(Rights activists) Arrests after "Jasmine Revolution" call in China

[Psephos]

Source: http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific/view/1111918/1/.html

BEIJING - Several top Chinese rights activists have disappeared into police custody as a web campaign urged angry citizens to mark the Middle East's "Jasmine Revolution" with protests, campaigners said Sunday.

Up to 15 leading Chinese rights lawyers and activists have disappeared since Saturday amid a nationwide police mobilisation, according to activists, while the government appeared to censor Internet postings calling for the demonstrations.

"We welcome... laid off workers and victims of forced evictions to participate in demonstrations, shout slogans and seek freedom, democracy and political reform to end 'one party rule'," one Internet posting said.

The postings, many of which appeared to have originated on overseas websites run by exiled Chinese political activists, called for protests in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and 10 other major Chinese cities.

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Read more: Channel News Asia

[OHdem10]

1. Does anyone happen to know what "Jasmine" means? Why

they call it Jasmine Revolution?? I know Jasmine is a flower.

Just saw a piece on TV where China is really clamping down
and making arrests.

[totodeinhere]

2. It interesting to me that the momentous events happening around the world

such as in China and Libya and other places seem to draw such little interest at DU. Yet mention Wisconsin and you get a lot of responses.

I hope that we are not becoming xenophobic. Word wide events might very well have a greater long term influence on our lives than anything happening domestically right now. Or are we so self centered that we don't care about anything happening outside of our borders?

[Jackpine Radical]

3. I don't think we're slighting the rest of the world as you suggest.

It's fairly natural to focus your attention on things close to home, and in the WI cas, DU was a major force in combatting M$M disinformation.

We are passionately interested in what's happening elsewhere, and the information is given pretty good exposure here. Unfortunately, China's Bamboo Curtain is still in place, and it's hard to get good information. When there is no new information, it's hard to keep putting out threads.

Would you expect the Egyptians right now to be focused on Madison? We are aware of them and they of us, but each must turn to their own concerns, all the while knowing that each is a small chip in the rapidly evolving world mosaic.