Ik heb geen vijanden, ik ken geen haat

by Xiaobo Liu, Machteld van Dijke (Translator)

Deze teksten symboliseren Liu Xiaobo’s lange en vreedzame strijd voor fundamentele mensenrechten in China, waarvoor hem in 2010 de Nobelprijs voor de Vrede werd toegekend. Zijn politieke essays komen aan bod, maar ook beschouwingen over de Chinese cultuur, een verzameling gedichten en het gerechtelijk proces dat voorafging aan zijn gevangenschap. Voor het eerst is de tekst van Charta 08 vertaald naar het Nederlands, het manifest voor democratisering in China en de reden waarom Liu veroordeeld werd tot zijn gevangenisstraf, die hij tot 2020 moet uitzitten.

Genres: China, Poetry, Politics, Nonfiction, Essays, Asia, Philosophy

412 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2011

About the author

Liu was born in Changchun, Jilin, in 1955 to an intellectual family. In 1977, Liu was admitted to the Department of Chinese Literature at Jilin University, where he created a poetry group known as "The Babies' Hearts" (Chi Zi Xin) with six schoolmates. He graduated with a B.A. in 1982, went on to study for an M.A. and a PhD degree from Beijing Normal University.
He became a teacher, literary critic, writer, professor, and human rights activist who called for political reforms which led to his imprisonment in the people's republic of China. In 2010 he received Nobel Peace Prize.
(Note: It is correct to give his name as "Liu Xiaobo", as this is the proper Chinese name sequence. However, Liu is the family name and Xiaobo the given name. As Goodreads always assumes the family name to be the one after the last space character, the sequence should be turned to "Xiaobo Liu" to make sure the name is parsed and sorted correctly by Goodreads.)

Reviews

[Tony Daniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Magnificent from start to finish. This is the summation of a life devoted to democracy, human rights, and freedom of speech. Every word Liu writes resonates with my deepest beliefs. Whether Liu is talking about democracy or the latest trends in Chinese fiction, the thought is clear, insightful, and sympathetic. This is the kind of book you ought to have laying around the house to dip into occasionally, like the Bible or Walden. Liu’s Charter 08 is one of the best statement of democratic principles of government I have ever read. It’s almost flawless, and Liu could be channeling Thomas Jefferson both in content and stylistic ability. Liu's poems to his wife are equally engaging on a human level, and contain some stark and terrible images to illustrate his feelings of separation from her while he was imprisoned. I read this in translation, of course, but I can only imagine how beautiful and clear the Chinese must be to have produced such an excellent English version. Liu is currently serving an eleven year sentence in a Chinese prison as a political prisoner. He was three times previously imprisoned or detained for lengthy periods. His sentence is set to be done on June 21, 2020. May the Chinese state wither away and die by that time, and Liu emerge into democracy and freedom.

[Xue · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have not finished the entire book yet, but the essays/poems so far have touched me deeply. Liu Xiaobo's writing came through very beautifully, strongly....i can almost not believe that they are translations. This book is a masterpiece - lets the reader see the real China's problems from a real Chinese perspective. As a Chinese, I am sometimes wary of the West's effort to paint a one-sided picture of China...but this book did not give me the feeling that the selection of essays were catered toward a certain ideological camp. Highly recommended.

[Diocletian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Before finding this book at the library, I had no idea who Liu Xiaobo was. I found it in the Asian poetry section. While not entirely incorrect, it probably would fit in better in an Asian politics or history section.

No Enemies, No Hatred is a collection of essays, poems, articles, and other documents written by, or relating to Liu. The vast majority of the book consists of his essays and articles, followed by the documents, with the poems spread between the three.

This is an excellent book. It provides a very good selection of writings from a very interesting Chinese intellectual. Liu is extremely heavy-handed and critical of both his culture and nation, and does not hesitate to relentlessly criticize China or to adopt views controversial both in China and the US.

Liu hopes to achieve significant chance in China. He not only wants the government to chance, but he wants the mentality of the Chinese people to change as well. He believes that the only way to do this is from the bottom up, as in the May Fourth Movement, rather than the top down, as Mao's many political suppression campaigns tried to do.

