艾未未：香港在烧，世界在看

（VOA 萧雨）华盛顿 — 

旅居德国的中国艺术家兼活动人士艾未未说，香港在燃烧，世界其他国家却在袖手旁观。

“这不是开玩笑，这是一场革命，”他对总部设在伦敦的《艺术新闻报》说，“香港在燃烧，世界却对香港年轻人的苦难和抗争漠不关心。”

上个月，艾未未在为《纽约时报》撰写的观点文章试图解释西方世界为何不愿过多插手香港问题。

他写道：“希望避免香港陷入‘麻烦’的不只是中国。许多从中国的压迫制度中获益的西方政府和商界人士都对此表示赞同。香港是这个体系的中枢，如果香港的角色受损或丧失，双方都会受到损失。”

艾未未把中国的政治权力运作方式比作“黑社会”，是一种和西方“根本不相容的政治制度”。他认为，这种以”牺牲个人，为国家（以及超级精英）的财富和权力服务的模式“势必要与民主理想发生冲突。

他写道，那些为了自身利益容忍中国制度的西方政府和企业应该提醒自己：明知对人类的尊严构成伤害，依然如故地去做，这在本质上是邪恶的。

反对修订《逃犯条例》触发的抗争席卷香港已经两个多月。上周末，反政府示威者和警方的冲突再度升级。警方首次发射实弹并使用水炮驱散示威者。当局拘捕了86名抗议者，包括一名12岁的孩童。

艾未未的团队目前正在香港拍摄这场抗争。他陆续将一些照片和视频发布在社交媒体平台上。他说，日后或将这些集结成一部艺术作品，可能是纪录片或系列访谈录。

星期一（8月26日）在法国闭幕的七国集团峰会（G7）在会后的联合声明中提及香港局势。声明重申1984《中英联合声明》的存在及重要性，敦促中国信守承诺维持香港自治，并呼吁避免使用暴力。

星期二，北京对七国集团峰会的声明表达“强烈不满和坚决反对”。中国外交部说，这是对香港事务“说三道四、指手画脚”。

中国外交部新闻发言人耿爽说“我们自己的事情我们会处理好，请七国集团成员不要再居心叵测。”

转贴者附：

Ai Weiwei: ‘Hong Kong is on fire and the world is indifferent’

Chinese artist and activist’s team has been documenting the intensifying anti-government protests over the weekend

ANNY SHAW 27th August 2019 11:08 BSTMORE

The Chinese artist and activist Ai Weiwei says the world is standing by and letting Hong Kong burn as clashes between the anti-government protesters and police escalated over the weekend, with one police officer firing a live round.

“It’s not a joke, it’s revolution,” Ai says. “Hong Kong is on fire [and] the world is indifferent to the suffering and struggling of the Hong Kong youngsters.”

Ai’s team of researchers has been in Hong Kong filming the demonstrations that have engulfed the special administrative region for the past ten weeks—however, this weekend saw some of the most violent clashes yet. The footage, some of which Ai has posted on social media, could result in an art work, a documentary film or a series of interviews, he says.

According to a police statement, six officers drew their pistols and one officer fired a warning shot into the air on Sunday. Water cannons and tear gas were also used to disperse protesters. Up to 86 people have been arrested for offences including unlawful assembly, possession of offensive weapons and assaulting police officers.

In one video Ai posted on Instagram, frontline protestors wearing yellow and white helmets and gas masks with pink filters use baseball bats to force back police armed with batons. Graffiti scrawled on a blockade in the middle of the road simply reads: “Hong Kong fighting for freedom”.

The protests began in June in opposition to an extradition bill that could have resulted in people being sent to China to face trial. The protests have since ramped up to become a broader anti-government, pro-democracy movement. 

In an interview with the BBC’s Today Programme earlier this month, Ai drew parallels with the student-led protests in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square. “We should not forget 1989, when [China] used tanks to crush a very peaceful demonstration in Tiananmen Square and killed hundreds of people,” he said. “They know the West will not interfere, they know the West wants ‘business as usual’.”