############################################################################ T h e E l e c t r o n i c N e w s l e t t e r o f I F C S S %=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%= _____________ _____________ ______________ / _____ }} / _________}} / __________}} / // }____}} { {{________ { {{_________ | || _____ \_________ }} \__________ }} \ \\____} }} _________} }} __________} }} _________ \____________// __{_____________// __{______________//____________ ]]]]]]]]] ]]]]]]] ]]]]]]]] ]]]]]]] ]]] ]]] ]]] ]]] ]]] ]]] ]]] ]]] ]]] ]] ]] ]]] ]]] ]]] ]]] ]]] ]]]]]]]]] ]] ]] ]]] ]]] ]]] ]]] ]]] ]]] ]]] ]]] ]]] ]]]]]]] ]]]]]]]] ]]] ]]] ]]] %=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%= Press Desk November 24, 1994 #9414 %=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%=%= IN THIS ISSUE: No of Lines ============================================================================ *****_____ A Special Issue on CSS Today _____***** 1. President's Words: Please Give Your Support to CSS Today ............. 65 2. Press Desk Commentary: Press Freedom Faces Challenge ................. 57 3. Statistics: What CSS Today Has Done .................................. 35 4. Open Letter to Council Members ....................................... 43 5. Mr. XIN Ku Created This Resolution From Nothing ..................... 144 6. Pending Resolution on CSS Today and Newly Created Official Positions . 21 ============================================================================ ============================================================================ 1. President's Words: Please Give Your Support to CSS Today ............. 65 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- By: LUO Ning, 11/24/94 Dear IFCSS members: The e-mail communication has been the major channel through which the offices of IFCSS are keeping in touch with you, the constituents of IFCSS since its founding in 1989. Since coming to the Headquarters office of IFCSS, I have been putting great emphasis on establishing a two-way dialogue e-mail newsletter system. Thanks to the hard and creative work of the Press Desk team, the new format of the IFCSS electronic newsletter, CSS Today, has opened the door to the computer network dialogues between the IFCSS HQ as well as the working committees and project teams working under it, and the general public of the CSS community. Through CSS Today, not only the CSS community is informed about what IFCSS offices have been working in a timely fashion, but also the voices from the grassroots are represented --- as a newsletters of an organization should be. As all novelties coming to this world, CSS Today has also met objections. Some criticize it because it has errors and mistakes and hoping to improve it. Such criticisms are the best cares to help it to grow. Unfortunately, there are also efforts to terminate it. The proposals of Mr Li Jinghong and Mr Xin Ku titled "Resolution on CSS-today and Newly Created Official Positions" and of Mr Xin Ku titled "Resolution to strengthen the communicaiton between the IFCSS and constituents", to be deliberated in the Council teleconference of this coming Thanksgiving weekend, will effectively down-grade CSS Today to a one-way channel, returning the e-mail newsletter of IFCSS back to its previous monologue format, and, worse, to strangle the e-mail communication of IFCSS HQ with grassroots altogether by the proposed micro-management of the Council over the e-mail communication of the HQ with the CSS community. They represent unprecedented attempts on interfering the work of the HQ office elected by your delegates and explicit censorship on the e-mail newsletter of IFCSS which is supposed to facilitate the communications not only between the HQ and the CSS community, but also between the members of the community. I hereby appeal directly to you, the members of IFCSS, to scrutinize the proposals of Li and Xin carefully, for it is not a light matter for whether IFCSS will remain as a true representation of you. Please call up the Council representatives in your region and the HQ to speak up your opinions. The questions are simple: (1) Do you prefer the IFCSS newsletter to take format of a one-way monologue broadcasting system, or a two-way dialogue system? (2) Do you consider the e-mail newsletter of IFCSS this year, the CSS Today, an improvement over that of the previous years? (3) Do you believe that the proposals of Li and Xin will facilitate the communication between you and the HQ? Please respond to your Council representatives and us as early as possible so that your opinions could be heard at the coming Council meeting. I would also like to call upon each and every Council member: Please take a very careful consideration on deliberating the proposals of Li and Xin, for your decision will have a profound impact on the future direction of IFCSS -- will it represent what the CSS community wants, or else? Thank you for your attention and support. Luo Ning, President IFCSS Nov 24, 1994 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2. Press Desk Commentary: Press Freedom Faces Challenge ................. 