On January 5, Epoch Times columnist Zhang Tianliang published an article entitled " The Nine Commentaries Prepares China's Transition Government." In the article, he illustrates that the goals behind the Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party and the "Resigning From the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)" campaign are not simply the dissolution of the CCP but also to foster a proactive and constructive attitude for China's future, since these movements approach the current situation with the philosophy of "keeping the good while eliminating the bad." The spread of the desire for justice stemming from the campaigns of "Resign from the CCP" and the Nine Commentaries is giving rise a transition government for China's "post-CCP era." In response to requests form our readers, The Epoch Times interviewed Mr. Zhang Tianliang.
Epoch Times: Could you please talk about the background of and your reasons for writing this article?
Zhang: In December 2005, I came into contact with some politicians in the U.S. political circles. They have gained substantial knowledge of the vile and despicable nature of the Chinese Communist regime; however, their minds are filled with concern and apprehension about the possibility of social unrest if a transition happens in China. We must point out that these concerns and apprehensions are purposely fabricated by the Chinese Communist regime to mislead the Chinese people as well as foreign governments.
Many people hold the misconception that all Western democratic countries are to some degree anti-China forces that wish China to become as chaotic as possible. This understanding is by all means wrong. With the rapid pace of globalization nowadays, were China to be in turmoil, it might adversely affect the world as a whole. It could have an extreme negative impact the economies of both the U.S. and Europe. Nowadays, many western politicians know that the Chinese Communist regime is bad, but they have the incorrect notion that we need to prepare an organization, such as an opposition party, to replace the CCP before we can transform China into a free and democratic country; however, should that fail, we may have to let the CCP gradually develop democracy on its own.
I believe that if people thoroughly read the Nine Commentaries , they may find that the CCP cannot be improved. It will have to be discarded and purged by its own people. It cannot be mended because the historical sins committed by the CCP are so immense that no one could ever forgive them. However, as we are know, whenever an opposition group emerges, it will be forcibly suppressed by the Chinese Communist regime. The CCP calls this "Nipping unstable elements in the bud." In other words, it is absolutely impossible that the Western world will see a mature opposition party coexisting with the CCP.
At this point, Western thinking has proved to be ineffective. My purpose of writing this article is to come up with a new way of thinking about China and the CCP. While the Nine Commentaries is dissolving the CCP, a new group with conscience, rationality, visions and courage is created at the same time. This group will become a new force that brings stability to the Chinese society, and the transition government will thus be composed of members of this group. This is the constructive aspect of the Nine Commentaries in regards to China.
ET Do you mean that the Western countries' foremost anxiety is how China can be ruled peacefully in the wake of the dissolution of the CCP?
Zhang: Yes. Of course, the meaning of the Nine Commentaries is not simply limited to what I have just mentioned. In the future, people will discover that the Nine Commentaries has given them a wealth of things. .
In addition to recovering the truth of history, the Nine Commentaries is achieving a peaceful transformation of Chinese society by awakening people's moral awareness, opening up a door for the reconciliation of the Chinese society in the future and preparing for China's transitional government. Another important purpose I did not mention in my article, but which was indicated in the preface to the Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party is that "by understanding the true history of the CCP, we can help prevent such tragedies from ever recurring."
Today, it would be unlikely for Nazism to revive in Germany, as people have looked back and recognized Nazism's sinful and malicious past. With the Nine Commentaries , this evil CCP sect will never resurge after its dissolution. The effects and results of this are, therefore, immeasurable.
The CCP will carry on its tortures upon the Chinese people as long as it exists. As we have seen, since the first day it usurped political power, various movements have been launched one after another. Currently, it is running the so-called "Maintaining the Advanced Nature of the CCP" campaign. Another unchangeable characteristic of the CCP is its murderous nature. Therefore, after the CCP's dissolution, there will be a very good chance that China will enjoy a peaceful rule.
ET Then, could we say that the article was written for those with the ambition to participate in government and state construction after the CCP dissolves? Could you cite some specific examples?
Zhang: It isn't absolutely for this purpose. My main purpose is to enable people to better understand the constructive elements of the Nine Commentaries , one of which is to "prepare China's transitional government."
"The preparation of China's transitional government" is also an indispensable step prior to the "peaceful transition." What matters is "peace" during the transition period and "reconciliation" after the transition. Of course, there are deeper meanings. It's hard to briefly state them in several sentences. Perhaps I still need to write another article to explain the deeper meanings.
