democracy

The following is a translation of an open letter by 49 - or 65 - China scientists *), publicists and politicians in Germany. They refer to an initial open letter written by Chinese dissidents, by German authors et al which is the topic in my post of November 14.
Then follows a link to and a quote from a [...]

Chinese dissidents living in Germany wrote an open letter to Germany’s federal parliament, the Bundestag, on September 13. They complained about Germany’s international radio station Deutsche Welle (Voice of Germany) and its China coverage.
Their criticism targeted the station’s Chinese service and its then deputy department manager Zhang Danhong. Signed by a number of people from [...]

Taiwan is a divided society. That’s its core problem when dealing with China. Neither did president Chen Shui-bian find common ground for his more independent-minded approach, nor will president Ma Ying-jeou with his conciliatory approach towards Beijing.
If former chancellor Helmut Kohl had been arrested in 1999 because of the financial scandal of his party and his [...]

“I’ve looked recently at some of the research findings about attitudes to international affairs in America and Europe, and the thing which is most encouraging is the finding that the majority of Americans, even after the Iraq war, want Europe to play a larger part in sharing in world leadership. They even want that when [...]

About Barack Obama
I’ve been passionately interested since early in the primaries. I started writing about Senator Obama and supporting him, I guess, quite early. Partly because he is such an intelligent and cool cucumber. I thought the way he responded early on to the Pastor Wright affair was quite extraordinary. Normally what happens with politicians these [...]

Chinese students, store owners, and street cleaners reflect on Obama's win:

BEIJING (Reuters) - China welcomed Barack Obama as a youthful president-elect with the energy to tackle the financial crisis now threatening its economy and an ethnic heritage that could help America reach out to the rest of the world.

Excitement about the billion dollar race filtered down to the streets of Beijing on Wednesday, where ordinary Chinese citizens who have never voted themselves and some who could not even name the candidates embraced Obama's message of change.
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Evan Osnos gives an intriguing glimpse into a few Chinese lives during the American election:

Election night in America is a breakfast affair in Beijing, and it unfolds as most of China is commuting to work on Nov. 5th. This year, the American Embassy and the American Chamber of Commerce rented out a hotel ballroom so that Chinese and foreign guests could watch live results of what members of the China media had declared “The Decisive Battle between the Donkey and the Elephant.” ...
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China Beat collects some of the best writing they've found on China and the American election:

Chinese reactions to Obama's election range broadly, as exemplified in this morning's news coverage. Dominant themes include racial equality, financial security, a changing international profile for the U.S., and trade implications. [Please let us know if you find outstanding coverage elsewhere that you feel should be flagged--either by submitting a comment or by sending an email to thechinabeat@gmail.com.] ...
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Chinese reactions to Barack Obama's winning of the U.S. presidential race.
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Xujun Eberlein breaks down Chinese attitudes toward the US election:

Unlike the LA Times report that quotes some Chinese who brush off Obama’s words as rhetoric, the columnist at the Southern Metropolitan attributes the statements to Obama’s persistent protectionism, and dolefully predicts that, if his policy is to be realized, southern China’s unemployment rate would increase. Under the article, a couple of readers commented that McCain as the US president would be more beneficial for China than Obama. ...
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