57 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- By: PressDesk, 11/24/94 We come a long way here to this Continent, not only to learn sciences and technology, but also to enjoy the democracy and freedom. Chinese have been so pitiful to live in an oppressive regime and have been denied the democracy and freedom for so many years. Being in this free country gives us the chance to experience democracy and freedom, to learn how the democracy and freedom are to be implemented. Being in the organization of IFCSS even gives some of us CSS a chance to exercise the implementation of democracy and freedom. However, since we have been living in the oppressive regime for such a long time, it is inevitable that even in this free country and in a democratic organization like IFCSS, some of us are still accustomed to the dictatorial way, failing to adapt to the democratic way. The recent IFCSS Council proposed resolution to close CSS Today is a vivid example of how some of the current council members have been consistently behaving in a dictatorial way, infringing the Press Freedom. CSS Today is supposed to be an official e-journal of IFCSS HQ, as a channel to bridge IFCSS and the ordinary CSS. Ever since its advent in less than two months ago, all the volunteers at the PressDesk have been working hard to report current issues of concerns relating to the IFCSS and the CSS community. Judging on the comprehensive responses from the general CSS community (approval, disapproval), it has been proved that CSS Today is a new platform for the IFCSS to open its door to the general public, thus making IFCSS a true organization of the general CSS, instead of a closed cult club. Thus it has been helping to strengthen IFCSS and make its constituents better informed of the things happening around the IFCSS. The proposed resolution of closing CSS Today came as a shock to all of us. While we all know that press freedom is very much needed in a democratic country, it can only be made possible when people of entrusted power can behave in a democratic way. It is conceivable and understandable that the World Economics Herald was forced to close down in 1989 when hundreds of thousands of Chinese students and citizens struggling for democracy, it is unbelievable that in the United States, in a democratic organization as IFCSS, some well-educated MS and PhDs can wield the entrusted power to suppress the press freedom. This can only show how immature and dictatorial those people have inherited from our old oppressive regime. Arguably, the reasons cited for the closing of CSS Today is that IFCSS HQ has not notified the council members of establishing this e-journal and that CSS Today has brought strong impact on IFCSS and its working committee. While everyone of us is learning how to implement the democratic procedure, we volunteers at PressDesk are fully aware that as a process of learning to run this journal, we will inevitably make mistakes. We are striving to improve ourselves and we hope the IFCSS Council and the general CSS community can help us to improve. However, CSS Today is not interested in becoming a People's Daily like journal. CSS Today believes that even as an official journal for IFCSS, it still has its freedom to carry its reports that are not necessarily the official views of the IFCSS, as long as it helps to serve the general public of IFCSS constituents and raise their awareness of the things around IFCSS. It is up to the entrusted people (the IFCSS council members) to decide if press freedom will be suppressed. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3. Statistics: What CSS Today Has Done .................................. 35 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- By: PressDesk, 11/23/94 Columns % by Items % by Lines Rank by Lines ---------------------------- ---------- ---------- ------------- Electronic Press Conference 29.7 27.2 1 Together We Can 23.0 26.3 2 Under the Sunshine 8.1 11.6 3 In the Community 10.8 11.4 4 Face to Face Dialog 14.9 9.0 5 Eye on China 1.4 5.7 6 Readers' Comment 4.1 4.8 7 Information Sharing 4.1 2.9 8 Quote of the Issue 2.7 0.7 9 PressDesk Commentary 1.4 0.4 10 800-line 0 0 Brainstorm 0 0 Open Forum 0 0 RESULT ANALYSIS: It is clear that most of the effort has been spent to conveying the message from IFCSS to the public and promoting IFCSS programs with Columns like E-Press Conference and Together We Can. That is not surprising. In our design of columns, we intend to make CSS Today to be a 2-way channel in between IFCSS and CSS community. We are half way through towards our goal. CSS Today has been effective and efficient to help IFCSS more open to the public. Notably, the "In the Community" column has been also quite active in the past period, which ranks on the 4th position in the above table. That reflects the effort of the editors to bring community issues into IFCSS operation. However, in the direction of channeling more comments, ideas, and issues from the CSS into IFCSS stage, we have a long way to go. The picture from the above statistics on this aspect isn't rosy at all. That on the one hand side requires us volunteers at PressDesk to work hard to fulfill our goal, it on the other hand side also indicates that we need more participation from our readers. We hope in the future, our readers will give us the opportunity to work closely with you to make CSS Today more successful towards our goal, and in turn make IFCSS more truly an organization of the CSS community. