TAHRIR AND TIANANMEN

BEIJING LOOKS WARILY AT EGYPT UPRISING

The Chinese government, nervous about comparisons between Tahrir and Tiananmen, is downplaying Egyptian protesters' joy and emphasizing the need for stability in Cairo.

Barbara Demick

Los Angeles Times, February 13, 2011

Wary of the parallels between Tahrir and Tiananmen, Beijing is hardly celebrating the popular uprising in Egypt that brought down an authoritarian regime.

The Chinese government offered a sobering assessment Saturday of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak's resignation. Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu said in a statement that China hoped "the latest developments help restore national stability and social order at an early date."

News coverage of the 18-day uprising has emphasized looting, rioting and violence, while downplaying the jubilation of the protesters in Cairo's Tahrir Square. A short editorial Saturday in the state-run English-language China Daily used the word "stability," a favorite of the Chinese Communist Party, seven times. It warned that "any political changes will be meaningless if the country falls prey to chaos in the end."

But Chinese dissidents and critics greeted Mubarak's downfall with undisguised glee.

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