The Weeks before June 4: Deng Xiaoping’s remarks and the April-26 Editorial

« Previous translation/rendition: Struggling for the Ideological Switch Stands

For all previous instalments, see this table.

Most or all of the party-insider information used by Wu Renhua seems to be based on “Li Peng’s diary”. There seems to be wide-spread agreement that the diary – becoming known in 2010 – was authentic. However, even if it is, one needs to ask if Li’s own account of the run-up to the massacre of June 3/4 1989 is accurate. Probably, these are questions only the party archives could answer – JR

Tuesday, April 25, 1989

Main Link: 1989 年 4 月 24 日 星期日

About 60,000 students at 43 colleges and universities in Beijing continue the strike on lessons. (On April 24, 38 colleges and universities were involved.) At some colleges and universities, wall papers promoting the students’ movement continue to emerge.

At 3 p.m., the Beijing University Preparatory Committee publishes a notice: eight out of the university’s 27 faculties have set up branch committees, and the preparatory committee has conducted re-elections, with Kong Qingdong (孔庆东), Wang Chiying (王池英), Feng Congde (封从德), Wang Dan (王丹), and Shen Tong (沈彤) as new members. “The new preparatory committee will have decision-making authority, and temporarily take the lead of the students union.”

The Beijing University students union has established contact with more than 32 other colleges and universities in Beijing. Chairman Zhou Yongjun says that three demands have been issued to the government:

• official dialog with the state council, based on delegations (or representation)
• a public apology for the Xinhua Gate incident and punishment for the perpetrators
• truthful domestic media coverage about the students movement.

At nine in the morning, at his home, Deng Xiaoping listens to Li Peng’s, Yang Shangkun’s, Qiao Shi’s, Hu Qili’s, Yao Yilin’s, Li Ximing’s, Chen Xitong’s and others’ reports. The meeting ends before 11 a.m.. After the meeting, Yang Shangkun stays with Deng for discussions.

Deng agrees with the politburo standing committee’s and the broader politbureau meetings’ decisions, and requires the central committee and the state council to establish two teams – one to focus on dealing with the unrest, and one to get hold of the routine work. Deng says that before, the talk had been about managing the economic environment, but now, there was a need to manage the political environment.

Deng believes the students movement isn’t a normal agitation (or strike), but a political unrest. Attention needs to be paid to avoiding bloodspills, but it will be hard to avoid it completely. In the end, it could be necessary to arrest a batch of people. The “People’s Daily”, in accordance with the spirit of what Deng said, writes in its editorial on April 26¹⁾ that “we must oppose the unrest with a clear and distinct stand” (more literally: under a bright banner).

On Li Peng’s proposal, Zeng Jianhui (曾建徽) drafts the editorial, and after authorization by Hu Qili and Li Peng, it is decided that the editorial shall be aired this evening at 7 p.m., by Central People’s Broadcasting Station (CPBS) and on CCTV’s main newscast Xinwen Lianbo.

Delegations from all colleges and universities in Beijing discuss the prospects of the students movement at the Autonomous Federation’s meeting, held at the University of Political Science and Law, at 7 p.m.., and determining a draft for a national people’s program. At the time of the meeting, the April-26 editorial is aired, on which countermeasures are discussed. The editorial leads to a tense atmosphere, and one student leader says that the danger is understood, and that the work to defend the dormitories needs to be strengthened.

At about 18:45, some three- to four thousand students of the People’s University (Renmin University) arrive at the China Youth University for Political Sciences, at Beifang Jiaotong University, at the Academy of Nationalities  (i. e. national minorities, 中央民族学院 – frequently referred to as the Minzu University of China), and the Beijing Foreign Studies University (actually: foreign-languages university, formerly an academy, 北京外语学院, now 北京外国语大学) to support the strikes, and also to strongly oppose the April-26 editorial. 21:40, the protesters leave the China Youth University for Political Sciences, originally planning to go to Beijing Normal University, but they are intercepted by nearly 800 police. At 21:02, more two thousand students from the People’s (Renmin) University, the Minzu University of China, and other universities are protesting around the universities, oppose the April-26 editorial, saying that the editorial confuses right and wrong (颠倒是非) and that “action must continue”. Some students are shouting a slogan: “Oppose repressions against the student movement”.

At 23:00, the Capital Autonomous Federation of University Students (北高联) issues a notice: “On April 27, the entire city will demonstrate unitedly and converge on Tian An Men Square”, to oppose the April-26 editorial.

At 23:00, the Beijing University (Students) Preparatory Committee (北大筹委会 / 北大学生筹委会) holds a press conference at the Beijing University No. 1 Teaching Building (北京大学第一教学楼), and Kong Qingdong, who is hosting the conference, announces that “the Beijing University Preparatory Committee is neither anti-party nor anti-constitutional; it is here to promote the progress of democracy [or democratization].” He also spells out three conditions for the students’ return to the classrooms:

1. dialog with the government
2. an accurate explanation of the 4-20 incident [see here, Wang Zhiyong] and
3. a press law.

In a brief meeting at 15:00, Li Peng convenes a brief meeting of the standing committee of the politbureau and communicates Deng Xiaoping’s remarks. Yang Shangkun attends as a non-voting participant. The standing committee believes that Deng Xiaoping’s remarks are absolutely important and should be communicated to the lower ranks right away. It is decided that first, it shall be passed on  within the “system of the big three” (三大系统) – to the central committee, to the state council, and to all cadres above vice-ministerial level in the Beijing municipal government, including the transcript of Deng’s remarks today, and the standing committee’s records from the meeting in the evening on April 24.

Wen Jiabao’s instructions to the General Office of the CCP  to communicate the standing committee’s records from the meeting in the evening on April 24, and to promptly arrange Deng Xiaoping’s remarks, are the foundation of communications. Toward the evening, Wen gives Li Peng a phonecall asking for instructions if some sensitive issues in Deng Xiaoping’s remarks should be kept out of the communication at first. To reduce possible vulnerabilities and to get as many points to ralley the comrades around, Li Peng agrees.

