BEATING AROUND THE BUSH: STRATEGIES FOR WRITING

UNCLAS GUANGZHOU 025214 SIPDIS USPACOM FOR FPA SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PHUM SOCI PGOV CH SUBJECT: BEATING AROUND THE BUSH: STRATEGIES FOR WRITING ABOUT POLITICS IN A PROGRESSIVE CHINESE MAGAZINE REF: A) GUANGZHOU 20891; B) GUANGZHOU 20890; C) GUANGZHOU 18191 (U) THIS MESSAGE IS SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED. PLEASE HANDLE ACCORDINGLY. ¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: AN EXAMINATION OF THE EDITORIALS IN RECENT ISSUES OF "CITIZEN" ("SHIMIN"),A POLITICALLY PROGRESSIVE MAGAZINE THAT WAS STARTED LAST FEBRUARY (REFS A, B AND C), REVEALS A ROUNDABOUT STRATEGY FOR DISCUSSING SENSITIVE POLITICAL ISSUES IN CHINA. THOUGH IT IS OF COURSE EXTREMELY RISKY TO ADDRESS FUNDAMENTAL, OVERARCHING PROBLEMS OF THE CHINESE POLITICAL SYSTEM DIRECTLY, SUCH AS THE LACK OF FREEDOM OF SPEECH, "CITIZEN"'S EDITORIALS USUALLY MENTION THESE ISSUES IN SEEMINGLY UNRELATED CONTEXTS. BY DOING SO, THE WRITERS ARE ABLE TO INVOKE SENSITIVE TOPICS WHILE APPEARING TO WRITE ABOUT SEPARATE ISSUES. THE INDIRECT APPROACH -------------- ¶2. (SBU) A GOOD EXAMPLE OF THIS TYPE OF WRITING IS THE EDITORIAL IN THE MOST RECENT ISSUE OF "CITIZEN" (JUNE 2006). ENTITLED "IDEAL HOUSING IN AN OPEN SOCIETY" ("KAIFANG SHEHUI DE JUZHU LIXIANG"),THE AUTHOR DISCUSES VARIOUS HOUSING CONCERNS: A PERSON CANNOT CRITICIZE THE HOUSING CHOICES OF ANOTHER; ONE HAS A RIGHT TO LIVE NEXT TO CIVILIZED NEIGHBORS; THE GOVERNMENT SHOULD CREATE PLEASANT LIVING SITUATIONS, ETC. THE ARTICLE GOES ON TO ARGUE THAT PEOPLE DON'T SIMPLY NEED A PHYSICAL PLACE TO LIVE; THEY NEED A BETTER COMMUNITY AND A CIVILIZED COUNTRY IN WHICH TO LIVE. AT THE BEGINNING OF THE EDITORIAL, AN IMAGINARY CONVERSATION TAKES PLACE IN WHICH AN AVERAGE CITIZEN ANSWERS QUESTIONS ABOUT HIS HOUSING IDEALS: HE DESIRES A HOUSE THAT WON'T FALL DOWN, AND A FRIENDLY, OPEN COMMUNITY, IN A CITY WITH SUITABLE SCENERY. IN ADDITION, HE WANTS "TO LIVE IN A NATION THAT ARDENTLY LOVES FREEDOM AND STRONGLY RESPECTS CULTURE." FREEDOM AND CULTURE SEEM TO HAVE LITTLE TO DO WITH HOUSING, YET THE AUTHOR INCLUDES THEM ANYWAY AS FUNDAMENTAL ELEMENTS OF AN IDEAL HOUSING SITUATION. ¶3. (SBU) ANOTHER GOOD ILLUSTRATION OF THIS TYPE OF ROUNDABOUT APPROACH TO POLITICAL ISSUES IS THE EDITORIAL IN THE APRIL ISSUE OF "CITIZEN." THE EDITORIAL, OSTENSIBLY ABOUT ECONOMIC ISSUES, ARGUES THAT MONOPOLIES SHOULD BE DISSOLVED IN INDUSTRIES SUCH AS HEALTH CARE, EDUCATION, REAL ESTATE, RAILROADS, PETROLEUM, AIRLINES, AND EVEN BUTCHERY. IN THE FINAL PARAGRAPH, HOWEVER, THE AUTHOR DEPARTS FROM MERELY ECONOMIC