When it comes to what makes an aid organization truly successful, we usually think first about the numbers and the flashy website. How many children in rural areas get an education thanks to this organization? How many mosquito nets are being handed out to curb malaria? And how fancy is that all-important website?
All this is important, at least to a degree. But we often neglect to consider what is behind the scenes. We forget about the fundamental structure that makes global poverty NGOs effective or not. In order to be successful, NGOs must…
1. Work together
Collaboration is key. No organization can be entirely efficient on its own. While working together sometimes proves difficult because so many voices spout so many different opinions, cooperation allows for greater expansion of ideas and more creative solutions.
Additionally, organizations gain more influence and issues are given more weight when there is a large rallying force of NGOs and aid organizations behind the cause. This increased importance can get the public more involved, as well as proving to governments and policy makers that these topics need to be discussed. For example, the United Kingdom Food Group is the largest network in the U.K. that helps organizations working on food issues to share ideas and expertise by working together, thus creating maximum change.
2. Be narrow enough to do good work
In order to put the most into a cause, organizations must be narrowly focused. This allows them to put the maximum resources into one issue and thus enables them to make a difference that is more than a drop in the bucket. For instance, the Fistula Foundation focuses specifically on healing women who suffer unnecessarily from an injury sustained in childbirth. True, the organization could tackle prostitution and sexual health in other capacities, but because it focuses on fistula treatment, it is able to make a substantial difference for the cause.
3. But not too narrow as to only solve one narrow slice of the problem
All things related to global poverty are interconnected. Food security goes hand in hand with the local economy. Water sanitation plays a huge role in global health. Organizations need to understand that no matter what topic they choose to address, it is attached to all other aspects of global poverty. ONE combines its efforts to address reducing global poverty on top of reducing the incidence of preventable disease. In doing so, ONE accepts that disease perpetuates poverty, and remedying one helps alleviate the other.
4. Be easy to get involved with
The harsh reality is that while most of our society sympathizes with the plague of global poverty, it has no time to go out of their way all the time to do something about it. Organizations must realize that if they are to be successful, they must be easy to reach, easy to get involved with and easy to share. NGOs must have key small ways to get involved like buying a T-shirt, sharing a video or donating a few dollars. But on top of this, they must have larger scale methods that are just as easy.
Many organizations like Charity: Water and Nothing But Nets, ask people to donate their birthdays by essentially asking for donations to the cause rather than gifts. It is a simple, brag worthy and effective way to get people involved and raise money for the organization.
5. Be transparent
People want to know where their hard earned money goes when they donate, and they are more likely to be resistant when the paths their cash takes within an organization are unclear. Therefore, organizations must work twice as hard to show that the donations they receive go directly to the projects they advertise. Charity: Water has found a way to be utterly transparent.
The organization relies on private donors and sponsors to support its offices’ operations, thus allowing it to ensure with absolute certainty that the donations it receives from the general public go straight to water projects building pumps in rural villages. Charity: Water even shows you exactly what well was built by your donations and their annual reports are easily found on their website. Basically, it is key that people know directly where their money goes when they donate to encourage confidence in the NGO.
6. Work with the local population
The only way to create stable, lasting change is for NGOs to work directly with the local population in the target region. Without it, practices put in place and infrastructure built can fall victim to tradition and cultural practice, and thus become ineffective. However, by working with the local population, organizations can change the local perspective and approach to the problem. They can employ local workers to run the operations, thus helping the economy in more ways than one.
Rape prevention organizations tend to be particularly effective when they go straight to the local people. For example, Apne Aap is an organization in India that aims to change the perspective of rape in the culture and protect women through sustainable development of a new, empowered mindset. By going to local women, organizations like this are able to find the root of the problem and work toward a solution that will cause lasting change.
7. Be memorable
Finally, an organization must be memorable in order to be successful. People need to feel that itch to share the video, to tell their friends, to spread the story in order to ensure that the organization gets the publicity it needs to do effective work and the cause gets the vocalization it deserves. For all the flaws the Kony 2012 and Invisible Children campaigns had internally, they were undeniably memorable. Everyone who went to high school in 2012 had the group’s logo as their profile pictures and now knows a bit more about child soldiers in the LRA. This is knowledge that can be spread in order to get more and more people involved.