I have been exposing the CCP's criminal behavior. However, as far as individual communist party members are concerned, many of them are not evil. They are forced by the CCP to commit wrongdoings. Take Zhu Rongji, Hu Jintao and Yu Jianxing as examples. How much did they wish to crack down on Falun Gong? They opposed the crackdown at the beginning. Even now, they do not necessarily agree with the crackdown. Under the CCP's evil control mechanism, they were forced to obey Jiang Zemin's dictatorship. Nowadays, for the existence of the communist party, they dare not stop the detestable persecution. This is to "subject humanity to party nature," which led to many tragedies in the CCP's history.
Then, after the collapse of the CCP, many of the communist party members currently holding official positions will be freed from the bondage of the "party nature." Perhaps they will be able to contribute their personal viewpoints to or jointly manage the future government. Perhaps they will still be the people taking charge of the government after the CCP dissolves, surely, on the premise that they have to proactively defect from the CCP; that is, they have to publicly state their defection. Otherwise, the citizens would never trust them.
Currently, we see the emergence of many pioneering defectors, who have thus developed a budding reputation among the public. If they have the ambitions to participate in the management of the new government in the future, their established reputation will be the legal basis on which they exercise their political power. I would not cite specific examples. They still live under the CCP's dictatorship. If I list any of them, that individual will live under overwhelming pressure.
ET: In your article, you emphasize that the communist party members should read the Nine Commentaries from the viewpoints of those who are "outside of the party." In your opinion, if they read the book from the viewpoints of a party member, they will find it hard to understand the true meanings of the Nine Commentaries ?
Zhang: It's never easy, particularly for the CCP's high-ranking officials. Their minds are wholly occupied by the thoughts of how to intensify the CCP's political power and then to maintain their own power. The Nine Commentaries would not necessarily have a positive effect on this kind of person, no matter how many times he has read the book. He presumed that the Nine Commentaries is to shake the foundation of his power and interest. Consequently, he opposes it. He did not see that the Nine Commentaries is saving him. I would like to cite an extreme example.
If Ceausescu, the former dictator of the Romanian communist party, had declared a desire to dissolve the Romanian communist party, he would have become another world-famous man like Mikhail Gorbachev. But he killed people for the sake of bolstering his power. He ended up being sent to the execution ground by his own people. This is the difference between the choice to defect from the evil cult and the choice to uphold the evil cult. The purpose of the Nine Commentaries is to save people. Here I would not elaborate on this point. I just cited the well-known case as an example.
I hope that communist party members, particularly China's high-ranking officials like Hu Jintao, can attentively read the CCP withdrawal statements published by The Epoch Times . If there really is a "final judgment," as proclaimed by Christianity, God would never spare the communist party, which has committed so many monstrous crimes. The CCP's wicked crimes will bring disastrous impact to the party members who refuse to defect. As a result, it is for their own good that we are calling on them to defect from the CCP.
To safeguard its own sovereignty, the CCP has instilled many morally twisted concepts within its citizens. These twisted concepts are repeated again and again, and they have become part of the party's culture. Eventually, even the CCP's leaders believe them. Those who are unwilling to give up these twisted concepts will defend the CCP upon reading the Nine Commentaries . These concepts will form barriers hindering their understanding of the book.
ET: Could you provide a simple example that shows how the thought patterns of such a culture could block some people from seeing the inner meanings of the Nine Commentaries ?
Zhang: There are endless examples. Later on, I will write a series of articles to discuss this issue. A quick example would be the thinking behind scrutinizing the CCP's good and bad elements. Some people would say, "The CCP has committed numerous crimes but has it not done some good things as well?
On the surface, this statement appears to be fair and objective but in fact it is "false dialectics." Part Four of Nine Commentarieson the Communist Party points out that the CCP is against the forces of the universe and that its evilness surpasses the principle of mutual-generation and mutual-inhibition, which means it also surpasses dialectics. With this kind of evil, we cannot look at things both ways. For example, a murderer could argue on the day of his sentencing in court about the good deeds that he has done. He could say, "Even though I have killed many people, I have in the past helped my teacher clean the blackboard and an old man carry his water pails." You would think that his arguments were ridiculous. Once a capital crime has been committed, everything else becomes insignificant.
Those who are using "false dialectics" to argue for the CCP should free themselves from this type of thinking, which was itself instilled by the CCP.
ET: Since the world knows that you are a Falun Gong practitioner, a few readers may speculate that your article signals the Falun Gong group entering the political arena. Could you talk about this issue?
Zhang: What I believe in is my own personal freedom. As a member of society, I also have the right to express my own opinions. I can only represent myself. Even though I write columns for The Epoch Times , I still do not represent The Epoch Times , and certainly not Falun Gong. Falun Gong has its own series of books that were written by Mr. Li Hongzhi. There is a Falun Gong website called Minghui.org which disseminate news and express opinions. If anyone wants to read about Falun Gong opinions, then they should visit the website. Falun Gong has its own spokespersons, such as Mr. Zhang Erping. I am not a spokesperson for Falun Gong.
