Bloggers speak out in China: But is the govt listening?

For Beijing, the speed of the trains was a matter of pride and indicated the possibility of lucrative business deals - For example, it has been reported that Malaysia is ready to import 228 bullet trains from China.

The incident is unusual because Beijing had to impose a ban on the coverage of the train crash, forcing some newspapers to remove several pages from their edition.

The Publicity Department of the Communist Party issued a censorship order banning all coverage of the crash.

The order said: "After the serious rail traffic accident on July 23, overseas and domestic public opinions have become increasingly complicated ...all local media, including newspapers, magazines and websites, must rapidly cool down the reports of the incident. You are not allowed to publish any reports or commentaries, except positive news or information released by the authorities."

And in an even more unprecedented move, several leading Chinese newspapers ignored the ban.

The Economic Observer, a respected business weekly, ran an eight-page special issue on the crash with pictures of the wrecked train.

The editorial was an open letter to Xiang Weiyi, a two-year-old girl found alive in the train wreckage 21 hours after the accident; both her parents had died: "Yiyi, when you grow up, will we and this country where we live, be able to honestly tell you about all the love and suffering, anger and doubts around us?"

The Chinese web was agog with the accident.

But what is surprising is that in today's China more and more people have begun to 'dare' speak out. They know the possible consequences of their actions or writings, but they are ready to take the risk.

Daring in Tibet

Another example of a 'daring' action came from the Kham Lithang Gonchen monastery in Eastern Tibet during a week-long religious festival which started on July 15.

Two portraits of the Dalai Lama and the late Panchen Lama were 'enthroned' in front of a religious gathering of over 5000 monks and laymen. It was in direct violation of the Government's orders not to honor the Dalai Lama.

A member of the Tibetan Parliament in Exile in Dharamsala told the website Payul.com about receiving information that "it was an extremely joyous and emotional moment" for Tibetans who lined up in front of the throne to offer white ceremonial scarves.

He added: "Many people told me that for the first time in their lives they felt as if they really could see His Holiness the Dalai Lama in person and seek his blessings."

Reports said that monks and nuns from some 100 monasteries of Eastern Tibet had converged in Lithang for the occasion. Members of the restive Kirti Monastery were also invited.

Another daring act was reported by International Campaign for Tibet: "Urgent appeals have been posted online in Qinghai about lead poisoning in the local water-supply due to mining and smelting operations."
As nothing was done by the Government due to corruption, local people appealed on the Net to convey their 'bitterness'.

On July 23, an anonymous Tibetan blogger wrote: "In recent years the environment at Kumbum Monastery has become awful. The local government and businesses have colluded to build a great many polluting enterprises five kilometers from Kumbum Monastery, and so every time the wind blows or it rains, smoke, dust and foul-smelling air settles down on the roofs and courtyards, and the temples' golden tiles and wall murals are already corroding."

In Mianyang (Sichuan Province) again, people dared protest when the manganese pollution in the water had 'exceeded limits'. The incident was reported by Radio Free Asia.

Netizens were quick to spread the information. A local resident wrote: "The [government] saw from measurements on July 25 that the manganese levels in the Fu River at Mianyang had gone over the limit, yet they didn't report it until 6 pm on July 26. The local population drank contaminated water for one full day."

Another blogger stated: "Perhaps it's a bit like the rail crash, where some people resign, and some people apologise?"

The manganese level only decreased after heavy rainstorms when the volume of water in upstream reservoirs swelled, diluting the concentration of the chemical: The government found the problem had solved on its own!

One understands why the main thrust of the Chinese Vice-President Xi Jinping during a recent visit to Tibet was 'stability'.

In each of his speeches, whether it was in front of the Potala in Lhasa or in Nyingtri, near the Indian border, or in Shigatse, the seat of the Panchen Lamas, Xi emphasized 'stability'.

In Nyingtri, he told the people: "People of all ethnicities in Tibet need to understand that stability leads to prosperity and separatist activities lead to disasters."

To the PLA, he said, "The social stability in Tibet matters to the country's stability, and Tibet's security matters to national security."

Xi probably had another region in mind too: Xinjiang.

During the visit, observers noticed the absence of the Chinese-selected Panchen Lama in the entourage of the future Chinese President.

A few days later, Radio Free Asia reported: "The Chinese government attempted to parade its handpicked Panchen Lama this month in a key Tibetan-majority area [Eastern Tibet] but shelved the controversial move following widespread resentment from the people."

Had the young Lama, who has never been accepted by the majority of Tibetans, been seen in Lhasa along the Vice-President, it could have become an embarrassment for Xi Jinping one year before his 'elevation' to the supreme post of the People's Republic of China. Xi could not take the risk.


Blame it on Pakistan!

Further north, in Xinjiang, two attacks left at least 19 people dead, including the five attackers, and injured more than 40. Chinese officials immediately denounced the 'terrorist attacks'.

It started when two bombs exploded in Kashgar. An hour after the blasts, two 'terrorists' hijacked a truck, killed its driver, and drove into a crowd of pedestrians.

The Chinese media said the attackers later got out of the truck and began stabbing by-passers. The local government announced that several bystanders were killed, one attacker died and another was caught.

Beijing blamed the attack on 'Pakistan-trained terrorists', but the Chinese leadership can't keep its eyes close any longer by refusing to acknowledge the deep resentment of the local population, whether in Tibet, in Xinjiang or elsewhere in the PRC, against the policies of the Central Government.

Unless this resentment goes, 'stability' can't be achieved.

Anger on blogs

Thousands of blogs are describing how upset the public is today in China.

On the popular Sina.com microblogging site, Shen Xiaobao wrote after the train accident: "I can't tell whether the current society is moving forward or backward. If it's moving forward, why does it have to be paid for in lives?"

A search for the words 'bullet train' and 'crash' on Sina.com showed more than 700,000 postings just one day after the accident. Even the official Communist Party mouthpiece The People's Daily admitted: "China needs development, but not blood GDP", adding "There has never been a guarantee that we will not be martyrs to speed."

What is being questioned in many posts is the Chinese model of development.

Fei-Ling Wang, a professor of international affairs at the Georgia Institute of Technology told AP: "It will certainly recast the current development model in some more critical light."

Tong Da Huan, a journalist working for the Oriental Morning Post blogged: "China, please slow down your high speed path, wait for your people, wait for your soul, wait for your morality, wait for your conscience. Don't allow trains to derail, bridges to fall, roads to collapse or houses to cave in. Walk slowly, allow each life to have freedom and respect. And do not leave anyone behind."

Is the leadership ready to listen to the 'masses'?



Also read: The perils of diverting the Brahmaputra | 'If France can intervene in Libya, why not in China' | China in 2011: Smiles or threats?  | What ails US intelligence?

Born in France, Claude Arpi's quest began 36 years ago with a journey to the Himalayas. Since then he has been a student of the history of Tibet, China and the subcontinent. He is the author of numerous English and French books. His book, Tibet: the Lost Frontier (Lancers Publishers) was released recently.

More columns by Claude Arpi