1

Womens Organising Cyberactivism: A Comparison of Feminist Practices in Mainland China and Hong Kong

(The First Draft submitted for the 2nd International Symposium on Chinese Women and Their Network Capital, Hong Kong, October 2004)

Ting Liu

Australian National University

Introduction Along with the presence of activism on the Internet, social-movement theorists have used the concept of cyberactivism to explain how a social movement, such as a feminist movement which commonly demands cultural and social changes can take shape in the virtual world (Rheingold 1994; Naples 1998; McCaughey and Ayers 2003,). One of these scholars, Ayers (2003), especially calls into question the nature of what comprises a social-movement group in cyberspace and how, if at all, social movement work online after comparing collective identity in online and offline feminist activists (161-62). In Chinas case there have been a number of reports on Chinese netizens involvement in political issues on the global media (Kabul Press 2004; Taipei Times 2004), and some interests from academia in the state-led feminist-activism in the cyberspace (McLaren 2003). Little research, however, has been carried out in dealing with cyber womens organising activities in both mainland China and Hong Kong. Hence, this study sheds light on the use of the Internet by grassroots organising around rich and poor, democratic and undemocratic areas of a developing country akin to China. This paper explores the emergence of organising feminist activities in cyberspace by looking into ten websites of women organising in different regions such as Beijing, Shaanxi and Hong Kong. These websites were all established by women organising that include gender equality and/or furthering or protecting womens interests as an explicit part of their objectives. Among them are three from Hong Kong, six from Beijing and one from Shaanxi province. Websites with similar objectives but founded by state-run or sponsored groups, or academic-oriented groups are not considered in this study. Moreover, we explore how this proliferation influences the nature and shape of social organising in the current womens movements in contemporary China. In the first section of this paper we apply feminist-activism theories to analyse the role of women organising in feminist movements in Chinas context. Second, we

3 summarise the new trend of the digitalisation of Chinese women organising at the beginning of the 21st century. Third, we shall cite examples to show the extent to which the opportunities ICTs (Information Communication Technology) create for the increasing diversity in womens activism and feminism. Finally, we examine the strategies women organising apply towards feminist-activism in terms of their utilisation of the Internet. The term organising is used in this paper in place of women organisation, or as most of the women groups in China claim, non-governmental organisation or nonprofit organisation. In doing so, the debate over structural features of organisation in Chinas party-state system can be avoided (Jaschok, Milwertz et al. 2001, 6). Also, the use of the term enables this study merely to focus on the process of organising itself and the shifting and dynamic character of womens organising activities that aim to create social change (Jaschok, Milwertz et al. 2001, 6-7). Many researchers suggest that women enter the political sphere through the practice of organising as this process shapes participants awareness of dominant gender relations and gender politics in society (Basu 1995; Chatty and Rabo 1997; Naples 1998). This process of organising, including the activism to which it leads, is centring on the action of a social movement (Eyerman and Jamison 1991; Eyerman and Jamison 1998). Organising here is defined as a method by which citizens, diverse groups and organisations, including corporations, attempt to create what they envision to be the good society (Christensen-Ruffman 1995, 374). Through the cultural and social process of organising, new thoughts and practices related to gender and political participation, and a collective identity develop in a womens movement (Milwertz 2002, 11). Womens movements and women organising Studies of women organising around the world recognise that womens concern groups with activism element enable feminism to directly participate in the development of a social change. Largely based on womens life-world experience, feminism takes diverse shapes. It refers to the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes (Lai, Au et al. 1997, 269) on the one hand. On the other hand, emphasising activism composite, feminism can be defined as womens groups organised for change, whose agendas AND/OR actions challenge womens

