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Rights before politics: Wang Dan
‘NAIVE’:Saying China couldn’t even protect the human
rights of its own people, let alone Taiwanese, the exile pointed to Hong Kong’s
rejection of his visa as evidence
By Ko Shu-ling / Staff reporter
Wang Dan, right, a leader of the 1989
Tiananmen protests now living in Taiwan, and Wuer Kaixi, another student leader
in the protests, hold a press conference in Taipei yesterday after Wang was
barred from entering Hong Kong to attend a memorial for a pro-democracy icon.
PHOTO: AFP
Exiled Chinese dissident Wang Dan (王丹) yesterday urged Taipei and Beijing to
negotiate on human rights before the two sides rush into political talks.
“I think the Taiwanese people can learn a lesson from me,” he said, referring to
Hong Kong’s rejection on Wednesday of his request to travel to the territory to
attend the funeral of a veteran pro-democracy activist this week. “If the
Chinese government cannot protect the human rights of its own people, how can we
expect it to safeguard the human rights of the Taiwanese people?”
Another exiled student leader of the 1989 Tiananmen Square demonstrators, Wuer
Kaixi (吾爾開希), said Taiwan has a lot to bargain for when it comes to political
negotiations with China.
“However, the current administration seems afraid of playing its trump cards,
such as freedom, democracy and human rights, and turns a blind eye to the
authoritarian rule of the Chinese Communist Party [CCP],” he said, adding that
while he did not have any evidence to prove that the CCP played any role in the
regression of human rights in Taiwan or that President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) was
selling out Taiwan, he and Wang were very worried.
Wang and Wuer Kaixi made the remarks at a joint press conference in Taipei after
Hong Kong rejected the joint request of the two to attend the memorial for
former Hong Kong lawmaker Szeto Wah (司徒華).
Szeto, who died on Jan. 2 aged 79 after a battle with lung cancer, was a leading
light of the overseas pro-democracy movement pushing for reform in China.
Wang said he had been “too naive” in believing that Hong Kong would have granted
their request.
Emphasizing that Hong Kong’s “one country, two systems” model was dead, Wang
said he thought he had a chance to visit the territory, given the support of
Chinese netizens and Hong Kong media.
“The messages the Hong Kong government sent out were quite optimistic, but
little did I know that those signals were entirely wrong,” he said. “I think I
should learn a lesson from it too and that I must not be too naive.”
Wuer Kaixi said the Hong Kong government’s decision was not surprising, but the
result did not make any sense.
“I was fully prepared for such an outcome,” he said. “Absurdity happens in the
CCP on a daily basis, so people get used to it, but it should not be taken for
granted.”
Wuer Kaixi said the Hong Kong government’s rejection of their application was a
show of disrespect to the dead and disrespect for the territory’s public
opinion.
“Uncle Wah was a democratic activist, but other pro-democracy activists cannot
pay their respects to him,” he said. “It is a serious matter, because it runs
counter to the autonomy and freedom of the territory.”
Despite the refusal, Wang said they had not given up hope entirely. They are
still negotiating with the organizer to see whether they can participate in an
“appropriate manner.” Possibilities include video conferencing or recorded
video.
While no reason was given for the denial of their request, Wang said he was
certain it was because of the role they played in the 1989 Tiananmen Square
protests and their democracy activism.
Emphasizing that their planned trip was not politically motivated, Wang said the
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) killed many CCP members during the Chinese Civil
War, yet former KMT chairmen can visit China.
“We just expressed different views from the government, but we cannot even pay
tribute to an elder in Hong Kong,” he said. “It is clear that the CCP does not
think a killer is the most hideous enemy, but democracy is.”
Wang said the more Beijing obstructed his efforts to return home, the more
determined he was, adding that he firmly believed democracy would eventually
prevail.
Wuer Kaixi dismissed allegations that he broke a promise he made to keep a low
profile when he traveled to Hong Kong in 2004 to attend the funeral of musician
and entertainer Anita Mui (梅艷芳), saying he neither met any Hong Kong official
during the stay nor reached any agreement.
He said he hoped any decision the Hong Kong government makes in the future would
be based on the well-being of its people rather than Beijing’s preferences.
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