[Stina]

The 60th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China falls on October 1. Throughout the six decades, China's leadership has striven to build a better, more prosperous country for its 1.3 billion citizens.

Tell us what you think stand out as the most memorable events in China's passage from an impoverished feudal state to a global power. You can also use this forum to send your greetings to the nation getting ready to celebrate 60 years of continued development.

China has come so far from what it was 60 years ago. So much has changed. I hope things will only continue to get better and that people don't become blinded by money. All the best for the next 60 years!

The communist party has contirbuted a lot to China becoming what it is. If things had been more liberal, the Chinese society would now be even more corrupt and lost than it is. We could learn a few things from China.
Happy anniversary!

I don't think people around the world even realize what a great spectacle China is preparing to stage for its anniversary on Thursday. It will include the biggest EVER fireworks and parades, and lots of other amazing things. I hope television stations in Europe will show lots of footage from Beijing on that day...

Sixty Years: the Lost History


Today, China celebrated its the 60th birthday. It seems that the Chinese Community Party, which won the civil war in 1949, was satisfied with this great historic event proclaiming its unprecedented achievement in the past six decades. This is another spectacular ceremony presented to the world after the Beijing Olympic Games last year. Everything was organized well. For the Party leadership, 60 years' history is fabulous and China might become a real superpower in the near future. Really? China's leadership believe at least. However, for Chinese people, what do they think about the sixty years of P.R. China? Do they love it or want to forget it? The elders may have some bitter memories about the past. But for young people, who were born after 1979, modern China has shown an extraordinary development story in the past thirty years, hasn't it? Not really. What is on earth the truth about China's sixty years? Fractured or complete, man-made or objective, controlled or free, and concealed or transparent?


China's leadership has distorted the history since it took the power in 1949. Political movements or class struggles, which killed millions of people, never stopped during the first three decades. In late 1950s, the anti-rightist movement nearly eradicated Chinese intellectuals' freedom of thinking and speaking and cut off the residue of independence spirit of intellectuals, which is always scare in China's culture and history of thousands of years. The movement enhanced Chairman Mao's power in the leadership and planted the seed for future worse social disasters. Until today, the anti-rightist movement cannot be discussed freely in press. Most victims in that movement have passed away. The rest are still in difficulties of talking about their experience publicly.


In early 1960s, the crazily policy, Great Leap, made millions people die of the great famine. The party leadership neglected the responsibility by blaming both Mother Nature, which was named as the key reason for the poorest agricultural harvest, and the Soviet Union, which stoned people in trouble. Afterwards, the Great Culture Revolution got almost all Chinese into the worst disaster in China's history. The country was destroyed physically and spiritually in ever large scale. The videos about the tragedies and persecutions in the Culture Revolution can be watched through YouTube only outside of China. The academic researches and public conversations about that period of history have been locked for long time in this so-called emerging power.


When China opened its economy to the world at the end of 1970s, the leadership did not change its attitude to history. No matter what happened, from the pro-democracy student movement in 1989, to the FLG religious campaign in 1999, and to the Xin Jiang unrest in 2009, besides crackdown and unjust treatment, misleading propaganda and covering the facts have been two familiar means applied to shirk responsibilities rather than take them.


When all media controlled by government are assisting the leadership to sing the economic achievements and organize a harmonious atmosphere for the 60th anniversary, how many people care about the past history and those alive victims who suffered from the leadership of China Communist Party? These Chinese fellows, like the China modern history of 60 years, is fading away in the strong steps and high voice of the great parading mass. I cannot help me thinking of the enlightened article, Rethinking the 50 Years of History of China, by Mr. Li Shenzhi, the late liberal scholar, the former deputy president of China's Academy of Social Science and English assistant to the Premier Zhao Enlai, the first Prime Minister of the communist China. When China honored its the 50th anniversary in 1999 in Beijing, Mr. Li claimed his deep worry about China's future by disclosing the many true aspects of the past 50 years' political life of China and analyzing China's history and culture. Without a democratic political system, he argued, Chinese people would not live a free, just and wealthy life in the long term. Another decade passed, fewer Chinese people share similar worry about their country as Mr.Li did ten years ago. China's economic powerhouse is running good is playing an important role in the international community. Is the situation not getting better, is it? When you don't look back to the past "inconvenient" history of China, the answer is Yes. Obviously, this is a kind of self-deceiving behavior. Many observers don't think that China's development is built on a sustainable way. Why? It is because the leadership has failed to tell the people the truth about the past of 60 years.


When the history of a country can not be communicated honestly among the people, what does the Grand Celebration on the National Day mean to 1.3 billions Chinese ? What does the 60 years' history mean to the thousands of people and troops who will turn up at the world's biggest Square on October 1st 2009? What does it mean to the millions of Chinese who are expected or required to watch the parade on TV live? What does it mean to those Chinese who cannot go back to their homeland because they have criticized the dictatorship of China Communist Party? Finally, what does it mean to people outside the country and the future world order?


I may continue to put out my questions, but the significant work is to find answers to them. I have faith in truth and history, as many do. History and truth could be hidden intentionally for some time, but for long time. The day when Chinese people have access to the true records about what happened in their lands in 1949 - 2009, I believe, is the time to give the solutions to the questions that I mentioned in previous part. That day, the lost history will come home.

By John Zhao

[Floopyswoky]

Good comments from everyone so far.

My biggest problem is the arms sales, but its a very sticky problem. People have the right to self-defense. Trouble is that it too often gets twisted into an out and out attack that has nothing to do with self-defense.

The rest of the world should definitely be keeping an eye on the situation and having talks to ensure that it all goes down as fairly as possible. But to just jump Chinas #T for dealing with Africa? Two-faced.

Well as the title says, why is everyone jumping off the bandwagon after a mediocre performance in Japan, think about it they just knocked everyone at the World Championships...and oh my gosh they just won 2 events at the Japan open and everyone is all concerned or something. So please tell me why ?