One of the most interesting and controversial of Liu's views is that Chinese society (as well as other societies) must stop looking to the past to fix the world's future. Pseudo-Eastern religions and philosophies are experiencing a surge in popularity in the West today. I have always been a little annoyed by their popularity; not because I disliked them (I actually really like many aspects of them), but because I felt like they are watered-down corruptions of what they should be. Liu raises another interesting point though. Considering the state of both historical and modern day China, and the way that the ancient philosophies and religions have failed to create a prosperous society in the past, why should we turn to them again to fix things? The Chinese, and humanity as a whole, must create new systems to fit our new society, rather than turn to old, outdated ones. Liu does not have a problem with people using these philosophies to help themselves personally (Liu himself sometimes references both ancient Chinese and Christian thought), but only when they are applied to society as a whole.

Given Liu's harsh attacks on practically every aspect of both modern and historical China, people may think that he is a Western obsessed, self-hating, pessimistic individual. Not at all. He thinks that there are massive problems with Western society as well Chinese, but that comparatively, the living standards of the Western world are better. He does not hate anyone; he has “no hatred.” He just wants to see a China that is free, equal, and allows for prosperity, which is far from what exists now. And despite all of this seeming negativity, he ultimately has a positive viewpoint that inspires him. He believes things will eventually improve, and that he will live to see the day that the Chinese people will be free from the authoritarian and corrupt Communist regime.

I really liked this book. It was very enlightening. Modern day China has a lot of problems. Pollution, corruption, suppression of free speech, are just some of them. But if more people like Liu Xiaobo rise up and question the single-party Communist autocracy, the faster things might change.

[Cecilia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Please join www.facebook.com/free.liu to work together and lobby for Liu Xiaobo's release! Thank you. It is a ridiculous situation that the 1st Chinese Nobel Peace laureate should be treated in such an atrocious way by the communist dictatorship. :( (CC)

[HoardingDragon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Napakowana informacjami książka, która z wewnętrznej perspektywy pokazuje problem społeczeństwa Chin, nie omijając tematów filozoficznych. Świetna robota redakcji, która zagwarantowała obszerne wyjaśnienie ważnych postaci czy wydarzeń potrzebnych do kontekstu każdego z tekstów.

[T J · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series of essays and poems has changed the way I think about China. Liu is a humble thinker and writer who criticizes himself for admiring Western freedom too much, and focusing too much on the needs of the Chinese people. He wishes he were more than a Chinese public intellectual. He wanted to be a human public intellectual. I think this text is evidence that he is who he wanted to be. As I was reading I told a friend, "He's like Nelson Mandela and Camus in one." The political orientation of this thinking is revolutionary, and his sentences are beautiful--even in translation. His writing has taught me that China has a history of free speech going back thousands of years, and I want to find the source of the Chinese saying he references in the essay, "My Self-Defense," which is, actually, his self-defense from the final trial that resulted in his life sentence: "Say all you know, in every detail; a speaker is blameless, because listeners can think; if the words are true, make your corrections; if they are not, just take note." I've set a goal of learning the Chinese language as well as I can, so that when I find this saying in it's original form I might be able to understand it.

[Ligeia · Rating 4 out of 5]

ILLUMINANTE


i cinesi non sono tutti rassegnati al regime che ha soffocato nel sangue la loro richiesta di democrazia,
Lui Xiaobo è un lucido analista della situazione cinese e un teorico colto del processo di cambiamento che parte dal basso,
"quando si comincia a ridere di un regime, i suoi giorni sono contati"
e si ride anche quando ci parla apertamente di quello che pensa di alcuni famosi scrittori cinesi...
imprescindibile per conoscere il pensiero dei cinesi che non si son rassegnati e che lottano ogni giorno per vedere un futuro degno della loro dedizione al lavoro e della loro infaticabile capacità di cadere in piedi
peccato che ancora non riescano ad alzarsi del tutto
il partito, che un secolo fa gli ha dato uno stato, adesso soffoca ogni afflato di libertà mantenendo una delle nazioni più industriose del mondo in uno stato di soffocamento e arretratezza da fare rimpiangere l'imperatore...

[Larry Kunz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent insights into the social and political realities of modern China. These essays and poems from Liu Xiaobo, the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize winner who wasn't allowed to accept his award, provide a rich sampling of his pragmatic, deeply held views. I had no trouble grasping the references to Chinese history and culture, even though my knowledge of them is far from extensive, because the translators included brief explanations where needed. Although Liu employs a very direct writing style and displays flashes of wit, this isn't light reading. I recommend it highly, nevertheless, for anyone who wants better insight into modern China.