Overall, no matter what process NGOs take, their work is beneficial. However, there are certain criteria that will make their efforts more effective and provide for longer-lasting, sustainable change. Simple changes to the structure of the organization can increase the general interest in the topic as well as improving the overall success of the organization.
– Caitlin Thompson
Sources: Overseas Development Institute, The Guardian, UK Food Group, ONE, Charity Water, Apne Aap, Edna Hospital, Fistula Foundation, Nothing But Nets
Photo: Flickr
Teens Participate in 30-Hour Famine To Fight Global Poverty
Contrary to popular belief, congressional leaders are only part of the key influence in making poverty a focus of U.S. foreign policy. Even though the 535 members of Congress in Washington D.C. representing voters are directly responsible for supporting or rejecting an issue or bill based on the voters’ opinions, all citizens are just as important in this process. Not only can they make their opinions known to the three members of Congress who represent them, but everyone, regardless of age, can make a difference by raising awareness in their community of a specific issue in order to bring about change.
This is exactly what a group of seven teenagers proved when they fasted for 30 hours to raise money that would benefit the fight against world poverty. These members of the Allin Church Youth Group in Dedham, Mass. participated in the World Vision’s 30 Hour Famine from 12 p.m. on April 26 to 6 p.m. on April 27. It was during those 30 hours that these teenagers not only fasted, but also learned more about world hunger as they felt the hunger that millions experience every day.
Participating members of the Dedham community donated at least $1 to this youth group for every hour that they fasted, and all contributions were used to benefit the lives of children in the Philippines in association with World Vision. World Vision is a Christian organization working in nearly 100 countries to address the issues of poverty and injustice. According to 30 Hour Famine, hundreds of thousands of people participate in this event every year in the U.S. alone, and thousands more across the globe do the same to help feed poor children and their families in developing countries.
World Vision’s 30 Hour Famine provides people with the opportunity to understand the hunger that millions experience every day of their lives. According to World Vision, 870 million people are hungry worldwide, revealing that this injustice needs to be resolved. But the 30 Hour Famine is not the only thing World Vision does to address this issue. This organization also provides individuals the opportunity to sponsor a child to not only fight poverty, but to create a better world for that child.
This experience for the Allin Church Youth Group did not end after the 30 hours were up. These seven teenagers, along with the entire Allin Congregational Church, will have the opportunity to travel to the Philippines and personally assist the children there who benefited from their 30-hour fast. This inspirational group of teenagers proves that anyone, regardless of age or political standing, can join in the fight against poverty and hunger.
— Meghan Orner
Sources: 30 Hour Famine, World Vision, The Dedham Transcript
Photo: Delphi United Church
12 Quotes about Humanity
War. Poverty. Crime. Hunger. With all of the injustices that exist in today’s world, it can be easy to lose faith in humanity. We may ask ourselves, “Why should we care if no one else does? Nothing ever seems to change or get any better, so we might as well accept the world as it is.”
Although it is important to acknowledge the existing injustices and view them as serious issues that need to be resolved, it is equally important for us to realize our own part in seeing those solutions become part of reality. The following quotes about humanity may explain and hopefully inspire us:
As these quotes about humanity reveal, it can be difficult to explain human nature, but that does not mean we should lose faith or hope in ourselves or others. The Borgen Project promotes the idea that we each have the power within ourselves to change the world, which is one of the most beautiful abilities of humanity.
– Meghan Orner
Sources: Brainy Quote, Good Reads
Photo: Flickr
Sam Kutesa, Anti-Gay Minister, Receives High UN Position
Sam Kutesa, the Ugandan Foreign Minister under President Musevini, has been chosen to head the U.N. as President of its General Assembly next month despite his consistent homophobic attitude and history of corruption. The position, which will not be voted on, has been chosen by “elect of acclamation,” after being chosen by the African Union. In a mostly “figurative” position, Kutesa will chair meetings for the assembly, including its annual event attended by all 193 nations in New York this September, which President Obama will preside over.
