![]() Li's fate when he criticized Communist Party policies: in 1959 he was "sent down" for reeducation through labor, and he spent eight years in prison during the Cultural Revolution. Communist Party authorities would generally not tolerate the use of such blunt language and veiled threats, but Mr. It was subsequently published in the China Chronicle in January. Li gave at the Sixteenth Party Congress last November. The Constitution stipulates that the National People's Congress is the highest power in the country, and the relationship between the Party and the NPC should be suspended, the NPC should not be led and directed in the name of the Party. ![]() This has been a global tide from the 20th century, especially the Second World War, onward, and those who join it will prosper while those who resist it will perish. Only with democratization can there be modernization. The key is reforming an aged political system that is obsolete, and speeding up the development of democratic politics so the country can truly embark on a course of peace and stability characterized by democracy, science, and rule of law. One example of this group is Li Rui, a retired senior Communist Party official and former aide to Mao Zedong, who earlier this year published a letter in the Beijing magazine "China Chronicle" calling for greater democracy in China's government: The only people in China who can publish criticisms of, or opinions contrary to those of, the Communist Party, are senior members of the Communist Party. This group is composed of senior government and Communist Party leaders, those with the patronage of such leaders and, to a lesser extent, academics and journalism professionals. ![]() Limited Freedom of Expression for China's "Free Speech Elite"ĭespite barriers to access to the means of publication and the dangers inherent in publishing political news and information, members of China's "free-speech elite" are able to express concerns and criticism regarding the government with less fear of punishment than the average Chinese citizen. Chinese authorities, recognizing in recent years that limited freedom of expression enables the government to better monitor potentially problematic social issues (referred to as "舆论监督") have begun to tolerate criticism, but only from certain categories of people, a kind of "free-speech elite," and only then in government-controlled forums.
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