Chen Guangcheng’s Escape Awakens China’s Activists
Online, where the audacity of defiance remains anonymous, tens of thousands of Chinese “netizens” rejoiced this week over news of the daring escape of blind human rights activist Chen Guangcheng.
China’s censors rushed to block all Internet analysis of the case by shutting down social media discussions that used phrases such as Mr. Chen’s name, his initials, the words “U.S. embassy” or even “blind man.”
As usual, China’s innovative Internet users got around the problem, with a variety of deceptions to keep the debate raging. Some people referred to Mr. Chen as “A Bing,” a famous blind folk singer. But the censors caught on and blocked the phrase.
Some social media sites talked about “UA898,” the daily United Airlines Flight from Beijing to Washington. That too was censored.
One online “professor” relayed news of the drama by cryptically telling a fable of “a mole who was surrounded by a pack of wolves, but with the help of some mice he managed to escape. The wolves were furious.”
Others simply cheered from the sidelines, posting and reposting a quote from the 1994 movie, The Shawshank Redemption: “Some birds aren’t meant to be caged. Their feathers are just too bright.”
Mr. Chen’s escape and his dramatic fight for freedom have ignited a global debate over China’s human rights record. But it is also drawing attention to China’s tenacious dissidents — men and women who continue to risk torture and detention to defy the Chinese Communist Party.
Mr. Chen’s escape electrified China’s human rights activists and created an enthusiasm for protest that hasn’t been seen in China since thousands of university students openly challenged China’s leaders during the 1989 Tiananmen Square democracy protests.
Mr. Chen’s escape “reads like a scene straight out of an action movie,” said Chai Ling, a key student leader during the 1989 Tiananmen movement.
“Under cover of night, a blind political activist slipped past dozens of watchful guards, crossed several barricades and climbed a wall to escape the confines of his own home. A network of volunteers guide him to Beijing.
“Chen Guangcheng’s story resonates deeply with me because I once similarly evaded capture by journeying across China in darkness alongside underground activists. When the authorities listed me among the ‘21 Most Wanted’ after crushing the Tiananmen Square movement, I knew I was running for my life.”