China “greatest challenge the west has ever faced”, world should act with urgency: Ai Weiwei
DHARAMSALA, 27 Jan: Exiled Chinese activist and artist Ai Weiwei has declared that “China represents the greatest challenge the West has ever faced” and urged governments around the world to act with urgency.
The activist, now based in the UK has made the remarks at a parliamentary event to mark the 180th anniversary of the founding of modern Hong Kong, PA reported.
Invited to speak to mark the release of his latest documentary Cockroach, about the anti-government protests that swept Hong Kong in 2019, by the Liberal Democrat MP Alistair Carmichael on behalf of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Hong Kong, Ai has said in the webinar that “many countries were hesitant to stand with Hong Kong because they did business with China.
“The outcome of Hong Kong will be sad and hopeless. This is not just a struggle between Hong Kong and China. It is a struggle between freedom and a sectarian state. Hong Kong represents a value we should all protect,” the Chinese dissident, artist and filmmaker was quoted as saying in the report.
The exiled Chinese artist often referred to as an iconoclast
called on the countries around the world not to sit idly and watch.
“Let’s see what will happen when there’s no voice for places like Hong Kong. Then the world will be dominated by China’s sectarian control. We cannot just react, we must show that we are determined to be on the right side of history,” Ai has said.
“Beijing has a clear strategy. It will become the ultimate and most dominant power in the world. Humanity and freedom of speech. It’s down to the West to protect them,” he added.
Additionally, the Chinese dissident has also questioned WHO’s Wuhan probe as he declared that “the WHO cannot be relied upon to honestly investigate the coronavirus pandemic,” reports the Nikkei Asia.
“First, it’s ironic that they are there after one year [from the initial outbreak], so that shows how they perform,” Ai remarked on Friday.
AI Weiwei has been in exile since 2015. He lived in Germany initially and then in England before he recently moved to Portugal.
He was named the most powerful artist in the world by the ArtReview magazine in 2011. However, the Chinese government finds his art worked distasteful as it often challenges the Chinese government.