Kutesa’s election has been met with widespread criticism from both rights groups as well as political leaders, including New York State senator, Kirsten Gillibrand. “It would be disturbing to see the foreign minister of a country that passed an unjust, harsh and discriminatory law based on sexual orientation preside over the U.N. general assembly,” she says.
This past February, President Museveni signed into law a bill which will toughen penalties against gay citizens in Uganda, which could enforce some “homosexual crimes” as punishable by death. Years of imprisonment would act as a minimum punishment for acts of homosexuality or for providing counsel, therapy or education regarding homosexuality to children. Kutesa stood by this legislation, claiming that most Africans “abhorred” homosexuality. Now, as he gets ready to fill a prominent position in the U.N., many are wondering of the repercussions.
Rights campaigner Peter Tatchell called on the government to intervene. “David Cameron [Prime Minister of the UK] and William Hague [First Secretary of State of the UK] should be lobbying the U.N. to block Kutesa’s appointment on the grounds that his political record is inconsistent with UK principles,” he says. Yet if government officials have yet to fight, the general population has already made its own aggressive stance.
A petition, made by Ugandan-born Milton Allimadi, has already received more than 7,000 signatures asking for Sam Kutesa’s future appointment in the U.N. to be revoked. Yet despite the criticism, Kutesa has rejected any plausible notion regarding his unfitness for the role. “I don’t believe that anybody should be blocking my presidency on those lines,” he says. “The issues they are raising have no basis.”
You can sign the petition here.
– Nick Magnanti
Sources: The Guardian, Pink News 2, Change.org, CNN
Photo: In2EastAfrica
Education and Menstruation in Uganda
Menstruation is a major reason for young girls in Uganda to miss school. Reasons for their absence stems from the stigma associated with “that time of the month,” a lack of sanitary napkins and the limited facilities available to students. Attending school while on their period forces girls to put their health at risk and chance being the subject of humiliation.
In an interview with a Guardian reporter, 16-year-old Lydia from Kampala, Uganda expressed why going to school during her period is difficult. She explained that some of the toilets did not have doors, so that if someone walked in, they would see her. Her school also has only four toilets for 2,000 students. The toilets’ inability to flush or have water complicates the issue further, making menstruation in Uganda a problem in multiple ways.
In a recent study by SNV, officials report that girls miss between 8 to 24 days of school per year while menstruating.
Some girls attempt to prevent their clothing from being ruined by trying to absorb the blood with old cloth or old t-shirts, but these methods are not particularly successful. In another interview, Auma Milly commented that disposable pads are very expensive and are often not available in the more rural regions. Consequently, she felt embarrassed when she went to school and would soil her clothes so often that she chose not to attend.
In an attempt to address the problem regarding women’s sanitary needs, organizations including Save the Children, WaterAid, the Institute of Reproductive Health and local NGO Caritas Lira have begun to raise awareness and assist the cause. Representatives from WaterAid commented on the importance of deconstructing the taboo regarding women’s health. The founder of 50 Cents. Period. described the battle as giving girls the basic right to hygiene. SNV and Caritas Lira have gone to schools in order to teach girls how to make reusable, affordable pads. Additionally, female Ugandan government officials have begun advocating for reduced taxes on sanitary napkins and improved facilities so that menstruation does not interfere with education.
– Jordyn Horowitz
Sources: The Guardian, The Guardian 2, UWASNET, 50 Cents Period, UWASNET, , SNV
Photo: A Global Village
Thermosetting Plastic: Self-healing and Recyclable
In IBM’s Almaden Research Center in San Jose, Dr. Jeanette Garcia accidentally created a new class of thermosetting plastic.
This new plastic is lightweight, stronger than bone, completely recyclable and self-healing.
While working in the lab, Garcia discovered that a solution in a flask hardened. After many attempts to break it and once her stirring bar got stuck, she found that it was both incredibly strong and stable.
After her accidental discovery, Garcia worked with IBM’s computational chemistry team to replicate the discovery and learn more about the plastic.
The new thermosetting polymer, called polyhexahydrotriazine (PHT,) is formed from a reaction of paraformaldehyde and 4,4-oxydianiline (ODA,) which are both used in current polymer production. This means that the production of PHT could be easily achieved through a simple adaptation of current processes.
