Current Event Tidbits
- Wei Jingsheng to Visit Taiwan
(11-20-98) Wei Jingsheng will visit Taiwan in early December. Wei was released from prison and exiled to the US more than a year go (see Wei Jingsheng Free in US.) Wei is invited by the World League for Freedom and Democracy. Initially Wei had indicated that his visit would begin in late November, well before the Taiwanese elections of December 5. But the secretary-general, T.T. Liu, of the group that invited Wei said, "He accepted our invitation but it's unlikely he can come before the elections. The people he wants to see are all tied up with the elections. They can't really have relaxed conversations during such a busy time."
Not surprisingly the Communist Party in mainland China have voiced criticisms of this visit. Communist Party spokesman Tang Guoqiang stated, "We all know what kind of a person he is. He is a criminal on medical parole. We hope that the Taiwan authorities will not use the incident to engage in splittist activities."
Strangely they went on to describe Wei Jingsheng as a splittist. Said Tang, commenting on Wei's numerous visits to countries around the globe, "Our position on this is well known. We oppose other countries providing facilities for Wei Jingsheng's splittist activities on foreign soil."
This labelling of Wei as a splittist is new. They usually reserve splittist for people like the Dalai Lama or politicians from Taiwan, especially Taiwan Independence advocates. But early on in his exile, Wei answered an interviewers question about Taiwan Independence by saying it was ridiculous. His views have been more consistent with the KMT that any unification of Taiwan and the mainland would be predicated on the mainland becoming democratic and free.
- Albright did not Wear White: Cites Colored Underwear
(July 7, 1998) We have received the answer to the question: Albright chose not to wear white. The coyness of her spokesman (see below) I guess pointed to the red white and blue ensemble she reportedly wore.
What may have influenced her decision? Perhaps some words of hers from the recent Newsweek where she told of looking at colored underwear drying on the line in Shanghai. Said Albight:
When I was in Shanghai in 1978, obviously everyone was in their Mao suits, all blue and gray. But when I went out in the morning walking, I looked around and saw all the colorful underwear hanging on the clotheslines. I realized that underneath the drab blue and gray there was imagination! Now the colorful underwear has been translated into colorful neon signs. The vibrancy shows.I wonder how many who died in the June 4th massacre were wearing colored underwear?
- Albright to Wear White?
(June 25, 1998) I heard a few days ago that Madeleine Albright, the US Secretary of State and Hillary Clinton were considering wearing White to the welcoming ceremonies to be held for President Clinton and his entourage at Tiananmen square, the site of the 1989 Beijing massacre.
The sigificance of that is that white is the traditional color for mourning in China. Such a fashion statement would be a silent but overt statement about the massacre that occured in that place 9 years ago.
Today a report verified that this is a distinct possibility, at least for Albright. When asked specifically about this, Albright spokesman James Rubin answered "Well, watch the TV and keep your eyes glued on the Secretary of State. We'll have to see what she wears."
I take this as an affirmative. No comment on what color Mrs. Clinton and her daughter may wear.
- Clinton Book Banned
(June 12, 1998) The New York Times reported on June 11 that a book published in mainland China that chronicled President Clinton's sexcapades has been banned as his visit approaches. The book is called Clinton: A President of Strong Drives told the Chinese readers about the news and scuttlebutt surrounding Clinton's relationships with Gennifer Flowers, Paula Jones and Monica Lewinsky. It reportedly sold 30,000 copies--which is a tremendous number for the mainland China market--before it was pulled. You can take a look at the cover here.
The take on this has been that the book was pulled in deference to Clinton in light of his upcoming visit. But, very likley another aspect is that Jiang Zemin has very openly hitched his wagon to Clinton and anything that makes Clinton look bad also rubs off on Jiang. The banning of the book was more likely because it could make Jiang look bad by association.
There was another book recently published in China called Building a Constructive China-U.S. Strategic Partnership that came on the heels of last fall's Clinton-Jiang meeting. This book had a smaller run of only 11,000 copies but was meant to place Jiang in the upper echelons of the world's leaders by playing up his close relationship with the President of the United States. The book was packed with pictures of Bill and Zemin in Washington and of Jiang and other US bigwigs, like Madeleine Albright et al.
The book was called "indispensable for party and government organs, social groups, foreign affairs organizations, education and research institutions". In other words you better buy it or else. Jiang and Clinton are trying to ride each other's coattails and a book about Clinton's sexcapades isn't the sort of thing Jiang Zemin wants people to be reading.
- Iran's Race Card?
(June 9, 1998) You may remember at last October's summit one of the key accomplishments according to the Clinton administration was an agreement that the PRC would not begin any new projects with the Iran of a nuclear nature. (See The Visitor elsewhere at this site).
Of note is that the May, 7 1998 issue of the Far Eastern Economic Review reported that to help convince the Chinese Communists to agree to this Iran proposal, the US showed them classified information indicating Iran is supporting the rebels of the Xinjiang autonomous region. The report also stated that the CCP felt that Iran had had a role in the bombings that occurred around the time of Deng Xiao Ping's funeral in 1997.
The region of Xinjiang is largely populated by the Uighur ethnic group who are Muslim. As I noted in The Visitor Iran was not too happy about the PRC side ending their technical assistance programs. I noted that the CCP had a great incentive not to stop because there is always this "race card" to be played where the Iranian government could support the ready-to-rebel Uighurs at any time.
The US may be fooling itself. Rather than causing the CCP to stop cooperation with Iran, that information most likely makes them more likely to help them. The CCP is more than familiar with these sort of blackmail situations.
Evidence the CCP has acquiesced and wants to appease Iran comes from a report in England's Sunday Telegraph of May 24, 1998. Iran and Beijing have made a deal for an eventual 500 ton shipment of phosphorus pentsulphide from the PRC, a chemical used in making nerve gas. Also the South China Morning Post reported on May 30, 1998 that less than six weeks ago Iran received from Beijing 1000 tons of high quality steel, the type used to make missiles.
An unnamed US official was quoted as saying that the steel shipment "certainly poses problems."
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