Putin's invasion of Ukraine shocks and intimidates the West. However, it also provides a potential roadmap for the U.S. to re-engage with China and reserve its deteriorating course on freedom and democracy.
Back in the 1970's, then U.S. president Richard Nixon visited China and met with Chinese leader Mao Zedong during the infamous Cultural Revolution - a human rights disaster in recent history. The visit was a strategic move to engage with China against the U.S.S.R.'s aggression, which in turn, paved the way for the opening up of China in the 1980's.
Today's China is experiencing another kind of "Cultural Revolution," where President Xi and his CCP leadership rule the whole nation with coercion and brutality, maintain their absolute power by cracking down pro-democratic practice and dissenting views, suppress people's freedom by imposing strict political censorship and building internet firewall to the outside world.
The Covid-19 pandemic just made the situation worse. In the name of combating the spread of virus, the authoritarian government has deepened the human rights abuses. As of April 2022, millions of people in large cities such as Shanghai and Shenzheng are under strict lockdown. Reports have shown that people are starving or even dying when being sealed at home.
Massive "concentration camps"-style units have been built to quarantine those who are not even infected with the virus.
Though the intention of the government's ultra-strict disease control strategy is unclear, the inhumane measures have deprived people of basic freedom and living conditions.
As President Biden has warned China's Xi not to support Russia's invasion of Ukraine, we strongly urged the U.S. President to take a further step urging China to stop the human rights abuses and return freedom to the innocent Chinese people.
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