4 subordinate [or disadvantaged] status in the society in general and in their own community (Gluck 1998, 34). Hence, with feminist theories running interactively, consciousness-raising groups are one of the most typical activities of modern feminism (Delmar 1986). Identified as expressions of feminism (Milwertz 2002, 9), activism is the core composite for understanding womens movements. Though deeply rooted in the Chinese patriarchal values, the womens movement in Hong Kong has long resembled that of the feminist movement in the West (Tang, Au et al. 2000, 201). Especially in 80s, many educated women initiated womens groups to raise womens awareness and to promote the fight for rights of women, and then spread the idea and action to women at the grassroots level (Lai, Au et al. 1997, 301). Despite great improvements in various social fields, the persistence of gender discrimination at work, and gender disparity in wages suggest that Hong Kong women continue to occupy a disadvantaged position in society (Tang, Au et al. 2000, 204). Currently over 200 womens groups are working with specific focuses in Hong Kong. Arguably since 1990s women organising in mainland China have been largely repeating the approaches of Hong Kong womens groups in its 1980s. China researchers have now defined the formation of a new phase of Chinese womens movement in 1990s featured mainly the proliferation and multiplied activities of popular womens organisations (Liu 1991; Hsiung, Jaschok et al. 2001; Milwertz 2002, 5; Wesoky 2002). Milwertz (2002) describes that women have established groups, organisation and networks, and organised activities on their own initiative in this incipient independent womens movement (6). Activists have found office place and meeting space, sought funding, and strengthened organisational construction. They have also managed development projects, established social services to support women in vulnerable situations, and made their voices heard in the media and through policy recommendations (Hsiung, Jaschok et al. 2001; Milwertz 2002). All of these form the basis for challenging dominant discourses on women and gender issues (Milwertz 2002, 5). Before this development, for a long time there was a top-down womens movement in China, initiated by the Party-led ACWF. It was sarcastically dubbed a move

5 women movement instead of a womens movement, (Feng 2000, 1). Feminism has not been traditionally used to explain womens movements in mainland China until recently (Lin 1997). Many theorists have explored the complex process of Chinese acquiring the concept feminism since the movement toward self consciousness and self awareness emerged in 1980s. Some, like Li Xiaojiang, argue that feminism carried a negative connotation since it was viewed as a Western bourgeois concept contradicting the discourse of Marxist liberation (Li 1999, 268). Others, such as Ding Xiaoqi, recognise that women designated as feminists are commonly labelled mannish women or freaks of nature in Chinese society (Ding 1991, 111). Consequently, the state did not support feminism and women refused to have their names paled up with the tag feminist (Lin 1997; Liu 2002; He 2004). The rejection on the Western sense of feminism has gradually declined since the introduction and translation of works in Western feminism in the mid 1980s as part of the heat of westernisation (He 2004, 2 in online version). However, the efforts in indigenoulising feminist theories and practice based on Chinas reality have never stopped. Feminism, now commonly translated as nuxing zhuyi (literally meaning womenism) to emphasis gender difference, has abandoned the old Chinese term nuquan zhuyi, mainly in circulation before 1990s, which aggressively demands womens political rights reminiscent of the earlier womens suffrage movements in China and in the West (Liu 2002, 151). Although the adequacy of the appropriation of Western feminism in understanding Chinese womens movement of liberation are still called into questions, it is clear that more and more researchers started borrowing feminist theory resources in an attempt to explain womens situation in a transforming China (Xia 1998; He 2004). Scholars around the world simultaneously began acknowledging diversity in womens activism and feminism in Western and non-Western countries (Milwertz 2002, 9). For example, Milwertz (2002) argues that organising by women in Beijing qualifies as social movement activism because nondisruptive modes of action applied in the movement are active in the Chinese political context (4-5), although it may not fully match the boundaries given by Dehlerup (1986) to a strict definition of the social movement1.
1

