yantong1980
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For Ping and Yang case, no place for drama queen!
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@JSCh
Chinese student sorry after uproar at US 'fresh air' speech
- 1 hour ago
Image copyright UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND
Ms Yang said the air in the US was "sweet and fresh"
A Chinese student has apologised following a furious reaction to her US graduation speech that praised the "fresh air of democracy".
Speaking at the University of Maryland, Yang Shuping drew a parallel between air pollution in China and the country's restrictions on free speech.
Angry Chinese social media users accused her of denigrating her homeland and told her to stay in the US.
But the university backed her, saying it was vital to hear different views.
Ms Yang - who was selected by the university to speak - contrasted wearing a face mask against pollution with the "sweet and fresh" air in the US.
"The moment I inhaled and exhaled outside the airport, I felt free," she said in a video of the speech posted on YouTube.
"I would soon feel another kind of fresh air for which I will be forever grateful. The fresh air of free speech. Democracy and free speech should not be taken for granted. Democracy and freedom are the fresh air that is worth fighting for," she continued.
Her speech became one of the hottest topics on the internet in China, with posts about it having been viewed more than 50m times by Tuesday.
Many Chinese social media users were angry, including a fellow Chinese student at the University of Maryland who accused Ms Yang of "deceptions and lies", the South China Morning Post newspaper reported.
The city authorities in her home city of Kunming in southwestern China also weighed in, saying air quality had been good almost every day so far this year and adding: "In Kunming, air is very likely to be 'sweet and fresh'."
Image copyright@ADMJEINSBT
Image captionMs Yang's apology on China's Weibo microblogging service
Image copyrightKUNMING GOVERNMENT
Image captionThe Kunming government insisted the city's air was "likely to be 'sweet and fresh'"
The People's Daily newspaper meanwhile accused her of making a "biased" speech.
Faced with mounting uproar, Ms Yang issued a statement on Chinese microblogging platform Weibo, saying she was "surprised and disturbed" by the reaction to her speech and "deeply loved" her motherland.
"I apologise and sincerely hope everyone can forgive me. I have learned my lesson," she wrote.
She was nevertheless backed by her university, which said in a statement: "Listening to and respectfully engaging with those whom we disagree are essential skills, both within university walls and beyond".
Some Weibo users agreed. "It looks like even if Chinese people go to America, they still can't have freedom of speech," one said.
What Can I say ? A bitch,who flatters another country by humiliating her own motherland.
She did deliver her speech, did she not? Her message is out. It is a way too political message that enforce the stereotypical image of China in US. Since I think the majority of the audience are American, they would not need a Chinese oversea student to teach them how great US is. It is therefore to tell them how grateful typical Chinese students appreciate US in comparison to China.Some Weibo users agreed. "It looks like even if Chinese people go to America, they still can't have freedom of speech," one said.
If you read Chinese history, you'd know there was a dynasty called Ming. It was ruined partly because of freedom of political speech. Too many criticisms to whatever the government did. Turned out the government couldn't do anything but waiting for collapse.
Why is free speech so important for science and technology researches anyways?
Do you have any resources about it? Yongle (Zhu Di) killed thousand of people because of their speeches.If you read Chinese history, you'd know there was a dynasty called Ming. It was ruined partly because of freedom of political speech. Too many criticisms to whatever the government did. Turned out the government couldn't do anything but waiting for collapse.
Why is free speech so important for science and technology researches anyways?
No. What I mean is China once had freedom of political speech. Not just in Ming dynasty, also in the early of 20th century. But both were followed by miserable ends. China got nothing but chaos from it.Now .. this is something.
Why is free speech important ....... Just because Centuries ago a Dynasty could not handle criticism & ' waited' for collapse its stifled .
At end of Ming dynasty, the political environment wasn't so harsh as Yongle period. I don't have English resource. Sorry.Do you have any resources about it? Yongle (Zhu Di) killed thousand of people because of their speeches.
No. What I mean is China once had freedom of political speech. Not just in Ming dynasty, also in the early of 20th century. But both were followed by miserable ends. China got nothing but chaos from it.
and you believed it? Remember poster still has no free speech.Now .. this is something.
Why is free speech important ....... Just because Centuries ago a Dynasty could not handle criticism & ' waited' for collapse its stifled .
Do Chinese posters in PDF look dumber than Indian posters? I don't think so. Seems free speech didn't help you so much.and you believed it? Remember poster still has no free speech.