Wei Jingsheng Foundation

Overseas Chinese Democracy Coalition News and Article Release Issue: A40-M8
中国民主运动海外联席会议新闻与文章发布号：A40-M8
Release Date: November 22, 2003
发布日：2003年11月22日
Topic: Appeal to the Chinese Government to Openly Invite Exiles Back (MO, Li)
标题：请公开邀请流亡者回国！(茉莉)

Editor's words:

Mo Li is a reputed and well-known Chinese human rights activist and writer. She has published numerous articles regarding Chinese human rights, including a book in Chinese: "Journey of Human Rights". She is a trustworthy Chinese friend to the Tibetans with extreme sympathy and remarkable support. She is one of very few Chinese authors who wrote so much for the Tibetans' cause and freedom.

Mo Li was put in prison for her participation in the 1989 Chinese democracy movement. Before that, she was a teacher in a college. After that, she was forced into exile, first to Hong Kong, eventually to Sweden where she now lives.

As a woman myself, I have always admired Mo Li's straightforwardness and bravery, as well as enjoyed our times together and our "women talk". I love to read her articles, which are very different from the mainstream male-dominated Chinese human rights and democracy authors. Often they could move me to tears and make my heart talk to her heart. Yet, most importantly, I love her as a good friend and admire her as a person with extraordinary courage and kindness to the others. Her ordeal comes from that, yet she shines through that.

Here I recommend you Mo Li's article, which does not carry her typical female trademarks yet is on a very important subject.

-- Ciping Huang

(This editor recommends the following article to our readers, although its contents do not represent either Mr. WEI Jingsheng or the Wei Jingsheng Foundation's opinion or stand.)

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Appeal to the Chinese Government to Openly Invite Exiles Back to China
-- By Mo Li

The Chinese government is quietly doing something good - privately inviting some overseas dissidents in exile to return to China. On the surface, it is loosening up.

People like myself have received invitations from the Chinese National Security Bureau via friends and family members to visit China. Some people in exile have even visited China (even though they were monitored when they were in China).

The remarkable part is that, several years ago, these people had to write confessions and guarantees as a condition to go back. Those who refused ended up not able to meet their beloved for the last time. But now, those who are invited do not have such a condition attached. It seems that the Chinese government is much kinder and gentler now.

I am an example. Two years ago, I received an invitation to go back to China, on the condition that I not criticize the Chinese government anymore. The messenger was one of my friends in Sweden who was visiting China. I refused, because I believe that criticism is my basic right as a Chinese citizen.

More than one year later, while visiting China, my friend in Sweden received an even better meal offered by the National Security with an even better invitation for me: "Mo Li is welcome back to China and may even maintain her right to criticize the government". Probably from monitoring my mail to home and knowing our family financial problems, this time the Chinese Government even voluntarily offered to pay all my expense in China if I returned.

Honestly, when I learned of the invitation, a warm current went through my heart. After so many years in exile, with so much sadness thinking of my family and homeland, my will to hold my belief was finally understood by that government which forced me to become a fugitive. And I heard similar talk from others afterward.

From the surface, this is a very humanitarian act and meets the United Nations' UN international convent on civil and political rights that Chinese government has signed. However, there is no condition attached in the UN's article for a citizen of the country to return.

So I became curious: why is the Chinese government only inviting selected individuals in exile under the table? Why don't they openly do such a good thing? As a person who does not want to give up my ideals, I became hesitant: I am worried that my return to my homeland, which was my basic human right, will become a private bargaining and make myself suspect of "selling myself" to the Chinese government. This worry is a big psychological barrier for me to leap through.

To my knowledge, this invitation has not been made to everyone; there are people in exile who are not invited. Therefore, I have to ask further.

While the others like me are still forbidden in China, if I accept the offer from the Chinese government is it fair? In his last days, the well-known author Wang RuoWang, kept saying, "I miss Shanghai, I miss my children", yet he ended up dying in New York because he would not accept the Chinese government's conditions. The grieving fate of this respectful elder made me feel guilty to others while I was considering returning to my homeland.

The Chinese government should open its policy and publicly announce and invite all people in exile equally to have their right of return, without any condition. This invitation would be beneficial to both the Chinese government and the exiles.

First, to openly invite all exiles to return would greatly raise the Chinese government's international reputation. For all these years, the Chinese government has signed UN covenants yet not exercised them. This non-compliance has caused great outrage in international society and has been strongly condemned. If the Chinese government openly announces a policy of welcoming those in exile, it will be considered a big step forward for the Chinese human rights condition and will win international praise. Meanwhile, it will also win hearts of Chinese inside China. Such action will make the Chinese government the biggest beneficiary.

Secondly, it would be very beneficial to those of us in exiles that wish to return to our homeland even in our dreams. We could kept our integrity and return to our home respectfully. Our families would not have to worry about our safety while we are in China.

I am publicizing my opinions and thoughts here and appeal to the Chinese government to give consideration. To return to China is our basic human right without the need to have the invitation of the government. If the Chinese government were not an obstacle, we could exercise this right ourselves. For me, I have to wait with homesick tears in my eyes in the hope of return to my country. I have been wandering all over the world for the last decade. Yet, I am waiting for the Chinese government to open its policy and to give back the equal right to all those in exile to return to China.