The quantity of propaganda material explaining “the situation in Beijing” is growing. At Fudan University, Tongji University, Jiaotong University, and many other universities and colleges, wall newspapers, photos or leaflets emerge, mainly about “the real story of the 4-20 incident” and “the whole story about the 4-21 demonstrations” , and “100,000 students’ peaceful petition” etc..

The rate of students who show up for classes is diminuishing in Tianjin’s major universities, and about one third of students are on strike. There are calls for supporting the students in Beijing. Eighty-seven young teachers at Nankai University put up slogans: “Support the Students’ Strike!”

In the afternoon, the “Jilin Declaration” from Jilin University emerges, with the full wording: “The fate of our nation is the responsibility of everyone. Beijing University has arisen, so has Nankai University, all students are pleading in the name of the people – how can the people of Jilin University stand by and watch? Arise, people of Jilin University. Political corruption, maldistribution, economic chaos, outmoded education and the nation in peril, when will be the time!

Wall newspapers in some universities in Xi’an, Changsha and other places also refute the “People’s Daily” editorial, calling it “a pack of lies”, as the students’ actions were not a political struggle, but a demand for democracy. Some Xi’an students distribute mimeographed leaflets, calling for a demonstration on Xincheng Square on Sunday.

At the Central South University of Technology (中南工业大学) in Changsha, Hunan Province, the chairpeople of seven faculties who prepared a meeting at 21:00 to adopt measures and to support the students of Beijing to escalate the situation, are stopped by the university’s related departments.

The traffic regulations that had been in effect since the 4-22 riots at Xincheng Square, the center of the riots, were lifted at 00:00 today. Large numbers of armed police are leaving the square, but some police are guarding the entrances of the provincial government. The authorities have also ordered a batch of helmeted troops from the people’s Liberation Army 49 Army from their base, twenty kilometers outside Xi’an, into the square.

According to a “People’s Daily” report, 98 people were arrested in the riots of Changsha in the evening on April 22, among them 32 workers, peasants who work in Changsha as migrant workers, six six self-employed/small-business owners (getihu), 28 socially idle people²⁾, six students (five of them middle school students and one of them a secondary specialized or technical school student).

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Notes

¹⁾ In a partial chronology of 20th century China, Tian’anmen Square TV provides a translation of the April-26 editorial.
²⁾ A stronger translation would be riff-raff.

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To be continued

The Weeks before June 4: Struggling for the Ideological Switch Stands

[Cont. April 23, 1911

Main Link: 1989 年 4 月 24 日 星期日

Li Tieying and Li Ximing both agree with Li Peng that strict measures should be taken against the students' movement. At 8.30 in the evening, Li Peng goes to see Yang Shangkun to analyse the situation. Yang also sees a changing trend and encourages Li Peng to see Deng Xiaoping. Li Peng asks Yang to join him in a visit to Deng, and Yang agrees. During the evening, as Li Peng reads many papers and adds  comments to them, and a flow of public-security bureau, security, education commission staff etc, concerning trends among the students in all places keeps coming in, by phone and cable.

Science and Technology Daily's entering into the forbidden area of coverage receives a great echo, and from the morning on, people call this paper to tell the staff that they had written in fair words. However, vice chief editor Sun Changjiang says that they haven't done something special, and just acted in accordance with professional ethics, in their effort to carry out their duty as the media. Their [Science and Technology Daily] coverage hadn’t been particularly good; rather, he believes, that of some other papers has been particularly bad. The event is authentic, and their attitude is sincere.

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Monday, April 24, 1989

Main Link: 1989 年 4 月 24 日 星期一 (same document)

In the morning, sixty-thousand students from some 38 colleges and universities such as Beijing University, Tsinghua University, People’s University (Renmin University) begin a strike. Some students gather within the universities, conduct sit-ins, demonstrations, put up posters, and others shout slogans like “join the strike quickly”, “no end to the strike without reaching our goals”, and “walk out on lessons and exams, not on learning”.

Some students give lectures on societal issues, put up propaganda sheets, propagate “April 20 massacre”, “crying-and-begging to the non-understanding government” information, and still others take to the streets and lanes, for fund-raising and to call on “all the city’s citizens to become active in strikes”. Students from Beijing University, Tsinghua University and People’s University maintain order, and dissuade students from taking part in lessons. Some university party secretaries point out in reports to the next-upper party level that the current situation, if it lasts, will be absolutely harmful, and that one has to fear that this could take still larger dimensions as May 4 is approaching. They express their hopes that the central committee and the municipal committee issue clear guidelines, policies and instructions to end the strikes as soon as possible.

At 14:40, student committees at Beijing University and other universities hold meetings at the May-4 squares on their campuses, with some eighty percent of students attending. They prepare activities to boycott official May-4 activities and to establish autonomous students unions in Beijing and students unions of national unity all over the country. Some papers report that student delegates from Nankai University,  Nanjing University, Fudan University, Guangzhou University and other universities are also attending. Nearly two-hundred students with red armbands are maintaining order. As several members of students committees publicly push and pull each other on stage in a quarrel twice, more than six-thousand students at the meeting are abuzz. The meeting ends at 16:00 in discord, without having made any decisions. Dozens of foreign reporters have been present and recorded the event. A press conference by the preparatory committee, scheduled for 7 p.m., is subsequently cancelled.

Beijing University posts the “Recommendations to the Preparatory Committee, signed by people from Beijing University” poster, suggesting to redraw the slogans and action principles in order to get public support. The slogans should oppose corruption and bureaucracy, actions should be carried out downtown, at broad daylight, so as to broaden their influence, unified action would be needed between the universities and colleges, preparations be made for a long-term struggle, and extensive contacts be built with people from intellectual and democratic circles.

