May 10, 2023 marked the second anniversary of the detention of program-think<\/a> (Bi\u0101nch\u00e9ng su\u00edxi\u01ceng, \u7f16\u7a0b\u968f\u60f3<\/a>), an incisive and influential blogger who for twelve years managed to maintain his anonymity while maintaining a prolific output\u2014penning hundreds of blog posts<\/a> on topics as diverse as computer programming, Great-Firewall circumvention, political commentary, philosophy, historical analysis, e-book reviews, and current events in China and abroad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Earlier this year, a court document<\/a> published on the Chinese human rights website Weiquanwang<\/a> revealed that program-think, whose real name is Ruan Xiaohuan (\u962e\u6653\u5bf0, Ru\u01cen Xi\u01ceohu\u00e1n), had been sentenced on February 10, 2023 to seven years in prison for \u201cinciting subversion of state power\u201d (a charge based on his online writings), two years deprivation of political rights, and a fine of 20,000 yuan. The harsh sentence was widely condemned, with PEN America\u2019s China research and advocacy lead Angeli Datt commenting, \u201cBlogging is not a crime and the heavy prison sentence on national security charges for his writing illustrates the dire situation for free expression in China<\/a>.\u201d Iris Hsu, China Representative for the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), called on Chinese authorities to immediately release Ruan, and added that his \u201cunjust sentencing highlights how the Chinese government employs brutal tactics to suppress critical reporting on its internet policies<\/a>.\u201d Ruan himself declined to accept the ruling and lodged an appeal<\/a> on the day of the verdict, but the court refused to recognize his two selected legal representatives (Shang Baojun and Mo Shaoping, both well-known human-rights lawyers), and instead gave him two state-assigned lawyers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After news of the verdict surfaced, Ruan\u2019s wife Bei Zhenying gave a series of interviews<\/a> to CNN<\/a>, RFA<\/a>, and the CPJ<\/a> detailing the charges against Ruan, her surprise at discovering that her husband was the legendary blogger program-think, and her concerns for his well-being and hopes for his eventual release. Ms. Bei has also established a Twitter account<\/a> which currently has over 22,000 followers. Her Twitter bio urges followers to pay close attention to Ruan\u2019s appeal, and to express solidarity but avoid talking about politics. In one tweet, she describes her husband as \u201ca person who immerses himself in research and treasures time,\u201d and says, \u201cI want him to be free, to come home, and to recover<\/a>.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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- Pay attention to his case, because your attention will help keep him safe.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Please retweet so that more people may learn about and pay attention to his case, and generate more support for his pending appeal and release!<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- No (monetary donations) needed, thank you. Your attention and support means everything to us.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- As a blogger, or online diarist, he posted on overseas blogs, exercised his freedom of speech, and did not speak about “inciting subversion” within China. I hope that his supporters who speak out here [on Twitter] will keep this in mind as they express their solidarity. Avoid talking about politics.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- There is no such thing as impeccable (i.e. invulnerable) online \u201csecurity.\u201d He is well aware of this himself, though his security skills and security awareness are top-notch.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- He is a rigorous thinker. His blog imparts knowledge, encourages independent and critical thinking, advocates online freedom, and strives to be thorough and objective in the information it presents.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
Some Twitter users expressed their admiration and support:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\njinzhi06933742: My children and I are learning so much from your husband’s articles, thank you very much!! We stand with you, and we share your ideals and values. In my opinion, your husband is a great warrior and teacher. He has done what he can, and we will do what we<\/em> can, striving to make China a more civilized society.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
zhngsn0909: Thank you for your hard work! Regardless of the outcome, your husband will surely be honored with a great place in history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
stfrt3: Please tell your husband that many of us are paying attention and are supportive, and we hope he can stay healthy and keep his spirits up. Thank you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
cohlint007: \u201cMan has but one short life; grass, but one brief springtime<\/a>.\u201d Mr. Ruan is worthy of inclusion in the history books. A true patriot, a human being writ large. Respect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
