Apparently there are calls in China for protests a la Egypt. It's thought provoking to ask if such protests will be able to catch on in China where the social situation is different. Personally I don't think that the middle class is suppressed in China to the point that it was throughout the middle east-> I don't think that any protests would be wide spread or sustained enough to have any effect.
-Hugh Vondracek
fri @1
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/middleeast/la-fg-china-hu-protests-20110222,0,5167986.story
ReplyDeleteI agree that the middle class in China is not as suppressed as the Middle Eastern middle class population, but do you think they are suppressed enough to spark a revolution? Also, the meeting that was outlined in the above article regarding internet controls took place 2 days after yours was posted. Do you think the meeting was a preemptive action taken by the government because they were concerned a large scale protest could take place due to the events that took place in your article?
-Martha Dean
Fri at 1pm
Personally, I do not understand these recent government attempts (or in this case, suggestions) to censor the media. "Social management" is really just thinly veiled rhetoric for increasingly repressive forms of social control, and the people will surely recognize this fact. Furthermore, limiting such freedoms would seem to be yet another justification for unrest. It is intriguing, however, to observe the ways in which governments are responding to these recent events, viewing them as possible contagions. Robert Mugabe's actions are instructive, as 46 people were recently arrested for attending a lecture on unrest in Northern Africa and the Middle East.
ReplyDeleteLiana Bran
TA Armel, 1 pm
I think that although the people of Beijing are feeling restricted because of the media and social media censorship that is occurring, it will probably not spark a reaction at the same level and speed as the ones in North Africa. The protests in North Africa happened because the people were desperate since there was little employment and they could not afford food at such high prices. I think that it is not necessary whether they are oppressed enough or not which will indicate whether they will began protests at massive scales, but whether their lives will become unbearable enough which will give them no choice but to demand for their needs.
ReplyDeleteYaxal sobrevilla
TA Armel, Fri 11 AM