Painting over the cracks
Is it me, or does the chairman appear to be rather in the pink lately? There seems to be a slightly rosier shade prettying up late leader Mao Zedong's countenance as he eyes Tiananmen Square from his portrait's lofty position atop the Gate of Heavenly Peace.
His facelift coincides with the release of the last of three protesters jailed for splashing paint over the very same portrait during the Tiananmen 'incident' in June 1989. Former newspaper editor Yu Dongyue is said by his family to have returned home physically well but mentally anything but, after 17 years' imprisonment and torture.
Mao is not alone in getting a makeover. The entire heart of the nation's capital is being spruced up, as thousands of delegates from around the country gather for this year's meetings of the National People's Congress and Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.
Red flags flap on every rooftop around the people's square and along Changan Avenue. The newspapers are full of stories about the topics that will be under discussion, noting that the delegates will really listen to the people. The English-language government mouthpiece, the China Daily, comments that, by law, deputies are 'elected by the people and represent the interests of the people'. This year's sessions will be important in 'uniting and arousing the people of all ethnicities and leading a sound beginning of the 11th national five-year plan period', it says.
One of the most eagerly awaited discussions is the so-called 'countryside' issue. It was flung into the spotlight yet again when the Ministry of Public Security said the number of protests nationwide last year rose 6.6 per cent from 2004, to exceed 87,000. Across the country, especially in rural areas, groups of aggrieved people have taken to the streets to protest against land seizures, corruption and taxes. One assumes their problems will be discussed by delegates, since they affect more than 900 million people.
It is encouraging that the Ministry of Public Security has admitted that the protests are a growing problem. And strong editorials in newspapers have championed the causes of victimised farmers and migrant workers.
But it seems that as soon as the true picture starts to emerge, another layer of paint is quickly slapped over the cracks. This time, Ouyang Song , deputy head of the party's Central Committee's Organisation Department, said: 'In our country, we have not heard of riots occurring in any place until now. Even mass incidents are not on the rise.'
People are waiting to see if the hyperbole promising helpful policies and a listening congress will actually turn into anything tangible. Or will it simply be another rosy paint job?
