Where's Weiwei?

Weiwei: on a state imposed vacation. Copyright Ai Weiwei.

No doubt the great Chinese firewall has already flagged this blog and added it to the list of thousands of blacklisted no-go sites simply for featuring the name of this prominent Chinese artist and activist. For those who aren't familiar with the name, Ai Weiwei is the son of one of China's greatest poets, Ai Qing -- and an influential mind in his own right.

Not only has his work been featured at the Tate Gallery in London, The Venice Bienalle and dozens of other well known galleries across the world, but he also had a hand in designing the Bird's Nest Stadium that featured prominently in the Beijing Olympics. (Go here for a more in depth profile of Weiwei) 

Most of us figured Weiwei was "protected by pictures" as one article on the artist put it, his fame and artistic legacy creating a bulwark against any ill intent from the governing authorities. But alas, the Chinese authorities have finally succeeded in "disappearing" Weiwei and silencing, at least for the mean time, one of China's most outspoken intellects.

According to Al Jazeera, the whole thing went down when Weiwei and his assistant attempted to board a flight to Hong Kong. I can only imagine his surprise at being approached by a gang of plain clothes police officers, being ushered into a sterile, fluorescent lit interrogation room and told to shut up and be quiet.

Apparently police then raided his house, pillaged his personal belongings and computers, questioned his wife and closest acquaintances-- and left without giving any information as to what was actually happening.

Reading between the lines, I say something Weiwei said rubbed someone in Communist Central the wrong way. I suppose Weiwei or some of his closest friends may know exactly what that was-- but more likely it was an accumulation of "subversive" activities that triggered the state sponsored kidnapping.

Weiwei is quite well known for his criticism of the Chinese government in its handling of the 2008 Shichuan Earthquake, as well its culpability in shoddy school building standards which resulted in the huge number of child casualties. In 2009, as a result of ties to an investigation into the school collapses his blog was shut down, and he was so severely injured by a police baton later that year he required emergency brain surgery.

Perhaps the most ominous sign of his impending disappearance was the escalation of Chinese anti-Weiwei activities. Not only had his international travel privileges been revoked, but earlier this year his studio was demolished in a high profile act of retribution by "local authorities."

What is clear is that Weiwei's disappearance bears a striking similarity to those millions of disappearances perpetrated throughout modern history. Interestingly, Weiwei's father was also disappeared to a labour camp during China's Cultural Revolution in 1958. However, this isn't all that surprising.

Intellectual, academic and artistic elites in such societies usually bear the first wave of violence under such brutal regimes. The Khmer Rouge followed this route, imprisoning and executing not only the previously mentioned, but also primary and secondary teachers as well.

It was also commonplace in the satellites of the former Soviet Union. Deeply ingrained in the mind of those who lived behind the Iron Curtain was an understanding that if radical thoughts became outwardly manifest -- either in a meeting, published in an underground newspaper or what have you -- the footsteps of the secret police may not be far behind. Knowledge of the dreaded Gulags and what went on there wasn't exactly a state secret -- and that's exactly the kind of control those in charge wanted. 

Freedom of speech is something we in the modern democracies consider a given. Political correctness and minority rights may limit expression in certain social circles or positions of authority, but for the most part we participate in it without constraint and without realising it. In my mind, freedom of speech is the same as freedom of thought or freedom of conscience. It is tied in with those other cherished "rights" like the freedom to practice one's religion without fear of retribution, or vote based on one's deeply ingrained beliefs.

Without this freedom -- as is so obviously apparent and common in these controlling hegemonies -- fear runs rampant. Fear is what keeps the public in step with the ideals of the republic. It threatens imprisonment or torture for those who would dare "subvert" the party line and prevents the open and transparent sharing of ideas that allow others to make up their own minds and draw their own conclusions.

Perhaps the most obvious byproduct of fear is a lack of freedom, period. The box in which human behaviour has to operate in such societies is unnaturally bland and unnecessarily limiting. Totalitarianism has its own oppressive flavor, and it is only magnified when coupled with Asia's conformist corporate mindset. But this doesn't excuse the Chinese government from locking away one of its greatest thinkers.

How will history look back at those who perpetrated such acts? My guess is that those who write this chapter will just make that little bit of info disappear as well.