There is also another poster, under the headline “five points”, about “guaranteeing basic human rights, releasing political criminals, opposing party supremacy, checks and balances by separation of the three powers, defining a democratic constitution” and other political positions.

More than twohundred Beijing University teachers jointly call for maintaining the principles of the thirteen universities to consult the students and to have a dialog with them. A similar call comes from the China University of Political Science and Law [Wu Renhua's university]. The Beijing Students Autonomous Federation (aka Capital Autonomous Federation of University Students) calls on every student to send ten letters to compatriots all over the country. Between two- and threehundred students are to be dispatched to fifteen large cities all over the nation, such as Tianjin, Jinan, Shenyang, Changsha, Chengdu, Xi’an, Lanzhou, Shijiazhuang, Zhengzhou, Guangzhou, Taiyuan, Shanghai, Nanjing and Wuhan  to deliver speeches and to make contacts.

A peaceful petition meeting at Tsinghua University started a peaceful demonstration within the campus, at eight in the morning, with about ten thousand students participating. It’s an orderly demonstration with a length reaching two kilometers.

The Tsinghua University Students Council puts forward four principles concerning the students’ strike:

1. to maintain the reasonable struggle and the peaceful petition
2. to maintain unity and the power of all that can be united
3. to adhere to the strike on lessons, not on learning
4. to make sure that cool heads prevail among the younger students.

Educational departments from all over the country give their reactions to the State Education Commission, expressing their hope that the situation at Beijing’s universities and colleges can be stabilized soon, as it would otherwise be difficult to control the situation at universities outside the capital.

In the evening, Ren Wanding, who was responsible for the “Human Rights Alliance” time of the Xidan Democracy Wall, speaks on Tian An Men Square. He says: “the people are destitute, robbers arise from everywhere, prices are soaring, and the national economy is in crisis. If the four cardinal principles don’t vanish from the constitution, they will keep hanging over the people’s interests.”

Ren Wanding has also been to the universities of Beijing to speak there, but without much response, as the students didn’t understand him, and because they felt that his views were radical. When Chen Xiaoping and I watched him speaking in front of the dormitory of the University of Political Science and Law, there was only a sparse audience. Both Chen and I felt saddened.

In the afternoon, Li Ximing and Chen Xitong report to National People’s Congress chairman Wan Li. Wan Li was Beijing’s vice mayor prior to the cultural revolution. He suggests that the politburo’s standing committee should analyse the situation in the evening, chaired by Li Peng.

[According to this account by Wu Renhua, this meeting was held on the evening of April 24. This source seems to suggest that this happened on April 23.]

The standing committee, chaired by Li Peng, believes that a variety of events are indicating that under the control and instigation of very few people,  a planned, organized anti-party, anti-socialist political struggle is arranged before their eyes. The decision is made to form a group tasked with stopping the unrest, and requires Beijing’s party and government to stabilize the situation quickly, by winning over the majority of the masses and by isolating the minority, and by calming down the unrest. Standing committe member Li Peng, Qiao Shi, Hu Qili, Yao Yilin, as well as  – with no voting rights – Yang Shangkun, Wan Li, central party secretary Rui Xingwen, Yan Mingfu, Wen Jiabao, (not standing) politburo members Tian Jiyun, Li Ximing, Song Ping, Ding Guangen as well as people in charge at the relevant departments are attending the meeting.

In the evening, Li Peng receives a phonecall from Deng Xiaoping‘s secretary Wang Ruilin, inviting Li Peng and Yang Shangkun to his home at ten a.m. next day for discussions.

The World Economic Herald, a weekly from Shanghai, normally scheduled to appear today, has six blocks of content from a memorial forum held in cooperation with the New Observer magazine (新观察) on April 19. The 25 participants spoke highly of Hu Yaobang’s humanness, as a person of democratic open-mindedness [or liberalism - 民主开明], and of deep humanity. Science and Technology Daily vice chief editor Sun Changjiang [see above, entering into the forbidden area of coverage], Guangming Daily‘s reporter Dai Qing, and Yan Jiaqi of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences political science institute state more clearly that Hu Yaobang was forced to resign, and that he died while being treated unfairly. 300,000 copies of the World Economic Herald were printed by Saturday, some of it already at the post offices, while the remainder is stored at the printing house. But when Shanghai’s municipal party committee is informed about some of the content, it orders the postal offices to stop the dispatch of the papers, and seals the remaining copies in the printing house off. In the afternoon, the CCP municipal committee has a meeting with World Economic Herald chief editor Qin Benli in the afternoon, telling him that what is said in the account of the forum is correct, but that, as May 4 comes nearer, they fear that this could stirr the students’ emotions, add to the pressure on the government, and express their hope that the more sensitive content will be removed. The World Economic Herald does not agree with the cuts and revisions.

At the time, the World Economic Review’s Beijing office is the meeting point for democratic and liberal personalities. The office director Zhang Weiguo has strong campaigning skills and is broadly connected. Because of having led the [memorial] forum and for other reasons, he will be arrested after the June-4 crackdown.

To be continued
Continued here »

Chinese Press Review: Lushan Mourning, Maritime Disputes, Border Disputes, and CPBS Emergency Broadcasts

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1. Offerings to the Spirits of the Dead

On Friday, a ceremony to honor the two earthquake (military) relief workers Yang Bo (杨波) and Li Tangdong (李堂东) was conducted at a funeral parlor in Meishan, Sichuan Province, reports China News Service (中国新闻网, via Huanqiu Shibao). The two are referred to as martyrs who sacrificed their lives in the rescue efforts in Lushan, Sichuan Province, which occurred on April 20.

Yang Bo, a platoon leader (probably around the rank of a lieutenant, with the 13th Army Group) died in an accident when his military vehicle got off a road due to a bursting tire and fell off a cliff.

Li Tangdong, a corporal who drove the vehicle, also died in the crash. Li was from Wuxi County (Chongqing).

