Past freezing point, a thaw?

May 19, 2007 12:22 PM

China’s veteran voices of reformby Li Datong (李大同). Li is the former editor of Freezing Point, an influential Chinese weekly supplement to the China Youth Daily. His frequent clashes with his superiors and bold publishing stance there led to his sacking and the temporary closure of the magazine, but he now has a regular column in English at openDemocracy. Here, Li looks at how Party elders are using the pages of the journal 炎黄春秋 (Yanhuang Chunqiu "Chinese Chronicles") to promote a reform agenda quite daring in the Chinese context, making reformists hopeful about the upcoming Seventeenth National Congress of the CCP.
posted by Abiezer (3 comments total)

A fascinating article, great post.
posted by flaneur at 2:39 PM on May 19, 2007

Really interesting. I wonder if the generation of Chinese that Li Datong describes also feel that, given their age, they have nothing to lose by speaking plainly?
posted by ntk at 4:34 PM on May 19, 2007

Very interesting, but I think it is a little disappointing that only old men with the right "revolutionary credentials" are able to openly advocate democracy. Living in China I don't see much hunger for more political freedom from the average Chinese person, though I tend to avoid political discussions as they always devolve into either bitch sessions about George W. Bush, or bitch sessions about Chen Shuibian.

The other wild card in Chinese politics is Hu Jintao. Has there ever been a world leader who is more inscrutable? Hu is probably one of the five most important leaders in the world, yet I have no idea what his policy goals are or where he stands on important issues? His past certainly doesn't suggest that he is a reformist though. China's recent history also shows that one should not be too optimistic about rumors of political reforms, as they are almost always followed by periods of repression.
posted by afu at 12:50 AM on May 20, 2007 [1 favorite]