 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
| ||
|
← "Fruit loops" |
Return to Main Page
| "Stepping on the wrong toes" →
January 18, 2005
You are on the invidual archive page of Saints and demons. Click Simon World weblog for the main page.
|
|
Saints and demons
Zhao Ziyang's passing has lead to the typical what-if analysis, all under the premise that if only Zhao had remained at the top China would be a very different place. It may even be true. But his visit on May 19, 1989, when Zhao visited Tiananmen Square to ask the protesters to leave, turned a mildly reformist cadre into something (for the West, at least) approaching a diety. He was a part of the early market reforms under Deng Xiapong, but prior to Tiananmen inflation was soaring and many were unhappy with his stewardship of the economy. To some extent China's current prosperity is based on his work, but otherwise would China be much different if he had remained Secretary-General of the CCP? Not really. All he was doing when he turned up at the Square was warning the protesters of the looming crackdown - he didn't declare his fealty to their cause. So before too much more gets read into his passing and what might have been, let's also remember what actually was. Clearly the CCP saw what he represented as a threat, hence his lengthy house arrest. But do you judge the man on one action or his life and deeads? The man himself was no saint and his firing from the CCP left China neither better nor worse off. posted by Simon on 01.18.05 at 11:19 AM in the
Trackbacks:
TrackBack URL for this entry: http://blog.mu.nu/cgi/trackback.cgi/63343 Send a manual trackback ping to this post. Zhao Ziyang, 1919 — 2005 Excerpt: Remembering Zhao Ziyang: he stood for truth at a time when it was easier to abandon integrity. Weblog: Plum Blossoms Tracked: January 18, 2005 02:30 PM
Comments:
While it is certainly true that Zhao's overall administrative record has its ups and downs, what can be said is that he certainly is a decent human being that treated the populace with a whole lot more respect than those who would think that quelling a demonstration requires tanks to run over civilians. Zhao might not be a saint overall, but at the very least I think my reaction to the eventual death of, say, Li Peng would be very different than my current reaction. posted by: Kelvin on 01.18.05 at 02:12 PM [permalink]Glad you found time to write about Ziyang's passing but failed to show up to work today. Step into my office! posted by: AK on 01.18.05 at 02:39 PM [permalink]Simon, I basically agree with you. He was a an apparatchik, clearly not a democrat. However - in that situation - he put his own face at risk and paid for it. This is something worth to be remembered. That said, his importance in China's destiny is being overestimated by western media. Best. Enzo Gotta agree with Enzo there: in the big political picture, I must say that this news amounts to jack squat. Whatever democratization that may happen in China in the next 50 yrs will probably be almost totally independent of 89/6/4. "Ping fan liu si" will probably be more an afterthought after some sort of political reform than an explicit objective. posted by: Kelvin on 01.19.05 at 02:29 AM [permalink]I think the debate over him is not unlike that over Zhou Enlai. posted by: Zhang on 01.19.05 at 04:26 AM [permalink]Kelvin, Best. Enzo posted by: 1972 on 01.19.05 at 10:03 PM [permalink]I agree that the west may be overplaying his passing. But I think China's also underplaying it. As for Secretary General of the Communist Party and a large influence on China's economic path, he certainly deserves 'some' state recognition of his passing. posted by: Arnold on 01.24.05 at 06:28 AM [permalink] |
|