Climbing the Weiquan Ladder: A Radicalizing Process for Weiquan Lawyers

Fu, Hailing; Cullen, Richard

doi:10.2139/ssrn.1487367

Cited by 7 publications

(8 citation statements)

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“…Such visibility provides a measure of protection, which may then embolden dissidents to take more radical stances inside China. 7 The food safety activist Zhao Lianhai is a case in point. In September 2008, two days after his threeyear-old son was diagnosed with kidney stones due to the consumption of melamine-tainted milk powder, Zhao wrote a blog calling on families to organize and ½ght for justice.…”

Section: Internet Activism and The Party-state In Chinamentioning

confidence: 99%

Internet Activism & the Party-State in China

Yang

2014

Daedalus

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The history of Internet activism and Internet control in China is one of mutual adaptation between citizen activists and party authorities. The party-state initially reacted to Internet activism with alarm, but has since built a comprehensive approach combining repressive policing with gentler methods of social management. This approach has evolved in response to the diverse forms of and participants in Internet activism. But the adaptability of the Chinese Internet control regime does not mean that it will root out Internet activism. On the contrary, Internet activism will continue to grow and will itself adapt to the changing forms of control. Comparisons with Russia and the United States highlight how political economy, history, and everyday practice shape the forms of Internet activism and control. Internet activism is one of the most important forms of citizen activism in China. It refers broadly to claims-making contentious activities associated with the use of the Internet; and its vitality in China derives from its diverse forms, ranging from oppositional dissidence to cooperative community action. First appearing in the mid-1990s, when Internet penetration was still low, Internet activism has since gathered great momentum and currency. The Chinese party-state initially reacted to it with alarm; but over the years, the party-state has cultivated an approach that combines repressive policing with gentler methods of social management. And far from being static or monolithic, the Chinese Internet control system has evolved in response to changing forms of Internet activism. Meanwhile, Internet activism has itself evolved in response to the new forms of state control. The resilience and adaptability of Internet activism have ensured that the movement will continue to grow despite state efforts to disrupt it.This story of mutual adaptation is rooted in deep structural and institutional conditions. Internet ac - 111

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Section: Internet Activism and The Party-state In Chinamentioning

confidence: 99%

Internet Activism & the Party-State in China

Yang

2014

Daedalus

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“…Furthermore, there is a small group of Chinese activist lawyers who moved to Beijing to pursue human rights or public interest causes (IN06153; IN07115; IN10103; IN10105). Although they constitute only a tiny portion of the migrant lawyer population, these lawyers often handle high‐profile cases and receive much media attention, particularly from the international media (Fu and Cullen , ). In this respect, the migration of activist lawyers to major cities is even more calculated than that of other migrant lawyers.…”

Section: Why Do Chinese Lawyers Migrate?mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Still, the Beijing Justice Bureau allowed him to practice in the capital without transferring his lawyer license (IN07115). The political consideration of migration may explain why lawyers in Beijing made up the majority of the small national network of Chinese human rights lawyers (IN10101; Fu and Cullen , ; Liu and Halliday ). As we will see in the next section, these activist lawyers adopt a survival strategy vastly different from that of other migrant lawyers.…”

Section: Why Do Chinese Lawyers Migrate?mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The second exceptional group of migrant lawyers is found among the small number of human rights activists in Beijing. Unlike ordinary migrant lawyers who try to survive by making money, these activists restrict their practice to politically sensitive cases that generate both concerns from the Chinese government and attention from foreign donors and international media (Fu and Cullen , ; Liu and Halliday ). Some of these lawyers came to the capital to pursue human rights or public interest causes (IN07115), while others turned activists after realizing the hardship of survival in the city (IN10103; IN10105).…”

Section: Surviving In the New Citymentioning

confidence: 99%

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Migration and Social Structure: The Spatial Mobility ofChinese Lawyers

Liu¹,

Liang²,

Michelson³

2014

Law & Policy

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“…Gauging how taking a case or defending a client will be received still relies on guesswork, and even sharp-eyed lawyers can miscalculate. Defense attorneys who volunteered to represent Tibetans involved in the March 2008 riot, for instance, were surprised by the extent of government interference they encountered (Fu and Cullen, 2011: 53). In Tibet, some lawyers were barred from meeting would-be clients (Radio Free Asia, 2009), and in Beijing others found their annual license renewal applications were denied (Buckley, 2008).…”

Section: Lawyersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Politics at the Boundary

2011

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In this conceptual essay, the authors argue that one way to understand the Chinese state is to view it from below, from the perspective of people advocating change. The authors' "state reflected in society" approach is illustrated with accounts of Chinese lawyers, journalists, and NGO leaders who operate at the boundary of the acceptable and are attentive to signals about what the authorities will tolerate. Their experiences suggest that mixed signals about the limits of the permissible is a key feature of the Chinese state. Beyond a number of well-patrolled "forbidden zones," the Chinese state speaks with many voices and its bottom line is often unclear. At the border of the uncontroversial and the unacceptable, the Chinese state is both a highcapacity juggernaut capable of demarcating no-go zones and a hodgepodge of disparate actors ambivalent about what types of activism it can live with. Whether mixed signals are deliberate or accidental is hard to determine, but they do offer the authorities certain advantages by providing a low-cost way to contain dissent, gather information, and keep options open.

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Climbing the Weiquan Ladder: A Radicalizing Process for Weiquan Lawyers

Cited by 7 publications

References 0 publications

Internet Activism & the Party-State in China

Internet Activism & the Party-State in China

Migration and Social Structure: The Spatial Mobility ofChinese Lawyers

Politics at the Boundary

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