[Jason Lundberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection contains some of the most powerful, compelling, and brave political writing I have ever read. Liu's tenacity and determination to the cause of human rights in China is awe-inspiring. Anyone who wants a clear picture of the culture and politics of China's Communist Party, and its brutal commitment to its stranglehold on power, would be well-advised to read these essays. Liu's poetry in this volume serve as both counterpoint and palate cleanser, and lend an enduring sense of humanity to this remarkable man.

[Michael Flick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enemies and contempt galore. Pretty much a middle-school civics lesson--which China desperately needs, unfortunately. A regime that views words as crimes only displays its fragility.

[Joe · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's one thing to write critical essays about culture and government, with courage to speak the truth without restraint, and to do so with uncompromising integrity. It is quite another feat to do so in China, and to continue undeterred in spite of being imprisoned several times. After reading several of the essays in this book, keeping in mind the political context in which Liu Xiaobo has written them was an inspiring experience for me. He is certainly one of those rare human beings who will not be silenced. A must read in my opinion.

[H]

BELLICOSE AND THUGGISH: The Roots of Chinese "Patriotism" at the Dawn of the Twenty-First Century (2002)

The "great rejection" idea is upside-down theory in the sense that it begins with a neat formula and then fills in facts to suit it. It says: in politics, reject Western "political hegemony" and oppose "peaceful evolution" in a pro-West direction. In military affairs, prepare for confrontation with American "military hegemony," an call for a multipolar international order. In economics, prevent "capital hegemony" from controlling China, and retain our people's economy as the indisputable top priority. In the cultural realm, prevent "Western discursive hegemony," which is also "cultural colonialism," and advocate the indigenization of scholarship. (81)

Western rules and standards are everywhere. In the view of the hegemony theorists, the "system hegemony" (81) of the West is unfair. It did not come about because Western culture and Western systems are superior to others or because they are intrinsically more "universal." It came about because the West has been economically, technologically, and militarily more powerful. Material differences, not value differences, put it where it is. (82)

In recent world history, the worship of violence has always found convenient pretexts: during the Second World War, the efficiency of Fascism was the rationale; during the Cold War, it was the Communist ideal of one-world harmony; and now, for China, it is ultra-nationalism. (83)

-

EPILOGUE TO Chinese Politics and China's Modern Intellectuals (1989)

I might point out that the West's overriding emphasis on rationality, science, and money has resulted in the loss of individuality and in a commercial[ization that overwhelms all resistance; I might also criticize the economic stratification that technological itnegration has brought about, and I can repudiate the ways in whichc onsumer culture has inured humanity to an unquestioning addiction to affluence and a cowardly fear of freedom. (122)

How can people who lack a sense of "original sin" ever hear the voice of God? From the early Middle Ages, when God was a being of reason, to the late Middle Ages, when God was a figure of power, to modern times, when God became even more profoundly subjected to reason, and finally to today's world, where God has gradually become secularized, human civilization has been in descent. By its own hand, humanity in the West has killed the sacred values of its heart. (123)

My wife [first wife, Tao Li] once wrote to me in a letter:
Xiaobo, on the surface you seem to be a rebel within this society, but in fact you have a deep identification with it. The system treats you as an opponent, and in so doing it accommodates you, tolerates you, even flatters and encourages you. In a sense you are an oppositional ornament of the system. But me? I'm an invisible person; I disdain eve nto demand anything of this society, and don't lose sleep over how I am going to denounce it. It is I, not you, who am fundamentally incompatible with it. Even you cannot comprehend my profound indifference. Not even you can accommodate me. (124)

-

THE EROTIC CARNIVAL IN RECENT CHINESE HISTORY (2004)

Especially stunning is the fact that cultured people--literary people--can view this kind of blatant "sex banquet" as a form of high culture. They quote the poetic line "With bodies warm and stomachs full, thoughts next turn to sex" and cite the Chinese sex craze as evidence that ths society is achieving middle-class prosperity. (165)

The roots of this cynicism and moral vacuity must be traced to the Mao era. It was then (an era that "leftist" nostalgia today presents as one of moral purity) that the nation's spirit suffered its worst devastation. During the Cultural revolution people "handed their reddest hearts to Chairman Mao." Why, after doing that, would one still need one's own spirit? (170)

