“Is China Ready For Democracy?” and 20+ Really Hard Questions.

Awaiting a Democratic Hong Kong.

Andres Gentry is currently working on a series of "Blogger Profiles," where he asks a number of people some ridiculously hard questions and expect us to respond. I am number 10. It took me a month to be fully able to verbalize my thoughts and even then I feel I may have not expressed them as fully as I could. But the interview is 12 word doc pages long and it was time to stop. I don’t expect anyone to read all of the answers, but I used the exercise as a platform to lay down the foundations of what
I believe in, and write out my opinions once and for all.

(Actually I just reread it and I realized that I got into the nitty gritty of facts and opinions straight face and academic. It’s seldom from me but, I put my money on it and sent it to my professors. Mostly because I mentioned them but when I sent it off, I knew I am not worried that they would feel disappointed. So if you have time, it’s worth reading the whole thing.)

Here are the list of Questions he asked.

The INTERVIEW

1. When did you start blogging?

1A. What made you scared to publicly say, "Hong Kong People deserve? Democracy, don’t we??"

2. Why did you start?

3. When you started, what blogs initially inspired your interest in blogging?  Why?

4. What are your goals for your blog?

5. Who are your intellectual heroes?

6. Who are your political heroes?

6A. Why do you believe China has lacked the sort of organized protest
movement that characterized Eastern Europe before 1989? Why is there no
Solidarity, no Charter 77?

7. What was the most powerful book you ever read?

8. What languages do you speak?

9. Where have you lived abroad? For how long? Why?

10. What was your most memorable experience living or traveling abroad?

11. How do you see East Asia in the future? Specifically, how do you
see China’s rise affecting international relations in this part of the
world? What other significant trends do you see in East Asian international politics?

12. What are the most significant events in Hong Kong’s history from the perspective of Hong Kong Chinese?

13. Are there such a people as the Han? Or is it more accurate to call people Sichuanese, Shanghainese, or Cantonese?

14. Is China a nation or a civilization? Can China stay unified in the future? Should it?

15. Zhao Ziyang has recently died. It is often said that China is not
yet ready for democracy, that it must first develop its economy before
contemplating a freer political order. Do you agree with this analysis?
Whether yes or no, why?

16. Do you respect China? Do you fear China? Do you feel you are a part of China?

16A. Would it be accurate to say the idea of China is similar to the
idea of Europe (a contiguous geographic area of dissimilar peoples with
somewhat similar social values)?

17. What is the political future look like for Hong Kong, especially
in regards to universal suffrage? Do you believe Hong Kong may offer a
model of federal governance useful on the Mainland? Or do you believe
it is a case special enough to not set a precedent for other parts of
the Mainland?

17A. What do you believe are the main legacy (or legacies) of British rule in Hong Kong?

18. How would you compare and contrast Australia, New Zealand, and America?

19. Describe Hong Kong’s culture. What values are more and less valued?

19A. What are some typical cultural misunderstandings between "China"
and the "West" that you have observed? Would a China that places more
value on individuals than on relationships cease to still be Chinese?

20. What makes music important?

20A. What are some emblematic artists, albums, or songs from different
times in your life? What do you believe your choices say about you?

The Answers