Walking a Tightrope

His portrait still hangs there above the Gate of Heavenly Peace, overlooking Tiananmen Square - Mao Zedong, founder of the People's Republic of China and its Communist Party. As a leader, Mao took great measures to control the people. For decades, his word was law. When he died in 1976, he left a poor country in disarray and a fatigued and disillusioned population.

The China his portrait overlooks today is different. It is a country on the path to the rule of law instead of rule of man. For today, despite perceptions in the West, it is actually possible for people in China to discuss human rights and to bring pressure to bear for improvements. And, by law, all Chinese enjoy an ever growing number of rights.

This book describes eleven Chinese citizens striving to promote human rights in their country. They are not dissidents and none of them has ever been to jail. Common for them all is that they challenge the authorities in a way that they are listened to rather than repressed. They use the law. However, they all need to move in small steps forward, one step at a time, with the occasional step backwards. Working with human rights in China is still a delicate balance between making progress and incurring the wrath and mistrust of the authorities. It is like walking a tightrope.