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4. Open Letter to Council Members ....................................... 43 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- By: PressDesk, 11/24/94 Dear Council Members, This is a call for your support to uphold the spirit of Freedom of Press. We volunteers at the IFCSS PressDesk urge you to vote NO to the resolution of closing CSS Today. We as volunteers for CSS Today have been working very hard to carry reports that are of great concerns among the general CSS community. We not only report positive views on IFCSS, but also carry reports of controversial debates around IFCSS. We firmly believe that, in a democratic organization like IFCSS, its constituents have the RIGHT to be informed of current important issues concerning IFCSS, no matter it is WEI Jingsheng's Nobel Prize Nomination or some council members' spy-hunting effort, the general CSS constituents have their constitutional right to know the FACTS. IFCSS should be an open organization that CSS can be kept well-informed of important incidents--That is the very basic right some of us who participated in 1989 Beijing Democracy Movement were asking from CCP, and that is the very basic right that is undeniable for people in a democratic country or organization. We believe, to protect such basic right is one of IFCSS' important missions. Equally important is to gather the voices from the CSS general public on various issues that concern the Chinese community and issues related to IFCSS. We view that as part of the mission of CSS Today. IFCSS' survival and success solely depend on the support from the general CSS community. Such support can be guaranteed only if IFCSS and its activists hear the voices of the community, however diverse and different or even harshly critical they may be, and properly represents them. We believe CSS Today has been moving towards that right direction in the short period of the past two months. We hope you will share our vision and support CSS Today. We believe our common goal is to bring about a better IFCSS. We hope that you cast your sacred vote to prevent the infringement of the Freedom of Press. Please vote NO to the resolution to close CSS Today. Thanks. Sincerely, IFCSS PressDesk ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5. Mr. XIN Ku Created This Resolution From Nothing ..................... 144 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- By: PressDesk, 11/23/94 Is this resolution to close CSS Today a liable, meaningful, and reasonable thing? Many have asked this question after reading the Council Conference agenda which includes Mr. Xin Ku and Mr. LI Jinghong's resolution to close down CSS Today. To find the possible answer, we let Mr. Xin Ku's own words say by themselves (see appendix). 1) On November 7, 1994, in a memo to the Council: Mr. Xin Ku gave "The resolution on CSS Today" draft, which later became the resolution sponsored by Mr. XIN Ku and Mr. Li Jinghong. "The Council is unaware of any proposal" for the newsletter and its "negative impact on IFCSS and IFCSS working committee and strong reactions from many individuals" were/are cited as reasons. 2) On November 8, 1994, in a mail to PressDesk, Mr. Xin Ku said: "... I haven't read any of your previous comments about it (because I am not on that net and even not aware of what's going on there and have no clue what you have carried on that net about this issue." 3) On November 9, 1994, in a mail to PressDesk: Mr. XIN Ku asked to be removed from IFCSS Newsletter distribution list. From the above we clearly see that Mr. XIN Ku did not even bother to read any of the CSS Today publications before and after he drafted the resolution regarding CSS Today. We have no idea how the honorable Council member made his judgment on CSS Today. His own messages show that he created this resolution from nothing. And we don't know why. At this point, we have no way to check whether the other sponsor of the resolution, Mr. LI Jinghong, did any better homework for this resolution. If that is the way Mr. XIN Ku works for the IFCSS Council, one has every reason to be worried how harmful such arbitrary behavior could be to IFCSS. In the final draft of the resolution, CSS Today is implicated "to promote certain group's special interest within our organization" and "to create confusion and/or distrust among fellow Chinese". For that and the previous allegations against CSS Today, the sponsors of this resolution, Mr. XIN Ku and Mr. LI Jinghong, owe CSS Today and its readers a full explanation. We want to know what "special group" exists within IFCSS and what confusion and distrust has been created among? We believe such allegations