ISSUES TO SAY: "TO STRIVE FOR UNIVERSAL RIGHTS IS THE ONLY WAY TO GET RID OF PRIVILEGES. THAT MEANS WE MUST ESTABLISH A SYSTEM THAT ALLOWS PEOPLE TO VOICE THEIR PAIN; WE MUST ESTABLISH AN INCENTIVE POLICY WHICH FORCES THE GOVERNMENT TO PAY ATTENTION TO PEOPLE'S LIVELIHOOD. CITIZENS' PARTICIPATION, DEMOCRATIC POLICY-MAKING, AND SUPERVISION BY THE MASSES ARE ALL VITAL FORCES IN COUNTERING MONOPOLIES. ONE PIECE OF COMMON SENSE IS THAT ONE FREEDOM (CITIZENS' FREEDOM TO PARTICIPATE IN PUBLIC POLICY-MAKING) WOULD HELP REALIZE ANTHER FREEDOM (FREEDOM OF OPEN MARKET AND ECONOMIC FREEDOM)." IN THIS EDITORIAL, THEN, THE AUTHOR'S TOPIC IS SUPERFICIALLY AN ECONOMIC ONE: MONOPOLIES. HOWEVER, BY DISCUSSING NOTIONS SUCH AS "CITIZENS' PARTICIPATION" AND "DEMOCRATIC POLICY- MAKING," THE AUTHOR SUCCEEDS IN REFERRING TO SENSITIVE POLITICAL ISSUES WITHIN A SAFER EDITORIAL CONTEXT. TREATING THE SYMPTOMS -------------- ¶4. (SBU) "CITIZEN"'S EDITORIAL WRITERS USUALLY CHOOSE TO WRITE ABOUT TOPICS THAT THEY BELIEVE ARE DIRECTLY CAUSED BY WHAT THEY REFER TO AS THE LACK OF FREEDOM IN CHINA. BY ADDRESSING THESE MORE SPECIFIC PROBLEMS, THEY HOPE TO "TQAT THE SYMPTOMS" OF THIS LACK OF FREEDOM. AN INTELLECTUAL WHO IS INVOLVED WITH "CITIZEN" RECENTLY WROTE AN E-MAIL TO CONGENOFFS THAT INCLUDED THIS STATEMENT: "ALTHOUGH WE CAN NOT OVERTLY SAY THAT THE REGIME IS THE TROUBLE MAKER, WE CAN TELL THE PUBLIC FRANKLY WHAT TROUBLES THE REGIME HAS BROUGHT TO US." HE EXPLAINED OUTRIGHT THE STRATEGY OF "CITIZEN" IN BRINGING ABOUT POLITICAL CHANGE: DISCUSSING PROBLEMS IN CHINA WITHOUT DIRECTLY MENTIONING THE CAUSE OF THOSE PROBLEMS. COMMENT -------------- ¶5. (SBU) BY APPROACHING SENSITIVE ISSUES IN A ROUNDABOUT MANNER, "CITIZEN"'S EDITORS AND WRITERS ARE CLEARLY TRYING TO GET AS CLOSE AS POSSIBLE TO THEM WITHOUT CROSSING THE SOMETIMES MURKY LINE OF WHAT IS ACCEPTABLE AND WHAT IS NOT. THE STRATEGY OF ASSOCIATING CONCEPTS SUCH AS "FREEDOM" AND "DEMOCRACY" WITH MORE EVERYDAY PROBLEMS LIKE HOUSING AND MONOPOLIES ALSO CORRESPONDS TO THE EDITORS' GOAL OF "LAYING THE GROUNDWORK" FOR POLITICAL CHANGE IN CHINA, AS MENTIONED IN A PREVIOUS MEETING (REF C). THESE EDITORIALS DO NOT MERELY DISCUSS THESE PROBLEMS; THEY DISCUSS THEM IN THE CONTEXT OF THE LARGER ISSUE OF THE LACK OF FREEDOM IN CHINA. IN THIS WAY, THE EDITORS MAY HOPE TO INCORPORATE THESE KINDS OF NOTIONS INTO EVERYDAY, FUNDAMENTAL THINKING, IN AN EFFORT TO MAKE THEM A PART OF NORMAL THOUGHT PROCESSES. HOWEVER, TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN REACHING THE MASSES, THE READERSHIP OF "CITIZEN" WOULD HAVE TO INCREASE DRAMATICALLY. END COMMENT. MARTIN