According to Dehlerup, a social movement is a conscious, collective activity to

Regardless of these new developments, there have always been concerns over how to link the mass women with the current womens movement. Pu (2004), for example, questions the low degree of womens autonomy at grassroots level while more often women appear to be organised and helped in the mainland media. In Hong Kongs case, researchers and activists have also suggested that the tradition of womens groups with a strong grass-root basis should be continued (Tang, Au et al. 2000, 202-03). Women organising have historically incorporated communication technologies such as newspaper, radio, TV, and film into connecting and mobilising a broader society to concern womens interests and issues. As online communication has been accepted by more and more citizens all around China, the interactive Internet technology is hardly new to women organising. A wave of digitalisation of women organising has become in progress since the start of the 21st century. Womens organising digitalisation Before moving to womens organising cyber practice, we shall sketch out the use of the Internet in Hong Kong, Beijing and Shaanxi province respectively. Statistics indicate that with the Internet users of around 67% of the whole population in 2003, Hong Kong has been among the most developed areas in the world in terms of digitalisation (see Table 1 below). The number of the Internet users has also been growing very fast in mainland China, especially in big cities such as Beijing. With a growth rate of more than 200% every year, the number of Internet users in Beijing only, is expected to level with that of Hong Kong very soon. However, the use of the Internet in the mainland as a whole is still under-developed, especially in more remote areas like Shaanxi province with Internet users of less than 6% of the provincial population. While the digital divide on the base of regions cannot be ignored, an investigation in websites based on distinct areas as such will give light on an attempt to explore womens involvement in information and communication technologies (ICTs) in China.
promote social change, with some degree of organisation and with the commitment and active participation of members or activists as its main resource. Three characteristics are further added to this definition: 1. a combination of spontaneity and organisation; 2. direct actions and disruptive tactics; and 3. an entity of activities by organisations, groups and followers who share a commitment to a common cause.

Table 1: Overall use of the Internet in Hong Kong, Beijing and Shaanxi in 2003 Percentage Prov . HK BJ SX Populati on 6.8M 14.2M 36.4M Users 4.6M 3.98 M 1.97 M Publishi ng Date Feb-04 Feb-04 Feb-04 of Population 67.50 % 28 % 5.40 % Sample Age 10 and above above 6 above 6 Source Nielsen/NetRati ngs CNNIC CNNIC

Despite the overall digital divide among different areas, women organising in mainland China are not left behind by their counterparts in Hong Kong in the new wave of digitalisation. The establishing time of all the ten websites selected in this study indicates that digitalisation of women organising in different regions has all happened very recently (see Table 2 below). With the growth in numbers of cyber women organising and users, a greater diversity of approaches in cyber feminism and activism emerged. Table 2: The establishment of women organising and their websites Province Hong Kong Beijing Name AAF Nu Xing Wang Gutsy Women Maple Genderwatchina Womanlegalaid Stop DV Rural Women GAD West Women Org. 1984 1984 1997 1988 1996 1992 2000 1993 1999 1986 Corporate body registered registered registered registered no/affiliated no/affiliated no/affiliated registered no registered Website 2000 2003 2003 2004 2003 2002 2003 2004 2000 2003

Shaanxi

Chinese women organising have been working both in the reality and virtual world through establishing their own websites with the help from global sponsors (see Table 3 below). The Ford Foundation and Oxfam Hong Kong have been playing a

8 determining and guiding role in this process of digitalisation in mainland China since they fund all the seven women organising in Beijing and Shaanxi, at least five among which acknowledge their direct funding in the establishment of the websites. It is thus not a surprise as Rural Women (Nong jia nu) claims clearly that its objectives of establishing the website include to propagate the organisations concept, activities and previous work, to let more charities understand the organisations advantages, needs, achievements, work scales and plans through the website, and to seek more cooperation opportunities and funding. Table 3: Major sponsors of women organising and their websites in June 2004 Website AAF Donator HK/ global Astraea Nu Xing Lesbian Action Wang Foundation Gutsy Women Self-helped Ford Maple Foundation Genderwatchi na WomanFord legalaid Foundation Ford Stop DV Foundation Ford Rural Women Foundation GAD West Women Ford Foundation

Starr Foundation Oxfam HK Spangenber Oxfam NL Oxfam HK Oxfam HK Oxfam HK Sida Sweden others (China) Individual (China) Asia Foundation

