Censoring Bush’s Speech Shows China’s Weakness

The decision to cut out half of President Bush’s speech at Qinghua University in Beijing was not likely decided by the management in the New China News Agency (“China Censors Bush Speech in Print,” Feb. 23). The order must have come down from the top. Chinese authorities know quite well that the printed media are the most popular mass media in China. They are fully aware of the consequence of allowing the People’s Daily, with 14 million circulation, to report Bush’s message extolling America’s civic spirit and its status as a beacon of hope for people around the world. To the leaders of Communist China, poorly informed citizens are easy prey for demagogues and tyrants. The Chinese leadership intends for people to live with the “China village syndrome” so it can fuel unabashed nationalism to prop up its regime.

The censorship of Bush’s speech is a good indication that Chinese authorities lack the capacity to adjust to external changes. It seems that the Communist totalitarian regime in China, as efficient and successful as it may seem on the surface, is really as brittle as a dead tree in a hurricane.

Wencheng Lin

Hacienda Heights