Wu’er Kaixi has gained weight over the past 37 years, and his once-dark hair, which previously fell over his eyes in the style he adopted as a student at Beijing Normal University in 1989, is now streaked with gray. Yet certain constants remain.
He remains on the official list of dissidents identified by the Chinese government as the principal organizers of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests, a period when hopes for democratic reform were high.
Now 58 and residing in Taipei, Kaixi continues to speak out against the Chinese authorities, who have made clear that he will never receive amnesty and will never be permitted to return to his native country.
Speaking in Tokyo on Wednesday, a day before the anniversary of the violent suppression of the demonstrations, Kaixi stated, “What I have been trying to convey to the world is a simple fact: China is not only a threat to peaceful dissenters within its borders, but also a direct menace to the entirety of human civilization.”
For many years, other nations have looked away while Beijing oppressed internal dissent, including ethnic minorities such as Tibetans and Uyghurs, hoping that engagement would coax China into becoming a responsible global citizen.
Other governments placed trade and economic opportunities above human‑rights concerns, he said, but increasingly they appear to have recognized their error.
“The United States has pursued a policy of appeasement toward China,” he said. “The US led, and the rest of the world followed.”
In search of democracy
China’s accession to the World Trade Organization and its integration into the global trading system were premised on the expectation that this would foster a civil society capable of eventual democratization,” he said. “That transformation has not yet materialized, but at least President Donald Trump adopted a different approach, viewing the relationship through the lens of a businessman willing to apply leverage.”
“Japan, the United States, and every other country seem to have misunderstood China,” he told DW. “They assume that China is driven by ideology, nationalism, or communism, but that is incorrect. The Chinese Communist Party operates as a criminal organization motivated by profit.”
While Chinese leaders proclaim national rejuvenation and argue that control over Taiwan will benefit the nation — and a populace fed on state propaganda is rallied to the party’s objectives — the reality differs sharply, Kaixi said. “They do not care about rejuvenating China; their sole concern is adding another zero to their bank balances.” “They are nothing but common thieves,” he added.
He cautions other governments — including Germany — to be wary of investments that appear to be sound business opportunities but are ultimately intended to enrich and empower the Chinese leadership.
The crackdown
The suppression, which unfolded on the night of June 3–4, 1989, was swift, with thousands of troops deploying tanks and armored personnel carriers to storm Tiananmen Square and firing live ammunition. China has never provided a comprehensive death toll, but human‑rights groups and eyewitnesses estimate that thousands may have perished.
After appearing on the regime’s “most wanted” list, Kaixi chose to flee to Hong Kong and subsequently to Paris, where he completed his studies at Paris‑Dauphine and Harvard University before relocating to Taipei in 1996 and acquiring Taiwanese citizenship three years later.
Today, he serves as chairman of the Taiwan Association for Democracy in China and sits on several human‑rights committees.
He describes contemporary China as a “bully” that the international community must confront, warning that failure to resist the regime’s patterns of political intimidation and territorial aggression will only embolden Beijing to pursue further expansion.
Tiananmen survivor: Preventing commemoration is inhumane
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
A dreaded call
His criticism of the regime has exacted a heavy personal toll, Kaixi acknowledged, noting that last year he received the call he had long feared. “Living in exile is a form of mental and spiritual torture that has persisted for 37 years. No matter how prepared I thought I was, the call I received last year informing me that my father had died left me utterly unprepared.”
His parents were denied permission to travel abroad to see him, and for nearly four decades their only contact consisted of phone calls and video‑link meetings.
“Every day I long to return to that land and embrace my parents,” he said. “Now, I can never again hug my father, but I hope that one day I will be able to hug my mother.”
Edited by: Srinivas Mazumdaru