-

FROM WANG SHUO'S WICKED SATIRE TO HU GE'S EGAO: Political Humor in a Post-Totalitarian Dictatorship (2006)

There is some truth in this. Egao in post-totalitarian Chian is a symptom of spiritual hunger and intellectual poverty at the same time. It can be seen as a kind of psychosomaticc drug, something that works hand-in-hand with the vacuous comedy shows that the official media present, except that it can be even more effective than those in its power to anesthetize. People can get drunk laughing at one political joke after another that tells about suffering, corruption, and unhappiness. Jokes on such topics can become mere commodities to enjoy--as in "That's a good one!" One could even say that the laughter egao induces is a heartless kind, soemthing that buries people's senses of justice and their normal human sympathies. (184)

When "carnival" comes along, according to Bakhtin, the people at the grassroots, accustomed to their place at the receiving end of scoldings, suddenly become "fearless." They produce a spontaneous logical inversion of the base and the noble, of up and down. They use parody, mockery, ridicule, and insolence--sarcasm of several forms--to vent their sentiments, but these are not (185) simply negative sentiments aimed at knocking something down. Satire of what is wrong implies that something else is right; it tears things down for the sake of rebirth. (186)

-

JUNE 2 HUNGER STRIKE DECLARATION (1989)

[Our Basic Watchwords]
1. We have no enemies. We must not let hatred or violence poison our thinking or the progress of democratization in China.
2. We must reflect on our ways. China's backwardness is everyone's responsibility.
3. We are citizens before we are anything else.
4. We are not seeking death. We are seeking to live true lives.
(282)

-

USING TRUTH TO UNDERMINE A SYSTEM BUILT ON LIES: Statement of Thanks in Accepting the Outstanding Democracy Activist Award (of SF, in 2003)

We can even say that what the autocrats at the top fear most is not violent uprisings, which they can put down (so long as these are not too large, and we should be wary of wishing for full-scale violent revolution, which might only bring a new dictatorship); their worst nightmare is a situation in which every person, beginning with intellectuals and the other notables who speak in public, is able to ignore material inducements and begins to refuse to utter lies. Even to say nothing, even just to remain silent, would be enough, so long as no lies are repeated and everyone agrees to stop living off the telling of lies. The system would choke. (296)

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

很多文章翻的一般，尚方宝剑能翻译成magic wand 真是鬼扯，好歹用个sword of state 之类的...
刘老师写的很刻骨,不过高知写的东西总有些难解。
越读越emo艹 最后我们还是输了

[Mads · Rating 4 out of 5]

I finally finished this book and I am very grateful that I did. I first heard of Liu Xiaobo (who sadly passed away earlier this month) in a documentary about Ai Weiwei, artist. Ai looked to Liu as a light for Chinese thinkers and resisters and viewed him as a leader and influential intellectual. Subsequently, I found myself down an internet rabbit hole about Liu and his writings and found this exquisite book.

As with any translated work, there is some room for error in meaning and judgment. However, the editors do a good job of collecting essays that maintain a consistent voice, despite being translated by different people at different times. Here Liu's essays encompass all parts of Chinese life, from the political situations in Hong Kong and Tibet to the 2008 Olympic Games, from the Tiananmen Mothers to the rise of internet in China and the West. This collection provides a unique look at China without the Party filter. Liu is calm and gracious, yet still firm about his goals: free speech, free press, human rights, health care, the gradual fall of one-party politics. He is the first to admit when he's pressed too angrily or too arrogantly for democracy at the expense of others and he maintains a humble attitude throughout.

As a Westerner with little to no real understanding of Chinese life, I found myself wishing I'd read the book from back to front; that is, the fourth section first, then the third section, and so on. The essays towards the end give a better overview of Chinese life and history which is helpful for understanding the earlier essays. The poetry is exquisite if heartbreaking and one can feel the love and agony Liu feels for his country. He believes very strongly in liberal democracy but believes even more China's resilience. Liu writes to a friend, "...the only way to live in dignity, inside this depraved society that we inhabit, is to resist." He believes in the dignity of resistance.

I highly recommend this book to anyone wishing to better understand modern China, the relationships between East and West, and the basic building blocks of liberal democracy.

