July-August 2001

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China Detains Scholars With U.S. Ties

In April the U.S. State Department warned U.S.-based scholars born in China that visiting China could put them at risk of detention, especially if they have "engaged in activities or published writings critical of the Chinese government." The warning came in response to that government’s detention of several such scholars over the previous six months. "In some cases," the advisory read, "travel to Taiwan or involvement with Taiwan media organizations has apparently also been regarded as the equivalent of "espionage."

In February Gao Zhan, a Chinese-born faculty fellow at American University, was stopped at the airport in Beijing as she, her husband, and her five-year-old son prepared to board a plane to return home from a family vacation. They were held in separate locations for twenty-six days, after which Gao’s husband and son were released. Gao was subsequently charged with espionage and remains in custody. A sociologist, she studies Chinese students, especially women, who return to China after a period abroad. The group Human Rights in China reported in May that Gao was being denied access to her attorneys.

Two weeks after Gao’s detention, Li Shaomin, a U.S. citizen and professor of business at the City University of Hong Kong, was arrested while visiting elsewhere in China. Li, like Gao, is a sociologist; his work focuses on China’s privatizing economy and the use and effects of advertising in China. He, too, has been charged with espionage. Among others reported to be in custody are Wu Jianmin, a freelance journalist and U.S. citizen, and Tan Guangguang, formerly a visiting scholar at Stanford University.

Since April, more than seven hundred China studies scholars from around the world have signed an open letter to China’s president, Jiang Zemin, appealing for the release of their colleagues. "It is . . . with dismay that we view the deterioration of the climate for academic exchange and research, as demonstrated by the detention of scholars who have returned to China merely to conduct research and engage in other normal scholarly activities," the petition reads. "A vibrant civil society and the free exchange of views and ideas are essential for any healthy society. . . . We therefore respectfully urge your government to indicate its commitment to protecting and promoting academic freedom in China." In May a hundred academics based in Hong Kong called in a separate letter for the release of the detained scholars.

Song Yongyi, a librarian at Dickinson College who was himself detained in China for several months in 1999, says that internal power struggles among the leadership in China and rising tension between the U.S. and Chinese governments are probably partly responsible for the crackdown on researchers. Song, who studies the Chinese Cultural Revolution, explains that the Chinese Communist Party’s longstanding tradition of antiintellectualism has contributed to a pattern of victimizing scholars in troubled times.

He says events leading to his own release show the difference members of the academic community can make by acting collectively. Letters and appeals from colleagues worldwide, including the AAUP, were crucial in persuading the Chinese government to let him go, he believes. Song has solicited support from ethnic Chinese scholars for the open letter to China’s president.

Merle Goldman, professor of Chinese history at Boston University and a signatory to the letter, agrees that it is important for scholars to come to one another’s aid. If current efforts fail to secure the release of the detained scholars, Goldman recommends widening the appeal beyond China studies. She says that although the Chinese may not be keen to have certain subjects researched, "they are anxious to keep academic contacts open with the West, especially in the sciences."