su-etc
Democracy in China
	Wise guys, including Stanford and Harvard professors,
who said that Western democracy was irrelevant to China, should
comment on this.
a069  0609  05 Sep 88
PM-China-Dissident,0626
China's Top Dissident Says Anti-Marxist Feeling Widespread
By DAN BIERS
Associated Press Writer
    HONG KONG (AP) - China's leading dissident said today that
anti-Marxist feeling is widespread in Communist China, but that
obstacles to independent labor or political groups remain formidable
in the authoritarian state.
    ''Many people don't agree with Marxism, even workers and students,''
Fang Lizhi, a 52-year-old astrophysicist, said during an interview
with four Western journalists. ''Even people of my generation ...
don't believe in Marxism.''
    Fang supports a multiparty democracy over one-party Communist rule
and believes the first step toward political reform should be seeking
freedom of speech and of the press, which is now strictly controlled
by the state.
    Taiwan, the seat of the Nationalist Party that still claims to be
the legitimate ruler of all China, could provide an example of
political reform with the recent end of a ban on opposition parties,
Fang said.
    Although Taiwan's multiparty system is just getting started, ''at
least it's better than the (Chinese) mainland,'' Fang said.
    But Fang acknowledged conditions are not yet ripe for formation of
new political groups in China.
    ''They should wait (until) the private economy becomes dominant, or
at least becomes a larger factor,'' said Fang, who stressed that the
emergence of an independent middle class may be key to creating new
political forces.
    In the past decade, senior leader Deng Xiaoping has introduced a
number of market-oriented economic reforms to stimulate production
and modernize China after the 1966-76 Cultural Revolution nearly
destroyed the economy.
    Private enterprise is flourishing in some regions, although China's
leaders still believe in central economic planning.
    Fang was purged from the party last year when authorities accused
him of inciting pro-democracy student demonstrations in several
cities.
    He was forced to resign from his post as vice president of the
Science and Technology University in Hefei, Anhui province, and was
transferred to the Beijing Observatory, where he continues his
research and writing.
    Workers share many of the students demands for political freedom but
face a daunting task organizing independent groups such as the
outlawed Solidarity labor movement in Poland, Fang said.
    ''The organization of dissident organizations, something like an
independent union, is very difficult'' because of strong government
opposition, he said.
    Many Chinese students regard Fang as a hero for his outspoken
criticism of the Communist government. When he spoke informally to a
group at Beijing University earlier this year, a crowd of students
thrust books, envelopes and paper money for him to sign.
    Chinese authorities have allowed Fang to travel overseas despite his
criticism. Fang acknowledged that Beijing may be trying to improve
its image by allowing him to speak out but added: ''I also use the
opportunity to say more.''
    The astrophysicist said he does not want to get into politics or
form a political party. Instead, he views his role as ''introducing
some concepts'' to China, such as democracy.
    Fang believes democracy can work in China despite the nation's
dynastic history of authoritarian rule and unwieldy size of more than
1 billion people. He suggests democracy would help reduce many of the
country's ills, including rampant corruption.
    During the interview, he harshly rejected Marxism as the worst thing
in China.
    Fang says it is difficult to know the precise policy position of any
leader because China has ''no glasnost,'' a reference to the Soviet
leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev's policy of openness.
    Fang and and his wife, Li Shuxian, a professor of physics at Beijing
University, were briefly in the British colony on the southeastern
coast of China at the invitation of a local college. They arrived
after visiting Australia and Singapore.
    
 
AP-NY-09-05-88 0853EDT
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