The Communist Party IS China
I believe it was Deng Xiaoping who said, "It's the Communist Party that brings democracy to China".
What a lot of Westerners don't understand is that, to a large degree, the Communist Party IS China, and has their finger on the pulse of the entire country. So any talk of , "Why do they tolerate their lack of freedom?", or " Why don't they speak out against < fill in the blank >" is just nonsensical. At best, they would simply be replacing one form of Chinese government with another.
The censors control the social media to a degree which would be considered intolerable in the West. But it is engineered skillfully - "freedom of speech" can be allowed, in some cases, for up to a week - enough time for the Western media to crow about "new found freedoms" - before all traces of the "freedom" is obliterated from the media and from the consciousness of the people.
The social media in China provides a carefully-controlled sandbox for everyone to play in, under the watchful eyes of the Communist censors.
One story from a few years back, which just now surfaced as a "memory" on my Facebook page, illustrates what can happen when these things are carried to an extreme.
A bad first impression of Democracy
He just wanted to watch.
from the NY Times
Taiwan Vote Draws Mainland Interest, and One Mainlander
“Taiwan and China are one country,” he said, speaking through a cloth sack that concealed his face. “How can you arrest me for illegal entry?”
Moments before he was led to a waiting police vehicle, he was asked what he thought about Taiwan’s democracy.
“It’s horrible,” he said.
Taiwan's democracy is only for the ruling party of Taiwan. That's all!
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