Little change in ChinaUSA Today Editorial/Opnion Posted 8/4/2003 8:34 PM For a half century, China's communist leaders have retreated every summer to the lavish seaside resort of Beidaihe, where they would act like imperial rulers, bathing in the waters while plotting China's future. But this year, in a shocking departure, new President Hu Jintao canceled the gathering to show solidarity with the masses. The publicity stunt, aimed at portraying Hu as a populist leader, doesn't change the harsh reality of a repressive regime better showcased in a sweltering Beijing courtroom on Monday. There Yang Jianli, a Chinese pro-democracy activist who lives in Boston, went on trial for espionage. The closed session comes more than a year after Yang was held virtually incommunicado, in violation of Chinese and international laws. Yang's supporters and U.S. diplomats were barred from the trial. His lawyer was not allowed to report what happened. China has come a long way since the terrifying Cultural Revolution in the 1960s and 1970s, when intellectuals were forced to work on farms, everyone wore blue tunics and dissenters were murdered. Today, capitalism is the name of the economic game. China has joined the World Trade Organization, and it will host the 2008 Olympics. Yet the ruling elite continues to suppress political expression with ruthlessness, just as it cracked down on pro-democracy protesters in Tiananmen Square in 1989. The absence of strong U.S. protests over Yang's show trial risks sending Hu the wrong message — that China's leadership can continue its repressive ways without consequences. Congress recently passed resolutions denouncing Yang's arrest. Additional pressure from the Bush administration could persuade China that it won't get a pass on human-rights abuses just because the U.S. needs its help with international crises, such as North Korea's nuclear weapons program, and to maintain valuable trade. Hu's elevation as president last fall prompted speculation that he might become China's Mikhail Gorbachev, who opened the Soviet Union to democratic reform. Some China experts say Hu wants to play that role if he can win a power struggle with the old guard. Canceling the seaside get-together may be a first step. A more meaningful move would be to free Yang and let him spread the message of his Foundation for China in the 21st Century: Prosperity and progress follow when people are allowed to be free.
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