China is experiencing a greater class division between rich and poor because of widespread government corruption and because that country's leadership is unwilling to push for political reform, a Chinese expert on the Cultural Revolution said yesterday.
Song Yongyi (宋永毅), a librarian and specialist in the history of the Cultural Revolution at the University of California in Los Angeles (UCLA), said the US had cast doubt on the ability of Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤) to introduce political reforms given the Chinese bureaucracy's involvement in corrupt conduct, making it difficult for any top-down reform to take place.
Song was speaking at a forum organized by the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy on the legacy of the Cultural Revolution and its implications for today's leadership.
Song said the division between Chinese Communist Party (CCP) cadres and the public was widening. This was reflected in increasing numbers of protests by workers and peasants; 86,000 cases were reported last year, he said.
"The entire bureaucratic system is involved in rampant corruption. It's more difficult to be a clean-handed official than a corrupt one. That's why the Hu government seldom talks about the achievements of the CCP; rather, he now mentions anti-corruption all the time," Song said.
With economic development shaping as China's primary goal, Song said many elements of communist and socialist thought that were prominent in the Cultural Revolution era are barely noticeable today, and have been replaced by nationalism and capitalism.
But even nationalistic Chinese are not as determined as they sound if opportunities to advance their lot emerge, he said.
"These so-called extremist youths actually only talk about revolution. They can on the one hand scold the United States, particularly during the mistaken bombing of the Chinese embassy in Belgrade, but on the other hand still eagerly apply for visas to study in the US," Song said.
Song was imprisoned during the Cultural Revolution for five-and-a-half years at the age of 21 for organizing an underground reading group and directing adverse comments at the authorities. He was jailed again for six months while on a 1999 trip to China to collect materials on the Cultural Revolution.
UPGRADE: The Kang Ding-class frigate is replacing its Chaparall missiles with Tien Chien II and Hua Yang VLS, which would provide it with long-range, 360° air defense Taiwan plans to produce 1,200 to 1,376 Hai Chien II missiles (海劍二, Sea Sword II) — also known as TC-2N — to serve as the standard air defense system of the navy’s surface combatant fleet, a source said yesterday. Last week, the Hai Chien II, the naval version of the Tien Kung II missile (天劍二, Sky Sword II), completed a live-fire test in waters off the National Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology’s Jiupeng facility (九鵬) in Pingtung County’s Manjhou Township (滿州). The MIM72 Chaparral and other dated air defense missiles that currently arm Taiwanese ships have inadequate range to combat Chinese
REASONS FOR TRAVEL: An assistant professor said that proposed amendments to penalize drivers if they used drugs overseas would not deter people from traveling People who operate a motor vehicle under the influence of marijuana would have their driver’s license revoked, even if they used the substance while overseas, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said yesterday, citing proposed amendments to the Road Traffic Management and Penalty Act (道路交通管理處罰條例). The amendments would also authorize the government to revoke the licenses of people determined to have used Category 1 or Category 2 narcotics, even if they were not operating a vehicle while under the influence of drugs, as well as ban them from taking the license test for three years, the ministry said. People aged 18 or
Johanne Liou (劉喬安), a Taiwanese woman who shot to unwanted fame during the Sunflower movement protests in 2014, returned to Taiwan last night after being deported from the US. She is to stand trial in Taiwan for charges involving embezzlement, fraud and drug crimes. The Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) said it took her into custody at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and would first question her before transferring her to the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office. She was arrested upon disembarking a flight from San Francisco that landed shortly before 7pm. Liou absconded to the US in 2019 after jumping bail
Shih Hsin University President Chen Ching-he (陳清河) yesterday issued a public apology for comments made in his commencement speech last week, stating that he has asked the school to suspend his duties and halt his wages for two months as a show of contrition. At the commencement ceremony on May 30, Chen said, “If you don’t manage your time well, or your own emotions, or your health, then I am telling every one of you — put a quick end to ‘you,’ because the world has no need for ‘you.’” The comments have sparked significant controversy online, and Chen through an open
RSS