It’s a sign of the changes that are going on in China that the government, no matter how hard it tries, just can’t seem to stop people from protesting what they feel is wrong with the country. It’s become a major form of voicing discontent for labor issues and even taken on some rather strange forms, such as using popular dance to bring attention to the issue. Now, social protest is on the rise and people are letting their opinion be known on everything from the government monopoly of the media to the Tibet issue to misconduct by police forces. The latest, a city rises to object to a chemical plant being built near their homes.
In the city of Kunming, in southwestern China, hundreds of people came together to let the government know that they don’t want dangerous chemicals being processed near them. The chemical in question is paraxylene, a toxic substance used in the production of certain fabrics. This isn't the first anti-chemical protest either. A new awareness among the Chinese populace of environmental impacts and responsibility has prompted them to voice dissent on this subject numerous times. In some cases, this method has even worked, preventing or delaying construction of new plants.
Unfortunately, instead of seeing this as an opportunity to listen to their people, the Chinese government is still treating these protests poorly. Reports are that there were supposed to be more protests against the plant but police “dissuaded” people from taking part. There were accusations that the police prevented some at the Kunming protest from displaying their protest banners. The government also routinely requests that people do not take part in protests, though that would seem to defeat the purpose of being upset with the government. They even went so far as to have nearby schools schedule extra Saturday classes so that some would not be able to take part.
But this sort of open communication of upset citizens is growing and not likely to get less prolific simply because the government tries to step in the way. Barring all-out violence, protests will continue as normal. Billions of citizens want to be heard and this is one of their chief methods to do so. Some day, perhaps the Chinese government will take them seriously and begin to listen in earnest.
Chinese protest photo courtesy of 美国之音 任敬扬
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