Charter 08 and violent resistance: The dark side of the Chinese Weiquan movement
Pils E (2012)
Publication Type: Authored book
Publication year: 2012
Publisher: Hong Kong University Press, HKU
ISBN: 9789888139064
Abstract
If, fantastically, an opinion poll on "Do you support Charter 08?" could be conducted in China today, its results would have to be read bearing in mind that you cannot look up "Charter 08" on the domestic Internet, and that any expression of support for it may result in state persecution. Attempts to measure the impact of or support for the Charter would therefore be inherently limited,1 even though naturally, we will continue to ask ourselves how strong such support is.2 Charter 08's significance lies not in its measurable impact or support but in its proposition of a peaceful kind of political change, a proposition that represents but one group within an increasingly diverse opposition to the current government. Charter 08 supporters face not only government repression, but also opposition from those who do not approve of its supporters' apparent advocacy of non-violence. This chapter seeks to understand the perspective of those represented by the Charter, as well as some of the perspectives of those within the wider Chinese rights defense movement who do not consider themselves represented by it. It draws on a distinction often used by rights defenders themselves, namely that between "grassroots" and "elite" rights defense or weiquan; but also urges recognition of the fact that an analysis of attitudes, ideals and social practices among rights defenders shows these groups to be mingling and interacting, rather than rigidly separate. 3 It is argued here that the Charter attempts to pose an enlightened alternative to the popular political opposition's and weiquan movement's darker sides, because its agenda is non-violent and non-vindictive. Its proposals are premised on values germane to a practice of adequate rights protection, but increasingly at risk of being sacrificed to public anger and destructiveness in China's volatile society, in which "rights defense" is not infrequently combined with support for strategies and policies inimical to the very idea of rights. Like the distinction between "grassroots" and "elite," so too is the imagery of light and shadow used here complex and unstable - for the "darkness" attributed to parts of the "grassroots" movement contrasts starkly with the light, warmth, and transparency people in this movement apparently desire: "Sunshine Charity" (Yangguang Gongyi), as the name of one of those "grassroots" groups may serve as a good illustration. The darkness in which much of weiquan is situated, on the other hand, is in many ways due to especially vicious state repression, and also affects "professional" or "elite" weiquan, in particular human rights lawyers. In the following pages, I first explain the stagnation of constitutional change (or reform) as a result of the inherent contradictions within the current constitutional setup, the weiquan movement's early successes, and its current repression. Then I turn to examining attitudes of heightened enmity and vindictiveness among the grassroots weiquan movement. These can be understood as a consequence of repression, yet they also complement and enable some government practices of repression. Lastly I discuss how public figures in the weiquan movement, including some of the Charter's prominent signatories, view Chinese society's prospects for change, focusing not on views about the end goal, captured in the Charter itself, but on views about the way to get there. © Hong Kong University Press 2012. All rights reserved.
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APA:
Pils, E. (2012). Charter 08 and violent resistance: The dark side of the Chinese Weiquan movement. Hong Kong University Press, HKU.
MLA:
Pils, Eva. Charter 08 and violent resistance: The dark side of the Chinese Weiquan movement. Hong Kong University Press, HKU, 2012.
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