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2. Maritime Disputes with Japan

Japan has adopted a five-year blueprint for protecting maritime interests, partly in an effort to counter territorial claims by China and South Korea, reports The Asahi Shimbun (Tokyo). It suggests closer cooperation between Japan’s military and coastguard. Okinotorishima as well as other remote islands on what is defined as Japan’s borders reportedly are to play a role as port facilities according to the five-year plan plan, so as to protect interests in the nation’s exclusive economic zone. Methane hydrate, which could become a next-generation fuel, is among the undersea energy resources in the maritime regions in questions, writes Asahi Shimbun.
China’s Huanqiu Shibao quotes Japan’s Yomiuri Simbun on the same topic. According to Huanqiu (or its possibly rather loose rendition of Yomiuri’s coverage), Japan’s five-year blueprint calls for responsive strategies to Chinese vessels that enter the waters of the Senkaku Islands (Diaoyu Islands in Chinese). Rather than port facilities as described by the Asahi Shimbun, Huanqiu Shibao refers the plans for the remote islands as ones for resupply bases or depots (补给站). Okinotorishima is referred to as a “reef” (礁) while the Asahi Shimbun calls it an “island”. According to Huanqiu Shibao, the Japanese government, for wanting to protect its interests in resources, has begun to promote the protection of remote islands and the management of the legalization process [of Japan's claims or rights].

In 2012, a research team from Tokyo University detected large quantities of rare earths beneath the seaground of Minami-Tori-shima‘s adjacent waters. It was then that the Japanese government decided to strengthen the protection of energy sources and natural resources in its exclusive economic zones.

2012年，东京大学研究小组在南鸟岛周边海底发现了大量稀土。以此为契机，日本政府决定加强在保护专属经济海域内能源资源方面的措施。

[...]

Okinotorishima reef is said to be a southern Japanese atoll in the Pacific [don't quote me on this - I'm not sure that this is what Huanqiu really says about the place in Chinese - JR]. In recent years, the Japanese government has spent huge amounts on creating man-made corals at these reefs, thinking of these atolls as “islands”, trying to declare sovereignty on this basis, taking the opportunity to expand their “territorial” waters and the range of the “exclusive economic zones”, to make the development of nearby marine resources more convenient.

据了解，冲之鸟礁是日本南部太平洋海域的一处环礁。近年来，日本政府斥巨资用来在此礁人工养殖珊瑚，并认为该环礁为“岛”，企图以此来宣布主权，借机扩大其“领海”和“专属经济区”范围，为开发附近丰富的海洋资源提供方便。

As for the Okinotorishima reef, China believes that this is a reef, and not an island. Okinotorishima reef provides no base for human habitation, doesn’t sustain economic activity, and there is no basis to establish establish [i. e. claim] any connection between it and the continental shelf. On September 11, 2009, the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf said that a working group under the commission had commenced the handling of an application from Japan concerning the extension of the southern continental shelf into the Pacific.  China has filed objections with the UN.

有关冲之鸟礁问题，中国方面认为冲之鸟是 岩礁而不是岛屿。冲之鸟礁不能供人类居住，也无法维持经济生活，设定大陆架没有任何根据。2009年9月11日，联合国大陆架界限委员会表示，该委员会下 属的一个工作小组已经着手处理日本提出的南太平洋大陆架延伸申请。中国已向联合国正式提交反对意见。

Huanqiu Shibao’s emoticon vote suggests a strong trend of anger among the traditionally nationalist readership – the option “I’m angry” rose from 160 to 181 within about thirty minutes. Clicks for “this is ridiculuous” stayed at 14.
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3. Sino-Indian Border Conflicts

Meantime, Huanqiu Shibao has soothing news from the South:

China News Service, April 26 [published by Huanqiu Shibao on April 27] — Indian foreign minister Salman Khurshid answered questions from Indian media on April 25, concerning the confrontational incident on the Sino-Indian border, and said that the consultation mechanism on border issues had been started. He believed that this mechanism would find a solution for the issue in question, just as it had found solutions in the past.

中新网4月26日电 4月25日，印度外长库尔希德在回答印媒体关于中印边境对峙事件的提问时表示，印中双方已启动边境事务磋商机制，相信该机制能够像过去一样，为此次事件找到解决办法。

Huanqiu Shibao quotes Salman Khurshid as saying that bilateral relations grown over many years shouldn’t break down by overemphasizing small issues and were just like some acne on a face which only required some ointment.

“我期待在下个月访问中国之前，双方能够通过外交渠道结束僵局。”库尔希德说，我们不能因为某个地方发生的小问题而毁掉双方多年来为双边关系付出的投入和心血，正如不能因为脸上有一个小的痤疮就说这张脸不美，所需做的只是敷一点药膏而已。

Kurshid was looking forward to his planned visit to China next month.

Correspondingly, only eleven clicks from the readership were made to express anger, while 374 clicks express delight. Still, 46 clicks find the article (or the news) ridiculous. Both the “delight” and the “ridiculous” numbers are increasing quickly. Those readers who take the trouble to comment appear to be less conciliatory though.
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4. Emergency Radio Frequencies (older news)

On Monday, Central People’s Broadcasting Station (中央人民廣播電台, CPBS, now also known as China National Radio, but only the English name changed in 1998) started special emergency broadcasts in the wake of the Lushan earthquake. These were the first broadcasts of this kind, according to CPBS itself. A studio was established in the hardest-hit county of Lushan, broadcasting rescue information, expert interviews, news, psychological support and consolation, and practical information. Frequencies used were 9,800 kHz and 12,000 kHz on shortwave and 92.7 MHz on VHF/FM.

The 6th plenary session of the CCP’s 17th Central Committee^*)  had issued plans for such an emergency broadcasting system, and the plans were then included in the country’s 12th five-year plan, according to CPBS.

