A few days ago, I talked with one of my friends during a meal. He said he hated to think about having to stay at Tsinghua for the next two years. Honestly, it surprised me a bit, for I never think of Tsinghua that way. After all, it’s way better than my high school. So I asked him why. He said that it is not as good as he expected and there are all kinds of constraints at Tsinghua.
That’s true.
The freshmen are taking military training right now and it reminds me of my own experience two years ago when I first came into Tsinghua. It was the worst experience so far in my life.
In fact, military training in universities is ironic. On the one hand, Chinese universities claim to encourage students to think freely, and yet before having any chance to pursue the truth, students are told to do nothing other than obey ridiculous orders from some narrow-minded soldiers.
I constantly felt I wasn’t treated as a man, but as a machine, an animal. This kind of treatment lasted for three whole weeks. In resentment, I wrote an essay, criticizing the system, which I’ve taken off due to my father’s concern over my personal safety.
After that, everything seemed to be going on the right track. No more instructions. In fact, I don’t even have to interact with other people as much as I used to when I was in high school.
But that’s not the end of the story. We live in China, after all.
In the recent film Jason Bourne, there is a tech company developing a platform which incorporates several applications. And the US government tries to get access to the data.
The interesting part is though most of the technology in Jason Bourne belongs to the 22nd century, the platform is not future. As a matter of fact, we use it every day. Well, that’s just WeChat, isn’t? And what’s more intriguing is that while the US government faces accusations of intruding on citizens’ privacy, its Chinese counterpart has no such concerns. They don’t even need to make an effort because it has control over everything on the internet within the so-called The Great Firewall by default. There’s simply no such thing in China as privacy.
The censorship is so powerful and pervasive that people in China are unable, and now unwilling to speak their mind on the internet. To make matters worse, the censorship has already become an integral part of people’s lives. People simply take it for granted. Those who stand up and call for the right of free speech are often dismissed as unwise.
I didn’t have a VPN until last year. But it all changed when I bypassed the Wall for the first time. I can’t remain silent on the tyranny. It’s like a bird, having enjoyed the vastness of the sky, refuses to go back into the tiny cage. Those who stay in the cage all their lifetime won’t understand that feeling.
My friend continued to say that he fancied a campus near the sea so that he could walk on the beach thinking. And he fancied…
“You mean you wanna be in an environment where you have the possibilities of all kinds of activities, even though you won’t necessarily do them?” I cut in.
“Yes”.
That is my definition of freedom.
