Wu Qing (politician)
Wu Qing | |
---|---|
Born | 1937 (age 86–87) Beijing, China |
Nationality | Chinese |
Occupation(s) | Human rights activist, legislator and professor |
Parent(s) | Wu Wenzao, Bing Xin |
Wu Qing (
In 2001, Wu won the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Public Service, which has been called "Asia's Nobel Prize"; she was the first Chinese woman to receive this honour.[2] Her active role in women's welfare ensured that the Chinese women were represented at the 1995 UN Conference on Women held in Beijing.[4]
Wu Qing continues to be involved with the
Biography
Wu was born in 1937 in China, the daughter of the famous female novelist
Wu taught English and American studies for 40 years from 1960 to 2000 at the Beijing Foreign Languages Institute. Within the premises of this college she spends every Tuesday afternoon hearing the grievances of rural people to provide redress.[3][8] From 1986 to 1995, as a teacher she has won many awards, notable of which are: Excellent Professor Award, Excellent Teacher Awards by the Municipality of Beijing, and Margaret Turner Award. She also hosted an English teaching programme on Chinese Television which was broadcast throughout the country.[3] From 1986 to 1995, she was a member of Women’s Studies Forum in the English Department of Beijing Foreign Studies University. From 1984, she worked for the Canadian International Development Agency as gender specialist.[3]
Wu's advocacy is for ensuring the government's adherence to promises to people and not allowing misuse of power as she says: "I believe in the rule of law. I believe in transparency. I believe in democracy. I believe in supervision. But none of these exist in our Chinese culture. It's always been authoritarian. It's like in a family, [all it takes is to say] 'I'm your father!' and no one else dares say a word."[2]
Wu was elected as People's Deputy in 1984 from the
Even as Deputy of the People's Congress, Wu was not afraid to say what she believed was right, when in 1988, she voted against the People's Congress for its Party policy. For this brazen opposition she was not permitted in 1989 by the Communist Party to get reelected for the People's Congress. But the will of the people of her constituency prevailed and she obtained 70 percent of the votes and got elected for a third term as People's Deputy.[2] She attributes her boldness to address problems and face the government's lies to the fact that her mother imbibed in her this quality at a young age, and she says: "My mother told me at the beginning when I was very young, I'm a human being first and a woman second".[8]
As of 2009, Wu had served as People's Deputy of the Congress for a seventh term as an elected member which records her 25 years of service in a legislative capacity.[8] She served as the Deputy from 1984 to 2011. Because of her adherence to the constitution, a copy of which she carried with her all the time, she was known as "Deputy with the Constitution."[4]
From 1988 to 2007, with support from peer deputies at the district level, Wu worked at the Beijing Municipal People’s Congress, the city’s parliament for four terms.[4]
Though retired at the age of 72 (in 2009) Wu still continues to serve her people. She teaches at the Rural Women Training School at Changping, in Beijing (now known as Beijing Cultural Development Center for Rural Women), which was co-established for providing practical skills training for Rural Women. In this school she urged and advised women to take up business enterprises. The objective of her school is to make young women from rural areas literate, computer savvy, get basic legal knowledge, and also learn a trade for living.[8][9]
Some of Wu's international assignments and achievements covered: Organizing the Fourth World Conference on Women during 1994–1995; as member of the board of the Beijing Cultural Development Center for Rural Women; member of the Global Fund for Women based in
Awards
As teacher, Wu has won many awards, notable of which are: Excellent Professor Award, Excellent Teacher Awards by the Municipality of Beijing and Margaret Turner Award.[3] The Changping District Education Committee gave her the title of “Outstanding Individual of 2007”, Chinese Senior Citizens’ magazine named her the “Top Cover Personality”, and the Schwab Foundation Network honoured her with an award as the World’s Outstanding Social Entrepreneurs of 2003.[7][9]
References
- ^ "Wu Qing - Champion of people's rights". PBS.
- ^ a b c d "Wu Qing". Public Broadcasting Service, Granada. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Creative Women in Contemporary China: Wu Qing". Asia Society Organization. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
- ^ a b c d e Klayman, Wilson (2 November 2009). "Women, Education, Civic Participation". The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
- ^ Brill 1995, p. 41.
- ^ Brill 1995, p. 42.
- ^ a b c d "Wu Qing". Wellesley College and Peking University. Retrieved 26 March 2016.
- ^ a b c d "Wu Qing, Chinese People's Deputy Also Advocate for Civil Rights". Voice of America News Service. 2 November 2009. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
- ^ a b "Creative Women in Contemporary China: Wu Qing". National Committee on United States–China Relation. Retrieved 26 March 2016.
Bibliography
- Brill, Alida (1995). A Rising Public Voice: Women in Politics Worldwide. Feminist Press at CUNY. ISBN 978-1-55861-111-5.
- Nielsen, Gert Holmgaard (2014). Walking a Tightrope: Defending Human Rights in China. NIAS Press at NIAS (Nordic Institute of Asian Studies), Copenhagen. ISBN 978-87-7694-131-4.