Individual (global)

Uni OSLO others (global)

others (global)

Note: Sponsors italicized in Table 3 directly support the establishment of the websites. Obviously women organising move towards cyber space can be considered as a direct result of international or exogenous sponsors support. While commonly lacking financial resources, all women organising in mainland China are seeking funding globally on the one hand. On the other hand, as Milwertz (2002) explains, the interest that these organisations have generated in Western media, donor organisations and politicians is in large part due to their existence and activities being viewed as

9 expressions of the development of civil society and a transformation towards a democratic society in China (2). The Internet has long been viewed as a public sphere penetrating the party-states totalising control over the emerging civil society especially when the sectors of traditional media in China still refuse the influence from Western bodies in principle. Marginalised feminist groups thus have been encouraged to establish their own websites to voice certain concerns that may be different from official or mainstream ideologies. In the case of Hong Kong, sponsors impact on the website of women organising can also be found. Nu Xing Wang was established and maintained by the AAF, however, its direct donator is Astraea Lesbian Action Foundation. The website has a special section called Nu Tong Zhi (literally meaning lesbian) to address interest in Lesbians equal rights demands and their life experience. The establishment of this section may be a result of the common ground these two organizations share on Lesbian issues in Hong Kong region. Cyberactivism and women organising It is difficult to find widely accepted boundaries of cyberactivism largely because activism takes many forms in cyberspace. Activists and scholars have long debated the legitimacy of what counts as cyberactivism (McCaughey and Ayers 2003). Vegh (2003) neatly defines cyberactivism as a politically motivated movement relying on the Internet, but admits that activists can take different strategies of either Internetenhanced or Internet-based (71-72). The types of online activism are further classified into three general categories: awareness/advocacy, organisation/mobilisation, and action/reaction (Vegh 2003). In the following discussion session, we mainly apply Vehgs classification system to examine womens organising cyber activities in Beijing, Shaanxi and Hong Kong. Awareness/advocacy The primary process of distributing and accessing information has important implication for cyberactivism. As Vegh (2003) points out, public awareness is achieved by accessing information that is relevant to the cause (72). For website hosts and users, access to alternate forms of information and, most important, the power to reach others with your own alternatives to the official views of event, are, by

10 their nature, political phenomena (Rheingold 1994). Generally, different women organising with certain concerns manage various online awareness campaigns to raise public consciousness of womens issues. The most commonly used way in online advocacy is to provide educational information and resources to the users in favour of the cause on the established websites. News updates in text and photos, Internet-transmitted laser-projected messaging, internal mailing list, and online collection of publication information are the basic patterns of this type of cyberactivism. In Hong Kong, Nu Xing Wang also has web radio program about teenagers sexual life. Gutsy Women provides web TV show. Women organizing in Hong Kong have thus used more online tools in terms of technology to distribute their ideas and match their tasks in cyberspace than their counterparts in mainland. In addition to these differences in forms, the major point lies in what idea and knowledge the website information conveys. Different women organising have different answers to this question. For example, as marginalised groups in society, how womens groups view other groups in the similar situation, saying, gays and lesbians rights? Nu Xing Wang in Hong Kong provides sections for marginalised groups such as sex workers, gays and lesbians, teenagers (kids). Along with Gutsy Women, it concerns womens rights in sexual experience. On the contrast, there is almost no reflection of such information in the websites of mainland women organising. The separating status of feminists and lesbians in China caused for the following reasons: First, the discussion of feminism in China starts from important social problems in a changing society (such as marriage and family, employment, political participation, and education), but has never put the inequality in sexual relationships as its basic and significant research subject and content As a result of the ignorance and innocent in sex field of Chinese feminism, Chinese feminists ignore and reject communication with lesbians. Second, Chinese feminism is still at a developing stage of focusing on specific issues and fighting alone, from which it is insensitive and integrative to the requirement of equality from all other marginalised groups. Although as minorities marginalised by the mainstream society, they are the same in nature. Also, regarding the goals of fighting for social justice and equal rights, they are the same. However, Chinese feminists havent deeply understood this