All the articles I have written for The Epoch Times were written of my own volition. But one thing is certain and that is Falun Gong does not get involved with politics. Mr. Li Hongzhi has stated this repeatedly.
I am not sure how others are interpreting the article, " Nine Commentaries Prepares China's Transition Government." At the end of the article, it is mentioned that Falun Gong does not get involved with politics or seek power. So regarding those who say my article signals Falun Gong entering the political arena, I would say that they have not truly read Mr. Li Hongzhi's books nor have they truly read my article.
ET Lately, news about the establishment of a People's Party appeared on the Internet and it stated, "By joining the People's Party, one automatically resigns from the CCP and its affiliated organizations, including the Communist Youth League and Communist Young Pioneers." It also states, "During this period when the CCP is in power, the People's Party does not require registrations." So, to join the People's Party, one only needs to read its regulations and agree with them. What are your thoughts on this?
Zhang: I think this is very odd. It is just too strange for a Party to be established with no administration, no founder, no contact information, and no member registrations. Just by reading the regulations and agreeing with them, one can become a Party member. Then by reading a few more sentences, one can quit the Party. A Party member with no rights and no obligations, isn't that just too simple?
If I were to establish a "Blue Sky" Party, then anyone who agrees that the sky is blue can be a member of my Party. What would be the meaning of it? It would be the same as the Party being nonexistent.
I think the effort that The Epoch Times has made to promote people quitting the CCP is bringing together the righteous forces. The Chinese communists would be the happiest to see any disturbance that reduces the number of people denouncing the party. If someone founded a new party and assisted people in denouncing the CCP and its related organizations, we would also appreciate it. This is a good thing that needs support. However, they need to inform The Epoch Times of the number of people who quit the CCP, as The Epoch Times website has become the site tracking the number of Party withdrawals. The collapse of the CCP is a good thing for everyone. We should reach a common understanding in this aspect and work together.
ET: Following what you've said brings up a question. There are many people in the past that died for the CCP. This bloody history gives people an entrenched impression and hatred, so they think Falun Gong practitioners are no different than the old CCP members who also worked hard for their faith. As a Falun Gong practitioner, what is your thought about this kind of opinion?
Zhang: This kind of thinking is very unusual. Many Chinese communist spies know we all hate the party. They intentionally blame the CCP to get people's agreement. With this manipulated consensus, they describe Falun Gong as being the same as the CCP to make people hate Falun Gong. In fact, they are helping the CCP by blaming it.
Falun Gong practitioners have never been "radical". Though they are very adamant in their belief, they behave very rationally and peacefully. Have you seen a Falun Gong anti-persecution parade? I've attended many parades, especially during the annual anniversary of the persecution held in Washington, D.C. on July 20. They don't even chant slogans. They just walk quietly holding banners and the pictures of their friends who were persecuted to death. Are they radical? Only the CCP promulgates "the hot blood in the body is on fire" at every turn.
Si Maqian [1] once said, "no one can avoid death, which could either be heavier than Mount Tai or lighter than a feather." Though "death" is the same, the implication is different. In history when the orthodox religions were persecuted, for instance, Christians were persecuted in Rome and Buddhist devotees were persecuted by "Three Wus and One Zong"[2], the followers all held on to their beliefs without being afraid of sacrificing their lives. In this sense, the way Falun Gong practitioners demonstrate is in common with the followers of the orthodox religions.
Falun Gong requires a practitioner to be a good person. They would rather suffer torture and even lose their lives rather than give up their beliefs. Their way is so peaceful. Wouldn't it be good if more and more people could be like them?
There are some CCP members who are deceived and think themselves devoted to a high aspiration. But if they look at the fact that the CCP has killed 80 million Chinese people since it took power, I think it would be better for them not to hold that view.
ET: Thanks for accepting our interview.
Zhang: I've seen many people who are indifferent to the CCP's brutal persecution of Falun Gong practitioners. However, they pay much attention to whether Falun Gong is taking part in politics. In fact, everything we have done is just for ending the persecution as early as possible. Your interview will help us clarify some issues. So I thank you.
Notes:
[1] Si Maqian, an ancient Chinese historian during the Han Dynasty (135-87 BC).
[2] "Three Wus and One Zong" persecution of Buddhist devotees was done by four Chinese emperors who tried to extinguish Buddhism in order to have Taoism prevail.
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