In gathering histories from one of the country’s darkest, most divisive periods, the former Guardian China correspondent has created a gripping and important document
n the 1990s, something odd happened in Beijing’s burgeoning fine dining scene. Among the chic eateries, restaurants emerged with very simple dishes: meat and vegetables cooked in plain style with few frills. The diners were not there just for the cuisine, but to relive the experience of a period generally considered a disaster: the Cultural Revolution of 1966-76.
The most disturbing element is the refusal of perpetrators, even half a century later, to take responsibility for their actions But the most disturbing element of her story is the refusal of perpetrators, even half a century later, to take responsibility for their actions. The most chilling case is a man named Zhang Hongbing, whose mother was executed as a counter-revolutionary. Zhang takes Branigan to his mother’s grave, rather jarringly crying for forgiveness while bragging that he has brought theto come and see her. But the real shock is how she died.
Branigan ends with an excellent analysis of how contemporary Chinese politicians seek to mimic the Cultural Revolution while following very different paths. She recalls Bo Xilai, who ran the mega-city of Chongqing until 2012 with an ideology based on “singing red” and “smashing black” . But her main attention is on President Xi Jinping. Xi, she notes, seeks to create a cult of personality that can look like the kind of semi-religious devotion demanded by Mao.
United Kingdom Latest News, United Kingdom Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Govt to launch new National Cultural Policy for entertainmentThe government is set to reveal a plan to bolster Australia’s entertainment sector which will include Australian content quotas for streaming platforms and a $286 million campaign over four years. The rules will apply from July 1, 2024.
Read more »
What we know so far about 'Revive', Australia's new cultural policyA new arts funding body named Creative Australia will be front and centre as part of the government's five-year plan for the sector.
Read more »
Albanese launches cultural arts policy for Aus entertainmentPrime Minister Anthony Albanese has launched a new arts policy in a bid to bolster the Australian entertainment sector and expand Indigenous representation. “For tens of thousands of years this land has been alive with stories,” Mr Albanese said in a media conference on Monday. “First Nations people have mapped this landscape – they are at the heart of this cultural roadmap. “This document stands as a powerful reaffirmation of the government’s commitment to our culture and the arts through which it finds its great expression.”
Read more »
PM unveils cultural policy with plea over Voice to ParliamentThe Prime Minister has used a speech in Melbourne unveiling Australia's new cultural policy to urge the arts community to back the Voice to Parliament, as the 'no' campaign officially launches.
Read more »
‘A really good start’: Government launches new cultural policyGreens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young says the federal government launching a new national cultural policy is a “really good start”. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Monday outlined the key points behind 'Revive', which will guide investment and decisions in the entertainment, arts and cultural sector over the next five years. “After a decade of our Australian artists and creative workers being effectively sidelined and undermined by previous government policy, it’s a good step forward,” Ms Hanson-Young told Sky News Australia.
Read more »
Cultural dominance of ‘wokeism’ has ‘infected’ King CharlesThe cultural dominance of 'wokeism” has “infected” King Charles, according to Sky News contributor Dominique Samuels. “Nothing that the Royal Family does is by accident, so this was obviously a choice not to mark Australia Day,” she told Sky News host Chris Kenny. “Which is a real shame because really I think it stokes the idea that the Royal Family is irrelevant in places like Australia and Canada and other countries.”
Read more »