It is the first thermosetting plastic that can be recycled. Typically, thermosetting plastic begins by being shaped and then cured (baked.) Once the plastic is cured, it can no longer be altered or recycled. After its life, thermosetting plastic is always thrown out. However, this new plastic can be reverted back to its base state with the use of sulfuric acid.
Thermosetting plastic is used for a variety of purposes including automobiles and aircraft due to its resilient but lightweight qualities. The polymers are usually mixed with carbon fibers to form composites.
Dr. James Hedrick, in charge of research at IBM, is excited by the prospective directions the plastic could take.
For the large and expensive aircraft materials alone, the ability to recycle and reuse would save a great deal of money and reduce waste.
“We’re at the discovery phase,” Hedrick said. “There are many new applications for the plastic with potential industries such as aerospace, transportation, electronics, cosmetics and architecture/construction. Almost every industry has the potential to be impacted by this discovery.”
“Every time you discover a new polymer-forming reaction, it leads to all sorts of new materials,” he said. “Applications are running like water.”
While adapting the process, the researchers also discovered flexible, self-healing gels that could be used for the production of drug capsules in particular, due to its solubility properties.
Although this new discovery does not directly affect poverty, the simple reduction of plastic waste would greatly help the environment and the economy and, in turn, poverty. The contamination of the oceans and sea life from plastic can begin to be reduced. Numerous industries would benefit economically and create more jobs, which would help reduce poverty around the world.
– William Ying
Sources: BBC, Wired, Extreme Tech, Gizmodo
Photo: Altairenlighten.com
Farzana Parveen: The Right to Choose
In Pakistan, honor killings are frequent enough to the point that over 1,000 women die every year at the hands of their families and loved ones. Why? These women wanted to choose the person they marry. On May 27, a 25-year-old pregnant woman named Farzana Parveen was killed on the court steps.
Among Parveen’s attackers were her father, brothers and former fiancé, all throwing bricks at her as she fell to the ground. In Pakistan, it has always been thought to be dishonorable for a woman to marry a man of her choosing. This act shames her family and takes away her right to love her husband.
This is not absurdly uncommon in Pakistan. Parveen is not the first woman to die for her choices. Most often these honor killings happen when the woman decides against following the rules presented to her and engages in extramarital affairs, or in Parveen’s case, secretly marrying a different man.
Due to this, very few of these cases reach court and are typically dismissed if the victim’s family forgives the killer. In Parveen’s case, these two parties are the same people so it is unlikely that further action will occur.
For centuries, women have been the lesser gender in countries such as Pakistan. This sexual inequality still plagues many nations today, and little is being done to rectify the many wrongs committed against women. It is unheard of for a woman to make her own choice of husband and rebellion against that has dire consequences. The Aurat Foundation has compiled police reports, citing around 1,000 cases drawn from newspaper reports. However, it is highly likely that the number is much higher than recorded due to the lack of reporting and national statistics.
Groups like Aurat are human rights organizations that fight for legislation in Pakistan to improve the lives of women and of the poor.
Pakistan’s legal system does little to stop this abuse, because families will pick one member to do the killing and then forgive them, setting them free while following Pakistani law. This flaw leads to no fear of consequence with the killing, therefore discouraging women from speaking out against the injustice.
Most often, victims of these honor killings—like Farzana Parveen—are women from lower income families and have little means to leave their family so they become entrenched in the expected lifestyle, marrying the men presented to them with no argument.
Due to the situation of Pakistan and their ongoing fights with women’s rights, it is unlikely these events will come to an end without any international attention or rebellion within. For such ingrained behaviors, changing them will take time and widespread advocacy for those who suffer.
– Elena Lopez
Sources: Reuters, Tribune, Washington Post
Photo: The Guardian
7 Things That Make Global Poverty NGOs Successful
When it comes to what makes an aid organization truly successful, we usually think first about the numbers and the flashy website. How many children in rural areas get an education thanks to this organization? How many mosquito nets are being handed out to curb malaria? And how fancy is that all-important website?
All this is important, at least to a degree. But we often neglect to consider what is behind the scenes. We forget about the fundamental structure that makes global poverty NGOs effective or not. In order to be successful, NGOs must…
1. Work together
Collaboration is key. No organization can be entirely efficient on its own. While working together sometimes proves difficult because so many voices spout so many different opinions, cooperation allows for greater expansion of ideas and more creative solutions.
