Wei Jingsheng

Often referred to as the “father of Chinese democracy”, Wei was born in Beijing in 1950 to a family of loyal Maoists. His father held a high-ranking position in the prestigious Foreign Ministry, and the family possessed connections to many of the top party leaders. Wei was educated in elite Communist Party schools and indoctrinated to be a committed Maoist.

He joined the Red Guards as a sixteen year old student at the beginning of the Cultural Revolution in 1966. After massive personal trauma of that long event and in light of Deng Xiaoping's repudiation of the Cultural Revolution, Wei, then a twenty-eight year old electrician in Beijing, wrote a seminal essay, “The Fifth Modernisation: Democracy and Other Issues” (http://www.echonyc.com/~wei/Fifth.html)
that was posted by a friend on the Democracy Wall. In it he attacked the dictatorship of the Communist Party of China, denouncing Deng and his will to maintain a dictatorship in China. The essay argued that Deng's economic reform program, known as 'The Four Modernisations', would not result in a real transformation of Chinese society without a fifth modernisation - democracy. The essay attracted both worldwide attention and the notice of the Chinese Government, which became increasingly suspicious of Wei's developing relationships with foreign journalists based in Beijing.

In January of ’79 Wei and a group of other activists began to publish an underground magazine called 'Exploration' which pledged to discuss social problems "without any restrictions". The notorious Qincheng Prison – “the Bastille of China” - located on the outskirts of Beijing and China's principal prison for high-ranking political prisoners became a subject of their focus. Wei was arrested in March of 1979. Although the authorities could not bring any formal charges against him for his attacks on the Communist system, the government exaggerated Wei's correspondence with foreigners about the Sino-Vietnamese War and charged him with treason and of engaging in "counterrevolutionary propaganda and incitement". He was condemned to 15 years of prison and hard labor and deprived of direct communication with his family and friends. His guards were forbidden to speak to him and he was not allowed a pen.

He spent 3 years in solitary confinement at Beijing No. 1 Prison where he was not allowed to leave his cell, and in which no fresh air or direct sunlight was obtained. During this period, his health steadily deteriorated. He lost teeth, developed a heart condition, and contracted hepatitis. He was also constantly pressured to denounce his political beliefs, but would not recant. Eventually he was transferred to two more prisons, one in Tibet and one in Nanpu on the Bo Hai Gulf of north-east China, where conditions were less severe.

In January of ’89, nearly ten years into his prison term, Chinese astrophysicist and democracy advocate Fang Lizhi wrote an open letter calling on Deng to release Wei. Over 110 prominent intellectuals in China subsequently lent their names to the call. During this time dissatisfaction with the slow pace of political reform was developing in China into a large-scale protest movement, culminating in the Tiananmen Square riots of June, 1989.

He was released on probation on 14 September of 1993, 6½ months before his 15 year sentence was due to end. His early release was a political gesture designed to sway the International Olympic Committee's vote on China's bid to host the 2000 Olympic Games. However, the gesture had no effect and China lost its bid to Sydney. Upon release, despite warnings from the authorities and his continuing ill-health, Wei resumed his campaign for democracy and human rights, and established contacts with other Chinese activists and the Western media. An opinion piece was published in 'The New York Times' on 18 November.

Six months later, soon after a meeting with United States assistant secretary of state for human rights and humanitarian affairs, Wei vanished into police custody. Over seven months later Wei was formally arrested for trying to "overthrow the government". He escaped the death penalty that comes with the charge but was sentenced to another 14 years imprisonment and stripped of his political rights for three years. Four years into this period of incarceration Chinese President Jiang Zemin made a historic trip to America. At the time it is reported that Jiang Zemin and Clinton agreed on a deal to secure Wei’s release during their talks, and on November 16th of 1997 Wei was released. Wei later maintains that he was not freed, but sent into exile as a further punishment.

Books:

• "Courage to Stand Alone -- letters from Prison and Other Writings", which compiles his articles written initially on toilet paper in jail.
• He has weekly commentary on Radio Free Asia, and many other news media.

Awards:

• The Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought. (1996)
• The Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award(1996).
• The National Endowment for Democracy Award (1997) · The Olof Palme Memorial Prize (1994)

Profession: Chairman of the OCDC (The Overseas Chinese Democracy Coalition) and president of the Wei Jingsheng Foundation, a non-profit organisation registered in New York.

Education: Junior middle school in Beijing. Higher education aborted by the Cultural Revolution.

Websites of interest: http://www.echonyc.com/~wei/

http://www.brasscheck.com/wei/

http://tw.youtube.com/watch?v=ola_EJf8TzE&feature=user