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Why They Want Democracy
| Article
# : |
11770 |
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Section : |
CURRENT ISSUES
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| Issue
Date : |
4 / 1987 |
1,316 Words |
| Author
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Wang Bingzhang
Wang Bingzhang heads the Chinese Alliance for Democracy. He
was interviewed by World & I editor Laurie Burras. |
Q: Why are the youth in China seeking democracy?
A: I think the basic reason is that Chinese young people are human beings. From childhood, the Chinese young people lived with suppression by the communist bureaucracy. They still cannot do what they want. They cannot express what they would like to. From their life-style to the [realm of] ideas, from their job to their daily activities, all these aspects are controlled by the huge bureaucracy. So if they have a chance, they must speak out and demand freedom.
Most demonstrators are grade one or grade two university students. They are around 20 years old. Most of them were born after the Great Cultural Revolution. They are a younger generation. Although most demonstrators on the street were from this younger generation, my generation (30- to 45-year-olds) played an important role in the student's demonstration. Even those from other generations, like Professor Fang Lizhi's generation, in their 50s, played an important role as organizers, behind the scenes.
While the members of the young generation have no [direct] experience with the Great Cultural Revolution, their parents had bitter experiences during that time. So from childhood the young generation was educated about those experiences by their parents. I think this is very important. The parents have been a very good influence.
I think another important factor is, after the open-door policy began, the young generation - actually, not only the young, but all generations - know what is happening outside China. They can compare China with other
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