33 years ago, Wu’er Kaixi was one of the spokesmen for student protests in China. He witnessed the Tiananmen massacre – and fled into exile. The fact that many people are taking to the streets again gives him hope. He sees the Chinese President weakened by the protests.
The leader of the 1989 student protests in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square sees President Xi Jinping weakened by the current protests in China. “You can cheat your people for a while, some of the people maybe even their whole lives. But never think you can fool everyone forever,” exiled dissident Wu’er Kaixi told the “Tagesspiegel”.
“The Chinese people are neither stupid nor weak. That should make you tremble, Xi Jinping,” said the 54-year-old. The recent protests filled him with hope. However, he is also afraid of an escalation. “I definitely don’t want to see a second massacre.”
The dissident was referring to the bloody crackdown on the 1989 democracy protests on Tiananmen Square. Still, Wu’er Kaixi encouraged protesters not to fear the Chinese leadership. “Tyrants fear nothing more than fearless people,” he said.
He also apologized to the demonstrators because the change in 1989 did not succeed. “We didn’t manage to overcome the dictatorship 33 years ago. We handed this task over to you, the next generations. I’m sorry about that.” Wu’er Kaixi was one of the best-known student leaders of the pro-democracy movement in China, which was brutally crushed in 1989. After the massacre, he fled China, where he was persecuted. He now lives in exile in Taiwan.
Beijing’s strict zero-Covid policy and the associated lockdowns have triggered a nationwide wave of protests in China. The protests are now also directed against President Xi Jinping. It is the largest protest movement since the 1989 democracy protests.
