Ai Weiwei by Ai Weiwei

Author:Ai Weiwei [Ai Weiwei, Cheryl Haines, Jasmine Heiss, and David Spalding]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Chronicle Books LLC
Published: 2018-03-16T16:00:00+00:00

Egyptian protesters in Tahrir Square during a mass rally marking the first anniversary of the uprising, Cairo, January 25, 2012.

Reflections on Freedom

In 2008, we [the founders of what came to be known as the April 6 Youth Movement] were inspired by many models of social change, such as the revolutions and social movements in South America and Eastern Europe—those that had taken place in Chile, the Czech Republic, Serbia, Ukraine, Georgia, and especially Poland. We followed all these movements, reading and learning a lot about the various revolutions.

At that time, revolution was not our main goal. Our goal was to make a change, to create a better life for people, to foster democracy under a new regime that would respect human rights. We considered revolutionary action to be a tool, rather than a goal, so we started by encouraging people to join us, to say no to the government, and to be more active.

We used Facebook as a platform for the Youth Movement in order to attract new people to our group and to mobilize them with our messages. It was still a somewhat new website at that time. Social media was an important tool, but again, it was just a tool. The more important thing is the message you are trying to share, and how and when this message is spread. I think one difference between the success of that time and the failure [of today’s activists] is that now the ruling regime understands the game and can do the same thing. They have a lot of electronic groups to defend any activity of the president. Now they are using social media against us.

Before this movement, I was arrested and spent three months in the prison, so I expected violence. But the police followed us a lot—me more than anyone else—before the revolution. It has not been easy for me and my colleagues in the Youth Movement to have any rights inside of prison. From the beginning, the security forces used torture against us, as well as smearing our reputations. The conditions for any political prisoner are very bad—worse than those of a prisoner who is being held on criminal charges. But because they considered me to be the head of this movement, they put me under constant monitoring, searching my cell and destroying everything, violating my rights. They prevented me from having letters, books, or newspapers, which was within my rights. They were watching all the time, and it was difficult to visit the doctor or have any medical care inside the prison.

On a personal level, my activism has made my life unstable. I have been arrested many times and have spent three years in prison, so I don’t have a stable life like an ordinary person. And my children’s lives are also unstable. There have been a lot of rumors about me that are untrue, a lot of fake stories and conspiracy theories. My activism has also affected my mother and father, my wife, and my job. Everything is difficult after this kind of activism.

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