Prisoner of the State : The Secret Journal of Premier Zhao Ziyang

In May 1988, Zhao proposed accelerating price reform. Because it caused inflation, this led to a huge debate about the proper way to proceed, and gave an opening to the hard-liners like Lie Peng and Yao Yilin who were becoming concerned about ZhaoвЂTMs views. Zhao found himself in multi-front turf battles with these party elders. By the beginning of 1989, Zhao was fighting for his own political survival. As it happened, the student protests triggered by the sudden death of former CCP General Secretary Hu Yaobang, widely seen as a reform-minded leader, provided Zhao with a golden opportunity to regain the political upper-hand and to advance his reform agenda. But thatвЂTMs not what happened. Premier Zhao Ziyang reveals the secret workings of China's government behind the Tiananmen massacre—and why he was deposed for trying to stop it. Prisoner of the State is the story of Premier Zhao Ziyang, the man who brought liberal change to China and who was dethroned at the height of the Tiananmen Square protests in 1989 for trying to stop the massacre. Zhao spent the last years of his life under house arrest. An occasional detail about his life would slip out, but scholars and citizens lamented that Zhao never had his final say. But Zhao did produce a memoir, secretly recording on audio tapes the real story of what happened during modern China's most critical moments. He provides intimate details about the Tiananmen crackdown, describes the ploys and double crosses used by China's leaders, and exhorts China to adopt democracy in order to achieve long-term stability. His riveting, behind-the-scenes recollections form the basis of Prisoner of the State . The China that Zhao portrays is not some long-lost dynasty. It is today's China, where its leaders accept economic freedom but resist political change. Zhao might have steered China's political system toward openness and tolerance had he survived. Although Zhao now speaks from the grave, his voice still has the moral power to make China sit up and listen. -- Time How often can you peek behind the curtains of one of the most secretive governments in the world? -- Prisoner of the State The China that Zhao portrays is not some long-lost dynasty. It is today's China, where the nation's leaders accept economic freedom but continue to resist political change. If Zhao had survived -- that is, if the hard-line hadn't prevailed during Tiananmen -- he might have been able to steer China's political system toward more openness and tolerance. Zhao's call to begin lifting the Party's control over China's life -- to let a little freedom into the public square -- is remarkable coming from a man who had once dominated that square. Although Zhao now speaks from the grave in this moving and riveting memoir, his voice has the moral power to make China sit up and listen This book is the only record ever been made of how the Chinese autocracy works from the inside: in excruciating details, we are told about the power plays, the shenanigans, the mini-coups, the subterfuges, and the entrenched prejudices of members of China's politburo. Will receive major publicity. Embargoed title Gives readers a front row seat to the secret inner workings of China's government. It is the story of Premier Zhao Ziyang, who tried to stop the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989, and was dethroned for his efforts