[Celeste · Rating 5 out of 5]

Picking this up was refreshing. When I moved to China I was determined to see beyond all its labels and how it was traditionally portrayed in the biased, mainstream media. But in the process of doing so I had fetishised China’s economic progress, forgetting that China was that and also all those things you read about freedoms in popular media, and the existence of one did not preclude the other.
As Liu observes: “[Our sentiment] fits with the moral rot and political gangsterism that heard of hypocrisy have generated, and it diverts the taste for freedom into a politically innocuous direction.”

I did not manage to finish the whole book but the selection of essays hit me from the very first mention of Tiananmen. Not before long I was sending different friends different excerpts from the book; from pop culture (Teresa Teng, Japanese filmmakers, “pretty girl writers”) to hypotheses on why Chinese philosophers and writers don’t make it to the world stage. I enjoyed the essays’ introduction into agriculture life and farmers unions in China (usually not glamorous enough to be mentioned in western media), and the story of the police who shot an activist and billed the family 5c for the cost of bullet was very memorable and straight out absurdist. It was also interesting for me to see that Liu had talked about Bei Dao in a positive light, and Feng Youlan in a negative light. And that the Chinese version of “meme” was egao (恶搞). It was unique that the critical essays were interspersed with poetry, even venerating Jesus Christ! (“Chinese Christians say that even though Chinese people today generally do not have strong religious feelings and not many believe in a God that has been introduced from the West, still the universal grace of God has been extended to all Chinese in our suffering. After all, they say, He has given us the Internet.”)

Behold the excerpts:

1/
I went to college during 1977-1982, which made me part of the first generation of students to go to college after the Cultural Revolution. Like others during the early years of reform, we were in a state of extreme spiritual hunger.

Perhaps most important were the popular songs of the Taiwan singer Teresa Teng and the poems in the unofficial literary magazine Today. The warm sounds of that so-called decadent music and those poetic "voices of rebellion" were exactly what we needed in order to melt the wintry ice of Mao-era "class nature" into a springtime of universal human nature and to convert the aesthetics of "revolution" into something more palatable.

In the 1970s, Teresa Teng's romantic songs took a generation of Chinese youth by storm, reawakening the soft centers of our beings. They dismantled the cast-iron framework of our "revolutionary wills" and caused them to collapse; they melted our cold, unfeeling hearts, which until then had been tempered by cruel "class struggle", and they revived sexual desires that we had long repressed into the darkest recessions of our beings. Long-suppressed human softness and tenderness were finally liberated. The government forbade the broadcast of this "decadent bourgeois music", and Li Guyi, the first mainland singer to imitate Teresa Teng's style, was subjected to a parade of official criticism sessions.

Cinema and television from Japan were the post popular. Films like Junya Sato’s the proof of man and pursuit, as well as Yoji Yamada’s the yellow handkerchief were among our favourites, as were television series like Sugata Sanshiro, Astro Boy, the story of Oshkn, and others. Theme songs like Morioka’s song from Pursuit and Straw Hat from The proof of Man were very popular for a while. Moreover the works of famous Japanese directors like Akira Kurosawa, Kenji Mizoguchi, and Yasujiro Ozu had major influences on the Chinese avant- garde film directors of the 1980s.

2/
Zhuangzi in “The Floods of Autumn”

However great the river, it is nothing compared to the ocean:
However vast the ocean, it still is not the cosmos.

The belief that one can possess all of the beauty that exists is nothing but a dream. And so it is with human civilisations: China is backward compared with the West; but the West is only part of humanity, and humanity itself is tiny within the universe. The mind-boggling arrogance of human beings shows itself both in the complacency of Chinese-style moral pride as well as in Western-style confidence in the omnipotence of reason and science.

3/
Why is it that exiled writers, philosophers and Scientists from European countries have been so outstanding while those from China have been so unremarkable? Why are chinese writers and thinkers who go abroad and live in exile so unproductive? I think it is because their vision is parochial. They care only about China, and are too practical, too materialistic. They have no transcendent impulse, lack the courage to face an unfamiliar or uncertain world, and lack a spirit of the individual standing alone to challenge a larger world. They felt comfortable only on their home turf, where they could hear the plaudits of fatuous multitudes. It was very difficult for them to leave behind their renown in China and start from scratch in a strange land. Back in China, their every action and utterance had drawn attention throughout society, but now, overseas, they do not get this worshipful regard; apart from the enthusiasm of a few Westerners who care about China, no one pays them any heed. Their China-centered mentality, so hard to shake off, can cause them to clutch for dear life to the straw man of patriotism. What they really need, if they are to deal with their isolation, is not support from others but inner strength. No matter how famous they were in China, and no matter how high a status they had, once they are overseas in an unfamiliar environment they have no real choice but to rely on themselves. It is a test of talent, wisdom and creativity.

