Film and Video
In June 2010, scholars and activists Xu Zhiyong, Teng Biao, Wang Gongquan, Li Xiongbing, Li Fangping, Xu Youyu and Zhang Shihe (Tiger Temple) initiated the signing of the “Citizen's Pledge”, which called on Chinese citizens to “abide by principles of democracy, and the rule of law, safeguard the rights and livelihood of the people, and promote good governance”. On May 29, 2012, Dr. Xu Zhiyong, one of the founders of the pro-democracy movement “Open Constitution Initiative” (Gongmeng), published an article entitled “China's New Citizen Movement”, officially launching the <a href=“https://web.archive.org/web/20121226221847/http://biweekly.hrichina.org/article/1575”>“New Citizen Movement”</a>.
The goal of the New Citizens Movement is a free China governed by democracy and rule of law, a vibrant civil society, and a new national spirit of “freedom, justice, and love”. It aims to promote political and social transformation from authoritarianism to constitutionalism, and Chinese people will be treated as citizens, not subjects of the ruling class. Activities of the New Citizen Movement include advocating for equal rights in education, public disclosure of officials' properties, and organizing local citizen gatherings. (For more information on the New Citizens Movement, see the <a href=“https://cmcn.org/”>Chinese Citizens Movement </a>website. Organizers and participants in the New Citizens Movement have been subjected to repression and persecution.
On July 5, 2012, several hundred parents gathered at the Ministry of Education's Petitioning Office, displaying banners and chanting slogans demanding that the government protect migrant children’s right to education, before being stopped by police, who also beat them. As a result of this and other advocacy activities, New Citizens Movement organizers Xu Zhiyong, Zhao Changqing, and Ding Jiaxi were arrested in 2013 and charged with gathering a crowd to disrupt order in a public place, and their cases were heard for the first time at different levels of court in Beijing on January 22, 2014, on the eve of the Chinese New Year. All were sentenced to jail.
This documentary includes footage of the parents' protest in July 2012, and outside the courthouse at Xu Zhiyong's trial on January 22, 2014, as well as interviews with family members of the arrested activists, their lawyers, and academics, and supporters of the movement.On the day of his trial, hundreds of people showed up outside the courthouse in support, invoking Article 35 of the Constitution to point out that the case was an unfair trial that violated citizens' freedom of speech and expression.
In the film, Xu Zhiyong says in an interview that the New Citizens Movement wants to solve social issues through judicial processes, and that he believes it is important to take into account the perspectives of different stakeholders. Even with such a moderate stance, the authorities still harshly suppressed him and portrayed him as an enemy of the state. Scholar Guo Yuhua commented on the case : “If we wait for a ready-made civil society, there is none. Activism is to open up space where there is none, to create gaps where there are no gaps, and to expand it gradually.”
Article
Before carrying out the protest, Peng Lifai had published a strategic guide for strikes and boycotts on ResearchGate. This 20-chapter document, spanning 21 pages excluding the cover and table of contents, summarized Peng's personal political ideas and served as an explanation of his actions. Read English summary <a href="https://chinachange.org/2022/10/19/bridge-man-peng-zaizhous-mission-impossible-and-his-toolkit-for-the-removal-of-xi-jinping/">here</a>.
The first chapter, "Strategy for Protesting Against National Traitors," explains that the purpose of strikes and boycotts is to oppose Xi Jinping's unconstitutional re-election and to push China toward democracy, freedom, and prosperity. It also outlines the methods of protest, including decentralization in the early stages, organizing communities and universities into networks, and using information and non-violent means to spread the message rapidly. Proposed methods of protest include honking car horns, strikes, boycotts, hanging banners, distributing leaflets, burning tires, and setting up roadblocks.
In the second chapter, "Opposing Xi," Peng Lifai wrote a humorous poem.
The third chapter, "A Letter to Fellow Countrymen," enumerates the regressions in Chinese society under Xi Jinping's rule, drawing connections to China's history of power transitions, uprisings, and political changes. He criticizes the oppressive nature of the "zero-COVID" policy and calls for resistance from various groups, including soldiers, police, party members, the media, unemployed and bankrupt individuals, entrepreneurs, civil servants, university students, and intellectuals. Peng emphasizes the need for soldiers, police, armed police, and government officials to receive the protest message, hoping for leaders like General Cai E from the Republic of China era, who opposed Yuan Shikai’s imperial ambitions, to rise and help remove the dictator. He writes, "Fellow countrymen, we are the masters of the People's Republic of China. If we remain silent, we will all become slaves to the dictator. For the right to vote, for fairness and justice, for freedom and democracy, for ourselves and our future generations, let us embark on a new national defense movement."
The fourth chapter, "Long Live the Ballot Song," calls for national elections for people's representatives and officials. It includes a cartoon designed by Peng, turning a nucleic acid testing booth into a polling station, with the caption: "We’ve been pretending to vote for three years. Just place a ballot box at the testing site."
The fifth chapter, "Who Are We," lists China's marginalized groups, including migrant workers, lower-class citizens, flexible workers, unemployed graduates, education sector employees, low-income populations, small businesses, and left-behind children. It concludes with Peng’s statement: "We need to be our own masters. We don’t need to live in a cage."
Chapters six and seven discuss Peng’s vision for a Chinese Communist Party Free Election Committee and a National People’s Election Committee, along with the constitutional and party statute bases for these political concepts.
Chapter eight provides an explanation of the relationship between government, state, and citizens. Peng compares the relationship between citizens and the state/government to that of property owners and property management companies. He writes, "I do not owe gratitude to the property management company, because I am the owner who pays the property fee. I am its master, and it is my servant."
Subsequent chapters describe Peng’s vision for a new government and its key policy demands, including ending mandatory nucleic acid testing, implementing "Charter 08" (a manifesto supported by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Liu Xiaobo), reducing taxes, and reforming state-owned enterprises. He concludes by quoting imprisoned lawyer Xu Zhiyong’s "Letter to Xi Jinping," once again expressing opposition to Xi’s re-appointment as leader. In the copyright statement, he encourages readers to share the guide widely.