A Chinese leader has died. Mourners have turned protesters. They are demanding freedom. It’s a student LED movement, one that China is determined to crush. Does it ring a bell? It is an echo from Communist China’s worst nightmare Tiananmen Square.
The uprising that gave the Chinese Communist a fright just when the Soviet Union was collapsing and communism survival was in question.
Let’s rewind to 1989.
This is what unfolded in Beijing following the deaths of who Yaobang.
He was a general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party. He was forced to resign back in 1987. Two years later, who died? His funeral sparked the biggest political fire in modern day China.
And then, in April of 1989, tens of thousands gathered in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square demanding Democratic reform.
His funeral sparked the biggest political fire.
What happened next got to 2022 and it seems that history is repeating itself. What happened in 1989 is happening again. Not necessarily in the same sequence, but close enough to bring to life the ghost of Tiananmen and haunt China. Earlier today, China’s former President Jiang Zemin died. He was 96. Jiang was handpicked to save Chinese communism crumbling after the Tiananmen Square protests
. And did so through what can only be described as pro capitalist reform. His death comes at a time when China is witnessing its biggest protest since Tiananmen. This protest since Tiananmen. The same cities that saw demonstrations in 1989 have erupted in protests again, just like in 1989. This time too, there is a call for reform. There is a call for Free Press.
Jiang Zemin had presided over China’s economic growth. He positioned the country as a major manufacturing power. His death comes at a time when China risks losing the tag, the famous tag of being the world’s factory.
The country’s zero COVID policy is driving our business. We’ve been talking about this on the show.
If Jiang brought in an era of economic boom, his debt symbolizes the start of this era’s end.
We will make our point tonight over the course of this hour.
We will start by showing you what’s happening in China, why the unprecedented wave of protests
And Clashes are eerily similar to Tiananmen.
The story of Jiang Zemin, the communist leader who would quote Lincoln. Sing Elvis Presley songs. And endorse xi jinping as a strong leader We will show you how this court and court strong leader is hammering China’s economy, how his policies have assaulted Chinese businesses. And now business leaders like Jack Ma Reports say the Alibaba co-founder is hiding in Japan And as she faces his toughest test, the country’s military is busy provoking its neighbors.
Earlier today, war planes entered South Korea’s air defense zones, prompting the latter to scramble jets.
We will run you through all of this in our cover story.
Start by rewinding to 1989, the weeks following the deaths of who we are back.
Mostly led by students, they were demanding reform In 1989, China saw demonstrations breaking out in Shanghai, Nanjing, Xian, Changsha and Shanghai.
Guess what? In the last few days, almost all of these cities. I’ve seen Just like 1989, this time too, the protests have been mostly led by students. They have been widely broadcast worldwide.
And they have dominated. They have been dominated by calls for reform freedom. Free Press. Free speech.
For the first time, China has heard public calls for she jinping’s resignation. This is rare.
My scaling wide scale sloganeering. She’s government has come down heavily on protesters. The police have been asked to go after every demonstrator.
People are being stopped in the middle of the road. Their phones are being checked for protest related content. But people also being detained, some students have received phone calls from police officers demanding information about their whereabouts. On the weekend, more protests broke out, but none of these. Have stopped the fever of dissent from spreading.
Let me now show you what happened in Guangzhou yesterday.
People toppled the COVID-19 testing tent. The true things are the right police. One video showed dozens of police clad in hazmat suits advancing towards protesters.
Some protesters were seen gathering around barricades demarcating lockdown zones. What are these protesters demanding?
N₂O COVID show. But that’s just a starting point. These protests have now snowballed into a movement for freedom in a much wider sense. Today, Chinese students are yearning for broader political freedom Just like they did back in 1989, some of these students say they are excited to be part of this massive movement.
Yes, it’s a movement. It’s nice and warm. Movement. Unlike 1989, Chinese students today are tech savvy.
They know how to navigate the Chinese firewall. They are communicating via telegram, even dating apps. This Sharing protest related information through cryptic messages.Know how to lead an uprising, even. These students know how to lead an uprising even under the watchful eyes of Beijing.
They don’t need a statue of the goddess of democracy to convey their message, the leader sitting in Beijing. Given a mathematical equation. It was developed by Russian physicist and mathematician Alexander Friedman. Formulas have become a popular symbol of resistance across campuses in China, simply because the name Friedman. Well, it sounds a lot like a freeman. It’s a word play that the students are betting on in their call for freedom.
Many students of the Hong Kong University decided to risk the security law by continuing to publicly extend their support. Fought for their colleagues on the mainland. I repeat, this is rare. It’s unheard of. This is China we’re talking about. Many of them gathered in the campus on Tuesday, chanting slogans and holding banners. This one reads release arrested protester. Does step down to apologize. We don’t want dictatorial leaders. We want elections. We don’t want a dictatorship.
We want democracy. Students say they are not afraid of a crackdown and that people will continue to resist the government in their own unique ways. So what does this mean for Beijing? The Chinese leaders remember Tiananmen only too well. They are aware of the damage that a student LED movement can do. It explains why China has ordered shut down of several colleges under the pretext of COVID-19. It doesn’t make much of a difference at a time when people across China are feeling increasingly connected with the protesters. And the sloganeering in universities is Many people. Protesting is reasonable, and that’s why people across China are coming out to join the mass civil disobedience movement. On Tuesday, residents of Jinan tried to break out of a lockdown. These protests come despite the CCP’s strong warning against dissent. The parties law enforcement agency released this document threatening protesters without even mentioning the word protest. It reads. Illegal and criminal acts that disrupt social order will not be tolerated. Too bad. The thread clearly did not work. The Chinese students are not just protesting within China, but also outside. Around 100 people, mostly Chinese students, gathered in Washington to protest against xi jinping. Protester held a placard. “Give me liberty or give me death”. There have also been protests in New York and Toronto. This is the first time since Tiananmen that words like freedom and democracy are being uttered so publicly in the context of China Back then, the Communist Party had sent tanks and troops to crush dissent. China was ostracized following the bloody crackdown. Always connected to our website for latest reports in details……