4/
It’s not hard to see that Confucius was relatively mediocre. He lacks the grace, ease, and elegance of Zhuangzi, has none of Zhuangzi’s gift for unconventional, arresting philosophical insight, and falls far short of Zhuangzi’s clear-eyed understanding of the human tragedy. Compared to Mencius, Confucius is no match in boldness of vision or breadth of mind, to say nothing of the ability to stand up to authority with dignity or show genuine concern for the common people. It was Mencius who said, “The people come first; the social order next; the rulers last.”
The sayings of Confucius are clever but contain no great wisdom. They are extremely practical, even slick, but show no aesthetic inspiration or real profundity. Confucius lacked nobility of character and breadth of wisdom. He ran around trying to get a position at a court, and when this failed he became an expounder of the Way. He enjoyed telling people what to think and how to behave, for which sage-makers have credited him as “an indefatigable teacher of men”, but what it actually shows is a certain arrogance and small-mindedness.

[Ron]

An excellent collection of prose and poetry, first time in English, by the Chinese dissident who was given an eleven-year prison term in December 2009 and won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2010. The editors have organized twenty years of Liu's work under rather innocuous thematic headings, but the better way to read the book is to spend an hour numbering the 40-some pieces in their chronological order and then reading in that sequence in order to watch Liu's thoughts develop over the two decades covered in this book. The work begins just before Tiananmen 1989, when Liu was a visiting professor at Columbia, and ends with the documents related to his latest imprisonment. If he serves the full term, he will be 65 when he gets out this time, and will have spent 18 of the past 23 years under some form of detention. An emotionally and intellectually rich personality, well worth getting to know.

[Mason Neil · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great read as we prepare for Trump to take office. The direction our government is moving seems to be accompanied by attitudes in both leaders and the people that mirror some of the sentiments in China's society, and Liu Xiaobo helps elucidate the motives behind some of these sentiments while offering ways in which we can respond to them. The book clicked really well for me, and I think anyone wanting a better understanding of how fear and thirst for power can affect government should give it a read.

[Andrew]

It has become a hobby of mine to learn as much as possible about China. Particularly, the country’s modern history has yielded plenty of insight in the way it functions today. And while there are numerous examples of foreigners studying China as outsiders looking in, I loved reading the perspective of a human rights advocate and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize who spent nearly their entire life there. The fact that China spat at this accolade rather than claiming credit (as they usually do on behalf of any Chinese, Taiwanese, Hong Konger, what have you, all over the world) speaks volumes.

Liu Xiaobo is incredibly lucid in this collection of essays mostly concerned with popular issues in post-Tiananmen China and how the one-party dictatorship of the Chinese Communist Party exacerbates these issues. You can understand why the government was so afraid of him, given that the best they could do in the criminal verdict following his ‘trial’ in 2009 (documented at the end of the book) was to completely ignore his defense and repeat the same empty accusations as before.

It’s clear, however, from his lifelong committment to honest, peaceful and gradual democratic reform that there is really no reason to be afraid of Liu Xiaobo unless you’re a part of that system he sought to change which, as he so clearly outlines, justifies its grip on power with lies and manipulation. And it would be one thing if China were not on a UN Security Council which helped draft written committments to human rights, or if they had not added a line to their constitution which claims to respect human rights; not to mention the dangerous road the country has taken since Xi Jinping’s rise to power which seems to quell the long-held misconception that China could never have a dictator like Mao again.

Thus, Liu Xiaobo’s message of ‘no enemies, no hatred’ is incredibly noble and worthy of emulation, especially in this age of ‘us vs them’, ‘China vs *the West*’, or what have you. Worth a read for anyone interested in the kind of person with the courage to speak their mind in very difficult circumstances.

