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- <text id=91TT0774>
- <title>
- Apr. 08, 1991: Let A Hundred Snickers Blossom
- </title>
- <history>
- TIME--The Weekly Newsmagazine--1991
- Apr. 08, 1991 The Simple Life
- </history>
- <article>
- <source>Time Magazine</source>
- <hdr>
- GRAPEVINE, Page 21
- Let a Hundred Snickers Blossom
- </hdr><body>
- <p>By David Ellis/Reported by Sidney Urquhart
- </p>
- <p> The eight-line poem seemed innocent enough. Its themes of
- homesickness and patriotism clearly appealed to the conservative
- editors of the overseas edition of the People's Daily, where it
- appeared two weeks ago: "I miss my distant home/ Never will I
- give up my aspirations to serve my country." But hidden within
- these traditionalist sentiments, attributed to Zhu Haihong, a
- student studying in the U.S., was a subversive message. When the
- Chinese characters are read diagonally from upper right to lower
- left, a slap at the country's repressive and unpopular Premier
- becomes clear: Li Peng must step down to appease the people's
- anger. The secret slogan is the talk of Beijing. Meanwhile,
- enraged government officials have launched an investigation into
- the "political accident."
- </p>
-
- </body></article>
- </text>
-
-