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Note

^*) the same plenary session adopted the party’s cultural decision, in October 2011.
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Businesslike Fourth Option

Prof Andrew Graves, head of the University’s School of Management, told Li he could resubmit the 12,000-word essay, appeal against the mark or accept it and withdraw from the course.

But Li told the professor “I am a businessman”, before placing £5,000 in cash on the table in front of him.

“There is a fourth option, you can keep the money if you give me a pass mark and I won’t bother you again,” he told Prof Graves.

BBC News, April 23, 2013

Ifeng (Phoenix, Hong Kong) and Xinwen Wanbao (Shanghai) also report the story, but can only use a phonetic combination of characters to write Yang’s name, as they draw on a Daily Mail report.

A Punitive Expedition to the Central Party School: Deng Yuwen suspended

Deng Yuwen (邓聿文), deputy editor (associate senior editor of Study Times) of Study Times (学习时报), the journal of the Central Party School of the Communist Party of China, wrote an opinion for the Financial Times on February 27 this year, arguing that China should abandon North Korea. Quoting South Korean Chosun Ilbo, the BBC‘s Mandarin website reports that Deng has been suspended from his function as deputy editor for an indefinite period. In a telephone interview with Chosun Ilbo, Deng reportedly said that the foreign ministry had sent a “punitive expedition” (兴师问罪) to the CCP Party School because of his article. He was still on the payroll, but didn’t know when he would be given another post.

It’s doesn’t read like complete ostracism – and it would spell unequal treatment of academics if it turns out to be a real purge. After all, a fortnight earlier than Deng, on February 13, Shen Dingli (沈丁立), director of the Center for American Studies at Fudan University, published a much more strongly-worded article with Foreign Policy, and apparently faces no problems as a result. Then again, even if showing off rightful indignation at Pyongyang, Shen had still hedged his bets:

Let’s face it: China has reached a point where it needs to cut its losses and cut North Korea loose.

But:

China likely handles North Korea with kid gloves because it fears what would happen if the regime collapsed. If things turned bad, tens if not hundreds of thousands of refugees could flee across the border, destabilizing parts of northeastern China. North Korea’s eventual reunification with South Korea might lead to a democratic U.S. ally with the potential for tens of thousands of U.S. and Korean troops [...]

You get the picture.

Besides, the Party School may be deemed too close to the center of political power to allow their authors and editors to speak their (individual, maybe) views freely – on sensitive issues, anyway.

When reached by phone on Monday (apparently by the South China Morning Post / SCMP), Deng declined to confirm his suspension.

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Related

» Qiao Xinsheng: Not China’s firewall, Sino-NK, Feb 17, 2013
» Oppose the Scarlet Letters, Sep 5, 2010
» 邓聿文简介, Ifeng/Phoenix, date unspec.

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Updated/Related

» Ohne Fehl und Tadel, dFC, 03.04.13
» Beijing steht zur Brandmauer, dFC, 02.04.13

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Huanqiu Shibao: Why the Retired Pope’s “China Dream” remained unachieved (2) – the British did it, too

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« Previous (first) part of translation, plus some remarks.

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Subtitle: The Vatican’s continues to keep “Diplomatic Relations” with Taiwan and interferes in China’s domestic Catholicism
梵蒂冈与台湾保持“外交关系”，干涉中国国内的天主教

Main Link: Why the Retired Pope’s “China Dream” remained unachieved, Huanqiu Shibao, March 5, 2013

Links within blockquotes added during translation.

After the opium war, foreign missionaries, under the protection of powers’ gunboats and unequal treaties, entered China one after another, built churches and proselytize “freely”. Some of the missionaries, in violation of the rules of the God who had sent them to save “Chinese souls”, acted in full complicity with aggressive powers. Dressed in the coats of religion, they did many bad things, seriously damaging the image of the Christian religion, and giving rise to the Chinese people’s indignation.

鸦片战争之后，外国传教士在西方列强的炮舰和不平等条约庇护下，纷纷进入中国，建造教堂，“自由”传教。其中有些传教士违背了上帝派他们来拯救中国人民“灵魂”的旨意，充当了列强侵略中国的帮凶。他们披着宗教外衣，做了不少坏事，严重损毁了基督教的形象，引起中国人民愤慨。

After the establishment of the PRC, the Vatican refused recognition and crudely interfered in Chinese internal political affairs. In 1952, China suspended [or broke off - 中断] all official relations with the Vatican, banned Catholic churches, condemning their conspiracy with the forces of imperialism’s attempts to subvert New China. — The Vatican officially recognized Taiwan. The huge number of patriotic Catholics resolutely took the road of the independently and autonomously-run church. Our country established the “Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association“, the “Three-Self Patriotic Movement of the Protestant Churches in China”, and others. These organizations were acknowledged by the government, government-funded, and also accepted governmental administration. Their fundamental purpose is to love religion and to love the country, to obey the law, and “to love both God and the country”.

中华人民共和国成立，梵蒂冈拒不承认并对中国内政进行粗暴干涉。1952年中国中断了与梵蒂冈所有官方关系，取缔了天主教堂，谴责其串通帝国主义势力企图颠覆新中国……梵蒂冈正式承认了台湾。中国广大爱国天主教徒决心走独立自主办教会的道路。我国先后建立了“天主教爱国会”、“基督教三自爱国会”等。这些组织得到政府承认、政府资助、也接受政府的行政管理。其根本宗旨是爱教爱国、遵纪守法，“既爱上帝，也爱国家”。

The “Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association was established in 1958. In 1982, the “Bishops Conference of Catholic Church in China” was established as Chinese Catholic regional leadership institution. Most importantly, the “Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association” has the right to independently appoint bishops. The “Three-Self Patriotic Movement” purpose is: self-governance, self-support and self-propagation, principles of independence and autonomy in its operations, guiding the entire country’s Christians to love religion and to love the country, to glorify God, to abide by the constitution, to carry forward the noble morality and practices, etc.. In fact, as early as during the 1rst World War, British Anglican priest Ài Lún [obviously an English name, but unknown to me], relating to the “New Testament”, called for the independence of churches from all countries, issuing the “Three-Self” position. China is a secular country, all religions have always been administrated in accordance with the law, and received legal protection.

