World News

22074 readers

5 users here now

Breaking news from around the world.

News that is American but has an international facet may also be posted here.

Guidelines for submissions:

Where possible, post the original source of information.
- If there is a paywall, you can use alternative sources or provide an archive.today, 12ft.io, etc. link in the body.
Do not editorialize titles. Preserve the original title when possible; edits for clarity are fine.
Do not post ragebait or shock stories. These will be removed.
Do not post tabloid or blogspam stories. These will be removed.
Social media should be a source of last resort.

These guidelines will be enforced on a know-it-when-I-see-it basis.

For US News, see the US News community.

This community's icon was made by Aaron Schneider, under the CC-BY-NC-SA 4.0 license.

founded 2 years ago

MODERATORS

China: Rights group urges Beijing to free ‘bridge man’ protester Peng Lifa, who sparked ‘White Paper’ protests and 'forcibly disappeared' in 2022 (www.hrw.org)

submitted 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) by tardigrada to c/news

11 comments fedilink hide all child comments

China: Rights group urges Beijng to free ‘bridge man’ protester Peng Lifa, who sparked ‘White Paper’ protests and 'forcibly disappeared' in 2022

"The Chinese government may have taken away the ‘Bridge Man,’ but his arrest ignited widespread support for a free and democratic China,” said Maya Wang, associate China director at Human Rights Watch. “Two years since Peng Lifa was taken into police custody and forcibly disappeared, his message continues to resonate.”

On October 13, 2022, a man in a construction outfit unfurled two banners on Sitong Bridge in Haidian district in Beijing. One read: “We want food not Covid testing; we want freedom not lockdowns; we want dignity not lies. We want reform not the Cultural Revolution; we want to vote not a leader; we are citizens not slaves.”

And another read: “Go on strike, depose the traitorous dictator Xi Jinping.” The police immediately took him away and he has not been seen since.

[...]

Peng’s protest was rare in a country where police closely monitor all public spaces and dissidents. Control was especially tight in the capital ahead of the Chinese Communist Party’s 20th National Congress at the time of the protest. While authorities quickly censored all news about it, Peng’s messages nonetheless spread.

[...]

On July 30, 2024, a 22-year-old activist who participated in the White Paper movement, Fang Yirong (方艺融), put a Peng-inspired banner on a bridge in Loudi City, Hunan province, and posted a video online saying that he “hope[s] that the Chinese will get rid of autocracy and live a better life as soon as possible.” Police arrested Fang in early August and his current condition is also unknown.

[Edit typo.]

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments

[–] tardigrada 1 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Peng Lifa didn't call for insurrection, he held a white paper.

[–] basmati@lemmus.org 1 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Read the article you posted, or more information about the arrest. He did not just hold up a white paper, according to your own article.

[–] tardigrada 1 points 1 month ago

You're right. One banner read:

“We want food not Covid testing; we want freedom not lockdowns; we want dignity not lies. We want reform not the Cultural Revolution; we want to vote not a leader; we are citizens not slaves.”

And another read:

“Go on strike, depose the traitorous dictator Xi Jinping.” The police immediately took him away and he has not been seen since.

You could write such banners in the U.S. and any Western democracy, and nothing would happen. In China, you disapear.