[Sanjuro · Rating 5 out of 5]

Poet, literary and cultural critic, political activist, winner of the Nobel Prize, and yet, the great Liu Xiaobo died a prisoner for simply believing that his country could become a better place to live. This book, full of essays and poems, is masterful from start to finish; a true journey. His writing is full of hope and grace, his poetry is piercing and insightful, his essays trenchant but full of compassion. This book contains essays on a wide range of issues relevant to China, as well as reflections on other nations (such as the election of Barack Obama in the US), a number of the essays left me stirred of soul and longing to do more, in simply reaching out to help people understand the world they live in a little bit better. A powerful manifesto from good man whose words can teach us all.

[Bill · Rating 3 out of 5]

Liu Xiaobo was a Chinese philosopher and activist. He won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2010 while imprisoned, and died in 2017 while still under house arrest (released just days before his death). This book gives a good overview of the struggle for freedom in China in the latter 20th and 21st Century for people (us) who frankly I don't think pay much attention to it. The book was informative, education, insightful; a bit of a duty to read, I felt. Liu's primary talent was as an activist and motivator, not as a high-end inspiring writer. He does have his moments though. Many of his insights about modern China could easily be applied to America today.

[robodoge · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting read. Everyone's views on this book will be colored by their background. Certainly mine is, having mostly read Western media and been brought up in a culture where certain things are the norm.

This book helped fill in some gaps in my understanding of the current Chinese regime, from an insider's view that is I think quite open-minded. I also have to respect and pay tribute to his tenacity and unwillingness to sacrifice his principles.

Extensive is Liu Xiabo's research but I'm not as optimistic as he is.

[David King · Rating 5 out of 5]

Extremely pertinent

Liu Xiaobo, who worked for democratization of China expresses, through his many essays, feelings we all understand about a government's responsibility to its people. Through his wide view, his humility, and his realistic optimism, one can find hope for the people's power to reform their own government's against corruption and entrenched power.

[Connor Woods · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good read for anyone interested in the issues in politics and society facing contemporary China, a topic i found as I read this that I am sorely undereducated on. I can also only hope to one day possess a small portion of the courage, humility and self awareness that Liu Xiaobo poured into his writing.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Only got about 30-40 pages into this. Read several essays and several poems, and couldn't get much further into it than that. I guess it's too specific for me? Hope to read some more of Liu's work in the future.

[Christopher Tyler · Rating 5 out of 5]

A vulnerable and insightful account of the actions of the Chinese state and the collective beliefs of the modern Chinese populous

[Gilles Demaneuf · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very nice book.
Courageous and humanist. Very well worth reading.

[Sarahtar · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this. Far far more than I anticipated.

[Willy Schuyesmans · Rating 5 out of 5]

In 2010 kreeg Liu Xiaobo de Nobelprijs voor de Vrede uitgereikt, of beter: niet uitgereikt. Hij zat in China in de gevangenis omdat hij zijn mening had gezegd. China had overigens officieel geprotesteerd tegen de toekenning van de Nobelprijs aan een 'misdadiger'. Toen dat niet hielp, besliste de partijleiding de hele prijs dood te zwijgen. Buitenlandse pers, tv-zenders, internet zelfs werden aan banden gelegd van zogauw ze nog maar het woord 'Nobelprijs' of 'Liu Xiaobo' in de mond of in de pen namen. Liu's vrouw, zijn vrienden en sympathisanten die er nog maar aan dachten naar Oslo af te reizen om de uitreiking bij te wonen, werden geïntimideerd, kregen uitreisverbod of werden zelfs opgepakt. Dit alles speelde zich niet af in het tijdperk van Mao, maar in 2010, twee jaar na de verbazingwekkende Olympische Spelen in Peking, waarvan men toch dacht dat ze de transparantie en de openheid in China een grote sprong voorwaarts hadden geholpen. Niet dus als het om de vrije meningsuiting gaat; in het bijzonder als de kritiek zich richt op het beleid of op de functionarissen van de partij.

Nu is Liu Xiaobo niet de eerste de beste. Hij spuit al meer dan een kwarteeuw scherpe kritiek op al wat het Chinese beleid en de maatschappij aangaat. Hij was een van de medeaanstichters van het studentenoproer en de betogingen op het Tiananmen-plein, die op 4 juni 1989 in bloed werd gesmoord door het regime. Liu werd toen opgepakt, net als vele anderen, maar na een half jaar kwam hij vrij zonder veroordelingen. Wel kreeg hij een publicatieverbod opgelegd, dat hij prompt naast zich neerlegde. Het ging hem immers juist om de vrijheid van meningsuiting! Als hij in China niet meer kon publiceren, deed hij het maar in de buitenlandse pers die zijn essays gretig op de opiniepagina's opnam. Zijn kopij smokkelde hij op allerhande vernuftige manieren de Chinese grens over.