“中国天主教爱国会”于1958年成立。1982年组建“中国天主教主教团”，为中国天主教各教区的领导机构。最重要的是“中国天主教爱国会”有独立任命主教的权力。“基督教三自爱国会”的宗旨是：自治、自养、自传，独立自主自办教会的原则，带领全国基督徒爱国爱教、荣神益人，遵守宪法，弘扬高尚的道德风尚等。实际上，早在一次世界大战期间，英国圣公会教士艾伦就诉诸《新约》而呼吁各国教会独立，提出“三自”主张。中国是一个世俗国家，各种宗教历来都是依法管理，受到法律保护。

Some people may ask: does China have the right to autonomously administer the churches? Yes, of course it has. Anglicanism is the obvious example. England’s rejuvenating and wise Queen Elizabeth I.’s father Henry VIII. (1491 – 1547), dissatisfied with the Roman Pope’s refused permission to divorce his Spanish wife (she didn’t give birth to a child, which could have led to the throne succession rights to his Spanish adversaries), he angrily had England break away from the Roman church and established England’s own national church, the “Church of England” or “Anglican Church”. This is the origin of the Church of England. The English kings and queens were made the top leaders of the church. To this day, the British Queen keeps the title of “Protector of the Christian Faith” [actual title: Defender of the Faith].

有人会问：中国有办理教会的自主权吗？当然可以。英国国教就是明显例证。英国兴国明君—女王伊丽莎白一世的父亲亨利八世（Henry Ⅷ,1491—1547）因为不满罗马教皇不批准他与其西班牙妻子离婚（因为她没有生育，英国王位的继承权可能旁落到其对手西班牙王室的手中），他一气之下，使英国脱离了罗马教会，组建了英国自己的民族教会，即“英格兰圣公会”或“安立甘教会”。这就是英国国教（Church of England）的来历。英国国王把自己封为教会的最高领导人。迄今，英国女王伊丽莎白二世还保留着“基督教保护者”头衔。

The Vatican even hopes to include the religious churches of a country with diplomatic relations into the Vatican’s “Confucian orthodoxy” system, with the Pope [unitarily - 统一] appointing that country’s bishops in all dioceses, and setting the methods by which they should lead and administer [the dioceses]. This leads to contradictions with Chinese Catholicism’s current “three-self” principles which are hard to dispel. The Vatican firmly opposes the “three-self” and acknowledges the Taiwanese government, and excommunicates the Catholic bishops acknowledged by the Chinese government.

而梵蒂冈则更希望将缔交国的天主教会纳入梵蒂冈的“道统”体系，既由教皇统一任命该国各教区的主教，规定其领导和管理方式。这和中国天主教目前的“三自”原则有难以消解的矛盾。梵蒂冈坚决反对“三自”，并承认台湾政府，将获得中国政府承认的主教开除出教会。

To be continued.

Huanqiu Shibao: Why the Retired Pope’s “China Dream” remained unachieved (1)

Catholicism isn’t a big religion in China, but there seem to be several millions of Catholic Christians – organized inside or outside the official “Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association”.

This topic is unchartered territory to me, and mistakes in the following translation(s) are not unlikely. This is a translation of the first chapter of a topical page on Huanqiu Shibao. I haven’t made up my mind yet if I should translate the remaining chapters, too. But it seems to be an attractive topic, also in the light of soft-power issues — JR

[Observation: there seems to be a rather thoughtful - by Huanqiu Shibao commenter standards, that is - discussion going on in the thread underneath the topical page.]

[Links within blockquotes added during translation.]

Main Link: Why the Retired Pope’s “China Dream” remained unachieved – 退位教皇为何没圆“中国梦”, Huanqiu Shibao, March 5, 2013

Introduction: On February 28, 2013, in the evening, Roman Pope Benedict XVI formally relinquished the papal duties, thus becoming the first “retiring” Pope in 600 years. It is also the fifth “retiring” Pope in history. Benedict XVI, during his “reign” of six years, tried to improve Chinese-Vatican relations and to establish diplomatic relations with China, but up to his “retirement”, this hadn’t been achieved. What are the origins of this City of Shang Di‘s relations with China?

导语：2013年2月28日晚间，罗马教皇本笃十六世正式卸下教皇职务，成为600年来首个“退位”的教皇，也是历史上第五个“退位”的教皇。教皇宣布辞职后引发的舆论震动一直在全世界激荡。本笃十六世“在位”时曾试图改善中梵关系，与中国建交，但直到“退位”仍未实现。梵蒂冈这个“上帝之城”与中国之间到底是怎样的关系渊源？

In 1582, xx years into the reign of Emperor Ming Wanli, Italian Jesuit Matteo Ricci was sent to Macau to learn Chinese. In 1583, he founded a Catholic missionary base in Zhaoqing to introduce mathematics, geometry mechanics and similar science to the Chinese people. He studied China’s “Four Books and Five Classics”, went deep into the study of Chinese traditional culture, wore the Han Chinese clothing and said that to be a missionary, one had “to do as the Romans do”. Ricci came to Beijing in 1601, he was in charge of the construction of the Xuanwumen Church, and died in Beijing in 1610. Ricci was a brilliant man of wide learning, and a pioneer of Chinese-Western cultural exchange.

