In an interview with RFA, Huang Yicheng, a participant of China’s “White Paper Movement,” demanded that Beijing release a list of people it imprisoned during the pandemic protests for transparency.
White Paper Movement
Last November, hundreds of people gathered on Urumqi Middle Road in Shanghai, holding up blank white placards as a sign of protest against the government’s mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic. The blank placards were a sign of silent protest, as any act of dissent is punishable in China.
In an unprecedented public show of dissatisfaction against the Chinese President Xi Jinping, witness reports and videos posted on social media showed protestors in Shanghai chanting, “Down with the Chinese Communist Party, down with Xi Jinping.”
As a result, several protestors were immediately detained, of whom, Huang was among the first Chinese citizens to introduce the events to the outside world through the use of traditional media.
The Interview
Huang, who gave an interview to RFA under his real name for the first time, told the media house that he hopes that, over the next decade, Chinese citizens “can live in a society that does not need terror” and will “be free and free from fear to express [their] thoughts.
Incredible interview with Huang Yicheng, a Shanghai "White Paper movement" protestor now living in Germany. Here's one of many jaw-dropping details:
— Alexander Boyd (@alexludoboyd) April 4, 2023
Huang was arrested and detained on a bus... but he was able to escape because police were too busy beating up a trans woman https://t.co/Aw3yKr4nrK pic.twitter.com/JOi1XtwtRs
“If I don’t stand up and say something for them, I feel that I will always be in pain, and my anxiety has never been calmed down. Therefore, despite the great risks, I am still willing to stand up and speak out,” Huang said.
“Let us know how many people were arrested in each city during this “blank paper movement”? The entire list and the list of each city must be transparent, so that people in the world can understand the specific situation,” he demanded.
Police Brutality and Minorities
Huang recollected incidents of witnessing police physically abusing transgender people and arresting several women and sexual minorities at the forefront of the protest.
He noted that the participation of such underrepresented groups was the highest during the movement. The activist said that “because China’s political system has a patriarchal attribute,” the participation of such groups “is not only a challenge to the government, but also a challenge to the patriarchy.”
On Human Rights
The activist stressed that Chinese citizens “deeply” appreciate human rights and consider them “very important.” He stated that “countless tragedies have been caused” during China’s stringent zero-COVID lockdown measures, as people had no human rights. In this light, the white paper movement “had a solid foundation of public opinion.”