Overseas
Chinese Democracy Coalition News and Article Release Issue Number: A443-O132
中国民主运动海外联席会议新闻与文章发布号：A443-O132
Release
Date: February 28, 2009
发布日：2009年2月28日
Topic:
Charter 08: Chinese Activists Question Effectiveness Of Popular Democracy
Charter (Huffington Post)
标题：08宪章：中国活跃分子们质问流行的民主宪章的效用(哈菲英顿邮报)
Original
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Charter
08: Chinese Activists Question Effectiveness Of Popular Democracy Charter
-- by
Huffington Post Contributor Joel Schectman on February 23, 2009
Jiang
Qisheng was among the first to sign the pro-democracy manifesto -- which calls
for a radical departure from China's current one party system. In doing so, the
60-year-old Beijing writer put his freedom, his livelihood, even his life at
grave risk.
But
he had lived through the massacres of Tiananmen Square, and the horrors of the
Cultural Revolution and had great hope in the power of this document to provoke
change.
"I
think the charter has addressed very well what our people have tried to
accomplish for over 100 years: to change the system from tyranny to
democracy," said Jiang in a telephone conversation through a translator.
Since
the document first started making rounds in mid-December more than 8,000 others
have added their names. Many of them were ordinary people - businessmen,
factory workers, and students - who never before had been involved in democracy
movements or politics.
But
not all China human rights activists and scholars share his sense of optimism
about the petition, known as Charter 08. While most agree that a petition
signed by so many ordinary people inside China is a historic first, there is no
consensus on its importance or that the new movement will succeed.
Sasha
Gong, a 55-year-old former political prisoner who lives in northern Virginia,
believes that Charter 08 is geared toward the older generation of dissidents,
like herself and Jiang, who lived through Tiananmen and the Cultural
Revolution.
"I
don't see something in there very inspiring," Gong said. "What will
change China are new ideas, like how to talk to young people."
Not
only does she see the content of the charter as being old fashion, but even the
idea of petitions strikes Gong, whose political blog has gotten over 2 million
hits, as somewhat old school.
"I
am not saying that it's useless, but...signing petitions might not be the right
way forward."
The
charter calls for a complete restructuring of China's political system
including an end to single-party rule. It also demands full recognition of
human rights, freedom of speech and the introduction of direct elections. It is
based on Charter 77, a similar democracy manifesto written by scholars in
Czechoslovakia in 1977, twelve years before the fall of communism.
The
manifesto has been criticized by other activists -- like Ciping Huang,
executive director of Wei JingSheng Foundation, a Virginia-based organization
pushing for human rights in China -- as not going far enough in recognizing
past events.
"The
charter doesn't even mention Tiananmen Square," Huang said, incredulously
and with a yell. "That's why I won't sign it. This is an event that
everyone should know about but its not even mentioned."
The
government has detained one of the charter's authors, Liu Xiaobo, but so far it
appears to have left most of the signers alone.
Huang
says this proves that the charter's demands are weak.
"China
is on the brink of revolution, and this charter is far too moderate," said
Huang.
But
most China scholars acknowledge the significance of a petition that has pierced
through the nation's formidable Internet monitoring apparatus and captured the
attention of many ordinary citizens.
"It
has covered most of the ideas that have been mentioned in different ways
through different channels for a long time in China, " said Xiao Qiang,
editor-in-chief of China Digital Times in Berkeley, Calif.
"The
new interesting thing is millions of people are still spreading it online and
promoted the signature movement."
The
enormous economic and social changes that have swept China in the past fifteen
years have brought greater affluence for many. But it has also highlighted
dramatic disparities between the poor and a growing middle and upper class.
This
leaves an open question about the future for a country that is still communist
in theory.
"Symbolically
it shows that China is at a crossroads. Chinese people will be faced with a
decision of how to go forward in the next decade," said Chris McNally, a
professor at University of Hawaii who specializes in the political economy of
China.
McNally
has doubts about the petition's effectiveness, but his view on the charter --
that it is a symptom of the nation searching for a way forward -- is shared by
Jiang, the Beijing writer.
Jiang
also believes that although the economy is growing quickly, the looming income
disparity and environmental damage are issues that cannot be solved by the
current political system.
He
sees freedom of speech and political transparency as the only ways to address
these problems.
"If
scholars and regular citizens can express the problems openly, then perhaps we
can find some solutions."
With
reporting by Kate Zhao.
