A Proponent of Freedom
Jimmy Lai is still in prison and Hong Kong’s authorities have not reacted to the international awards he has been recognized for. China for all its blatant belief in socialism has denied basic rights as freedom of expression in Hong Kong. It is not a secret that Hong Kong is run under the auspices of communist China. China must acknowledge that repressing freedom is not the best option it has with the intellectuals. It must give freedom to opine and expression to men and women that deserve it. Jimmy Lai, the founder of a now defunct newspaper, has been imprisoned for twenty years. It’s a blatant violation of freedom of expression that democracies take for granted. China being a communist state does not warrant freedom, and it does not give any political space to its intellectuals. China must understand that intellectuals have freedom of expression in democracies. Being a communist state China unfairly ceases to be an open society. China must imbibe the virtues as freedom of expression and release Jimmy Lai with immediacy of political intent. China must not play condescending to intellectuals who devote their lives to public service. Jimmy Lai was a proponent of freedom of expression and has been languishing in prison without any fault that can be deemed his own.
It’s an unfair practice that communist regimes have been indicted for. Communist states do not support freedom of expression and punishes men and women that participate in the secular writ. It’s a basic right granted to all men everywhere in the world. For all the rhetoric of socialism that China is prone to it has denied rights that are taken for granted in all democracies of the world. The international community must laud Germany for giving a award most recently to Jimmy Lai even though he is in prison. Prison does not substantiate freedom, it makes it derogatory. China being one of the largest economy has been suffering politically; the old communist regime has been unable to accept the changes that have swept through other parts of the world. The freedom to opine and express one’s opinion comes as basic rights that are granted to all individuals. China must accept freedom. The Chinese communist state has been a laggard when it comes to freedom of expression. It straightforwardly denies it, and makes men and women participating in freedom suffer. China must be more circumspect and accept freedom of expression as legitimate right that its citizens have and must exercise. Using punitive measures to scare them does not come as sign of good times that China propagates around the world.
Yuvraj Saharan
Capital Report