Additionally, organizations gain more influence and issues are given more weight when there is a large rallying force of NGOs and aid organizations behind the cause. This increased importance can get the public more involved, as well as proving to governments and policy makers that these topics need to be discussed. For example, the United Kingdom Food Group is the largest network in the U.K. that helps organizations working on food issues to share ideas and expertise by working together, thus creating maximum change.
2. Be narrow enough to do good work
In order to put the most into a cause, organizations must be narrowly focused. This allows them to put the maximum resources into one issue and thus enables them to make a difference that is more than a drop in the bucket. For instance, the Fistula Foundation focuses specifically on healing women who suffer unnecessarily from an injury sustained in childbirth. True, the organization could tackle prostitution and sexual health in other capacities, but because it focuses on fistula treatment, it is able to make a substantial difference for the cause.
3. But not too narrow as to only solve one narrow slice of the problem
All things related to global poverty are interconnected. Food security goes hand in hand with the local economy. Water sanitation plays a huge role in global health. Organizations need to understand that no matter what topic they choose to address, it is attached to all other aspects of global poverty. ONE combines its efforts to address reducing global poverty on top of reducing the incidence of preventable disease. In doing so, ONE accepts that disease perpetuates poverty, and remedying one helps alleviate the other.
4. Be easy to get involved with
The harsh reality is that while most of our society sympathizes with the plague of global poverty, it has no time to go out of their way all the time to do something about it. Organizations must realize that if they are to be successful, they must be easy to reach, easy to get involved with and easy to share. NGOs must have key small ways to get involved like buying a T-shirt, sharing a video or donating a few dollars. But on top of this, they must have larger scale methods that are just as easy.
Many organizations like Charity: Water and Nothing But Nets, ask people to donate their birthdays by essentially asking for donations to the cause rather than gifts. It is a simple, brag worthy and effective way to get people involved and raise money for the organization.
5. Be transparent
People want to know where their hard earned money goes when they donate, and they are more likely to be resistant when the paths their cash takes within an organization are unclear. Therefore, organizations must work twice as hard to show that the donations they receive go directly to the projects they advertise. Charity: Water has found a way to be utterly transparent.
The organization relies on private donors and sponsors to support its offices’ operations, thus allowing it to ensure with absolute certainty that the donations it receives from the general public go straight to water projects building pumps in rural villages. Charity: Water even shows you exactly what well was built by your donations and their annual reports are easily found on their website. Basically, it is key that people know directly where their money goes when they donate to encourage confidence in the NGO.
6. Work with the local population
The only way to create stable, lasting change is for NGOs to work directly with the local population in the target region. Without it, practices put in place and infrastructure built can fall victim to tradition and cultural practice, and thus become ineffective. However, by working with the local population, organizations can change the local perspective and approach to the problem. They can employ local workers to run the operations, thus helping the economy in more ways than one.
Rape prevention organizations tend to be particularly effective when they go straight to the local people. For example, Apne Aap is an organization in India that aims to change the perspective of rape in the culture and protect women through sustainable development of a new, empowered mindset. By going to local women, organizations like this are able to find the root of the problem and work toward a solution that will cause lasting change.
7. Be memorable
Finally, an organization must be memorable in order to be successful. People need to feel that itch to share the video, to tell their friends, to spread the story in order to ensure that the organization gets the publicity it needs to do effective work and the cause gets the vocalization it deserves. For all the flaws the Kony 2012 and Invisible Children campaigns had internally, they were undeniably memorable. Everyone who went to high school in 2012 had the group’s logo as their profile pictures and now knows a bit more about child soldiers in the LRA. This is knowledge that can be spread in order to get more and more people involved.
Overall, no matter what process NGOs take, their work is beneficial. However, there are certain criteria that will make their efforts more effective and provide for longer-lasting, sustainable change. Simple changes to the structure of the organization can increase the general interest in the topic as well as improving the overall success of the organization.
