Posted on 01/30/2005 12:38:14 PM PST by wagglebee
BEIJING - China kept a close eye on dissidents Sunday, a sign of the government's unease over potentially widespread mourning over the death of ousted Communist Party leader Zhao Ziyang, who fell from power for sympathizing with pro-democracy demonstrators in 1989.
Zhao, who died Jan. 17, was cremated Saturday at the main burial site for revolutionary heroes after a tightly controlled memorial service - below a state funeral in status - where only guests approved by the government were allowed.
Activists were banned from attending the service and were watched over by security agents guarding their homes and tapping their telephones.
The police "are still here today," Ding Zilin, who co-founded a group representing families of those killed when China's military crushed the democracy protests, said Sunday. "I saw them outside my home."
Static filled the telephone call, which was then disconnected - a common sign that authorities were monitoring conversations.
Ren Wanding, another veteran dissident who spent 11 years in prison for advocating Western-style democracy, said he thinks police will be outside his home for at least another week.
Expressing Opinion
"The logic behind the move is that even though Zhao Ziyang is cremated, we can still gather to discuss what happened," Ren said. "They are trying to prevent us from expressing our opinion."
Zhao, a former premier and head of the ruling Communist Party, was under house arrest from 1989 until his death and was rarely acknowledged by the government.
Chinese leaders frequently cite the country's economic success when asked about the military crackdown, in which hundreds, perhaps thousands, were killed - implying that it was justified because of the political stability it brought.
Zhao's death has been downplayed by the government, which is leery of stirring up memories - and sympathy - for him. An official obituary released by the Xinhua News Agency was read on state television Saturday, the first mention of Zhao's death by a Chinese broadcaster.
The brief piece highlighted his role an economic reformer but criticized him for making "serious mistakes" during 1989, a stance which had been at the center of a dispute between the government and Zhao's family.
The obituary ran at the corner of the second page of state-run newspapers Sunday - including the party mouthpiece, People's Daily - under the headline "Comrade Zhao Ziyang's body cremated in Beijing."
The report also said that a member of the party's ruling Standing Committee, Jia Qinglin, attended and expressed condolences on behalf of President Hu Jintao and other leaders.
"Russia" and Red China are working against the US and its interests abroad. We are still the MAIN ENEMY and they are working together to weaken our position in the world (and they dream of one day bringing us down). Meanwhile, we are building their capability to fight us at all levels in the name of free trade--TTS
Chinese-Rusian Alliance
http://www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2003/9/23/171350.shtml
Eurasian Axis
http://www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2003/10/19/214534.shtml
I agree. Instead of adopting the Reagan Doctrine and spending the Chicoms into insignificance, we have gone in the opposite direction and made them an economic superpower and a major threat to America.
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