1582年（明万历10年），意大利人、耶稣会会士利玛窦被派到澳门学习汉语。1583年他在肇庆创立第一个天主教传教点，向中国人介绍数学、几何学和力学等科学知识。他苦读中国的《四书》《五经》，深入研究中国传统文化，穿汉服，提出传教要“入乡随俗”，使用汉语举行宗教仪式，为基督教在中国传播奠定了基础。利玛窦于1601年来到北京，1605年主持建造了宣武门大教堂，1610年死于北京。利玛窦博学多才，是中西文化交流的先驱。

After the introduction of Catholicism into China, the so-called “disputes about the rites” (“礼仪之争”) broke out within Catholicism, with the focus on how to translate the appellation of “God” into Chinese, and how to deal with traditional Chinese traditional custom. Ricci believed that the appelation of “God”, besides using the term “Lord of Heaven/God” (天主), “Heaven” or “Shang Di” were also options, and that Chinese believers could retain traditional ancestoral and religious worship. But the Spanish Dominican missionaries and Franciscan missionaries believed that ancestoral and religious worship was idolatry and violated “biblical” rules. They thus sent people to the Holy See in Rome to complain about Ricci’s Jesuits there.

天主教传入中国之后，天主教内部产生了所谓“礼仪之争”，争论的焦点是如何翻译“神”的称谓和如何对待中国传统习俗。利玛窦认为，对于“神”的称谓，除了用“天主”之外，亦可称“天”或“上帝”并且同意中国信徒保留祭祖和祭孔的传统习俗。而西班牙多明我会传教士和方济各会传教士则认为，祭祖、祭孔属于偶像崇拜，违反《圣经》规定并派人到罗马教廷控告以利玛窦为首的耶稣会。

In 1700 (39 years into the reign of Qing Emperor Kangxi), Kangxi entered the rites dispute and declared ancestoral worship (祭祖) and memorial ceremonies of Confucius (祭孔) weren’t parts of traditional Chinese traditional customs, and no religious activities. In 1704, Pope Clement XI publicly ordered the prohibition of ancestoral worship and memorial ceremonies of Confucius among followers of Catholicism, as well as the use of “Shangdi” and “Heaven” as other terms for “Lord of Heaven/God” (天主). He sent an envoy to China for talks. When papal special envoy Charles-Thomas Maillard de Tournon (铎罗) declared in 1706 that his mission to China was to ban ancestoral worship and memorial ceremonies of Confucius among Chinese Catholics, Emperor Kangxi was furious, believing that this move spelled interference in Chinese customs. He sent people to bring Maillard into a temporary residence in Nanjing and ordered the expulsion of missionaries who opposed Chinese rites, and also sent envoys to Rome for talks. In 1707, Maillard, in disregard of Kangxi’s decree, announced the papal ban. Therefore, Kangxi ordered Maillard to be taken to Macau to be held under house arrest there, and issued a decree: “tell the Westerners (西洋人) that from now on, if they don’t respect Matteo Ricci’s rules, they will not be allowed to reside in China and will be sent home.”

1700年（清康熙39年）康熙皇帝介入了礼仪之争，声明祭祖祭孔属于中国传统习俗，不属于宗教活动。1704年教皇克雷芒十一世公然下令，禁止中国教徒举行祭祖、祭孔等活动，禁止把“上帝”和“天”作为“天主”的别称并派特使来华谈判。1706年教皇特使铎罗声言，他来华的使命是禁止中国教徒祭祖、祭孔。康熙皇帝得知后大怒，认为此举属于干涉中国习俗，派人将铎罗送往南京暂住并下令驱逐反对中国礼仪的传教士，同时派使节前往罗马谈判。1707年，铎罗无视康熙的旨意，在南京宣布教皇禁令。于是，康熙下令把铎罗押往澳门软禁并降旨称：“谕众西洋人，自今以后，若不遵利玛窦之规矩，断不准在中国住，必逐回去。”

In 1715, Pope Clement XI reiterated the ban of 1645 – offenders [against the ban] would be punished for heresy (以异端论处). Kangxi was furious, ordering the arrest of the missionaries and a ban on missionizing. In 1719, the Pope sent a delegation to Beijing for talks again, but Kangxi refused a meeting and rebuked them: “You Westerners don’t understand Chinese writing, so how can you discuss the rights or wrongs of Chinese reason” (尔西洋人不解中国文字，如何妄议中国道理之是非) and “in future, Westerners must not proselityze in China, all of which will be prohibited” (以后不必西洋人在中国传教，禁止可也). Kangxi therefore ordered the expulsion of the guests. Rome’s Pope was forced to make concessions, and in 1720, he announced the “Eight Permissions”.^*) [The permissions] agreed to [the legitimacy of] non-religious Chinese rites. Kangxi ordered that only missionaries who were prepared to respect traditonal Chinese rites should reside in China, and banned overt missionary work. It wasn’t before 1939 that the Holy See in Rome revoked all bans on rites, thus bringing the dispute, which had lasted for more than 300 years, to an end. From this, it can be seen that the so-called “disputes about the rites” were completely caused by the Roman Popes’ ignorance of China.

1715年，教皇克雷芒十一世重申1645年的禁令，违者以异端论处。康熙大怒，下令拘捕传教士并禁止传教。1719年，教皇又派使团来北京谈判，康熙拒不接见并斥责说：“尔西洋人不解中国文字，如何妄议中国道理之是非”，“以后不必西洋人在中国传教，禁止可也。”于是康熙下令逐客。罗马教皇被迫让步，于1720年宣布“八项准许”。同意中国信徒举行非宗教性的中国礼仪。康熙下令只准许尊重中国礼仪的传教士居留中国并禁止公开传教。一直到1939年，罗马教廷才撤销了有关礼仪的一切禁令，为这场持续了300多年的争论画上了句号。由此可见，所谓“礼仪之争”，完全是由于罗马教皇对中国的无知造成的。

Continued here »

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Note

^*) According to other versions, it wasn’t the Pope who announced these “eight permissions”, but the delegate, John-Ambrose Mezzabarba. The “Eight Permissions” weren’t long-lived, and apparently overturned by Pope Benedict XIV, in 1742.