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中文版
Overseas
Chinese Democracy Coalition News and Article Release Issue Number: A443-O132
中国民主运动海外联席会议新闻与文章发布号：A443-O132
Release
Date: February 28, 2009
发布日：2009年2月28日
Topic:
Charter 08: Chinese Activists Question Effectiveness Of Popular Democracy
Charter (Huffington Post)
标题：08宪章：中国活跃分子们质问流行的民主宪章的效用(哈菲英顿邮报)
Original
Language Version: English (Chinese version at the end)
此号以英文为准（英文在前，中文在后）
如有中文乱码问题，请与我们联系或访问:
http://www.weijingsheng.org/report/report2009/report2009-02/08Charter090228HuangCPcommentsA443-O132.htm
-----------------------------------------------------------------
08宪章：中国活跃分子们质问流行的民主宪章的效用
哈菲英顿邮报撰稿人：Joel Schectman 2009年2月23日
江棋生是最早签署这个支持民主的宣言人之一。这个宣言呼吁中国激进地偏离目前的一党制度。因为签了这个宪章，这个60岁的北京作家将他的自由，他的生活，乃至他的生命都置之不顾。但他曾经历过（1989年）天安门广场的大屠杀以及文革的恐怖。他对这个文件能刺激变化的力量给予巨大的希望。“我认为宪章就人们这100年来希望完成的事业说得非常好，也就是把暴政换成民主，”江通过一个翻译在电话中这么说。
自从这个文件在12月中旬首次亮相，八千多人签名。他们中的大多数是普通人：商人、工人和学生，那些从未参与民主运动或政治的人。
但并非所有的中国人权活跃分子和学者像江那样对这个叫做“08宪章”的请愿书表示乐观。虽说大多数人赞同这么多中国境内的普通人签署的这个请愿书在历史上是第一回，但在其重要性或者是新的这个运动是否会成功的问题上却没有一致的看法。
龚小夏，一个住在北维州的55岁的前政治犯，确信08宪章只适宜于像她本人或江棋生那样的老一代持异议者，那些经历过天安门和文革的人。龚说：“我没看出那里面有什么非常启迪的东西，新的想法才能改变中国，比如说如何和年轻人交流。“
她不仅仅认为宪章的内容陈旧，而且认为签名这种形式太老式。龚拥有一个两百万点击率的博客。“我不是说那方式没用，不过签名也许不是一个向前走的正确办法。
这个宪章呼吁完全从新地建立中国的政治体系，包括结束一党统治。它还要求全面承认人权、言论自由和直选。它来自77宪章，一个捷克斯洛伐克学者在共产党倒台前的12年，即1977年发表的类似的民主宣言。
但这个宣言被其他活跃分子所批评。比如说推动中国人权的组织魏京生基金会的执行主任黄慈萍指出它甚至没有提到过去的事件。“这个宪章甚至没有提到1989年的天安门民主运动”，黄以难以置信的口吻喊出。“这也是我为什么不签名。那是一个人人都应当知道的事件，可这个宪章却提也没提。”
中国政府扣押了宪章的作者之一刘晓波，不过时至今日还没有打搅绝大多数的签名人。黄说，这证明宪章的要求很弱。“中国已到了革命的边缘，而这个宪章却极其温和。”
但大多数的中国学者承认这个冲破难以克服的网络监控，得到许多普通公民注意力的呈文的意义。加州伯克利中国电子时代主编萧强说：“它将许多的多年来不同方式、不同渠道里的不同想法都包括了。有趣的是数以百万计的人还在电脑网络上传播它，推动签名运动。”
过去15年来中国巨大的经济和社会变迁使得许多人变得富裕，但同时也突出了穷人和增长中的中产和上层阶级之间的巨大贫富不均。这使得这个理论上依然是共产主义的这个国家的未来变得难以预测。
夏威夷大学专长于中国政治经济的教授麦克纳利（Chris McNally）说：“它象征着中国正在一个十字路口上。中国人民将面临如何在今后的十年往前走的决定。”
麦克纳利对这个呈文的有效性表示怀疑，但他认为这个宪章是这个国家寻求向前走的症侯。北京的作家江棋生也如此认为。江也相信虽然经济增长迅速，正在展开的收入不均和环境破坏是目前的政治体系所不能解决的。他认为言论自由和政治透明是唯一可以解决这些问题的办法。“如果学者和普通公民能公开表达这些问题，那么也许我们能找到一些答案。”
（魏京生基金会首发。请注明出处：www.WeiJingSheng.org。）
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