Het zijn precies die essays die het grootste deel uitmaken van dit boek. Ze lezen doorgaans heel vlot, ook al gaan ze vaak over vrij ingewikkelde juridische of politieke kwesties. Alle onderwerpen komen echter aan bod. Er zijn essays over de Muur van de Democratie in Xidan, Peking; over de baldadigheid van het groeiende patriottisme; over de staat als eigenaar van de grond die de boeren bewerken, waardoor ze van de ene op de andere dag van hun land kunnen worden gejaagd; over kindslaven in illegale steenovens; over tien jaar Hongkong, waar het regime maar meer greep op zou willen krijgen; over de waanzinnige goudenmedaillekoorts tijdens de Olympische Spelen; over de commerciële cultuur en het 'sekscarnaval' in China; over de weldaden van het internet in een land waar de vrije meningsuiting onder druk staat; over de Literaire Inquisitie; over spot en parodie onder het volk in de posttotalitaire cultuur. Kortom: veel meer dan een mond vol.

Liu Xiaobo is ook dichter en bewijst dat in een vijftiental opgenomen gedichten, meestal in de gevangenis geschreven.
Het boek sluit af met een aantal documentaire teksten zoals de Hongerstakingsverklaring uit 1989 en de tekst van Charta 08 waarvan hij een van de opstellers was en die in 2008 geleid heeft tot de elf jaar gevangenisstraf die hij nu aan het uitzitten is. Van dit proces krijgen we ook nog zijn zelfverdediging te lezen en de tekst van de rechterlijke uitspraak.

Veel meer dan alleen maar een beeld van de mens Liu Xiaobo leidt dit boek je binnen in de vaak turbulente ontwikkelingen die China doormaakte sinds de dood van Mao. Er kwam inderdaad meer openheid, er is de economische vooruitgang, maar met de mensenrechten is het nog altijd belabberd gesteld. Tekenend hiervoor is dat de vrijheid van meningsuiting weliswaar in de Grondwet van China is opgenomen, maar dat tegelijk een wet kritiek op een leider of een ambtenaar van het regime strafbaar stelt.

Het siert PEN-Vlaanderen dat ze dit boek hebben opgenomen in die boeiende box Koop Censuur die via De Morgen en de Confituurboekhandels wordt aangeboden. Ik kan het je zeker aanraden.

[Singalongalong · Rating 5 out of 5]

If I could (or if I didnt have an impatient reading list for 2018) Id read this five more times. Wish I couldve etched all the details, phrasings, biting bold commentary, events their recount into my permanent memory hall -- the way Id wished reading Rigoberta Manchu. He lived and spoke and died so courageously, beautifully. No words. There is more to learn, alwayss.

[Kai Weber · Rating 3 out of 5]

This anthology is a perfect reader for westerners who want to get some first-hand information about the 2010 Nobel peace laureate. The fact that the editors got Václav Havel to write a short preface, and the purposeful naming of the Charta 08 (referring to the earlier Czechoslovak Charta 77) strengthen the impression of comparable situations in past-Prague Spring Czechoslovakia and past-Tiananmen-massacre China: both countries had signed international human rights treaties yet they severely persecute people who assert those rights for themselves in oppositional ways. The striking similarities should however not make is blind for the differences. China has internet - an internet that they try to control, but that is after all uncontrollable. China has extreme economic growth. Liu Xiaobo elucidates those topics in circumspect essays, balances the new-found civil freedoms of Chinese citizens with the negative effects of the capitalism breaking in.
The book is rounded off with documents like the Charta 08 text, the defense speech of Liu Xiaobo at his 2009 court trial and the official verdict. The weakest part of the book are the poems of Liu Xiaobo - but who knows if that's to be blamed on the poems themselves or the translation. And some essays suffer a little but from redundancy. However, the moral vigor of the author and his writings is heart-warming. May his voice be spread wider and wider in China, may he find supporters, followers. And maybe someday become the Václav Havel of his nation?