The following post by journalist Xiong Peiyun (熊培云) on China’s demand for an apology from the U.S. over the Cheng Guangcheng affair was deleted from Sina Weibo sometime before 6:02am Hong Kong time today, May 3, 2012. Xiong Peiyun currently has more than 181,000 followers, according to numbers from Sina Weibo. [More on deleted posts at the WeiboScope Search, by the Journalism and Media Studies Centre].

How can you not be ashamed that a dignified citizen must flee inside his own country? You must live up to the sun that shines every day across this land. Sixty years [of CCP rule], and what this country needs is to settle its soul. What it needs is a set of core values the people of the nation can be proud of. What this country needs is its own way [and principles], not an apology from another country. I’ve heard the saying, “A just cause deserves abundant support, and an unjust cause must find little support” (得道多助,失道寡助). But I’ve never heard the saying, “An apology deserves abundant support, and no apology must find little support” (得道歉多助,失道歉寡助).

Xiong Peiyun’s original Chinese post follows. Readers may note that in his final line Xiong is playing on the popular saying by replacing “way/principles/morals”, or dao, with “apology”, or daoqian (道歉):

你怎能不羞愧于一个堂堂正正的公民在自己的国家逃亡?你要对得住太阳每天还在照着这片土地。六十余年了,这个国家需要安顿自己的灵魂,需要有让本国国民引以为傲的价值观,这个国家最需要的是自己的道,而不是他国的道歉。我听过“得道多助,失道寡助”的,没听过“得道歉多助,失道歉寡助”的。


NOTE: All posts to The Anti-Social List are listed as “permission denied” in the Sina Weibo API, which means they were deleted by Weibo managers, not by users themselves.


David Bandurski

CMP Director

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