Courageous, educated, passionate Chinese women are not something we, in the non-Chinese world, learn much about. Today, as much of Asia sits anxiously awaiting news of the 3 Gorges Dam and its imminent collapse, it is time to take a moment to honour her. Why is the western world not screaming in unison to celebrate her courage? cos they don't know about (arguably) one of the world's largest geo-political-environmental disasters in the making.
Firstly, what is the 3 Gorges Dam? It's the largest hydro-electrical project in the world - a dam on the Yangtze River in Southern China, ostensibly built for massive electrical generation and flood control. It has caused phenomenal displacement of people, and environmental devastation.
Scientific American's assessment back in 2008 when the 3 Gorges Dam was opened?
"We simply cannot sacrifice the environment in exchange for temporary economic gain." The comments appeared to confirm what geologists, biologists and environmentalists had been warning about for years: building a massive hydropower dam in an area that is heavily populated, home to threatened animal and plant species, and crossed by geologic fault lines is a recipe for disaster. Source
Since 1980, it has been publicly and eloquently opposed by many people, but by one Chinese woman in particular: Dai Qing.
Probe International Fellow, activist, and journalist Dai Qing has been speaking out against the Three Gorges Dam since the 1980s. She published Yangtze! Yangtze! in 1989, a book of essays highlighting the concerns about the environmental and social effects of the dam, followed by The River Dragon has Come in 1998. Though Dai Qing faces constant harassment by Chinese authorities and is forbidden to publish in China, she has chosen to remain in Beijing where she continues to fight for freedom of the press, government accountability, and an open debate over the Three Gorges dam. She has been honoured with Fellowships from Harvard, Columbia, and the Australian National University, with the International PEN Award for Freedom, and the Goldman Environmental Prize. Source.
During the Cultural Revolution (文化大革命) in 1966-1976, Dai and her husband, Wang Dejia (王德嘉), were sent to the countryside to be "reformed through labour" and worked as peasants. They were forced to leave Beijing where their daughter, Wang Xiaojia (王小嘉), lived. This showed Dai the uglier side of the Chinese government and made her realize that Chinese citizens were least important to it. After the Cultural Revolution, Dai was unable to return to her former career. Later on, she worked on surveillance equipment and after that as a writer for the People's Liberation Army (人民解放軍). In 1982, she left the Army and joined Guangming Daily (光明日報) as a news reporter. Source
Besides publishing Yangtze! Yangtze!, she also authored many books to share her opinions, especially about the Three Gorges Dam project such as The River Dragon Has Come! (水龍來了!). However, Yangtze! Yangtze! was banned after the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 on (天安門屠殺 June 4, 1989). Because of that event, she was denounced on June 4, 1989, and quit the Chinese Communist Party on June 5, 1989. In addition, she was jailed for ten months and was not allowed to publish books in China. When she was released from jail in May 1990, she declined political asylum (政治庇護) from the United States and Germany. Source
The courage of this incredible woman can never be really grasped. Her refusal to seek political asylum, and remaining the continual voice of reason, science and opposition within China over 40 years against the 3 Gorges Dam is a marathon effort beyond words.
Today, I doubt she is rejoicing to have been prophetic and right. Despite the CCP's denial, global media is reporting the likely collapse of the 3 Gorges Dam any moment:
International experts who severely criticized the engineering of the dam during its construction phase and were later, finally, formally asked to come in and consult were too late:
While the western media continues to distract the sheeples with Covid 19 and face mask debates, Dai Qing knows about real loss of freedom. It has not prevented her from being a strong voice, for most of her life, against what she knows is corrupt, dangerous and wrong. I can't imagine her sense of impotence as this drama unfolds:
Flooding above the dam continues.
At 8 a.m. on Saturday (18/07/2020), the inbound flow of water reached 61,000 cubic meters per second while the outbound flow was 33,000 cubic meters per second, with 45 percent of floodwater withheld in the reservoir, according to the China Three Gorges Corporation. Three lower floodgates of the Three Gorges Dam opened to discharge the floodwater on Saturday morning, with various parameters of the dam at safety levels. After withholding rounds of floodwaters, the water level of the reservoir has reached 160.17 meters, more than 15 meters higher than the flood limit level. Source
Unusually heavy rains across Asia continue.
...if the dam collapses, it will impact over 400-million people living downstream. The Yangtze River’s mid to lower reaches are densely populated, and include big cities like Shanghai and Wuhan. Source
Chinese economy post Wuhan-Covid-19 also experiencing what could likely be the largest flood ever known in China, across a region that is a major industrial and manufacturing region? It will affect the whole world.
As we watch this environmental catastrophe not just unfold, but continue, I want to step back and honour the woman who saw it coming 40 years ago and has paid a terrible personal price to stand up for her fellow Chinese citizens, and the environment.
Free Speech matters.
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