Various officials in the U.S, Europe, and other countries have issued recent statements commending the grassroots Chinese movement to quit the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) regime that began 19 years ago.
Called Tuidang (退黨), which in Chinese means “quitting the Party,” the movement began on Nov. 19, 2004, when overseas Chinese-language newspaper The Epoch Times started publishing The Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party, an editorial series that critiques the totalitarian ideology and misrule of the CCP.
Aided by millions of volunteers in China and among overseas Chinese communities, over 420 million people have taken part in the Tuidang movement to date, giving real or assumed names to annul the oaths they made to obey and lay down their lives for the Communist Party when they joined it or its affiliated youth organizations.
STATEMENTS FROM CHINESE TAKING PART IN THE ‘TUIDANG’ MOVEMENT
- ‘Communism Must Perish So That China May Live’: Chinese Quit the CCP
- ‘The People All Know It Hasn’t Done a Single Good Thing’: Chinese Quit the Communist Party
- ‘We Have Been Deceived for Too Long’: Chinese Quit the Communist Party
The CCP, which seized power over mainland China in 1949, is the deadliest regime in history, having caused the deaths of around 80 million people through famine, civil war, and political persecutions.
Though the CCP counts around 95 million card-carrying Party members, the vast majority of Chinese are or have been members of its youth groups, the Communist Young Pioneers and the Communist Youth League.
International support for Tuidang
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The Tuidang movement has gained the attention of public figures since its inception, with leaders in Eastern Europe such as former Polish president Lech Wałęsa and former president of Ukraine Leonid Kravchuk lauding the decision by millions of Chinese to stand up to the communist regime.
The late Lee Teng-hui, who served as president of the Republic of China (ROC) on Taiwan for 12 years, held up the book version of the Nine Commentaries at a 2005 press conference, praising it as necessary reading for understanding the CCP.
Vaclav Havel, former president of the Czech Republic from 1993 to 2003, said in May 2005 that military force was not the best means of countering communist regimes. “To bravely stand up for the truth in the face of danger is the most effective method,” he said, referring to the Tuidang movement.
In December 2014, U.S. Congress commemorated the tenth anniversary of the Nine Commentaries’ publication. Rep. Chris Smith (R–NJ) issued a statement in support of Tuidang, commending the courage of its participants and expressing hope that the movement would help bring about a non-communist China.