fling_wang: It is people like Mr. Ruan who keep me from despairing about this country … Highest respects to Mr. Ruan! [Chinese<\/strong><\/a>]<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
It is difficult to overstate how influential program-think\u2019s writings are. Over the course of 4497 days, Ruan Xiaohuan penned 712 blog posts on a dizzying array of topics. (Over one hundred of these were cited as “evidence” to justify the stiff seven-year prison sentence meted out by the court.) Below are a number of tributes collected by CDT that describe his essential contributions to Chinese online discourse over the years<\/strong><\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nFrom an article by netizen \u201c47\u5c0f\u7ba1\u5bb6\u201d upon the first anniversary of program-think\u2019s disappearance:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
program-think, hero of China’s Internet era and anonymous pioneer of resistance against the party-state, is destined to be recorded in history. Not only is he the “godfather of GFW-circumvention<\/a>,” but also a great enlightener. The breadth of his knowledge is astounding, ranging from infosec to political science to psychology and beyond.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A comment from netizen “co-memory”:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
program-think is the \u201cTank Man<\/a>\u201d of the digital age. Even greater, perhaps, because a brief moment of courage pales in comparison to persistent, long-term success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
From an essay<\/a> by China Digital Times Founder and Editor-in-Chief Xiao Qiang, upon program-think being chosen as the 2014 \u201cChinese Internet Hero of the Year\u201d:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
I hope that future generations will remember the real-life individuals\u2014whether named, unnamed, or anonymous\u2014who carried out those small acts of resistance that laid the groundwork for an era of freedom, and that they will recognize their wisdom, courage, persistence, and sacrifice. In each and every one of program-think’s blog posts, readers will find proof positive of 21st-century Chinese people’s online resistance to tyranny and their struggle for freedom. [Chinese<\/strong><\/a>]<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
In addition to his writings, program-think\u2019s various interactions with readers in the comments section of his blog offer clues to his motivations for blogging, how he viewed his relationship with readers, and his philosophical attitude toward the possibility of being unmasked or apprehended by the authorities. CDT Chinese editors have compiled some of the comments to and from program-think in the comments section under one of his best-known blog posts, \u201cA Security Guide for Political Activists\u201d<\/strong><\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nFrom: Anonymous, January 30, 2019 21:56:00<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n
He finally updated the blog. I was really worried that something had happened to him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
From: Anonymous, January 30, 2019 23:32:00<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n
From: \u706d\u7edd\u652f\u90a3\u8d31\u755c, January 31, 2019 00:23:00<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n
From: \u8f9b\u5fb7\u6797\u8bb0, January 31, 2019 00:44:00<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n
From: \u6bd4\u4f60\u597d\u4e94\u500d, January 31, 2019 20:18:00<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n
From: program-think, February 1, 2019 18:36:00<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n
From: Anonymous, February 1, 2019 16:47:00<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n
From: program-think, February 1, 2019 18:17:00<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n
To: 61\u697c\u7684\u7f51\u53cb. Thank you very much for your support as a long-time reader! Of course, I also want to thank the person who taught you to bypass the Great Firewall and who recommended my blog. Many readers are quietly helping me to spread the word about this blog and related tutorials. Like us, they too are the \u201cgravediggers\u201d of the CCP! [Chinese<\/strong><\/a>]<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
Not long after program-think was detained in 2021, CDT translated a representative selection of his writings<\/a>, including a piece on the \u201cPrinceling Network Map\u201d he published on Github; an essay on the origins of the meme \u201cZhao family member<\/a>,\u201d used to describe CCP cadres and those embedded in the power structure; and an account of how he managed to elude the authorities and maintain his anonymity for over a decade. CDT editors chose him as our \u201c2021 Person of the Year<\/a>,\u201d and have also compiled Chinese-language summaries of his top-ten blog posts<\/a> and a timeline with important milestones<\/a> in his 12-year blogging career.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Tony Hu contributed to this post.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"