Subtitles section Play video
-
On this episode of China Uncensored,
-
a foreigner's confession in China.
-
Hi, welcome to China Uncensored,
-
I'm your host Chris Chappell.
-
You know, it seems like everyone's giving a confession
-
on Chinese state-run CCTV these days!
-
Like 70-year-old journalist Gao Yu,
-
who confessed in 2014 to illegally giving
-
internal Communist Party documents to an overseas website.
-
Or Dong Rubin, who admitted to falsely claiming
-
in 2009 that his fellow prison inmate had been
-
brutally killed by guards, rather than—
-
as the guards reported—died accidentally
-
while playing a game of "hide and seek."
-
Or just last week, a bookseller in Hong Kong—
-
who's also a Swedish citizen—
-
who was abducted—er, arrested—by Chinese authorities,
-
who apologized for a crime that has surprisingly little
-
to do with his real crime
-
of selling politically sensitive books.
-
So I just wanted to jump on the bandwagon.
-
Because this week there was yet another state-run confession.
-
"We have been made aware, become aware that..."
-
This is Swedish citizen Peter Dahlin.
-
He disappeared while on his way to the
-
Beijing International Airport on January 3,
-
while attempting to travel to Thailand.
-
And he reappeared here, on state-run CCTV,
-
apologizing for, among other crimes,
-
hurting the feelings of the Chinese people.
-
"I've hurt the feelings of the Chinese people.
-
I apologize sincerely for this,
-
and I'm very sorry that this ever happened."
-
Actually it's more accurate to say that he
-
endangered state security.
-
Well, it's actually more accurate to say he
-
trained human rights lawyers in China.
-
But you say potato, I say potato.
-
Shelley, you know the prompter doesn't give me intonations.
-
Anyway, Mr. Dahlin has been living in China since 2007.
-
In 2009, Mr. Dahlin co-founded the
-
Chinese Urgent Action Working Group,
-
an organization that trains activists and lawyers to,
-
according to the group,
-
"promote the development of the rule of law
-
and counter abuses of basic human rights."
-
And by that I assume they mean they
-
"got involved in hot-topic issues and sensitive cases,
-
and intentionally escalated conflicts and disputes
-
that were originally not severe,"
-
and "instigated the people to confront the government
-
and produce mass incidents."
-
At least that's what Xinhua said.
-
Don't worry about the group anymore though
-
because police have smashed it.
-
In his confession, Mr. Dahlin also admits
-
to writing reports without "real or full facts."
-
Spreading rumors.
-
You know how the Communist Party hates rumors!
-
And anything the Communist Party doesn't like is a rumor.
-
Wow, I guess I really am guilty of spreading rumors on this show.
-
Anyway, at first, the Chinese Foreign Ministry
-
denied any knowledge of Mr. Dahlin's detention.
-
But later they said he was involved in activates
-
that "endangered state security."
-
What proof did they offer?
-
Well, who needs proof when he's already confessed!
-
Man, Chinese law works so much better than America's!
-
I mean, why even bother with courts
-
when people just confess on their own!
-
Now Mr. Dahlin also suffers from Addison’s disease,
-
a rare hormonal disorder that requires daily medication.
-
If he doesn't take it, he'll die.
-
I wonder how Chinese authorities convinced him to confess.
-
Anyway, with now the second Swedish citizen in a week
-
giving a confession on CCTV,
-
the Swedish government's response has been somewhat muted.
-
Here's what the Swedish ambassador had to say.
-
Yee bork a doo doo york mmm bork bork bork!
-
And that's actually more than the real Swedish ambassador
-
said about Mr. Dahlin in public.
-
So what do you think about the confession?
-
Leave your comments below—
-
then turn yourself in to authorities
-
and confess to spreading rumors online.
-
Once again I'm Chris Chappell, see you next time.
-
Foreign anti-China forces have never stopped slandering
-
and attacking the Chinese government.
-
A few of the Western media with hostile attitudes
-
towards China have added fuel to the flame.
-
On January 22, a well-known Western television host
-
apologized on camera to the Chinese people
-
for his anti-China activities.
-
"I would like to apologize for spreading rumors and undermining China."
-
The New York-based "China Uncensored" program
-
is dedicated to collecting and spreading
-
false information about China,
-
with the intention to make trouble
-
and interfere with the development
-
of China's harmonious society,
-
so as to achieve ulterior political motives.
-
"I understand now that I have
-
endangered the security of the Chinese government,
-
and I have hurt the feelings of the Chinese people.
-
I apologize sincerely for this
-
and I regret this ever happened."