraine raised unease in Taiwan, it is crucial to recognize that Taiwan is not Ukraine. Under Trump, the US views Ukraine largely as a European problem, whereas the Indo-Pacific region remains its primary geopolitical focus. Taipei holds immense strategic value for Washington and is unlikely to be treated as a bargaining chip in US-China relations. Trump’s vision of “making America great again” would be directly undermined by any move to abandon Taiwan. Despite the rhetoric of “America First,” the Trump administration understands the necessity of
In an article published on this page on Tuesday, Kaohsiung-based journalist Julien Oeuillet wrote that “legions of people worldwide would care if a disaster occurred in South Korea or Japan, but the same people would not bat an eyelid if Taiwan disappeared.” That is quite a statement. We are constantly reading about the importance of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), hailed in Taiwan as the nation’s “silicon shield” protecting it from hostile foreign forces such as the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), and so crucial to the global supply chain for semiconductors that its loss would cost the global economy US$1
US President Donald Trump’s challenge to domestic American economic-political priorities, and abroad to the global balance of power, are not a threat to the security of Taiwan. Trump’s success can go far to contain the real threat — the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) surge to hegemony — while offering expanded defensive opportunities for Taiwan. In a stunning affirmation of the CCP policy of “forceful reunification,” an obscene euphemism for the invasion of Taiwan and the destruction of its democracy, on March 13, 2024, the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) used Chinese social media platforms to show the first-time linkage of three new
Sasha B. Chhabra’s column (“Michelle Yeoh should no longer be welcome,” March 26, page 8) lamented an Instagram post by renowned actress Michelle Yeoh (楊紫瓊) about her recent visit to “Taipei, China.” It is Chhabra’s opinion that, in response to parroting Beijing’s propaganda about the status of Taiwan, Yeoh should be banned from entering this nation and her films cut off from funding by government-backed agencies, as well as disqualified from competing in the Golden Horse Awards. She and other celebrities, he wrote, must be made to understand “that there are consequences for their actions if they become political pawns of