The blossoming feminist movement in China - Zhang Lijia

Lijia-india (Photo credit: Fantake)

Feminism never took root in China, but things are changing, notes author Zhang Lijia, in het weblog. Although activists have to be careful as public protests are still strictly controlled.

Zhang Lijia:

These activists are most young, very brave, usually well-educated, well-aware of the gender issues and ready to express themselves. And they are all internet savvy. 

Last August, four women in Guangzhou shaved off their heads in protests against some universities for setting the bar higher for accepting female students. The video of their action on Sino Weibo sparked twenty bold women in eight cities to go bald. 

Although today’s society gives some breathing space for the flower of feminist movement to blossom, especially in cities such as Guangzhou, the activists have to be careful: public protests are still strictly controlled. “When taking action, we limit the number under 20 and we don’t stress too much the rights issue,” said Ms. Ke. 

I understand her caution. Feminism in Chinese is nu quan, women’s rights. Anything to do with rights can qualify as ‘sensitive’ in China. Some of the activists, including 24-year-old Li Maizi, one of the ‘bloody brides’, have been invited to ‘have tea’ with the police – to be interrogated, something can easily scare off those chicken-hearts. 

Carrying bags of the props, Ms Ke and I returned to the city center together by the ferry. My heart was filled with hope rather than disappointment. The journey of Chinese feminists will be a rocky one, I know. Male chauvinism is still deeply rooted. The economic reforms have brought opportunities to women but also plenty of setbacks because the government has retreated some of its responsibilities to the market. 

Thinking about it, the history of feminism is the history of struggle. China will be no exception if not more. But I am confident that the fighting spirit of the Chinese women will prevail. 

More on Zhang Lijia's weblog.

Zhang Lijia is a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. Do you need her at a speaker at your meeting or conference? Do get in touch or fill in our speakers' request form.

Protests are emerging in different fields. The China Weekly Hangout discussed November 2012 with CEIBS adjunct professor of sustainability Richard Brubaker and Fons Tuinstra, president of the China Speakers Bureau, the potential influence of China's growing NIMBY movement on its ambitious nuclear power program.
 

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Food security and dead pigs - China Weekly Hangout

More than 3,000 dead pigs in Shanghai's Huangpu river illustrated clearly how much is amiss with the food production in China. Scandal after scandal hit the media and internet, and China's inhabitants have a lot of reasons to be worried about the quality of their food, very worried.

At next week's China Weekly Hangout we will be joined by +Richard Brubaker of "Collective Responsibility" and teaching sustainability at the China Europe International Business School (CEIBS). We will have a look into how China's government is (not) dealing with food security, its bureaucratic warfares and the effects for the consumers. We will discuss how worried we should be and what can be done to change this dangerous food situation in China.

The hangout will be held on March 21, 10pm Beijing Time, 3pm CET (Europe) and 9pm EST (US/Canada).
Do you want to join us, ask questions or make you own point? Here you can register on our event page. An overview of earlier hangouts, you can find at our YouTube channel here.

This week, on Thursday 14 March, the China Weekly Hangout will focus on the media in Hong Kong. In the 1990s they were a beacon of hope, and Hong Kong one of few global news capitals. With Paul Fox of the HKU we will discuss the state of Hong Kong media. You can read our announcement here, or directly register at our event page. 

In November 2012 the +Richard Brubaker also joined the China Weekly Hangout to discuss the Chinese plans to restart its ambitious nuclear power program, and the possibility NIMBY protest would derail that plan.

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Nuclear power in China (reprise) - China Weekly Hangout

A German demo against nuclear power last year (Photo credit: quapan)

The China Weekly Hangout of coming Thursday 22 November will focus on nuclear power in China, and the likelihood increasing NIMBY protests might derail that ambitious energy program. The hangout was delayed from  November 8 (see here the initial announcement) as we unfortunately forgot to take into account the change in daylight saving time in the US and missed our panelists.
This time, we are sure we can welcome Chris Brown and Richard Brubaker, and perhaps a few other guests for another session on China's energy security.
We plan to hold two session of 15 minutes each, one about the current state of nuclear power in China, a second on the effect of NIMBY protest against nuclear plants.
A good overview is available here.
The China Weekly Hangout will be held at 10pm Beijing Time, 3pm CET (Europe) and 9pm EST (US/Canada).
You can join our China Weekly Hangout by visiting our event page and register. You can watch the YouTube link here at this post and at our event page, ten minutes before the start of the hangout. A full overview of earlier editions, you can get here.

Chris Brown

Chris Brown is general manager for Asia Cleantech Gateway North America. A former US government China-Central Asia policy analyst, intelligence officer, Taiwan radio personality. Habs and Arsenal Fan. Working to develop China-US clean energy business ties, mostly solar but hoping to expand to wind. Live in Brooklyn but originally from Spokane, WA.

Richard Brubaker is adjunct professor of Management, Sustainability and Responsible Leadership at China Europe International Business School (CEIBS) and editor of AllWaysLeadtoChina. He is based in Shanghai.
With almost 20 years of Asia experience (the last 10 based in mainland China), Rich assists his clients (both Fortune 500 companies and SMEs) in understanding the China market, determining their own China platform and implementing effective strategies.
Rich has a Masters in International Management from Thunderbird, The Garvin School of International Management and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, majoring in Finance and Economics, from the University of Missouri.
Rich is the Vice Chairman of the Corporate Social Responsibility Committee of the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai, sits on the Asia Pacific Council of the Thunderbird Alumni Association, and is an active member of RotaryAct.
Moderator is Fons Tuinstra, president of the China Speakers Bureau.

China Weekly Hangout on nuclear power

Will the growing NIMBY movement in China stop the nuclear ambitions?

Last month we organized a first China Weekly Hangout, focusing on solar and wind energy, with Terry Cooke, Richard Brubaker and Fons Tuinstra.

Has nuclear power a chance? - China Weekly Hangout

Nuclear power plant at Grafenrheinfeld in Germany, to be closed.(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

After the Fukushima disaster in Japan, nuclear power is scrutinized worldwide, and some countries, including Germany, decided to close down nuclear plants altogether. China imposed a 20 month freeze on all plans and its giant building program, but recently decided to move forward again with a ambitious nuclear power program.

The China Weekly Hangout will focus this week on China's nuclear power, how important is it for its energy security, its risks, and what can be the influence of the raising tide of NIMBY protests for those ambitions.

We plan two segments of each 10-15 minutes, one assesment of China's nuclear ambitions, a second on the increasingly successful NIMBY protest.
We are still working on a small expert panel for the event, but if you want to participate, do drop us a line. Also, you can register at the event page, and available here. Here you can also receive updates for this week's program.

The China Weekly Hangout is held on Thursday 8 November, 10pm Beijing Time, 3pm CET (Europe) and 10pm EST (US/Canada).

The Hangout on Nuclear Power has been postponed for two weeks; made a mistake in calculating the daytime saving time in the US. Apologies for those who wanted to watch.

Watch also our September 27 China Weekly Hangout on energy security, with a focus on solar and wind energy.

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