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Related

Hao Jinli, 1916 – 2011, March 28, 2011

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“Greetings, and Nothing Particular to Say”: Lien Chan’s China Visit

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Nanfang Weekly (南方周末), February 25, 2013 —

At nine a.m. on February 25, CCP central committee secretary general Xi Jinping met KMT honorary chairman Lien Chan in the Great Hall of the People. Lien Chan had come to Beijing on February 24 as head of a delegation and is scheduled to return to Taiwan on February 27. The visit’s theme is to enter spring and revisit the past (走春访旧 – apparently a variation of 走春迎新年 – to greet the new year. Another way of putting it might be a nostalgic, yet forward-looking journey). Taiwan regional leader Ma Ying-jeou had asked Lien Chan to greet secretary general Xi Jinping.

2月25日上午9时许，中共中央总书记习近平在北京人民大会堂会见中国国民党荣誉主席连战。连战于24日率团来京，预计27日返台，此行定调为“走春访旧”。台湾地区领导人马英九请连战代为问候习近平总书记。

China News Service, on February 25, quoted Xi Jinping as saying that this was the first time since he took his new office that he met with Taiwanese friends. Xi Jinping said that when he worked in Fujian for many years, he had been in contact with Taiwanese issues almost every day, frequently met Taiwanese compatriots, and made many Taiwanese friends. It had been quite the same when he worked in Zhejiang Province and in Shanghai.

中新网25日消息援引习近平的说法称，这次是他担任新的职务之后，第一次会见台湾朋友。习近平称，他在福建工作多年，现在想起那个时期，他几乎每天都要接触有关台湾的事情，要经常会见台湾同胞，也结交了不少台湾朋友。到浙江、上海工作，差不多也是这样。

Xi Jinping particularly pointed out that “I and Chairman Lien got to know each other in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, when we met in April and in November 2006, and I vividly remember the circumstances and our conversations, and one can say that with this memory on mind, I and Chairman Lien are old friends. Ever since I left Fujian, I have paid attention to the situation in T the Taiwan Strait, hoping for continuously improving cross-strait relations.”

习近平特别提到：“我和连主席相识于浙江杭州，在2006年4月、11月两度会面，当时的会见情景，谈话情况，我现在记忆犹新，可以说当时情景历历在目，我和连主席是老朋友了。我离开福建到现在始终关注着台海局势，期待两岸关系持续改善。”

Xi Jinping also said that the new generation of collective CCP central committee leadership will continue to promote the peaceful development of cross-strait relations, and peaceful unification.

习近平还表示，中国共产党新一届的中共中央领导集体，将继续推动两岸关系和平发展，促进两岸和平统一。

Quoting China News Service (中新网) and CCTV with reports of February 24, Nanfang Weekly mentions some members of Lien’s 30-plus member delegation¹⁾, such as KMT vice chairman Lin Fong-cheng (林豐正), John Chiang (蔣孝嚴), think-tank director Tsai Cheng-wen²⁾, Radio Taiwan International  CEO Chang Jung-kung (張榮恭)³⁾ and New Party chairman Yok Mu-ming (郁慕明), plus representatives of public opinion (民意代表), business, farming and fishery, culture and education, the press, and religion.

Lien Chan said that this trip’s purpose was to enhance exchange, to exchange views with [people from] all walks of life, to look at the past and to look to the future. Lien Chan said that this was also the first time after the establishment of the new leadership by the 18th National Congress that he talked with mainland China’s leaders face to face, having the opportunity to listen to their views, thoughts and to the things they focused on. He could also exchange views with them about his understanding of the Taiwanese situation.

连战称，此行宗旨为增进彼此交流，与各界交换意见，看看过去，展望未来。连战表示，这也是中共十八大新领导班子成立后，第一次与大陆领导人面对面会谈过程，可以听听彼此的意见、思维与关注的焦点，他也会把他所了解的台湾情况，与对方交换意见。

According to CCTV reports on February 25, Lien Chan met with KMT chairman and Taiwan regional leader Ma Ying-jeou on February 22, ahead of his trip. Local media said that Ma Ying-jeou had nothing special to say [or to account for, 交待], only that he asked Lien Chan to greet secretary general Xi Jinping. A speaker for Ma Ying-jeou’s office said that the key point of the coming three years was to broaden and deepen cross-strait exchanges, and that therefore, Lien Chan’s visit to the mainland, in his private capacity, was viewed with optimism.

据中央电视台25日报道，连战行前在22号下午与中国国民党主席、台湾地区领导人马英九见面。当地媒体称，马英九并没有什么特别交待，只是请连战代为问候习近平总书记。马英九办公室发言人表示，扩大与深化两岸交流，是未来三年的重点工作，因此对连战以民间身份访问大陆乐观其成。

Lien had declined to go into detail about his scheduled meeting with Xi before leaving Taipei on Sunday night, the South China Morning Post‘s (SCMP) Taipei correspondent wrote on Monday.

But the SCMP also quotes Su Chi (蘇起), a former Taiwan National Security Council secretary-general, as saying that the new mainland leadership is expected to touch on more sensitive issues like political dialogues with Taipei.

Lien’s delegation spokeswoman was quoted as saying that Lien would meet outgoing state chairman Hu Jintao on Tuesday (i. e. on February 26).

Lien Chan was accompanied by his wife, Lien Fang Yu, and his son, Sean Lien (连胜文).

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Notes

¹⁾ According to the Taipei Times, Lien’s delegation included several business tycoons, such as Hon Hai Group chairman Terry Gou (郭台銘) and Ruentex Group chairman Samuel Yin (尹衍樑).

²⁾ Tsai Cheng-wen is the National Policy Foundation’s (NPF) president. The NPF is a KMT think-tank.

³⁾ At an earlier trip to China, with a Taiwanese delegation to the Baoao Forum on Hainan in 2012, Chang Jung-kung was scheduled to be the delegation’s spokesman.

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Related

» Journey of Peace, SCMP, April 26, 2005
» United Front Doctrine (Democratization in Taiwan, ed. Steve Tsang, Houndmills, New York, 199

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