Chinese Military Members Bypassing the Internet Firewall Shows an Awakening

(Minghui.org) Jiefangjun Bao (People’s Liberation Army Daily), the official newspaper of the Chinese military, pointed out on December 24 the “lax discipline” of low-level officers and soldiers. In particular, it emphasized that disciplinary action would be taken against those who bypass China’s internet firewall to access overseas information.

Some Western residents may not be aware that a large number of websites are blocked by the Great Firewall, notably Google, YouTube, Facebook, and many news and social media sites. To access overseas content, people in mainland China have to rely on special software tools to bypass the firewall.

This news from PLA Daily indicates that military officers and soldiers are also eager to find out uncensored information despite strict ideological control by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Since the Party began early last century, the CCP has kept a tight grip on the military through brainwashing and thought control. This way, the regime is able to use the military to safeguard its totalitarian rule, privileges, and corruption. In fact, corruption is common in the Chinese military, including the selling of official positions.

But now, the situation has begun to change.

Biggest Lies in Chinese Military

The CCP is well-known for spreading lies. Hu Jiwei, a former president and editor-in-chief of People’s Daily, once commented, “Only the publication date on the masthead is true. Everything else in the [People’s Daily] newspaper are lies.”

Due to the military’s special role and isolated environment, CCP brainwashing in the military is more thorough. For example, it claims that the military belongs to the Chinese people, while the CCP serves the people with leadership that is “great, glorious, and correct.” Neither is true.

First, the CCP treats the military as its own army, not the people’s army, and the military’s main responsibility is to safeguard the Party’s rule. More people began to realize this fact when the CCP labeled the democratic movement in 1989 as a “riot” and mobilized the army to slaughter unarmed, innocent students and ordinary citizens on Tiananmen Square.

Second, the CCP serves elite groups, not ordinary citizens. For example, food safety issues in China have harmed people’s health for a long time but remain unresolved because the elite have their own food supply chain and are not affected. While ordinary citizens have difficulty seeking medical treatment, senior officials enjoy the best services for free.

Third, the CCP has a track record of ruthlessness in suppressing the Chinese people. In its numerous political campaigns and the resulting Great Famine (1959 – 1961), about 80 million people lost their lives. Those who criticize the Party are subject to the more extreme cruelties. One harrowing case was Zhao Zhixin, whose larynx was cut in 1975 to stop her from speaking out. The Cultural Revolution saw large-scale cannibalism against so-called “class enemies” in Guangxi Province. The CCP’s internal struggles are akin to a meat grinder. Mao Zedong had a saying that “political power grows out of the barrel of a gun.”

These actions are the opposite of “great, glorious, and correct.” Some dissidents have referred to the CCP as a gangster organization with cult characteristics.

What to Read After Bypassing the Firewall?

One of the first topics Chinese people tend to browse on the uncensored internet relates to Falun Gong. In contrast to the CCP, the introduction of Falun Gong to the public in 1992 gave many people hope. Consisting of five sets of exercises and teachings that emphasize the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, the practice had a noticeable positive impact on both mind and body, attracting about 100 million practitioners within several years.

The teachings of Falun Gong are consistent with traditional Chinese culture and contradict the CCP’s values of class struggle, hatred, and deception. The large number of practitioners was seen as a threat by former CCP leader Jiang Zemin. In addition to suppressing the group since July 1999, Jiang also formed the 610 Office, an extralegal organization that penetrates all levels of government agencies to drive the nationwide, systematic persecution.

In the persecution of Falun Gong, Jiang issued orders to “defame their reputation, bankrupt them financially, and eliminate them physically.” The CCP-controlled media propagated countless lies to slander Falun Gong through news, education, entertainment, and other venues. One of the most damaging lies was the so-called “self-immolation” on Tiananmen Square on the eve of the 2001 Chinese New Year. A large body of evidence has shown this to be a hoax, and readers can find more details in the Focus Topics section of Minghui.org.

Even from a legal perspective, the CCP’s persecution of Falun Gong is unlawful. The Chinese Constitution protects freedom of belief and freedom of speech. The General Administration of Press and Publication issued Announcement 50 on March 1, 2011, repealing two previous notices that prohibited the publication of Falun Gong books.

There are no laws or State Council policies that ban Falun Gong. It is the CCP who has forced the government to carry out the persecution that includes discrimination, harassment, arrest, detention, imprisonment, torture, death, and forced organ harvesting.

People Are Awakening

It is apparent that the Chinese public, including military personnel, are interested in reading these topics, including the physical benefits of Falun Gong, improved moral values, the 25-year-long persecution, or facts that debunk the CCP’s lies.

In particular, the Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party, a book published in 2004, thoroughly analyzes the CCP’s history of brutality. Over 440 million Chinese have renounced their current and past memberships in the CCP’s organizations, including the Communist Youth League and the Young Pioneers.