Wei Jingsheng
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. |
 | The neutrality of this article is disputed. |
Wei Jingsheng (魏京生：Wèi Jīngshēng) (born May 20, 1950) is an activist in the Chinese democracy movement, most prominent for authoring the document, Fifth Modernization on the "Democracy Wall in Bejing in 1978. Although they could not bring any formal charges against him for his attacks on the Communist system, the government exaggerated his correspondence with foreigners about the Chinese-Vietnamese War and charged him with treason. He stayed in prison until September 14th 1993 when he was released because the PRC wanted to show their new openness before the International Olympic Committee [see Discussion section for an alternative reason proposed from Wei Jingsheng himself]. The Olympics were a huge event for Chinese nationalism and when they lost their bid to Sydney Australia the country was deflated. Wei, once again looked at as a scapegoat, was thrown in jail once more after China lost the Olympic bid. Charged with plotting against the state he was to remain in jail until November 16, 1997 when he was released for “medical reasons” and promptly deported to the United States. He was sent to the United States due to international pressure, especially the request by then US President, Bill Clinton.
He had joined the Red Guards as a sixteen year old student during the Cultural Revolution. When Deng Xiaoping came to power and repudiated the Cultural Revolution, Wei Jingsheng, now a twenty-eight year old electrician in Beijing, attacked the dictatorship under the Communist Party of China, denouncing Deng and his will to maintain a dictatorship in China. Wei's and others' public dissent worried Deng who was anxious to consolidate his power.
Dissidents who are widely known in the West, such as Wei Jingsheng, Fang Lizhi, and Wang Dan are typically deported when the Chinese government is really under pressure. Although Chinese criminal law does not contain any provisions for exiling citizens, it is carried out informally by giving these well known dissidents a severe jail sentence and subsequently granting medical parole before sending them out in exile. The Chinese government has been hoping that this will stop the influence of this dissidents, especially the reputed opposition leaders such as Wei Jingsheng. Nevertheless, people like Wei have never stopped working for freedom and democracy for all Chinese, even under the most difficult conditions. Wei is the most well-known and reputed advocate of democracy both inside and outside of China.
In 1996, Wei Jingsheng was awarded the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought. Wei Jingsheng is a winner of numerous other human rights and democracy awards, including the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Human Rights Award in 1996, the National Endowment for Democracy Award in 1997, the Olof Palme Memorial Prize in 1994, and the International Activist Award by the Gleitsman Foundation, etc. He has been praised in numerous places with varies titles, such as "Father of Chinese Democracy" and "Nelson Mandela of China". Thousands of entries about him can be found on the Internet in various languages.
Besides the well publicized essay he wrote in 1978, the Fifth Modernization, he is the author of "Courage to Stand Alone -- letters from Prison and Other Writings", which compiles his articles written initially on toilet paper in jail. He has weekly commentary on Radio Free Asia, and many other news media.
See also
External link
- "Wei Jingsheng's webpage" (魏京生基金会网页）