– Caitlin Thompson
Sources: Overseas Development Institute, The Guardian, UK Food Group, ONE, Charity Water, Apne Aap, Edna Hospital, Fistula Foundation, Nothing But Nets
Photo: Flickr
Spotlight: Refugees International
Fleeing political, racial and religious persecution, more than 15 million people worldwide have left their homes and sought safety across international borders. They are refugees; often as unwelcome in their host countries as they were in their own.
For many, it is out of the frying pan and into the fire.
International law forbids the deportation of peoples with refugee status. Still, deeply rooted ethnic and national divides can make neighboring countries reluctant to accept them.
It is estimated that half of refugees today settle in major cities. Hundreds of thousands of Somali citizens, for example, have gone not to internationally established camps, but to Nairobi, Kenya. These urban refugees, with neither shelter, funds nor connections, find themselves in situations nearly as desperate as the ones they left.
Hindered by language and social stigma, they are limited to the poorest paying jobs. Their ambiguous political standing, meanwhile, affords them none of the safeguards given to citizens of their new homes. The British organization, Hidden Lives, quotes one man, “I don’t have legal documentation. I don’t have a job. I don’t leave my house.”
Access to health care, though needed by many, is often restricted.
So why not just head for a refugee camp? Conditions there are no better. Camps are notoriously overcrowded and vulnerable to the spread of communicable disease. Violence and sexual assault goes largely unchecked. For basic needs such as food and water, refugees are reliant on international aid. Refugees also must rely on international aid for health care, education and development. Who do they rely on for security forces? International aid. International aid, unfortunately, must come in waves.
Consequently, any group that raises awareness or funds to sustain displaced peoples, in and out of country, becomes integral to their survival. None is more widely known, perhaps, than Refugees International (RI).
RI focuses on advocacy and policy reform. In addition to meeting with world leaders, it organizes 15 yearly field missions to determine the living conditions of refugees and internally displaced people across South America, Africa, the Middle East and Asia. These missions are essential to the organization: because of the information gathered, it is an influential authority. RI is consulted on not only the need for aid, but also the amount required and its distribution.
It was RI that alerted the United Nations to the lack of post-rape kits available in the Central African Republic earlier this year. It was RI that encouraged the United States to support the Nansen initiative, which protects displaced victims of climate-related disasters. The U.S. set aside more than $150 million for the deployment of peacekeepers to the CAR at the request of the organization. In response to their report of violence against women in Syria, the United Kingdom provided more than $14 million dollars in funding.
The U.N. Refugee Agency calls 10.8 million people ‘refugees of concern.’ Almost three times as many live as IDPs. While they wait for resettlement, or war and persecution to end, they have to entrust their lives to the international community at large. But the nations most capable of giving aid are often the furthest removed. It is left to Refugees International, and organizations like it, to bridge the gap.
– Olivia Kostreva
Sources: UNHCR, Health Poverty Action, Refugees International, Hidden Lives
Photo: The Global Herald
Going Green: Energy Efficiency and Wealth
In the largest election in history, India has voted into office a new leader: Narendra Modi. A popular spokesperson for reform, Modi hopes to bring solar power to every home by 2019. It is a massive undertaking, but even with the fifth largest coal reserves, India suffers from severe electricity shortages. Another factor to consider, alongside rolling blackouts, is the climbing rates of pollution that poses both an environmental risk and a severe health hazard. As the fourth largest energy consumer in the world, India has much to gain in promoting energy efficiency by limiting fossil fuel consumption while going green with energy efficient alternatives.
But it is not just India that should endeavor to invest more in energy efficiency. Preserving the environment and promoting green energy alternatives can only benefit the world. Renewable energy can have a massive impact on the welfare of the world in regard to both alleviating poverty and improving health. By ensuring a healthy environment, a healthy economy can be established.
In 2012, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported that air pollution—resulting in lung disease and/or cancer—has killed approximately 7 million people globally. There are multiple instances in which fossil fuels and non-renewable energies have resulted in both environmental catastrophe and health hazards. Whether it’s the Exxon-Valdez spill, the BP oil spill or the coal chemical spill in West Virginia, the evidence has become indisputable that continued reliance on potentially lethal compounds is not a safe investment for the future. With the cost of health care continuing to rise, limiting the health hazard of fossil fuels can be greatly beneficial to the wallets of many around the world.