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编辑的话：

茉莉是一位有声望的著名中国人权活动人士，也是一位专栏作家。她发表了大量关于中国人权状况的文章，出版的中文著作有《人权之旅》。同时，她对西藏的事业有深切的同情和支持，是西藏人可信赖的中国朋友。她为西藏的自由事业写了许多文章，这在中国作家中是少见的。

茉莉在一九八九年因参加中国民主运动而入狱。在这之前，她是高校的一位教师。出狱后，她流亡香港，现居瑞典。

作为一位女性，我总是钦佩茉莉的正直和勇敢，享受过和我们在一起的时光和“女人之间的谈话”。我喜欢读她的文章，因为她的文章和男性主流话语截然不同，其中有些内容使我感动得流泪，使我们心灵相通。最重要的，我把她当做一位好朋友一样喜欢她，钦佩她是一个非常勇敢和善良的人。她的痛苦的体验由此而来，她的闪光之处也由此而来。

我在此向你们推荐茉莉的一篇文章，此文没有她的典型的女性特色，论述的是一个重大问题。

－－－黄慈萍

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茉莉：请公开邀请流亡者回国！

中国政府正在静悄悄地做一件好事－－－私下邀请海外流亡的异议人士回国。这个主要由国安部负责执行的工作，至今为止，已经展开两年多了。随著时间的推移，这个工作范围越来越广，从中央到地方一层层深入，越来越见成效，至少在表面上，中国政府对流亡者回国的态度变得宽松多了。

这个工作的成效表现在，包括我在内的一些海外流亡者，曾多次收到中国国安部门委托家乡亲友转告的邀请，一些流亡者已经回国过了（尽管他们在国内不同程度地受到监视），我和其他一些收到邀请的朋友也正在观望和考虑之中。当局的态度宽松体现在：前几年流亡者回国被要求做检讨、写悔过保证书，有的人因为拒绝检讨，结果未能在亲人去世时见上最后一面。现在被邀回国的人却可以什么都不写，既往不咎。看起来，原来冷血的当局变得仁慈多了。

我本人就是一个典型的例子。两年前，我在瑞典的一位老乡回国探亲，带来家乡国安人员的善意邀请，说是欢迎莫莉花回国看看，只要以后不再批评中国政府就行。当时我一口谢绝了他们的好意，坚持说批评中国政府是我作为公民的基本权利，这是不能拿来做交换的。

过了一年多，我的老乡再次回国，家乡国安再次热情设宴招待他，托他转告了当局新的更为宽厚的邀请：欢迎莫莉花回国看看，她仍然可以批评中国政府。大概是通过邮件监控，了解到我们家的经济情况不佳，这次国安邀请我“回国参观祖国建设”时还主动提出，他们愿意承担我回国观光的一切费用。

说实话，当时我听到这个邀请之后的感觉是，一股暖流涌上心头。流亡这么多年，这么多思乡思亲的辛酸，以及自己坚守初衷的心愿，竟然被那个逼我逃亡的政府理解了。而后不断听到一些流亡者回国的消息，前几个月还风传胡锦涛有重要讲话，说让海外流亡者回国，年纪大的要照顾，有困难的要补助。

这看起来是一件很具人道主义精神的事情，符合中国政府已经签署的联合国《公民权利和政治权利国际公约》第12条第4款：“任何人进入其本国的权利，不得任意加以剥夺。”这个条款没有附加任何“但书”，即是说，任何国民回归自己祖国的权利是“没有条件”的。

然而，在感动之后，我却产生了一个疑惑：为什么中国政府只是私下地、个别地邀请流亡者回国，而不将这一好事公开进行？因此，不愿意放弃自己理念的我，对中国政府邀请的好意，有了许多顾虑：我担心这种本来属于基本人权的回国，会变相地成为一桩“私下交易”，令我洗不清自己被政府“招安”和被“收买”的嫌疑。对于视人格尊严甚于生命的本人，这是一个很难逾越的心理障碍。

而且据我了解，这种邀请并不是一视同仁的，还有相当一部分流亡者没有被政府邀请，这就使得我不能不自我追问：

在其他人仍然被禁回国的情况下，我接受当局的好意，这是公平和公正的吗？那年，不断念叨“想上海、想孩子”的病危老人王若望，因为不能接受中国政府提出的条件，结果客死他乡。这位令人尊敬的老人的悲哀命运，使我在考虑回国问题时，对其他未收到邀请的人有一种负疚感。因此，中国政府需要制订一个公开的政策，明文宣告欢迎海外异议人士回国，所有流亡者都无条件地享有同等的回国权。跨出这一步，对中国政府和流亡者双方都是非常有利的：

首先，公开邀请流亡者回国，将会大大提高中国政府在国际上的声誉。多年来，中国政府签署了国际人权公约却又不执行，令国际社会极为反感，受到严厉的谴责。如果现在中国政府公开宣布其欢迎流亡者回国的政策，这将被视为中国人权状况的一大进步，不但会获得世界各国政府和人权人士的广泛赞誉，而且在本国人民中也将大得人心。中国政府将是这一举动的最大受益者。

其次，对我们这些连做梦都想回国的流亡者来说，也是非常有益的。如果这是一个公开的政策，我们便不必担心自己被人怀疑“丧失立场”了、“投降”了，我们就可以在坚守自己理念的前提下，堂堂正正有尊严地回家，家乡的亲人也不必为我们回国的安全问题担惊受怕。

我把自己的这些看法与顾虑，在此公开出来，请中国政府有关方面考虑。回国本来是我们天经地义的权利，无须政府邀请，这种权利只要政府不阻挠就能实行。对我来说，在中国政府没有颁布一个公开的政策之前，在所有的流亡者不能享受同等的回国权之前，辗转流亡了十年的本人，会一边含著眼泪思乡思亲，一边继续等待下去。

(以上为编者向您们推荐的文章。文中作者的观点并不代表本基金会或魏京生先生本人的观点与立场。)

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