against CSS Today are groundless! Groundless allegations are close to slandering. This resolution created from nothing is ridiculous, if not nonsense. Appendix: Mr. XIN Ku's three messages: - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - >From council-l@ifcss.org Mon Nov 7 19:59:20 1994 Date: Mon, 7 Nov 1994 20:02:15 -0600 From: Xin Ku To: Multiple recipients of list Subject: Resolution on Wei JS's Nobel Prize Nomination Memo To: IFCSS Council From: Xin Ku, council member from northeast regin Date: November 7, 1994 Re: Wei Jin-shen Nobel Peace Prize Nomination Resolution and two other resolutions. ****** The resolution on CSS-today Whereas the Council is un aware of any proposal from the HQ to establish the Electronic Newsletter of IFCSS and the related nomination. Whereas the Council is aware of and concerns about the negative impact on the IFCSS and IFCSS working committee and strong reaction from many individuals caused by the news carried by CSS-today Be it resolved, That the HQ is required to summit the proposal, nomination for such electronic newsletter to the Council for approval before taking any further activity. Sincerely, Xin Ku - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Date: Tue, 8 Nov 1994 17:20:37 -0500 (EST) From: Xin Ku To: ifcss@umiacs.UMD.EDU Cc: ku-xin@suned.zoo.cs.yale.edu, pdesk@ifcss.org Subject: Re: permission Dear editors (forgive me not using names, because you didn't put your name there): Thank you for asking my permission to use part of my msgs. My answer is "yes" only if you promis to carry a full explained context by me. I don't like someone quate one sentence of mine without put it back into the context. Most of all, you said "a balanced view" I haven't read any of your previous comments about it (because I am not on that net and even not aware of what's going on there and have no clue what you have carried on that net about this issue. So please tell me whether you want me to write something for your net on this issue or you just want publish a piece of my e-mail to the VCnet. I will response accordingly. > > --------------------- > From: Xin Ku > Source: fcbs-c@ifcss.org, ifcssvc@ifcss.org, 10/28/94 > > Huang Lin: > > No need to get so emotional, simply tell us a "YES" or "NO". > Communist or not does not change your last name or first name. > > XIN Ku > - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Date: Wed, 9 Nov 1994 10:40:31 -0500 (EST) From: Xin Ku Subject: Re: CSS Today #9409, November 9, 1994 To: ifcss@umiacs.UMD.EDU To whom it may concern: I did not request to be put on the CSS Today mailing list and I do not intend to either, would you please drop my e-mail address from your distribution list. Thanks. Xin Ku ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6. Pending Resolution on CSS Today and Newly Created Official Positions . 21 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Source: Council-l, 11/22/94 By: Xin Ku / Li Jinghong Whereas the Council is unaware of any proposal from the president to establish the Electronic Newsletter of IFCSS and the related nomination, as well as several newly created official positions; Whereas the Council is aware of and concerns about the negative impact on the IFCSS and IFCSS working committee and strong reaction from many individuals caused by the stories carried on CSS-today; Whereas all IFCSS communication resources should be devoted to enhence the strength of IFCSS, and provide objective and informative information to the general public. They should not and must not be used to promote certain group's special interets within our organization, nor to be used to create confusion and/or distrusts among fellow Chinese; Be it resolved, That the HQ is required to summit all proposals, nominations for such electronic newsletter and/or new positions to the Council for approval before taking any further activity. Hence, the unauthorized CSS-Today and its computer accounts shall suspend their activity immediately; those unauthorized new positions and their titles shall not be used in any form upon the adoption of this resolution. ############################################################################ | Editor: DING Yungui Deputy Coordinator: YUAN Wei | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------ | | IFCSS, 733 15th St. N.W., Suite 440, Washington, DC 20005. | | Phone: (202)347-0017; Fax: (202)347-0018 | | ________________________________________________________________________ | | The Press_Desk serves for multichannel communications among CSS & IFCSS. | | Please send your comments, questions, criticisms and anything concerning | | a healthy establishment of IFCSS to: | | | | To subscribe to IFCSS Press_Desk publications, please send mail to | | listserv@ifcss.org | | with the mail body: sub PBS-L last_name first_name (for signing on) | | or: unsub PBS-L last_name first_name (for signing off) | | For more information about IFCSS, its Service Program and publications, | | ftp/gopher to or use mosaic (www) to: http://ifcss.org:8001/ | ############################################################################