China’s Communist Party elders call for an end to censorship
A group of 23 Communist Party elders in China has written a letter calling for an end to the country’s restrictions on freedom of speech. The letter says freedom of expression is promised in the Chinese constitution but not allowed in practice. They want people to be able to freely express themselves on the internet and want more respect for journalists. The call comes just days after the Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo was awarded this year’s Nobel Peace Prize.
Mr. Liu was sent to prison for 11 years in 2009 for expressing his desire to see peaceful political change in China. The letter’s release also comes ahead of a key party meeting that is expected to promote future leaders and shape policy for the next few years.
The authors of the letter describe China’s current censorship system as a scandal and an embarrassment. The signatories describe the propaganda department as “invisible black hands”. The letter says: “They violate our constitution, often ordering by telephone that the works of such and such a person cannot be published, or that such and such an event cannot be reported in the media. “The officials who make the call do not leave their names, and the secrecy of the agents is protected, but you must heed their phone instructions.” Many who signed the letter were once influential officials. They include a former personal secretary to the revolutionary leader Mao Zedong, and a former editor of the People’s Daily, the official Communist Party newspaper. The letter, addressed to China’s parliament, makes a number of proposals for change.
The letter’s eight demands for change:
* Dismantle system where media organisations are all tied to higher authorities
* Respect journalists, accept their social status
* Revoke ban on cross-province supervision by public opinion
* Abolish cyber-police; control Web administrators’ ability to delete/post items at will
* Confirm citizens’ right to know crimes and mistakes committed by ruling party
* Launch pilot projects to support citizen-owned media organisations
* Allow media and publications from Hong Kong and Macau to be openly distributed
* Change the mission of propaganda authorities, from preventing the leak of information to facilitating its accurate and timely spread