The Secret Trial of the General Who Refused to Attack Tiananmen Square
In 1989, Gen. Xu Qinxian defied orders to crush the pro-democracy protests in Beijing. Now, leaked video from his court-martial is on YouTube.
Deng Xiaoping
Where Mao’s Peasants Tilled the Soil, Tourists Now Pay for the View
Decades ago, a Chinese village became an official symbol of revolutionary “self-reliance.” The slogan hasn’t changed, but nearly everything else has.
In China, a Forbidden Question Looms: Who Leads After Xi?
Xi Jinping seems to believe that only his continued rule can secure China’s rise. But as he ages, choosing a successor will become riskier and more difficult.
The Art of Telling Forbidden Stories in China
Many writers are looking for ways to capture the everyday realities that the government keeps hidden — sometimes at their own peril.
Yan Mingfu, Who Tried to Defuse the Tiananmen Powder Keg, Dies at 91
As an envoy the to the pro-democracy protesters, Mr. Yan, who was also Mao’s interpreter, tried to find a peaceful way out of the crisis.