ABSTRACT
This chapter explains how the government has acted against both the letter and spirit of its constitution: by arresting some leaders of the movement, by banning the movement and by declaring it an evil cult. In China, there is no real vehicle of expression for the people to communicate with their leaders, since ballot boxes do not count. The only means of mass protest is petition of the government. And yet, mass petitions become the basis for mass suppression. Herein lies the tragedy of the Tiananmen incident and of the Zhongnanhai incident. The press suggests that the communist government was completely surprised by the Zhongnanhai demonstrations, a surprise that led to fear, animosity, and suppression. The overseas Chinese language press has suggested that the Zhongnanhai demonstrations were actually organized in part by the government, to help trump up charges against the author, which it had observed and monitored for years through its infiltrators.