Economically, the world has much to gain from preserving the environment by both establishing renewable energy and promoting greater energy efficiency and conservation. One of the most alarming instances of environmental decline impacting the economy has been in worldwide fisheries. In Chile, commercial fisheries are in a state of severe decline as fisherman yields have decreased by millions of tons since the mid-90’s. In Canada, collapsing sardine fisheries have resulted in $32 million in losses. Millions of jobs around the world rely wholly on the safety and stability of the environment from which the world reaps so many rewards, and yet its continued existence hangs in the balance.
– Michael Giacoumopoulos
Sources: Canada, EIA, Pulitzer Center
Photo: Blogspot
25 Years after Tiananmen Square
The spring of 1989 saw one of the most sensitive moments of Chinese history unfold. Students began leading demonstrations in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square and experienced widespread support from surrounding residents. On June 4, Chinese troops armed with assault rifles attacked student demonstrators, killing anywhere from hundreds to thousands in a bloody crackdown. But in recent years, new stories of the events of Tiananmen Square have come to the surface, and they draw a more complex picture.
By June, student demonstrations in Tiananmen Square had entered month two. Chinese leaders were unsettled, and army commanders were called to pledge loyalty and commitment to the possibility of military force to crush student protest. Maj. Gen. Xu Qinxian refused to do so, and declined to lead troops into Beijing.
The protesters, Xu believed, were a political issue that required negotiation, not military force.
Xu’s defiance is just one example of a complicated and resistant military reaction to Tiananmen Square. One soldier of the 39th Group Army held genuine fears of having to fight Xu’s 38th Group Army as rumors of the general’s actions spread. But the commander of the 39th Group Army never even made his troops enter the square, faking communication problems. Another soldier, seventeen years old at the time of the crackdown, shared experiences of bonding between his unit, stationed in Tiananmen Square for days, and the students who had brought them there. Tears were shed upon the unit’s departure prior to the events of June 4, names and addresses exchanged.
Military documents prior to the crackdown speak just as loudly. A former Communist Party researcher reported that a petition existed at the time that was aimed at withdrawing troops from Tiananmen Square. It was signed by seven senior Chinese military officers, and sported language of service to the people: “The people’s military belongs to the people and cannot oppose the people.”
These stories tell a tale of Chinese soldiers largely unwilling to fire on a Chinese civilian population. They tell a story of Chinese government pressure met with Chinese military hesitance. But they are stories only rising to common knowledge outside of China.
A lot has changed for China in the 25 years since the crackdown: diplomatic isolation ended, China hosted the Olympics and the country made great strides in its space program. 1990 saw China’s first entrance into the stock market. Where products were hard to find for Chinese consumers before, they are now in abundance, and Chinese college graduates now compete for jobs they want instead of leaving college to be assigned a workplace.
The sensitive commemoration of Tiananmen Square, though, remains largely static. This year, celebrations included playing cards, show tunes and confetti.
The events are a representation of political activism buried. Activist groups make attempts each year to pay respect to those killed in the crackdown and call attention to the real events of the Tiananmen Square protests, like the stories of Maj. Gen. Xu that find life outside, but not inside, China. These attempts have yet to succeed.
This is not stopping anyone from trying to get the voices of the past heard. One activist group created a website this year called backtotiananmen.com. It asked simply for people to come to the square, gather and sing or hum a well-known song from the musical Les Miserables: “Do You Hear the People Sing?”
Wen Yunchao, one of the organizers of backtotiananmen.com, pointed out that simply coming to join the group, even without singing, would be a powerful way to commemorate those killed 25 years earlier.
Wen organized the group from New York City, spreading publicity by editing a leaked pornographic video to spread the message to gather and sing. While censored immediately, the video, Wen reported, was still downloaded thousands of times.
Another suggestion for activism was tossing white paper from the skyscrapers of Beijing in the hope that, perhaps, these small, raining scraps would remind China of the lives lost at Tiananmen Square many years ago now. Whatever the method, attempts at remembrance and knowledge are alive and well.
– Rachel Davis
Sources: The Economist, LA Times, New York Times, Reuters
Photo: CNN World