Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council pointed out that the CCP continues to persecute human rights, religion, and freedom of speech. A Chongqing dissident was arrested by the police for attending a private dinner to celebrate the inauguration of President Lai Ching-te on May 20, and uploading a video of "cheers to the elected president of Taiwan" to the Internet. Another citizen was arrested for calling Russian President Putin a "war criminal." Taiwanese scholars pointed out that any budding democratic thought will be eliminated with an iron fist if the official determines that it is out of tune with the main theme.
Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council, which is in charge of cross-strait affairs, regularly compiles and publishes a "List of Public Opinions on Human Rights in the Mainland." According to incomplete statistics revealed by the media in June, there are 58 items, including 24 items involving human rights activists, 9 items involving religious freedom, and 25 items involving freedom of speech.
It quoted a report from the non-governmental organization Minsheng Watch on May 27 this year, saying that Chongqing dissident Li Xuezhi was arrested by police for attending a dinner party on May 20 to celebrate the inauguration of Taiwan's democratically elected president and uploading a video to the Internet that read "Cheers to Taiwan's elected president!"
Scholars: Violating the official theme is a warning to others
Li Xuezhi is from Yubei District, Chongqing. He is a farmer and a victim of forced demolition. In 2013, he complained about the violent demolition of his farmland and house but to no avail, so he took the path of petitioning for rights protection. He and other victims participated in rights protection activities in Chongqing. On August 1, 2016, he went to the National Bureau of Letters and Calls and the Letters and Calls Office of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection in Beijing to defend his rights with other petitioners. At that time, he was interviewed by a reporter from Radio Free Asia and said that 60,000 people in the town jointly reported that officials withheld various compensations amounting to more than 10 billion yuan, but the Letters and Calls Office of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection refused to accept the case.
Wu Jianzhong, an adjunct associate professor at Soochow University in Taiwan, said in an interview with Radio Free Asia that the problem lies in violating the official media's main theme. Wu Jianzhong said: "The so-called main theme of the CCP is which candidates for the presidency of the Republic of China are patriotic and which ones are defending the one country, two systems. As for Lai Qingde, he has always insisted on not being subordinate to each other. From Tsai Ing-wen to Lai Qingde, the CCP will never allow such ideas to sprout. Under the CCP's comprehensive political and ideological brainwashing education, there are still people toasting to celebrate Lai Qingde's election. For the Chinese authorities, they must review where the blockade is not good?"
Wu Jianzhong pointed out that Taiwan's election and the democratically elected president have received great international attention. The Chinese people's celebration of Taiwan's democratically elected president shows their concern for freedom and democracy, which is regarded as a universal value in Western democratic countries. In China, even having a meal and chatting in private is considered a crime. Presumably, the Chinese side has punished the video of "Cheers to Taiwan's elected president" through the Internet management and further arrested the people who attended the dinner. This is to kill the chicken to scare the monkey.
Wu Jianzhong believes that during the election campaign, Lai Qingde and Hsiao Meiqin were labeled by the Chinese authorities as "Taiwan independence duo" and "Taiwan independence diehards". The Chinese people also celebrated this, which is tantamount to mocking the authorities. The Chinese Communist Party's socialist iron fist will never forgive such "thought criminals" and "political prisoners". Especially since the CCP can exercise long-arm jurisdiction abroad, it is even more ruthless in its crackdowns within the country.
Hunan dissident detained for holding signs calling Putin a "war criminal"
Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council has been paying attention to China's continued attention to human rights in Hong Kong, Macau, Tibet, and Xinjiang. In June, it compiled and released a list of "public opinion concerns about human rights in the mainland", and also quoted the Minsheng Watch website's report on May 18 that Hunan dissidents Jiang Shuiping and Luo Qun were arrested and administratively detained for 10 days during Putin's visit to China for holding up signs saying "peace-loving Chinese do not welcome war criminals." On June 14, Anhui farmer Zhang Liping was interrogated by the police and asked to delete the message because he paid tribute to the Ukrainian people's anti-Japanese spirit, donated money to Ukraine, and sent an open letter to support Ukrainian President Zelensky.
In January this year, Zhang Minjie was summoned by Shanghai political security personnel for allegedly proposing a "peaceful transition proposal" to the Chinese Communist Party on Twitter. After the relevant content was posted on the Internet, he was criminally detained by the police.
Wu Jianzhong said that describing Putin, the culprit, as a "war criminal" is completely different from the current national policy of the CCP and is considered a serious provocation by the CCP. Moreover, the CCP currently prioritizes national security, and the focus is on regulating the spread of these words and deeds that violate the official theme and online public opinion. However, this move subverts universal values. In a democratic country, no one should be convicted by the government for freedom of speech and the pursuit of freedom and democracy.