11 characteristic of feminist movement yet; they possibly struggle alone or treat other marginalised groups with new ranking standard (traditional patriarchal order). Their attitude against lesbians is one of the results. Third, the rejection from mainstream culture in China creates the separation between the two (Liu 2004). Sometimes, women organising address their clear attitude on certain issues in their websites through the form of statements and such, and influence the readers to adopt the desired point of view. Successful cases can be found in both mainland China and in Hong Kong. For example, on October 8 2002, the Apple Daily News and the Oriental Daily reported in their frontpage the news of a sex worker being robbed and held hostage. The newspapers also published a large picture showing the woman unclothed when the robber held her as a hostage against the police. AAF issued a statement condemning the two newspapers for publishing the picture and the address of the victim, saying they reinforced society's discrimination and denigration of the value of a sex worker's body. AAF also lodged a complaint with the Hong Kong Journalist Association and the Hong Kong Press Council. The Hong Kong Press Council replied in the end of October 2002 that they had issued a statement declaring that the two newspapers have violated the professional guidelines, and that they would use this as an illustration in its education campaign. In mainlands case, womens group worked with media to achieve its goal. On the New Year of 2003, an estate company put up advertising in Beijings street asking Do you have second house? (Niyou diertao fang ma? ). However, to emphasizing the visual effect of the selling point in Chinese the wording was manipulated to Do you have second wife? (Niyou erfang ma? ). Women Watch China issued criticism jointly with the ACWFs newspaper China Womens News to protest against the companys intention on misleading the public to gender discrimination in sexual relationships. On January 13 the company was forced to remove all its posters from its Beijing branches as a result of media pressure. Beijing ACWF and the Capital Association of Women Journalists also issued a statement urging government to take actions in legislation against the misrepresentation and under-representation of women in media. Information-distribution network is another form of online advocacy. Stop DV offers

12 a section called Journalists Toolkit. Journalists can find basic knowledge of how to report issues related to domestic violence, ethics, collections of previous reports published by famous journalists, pictures of the groups activities for downloading, mailing list subscription for receiving automatic email notice on upcoming events, and space for giving comments on the website in terms of providing service for media workers. The aim behind this type of online advocacy is fairly straightforward: encourage media involvement in the groups work and have their voices heard by the public at large through media report. Lobbying is seen as a traditional form of advocacy in Western culture, and probably the same case in Hong Kong. However, in mainland China it is a fairly new task for social groups. For instance, Gao Xiaoxianthe director of the owner group of West Womenclaims in the website that as a civil group it is impossible for them to influence the legislation directly. On the other hand, lobbying has been seen as a major task for most women organising, as we can see in their websites introductions. Vegh (2003) classifies there are three types of lobbying occurring online: aimed at ones own governments legislative body; coalitions formed around a particular issue; targets the government of oppressive regimes (74). So far lobbying conducted by women organising in mainland still concentrates on making efforts to change the law. The Internet is mainly used to reflect the groups achievement and their offline efforts in the process. The latter two types of lobbying can be found in offline activities of Hong Kong womens organising. But similarly, no direct involvement of cyberlobbying methods has been observed. The above instances indicate that a successful online advocacy is usually the one that combine different activism forms both in reality and in cyberspace. Moreover, online advocacy campaigns seem to be an expansion and to a great extent just a reflection of offline actions in most websites of women organising. Organisation/mobilisation The first way of using the Internet for mobilisation is to distribute emails or post messages on websites to call for offline actions of a demonstration (Vegh 2003, 74). Almost no such organisation has been found in current websites of women organising in mainland China. A clue in a similar sense lays possibly on the use of group mailing

13 list. For example, Gender Watch China utilizes the mailing list to demand members to write on womens issues in media. But in Hong Kong, some womens groups, especially with younger members, have stated to practice this form of cyberactivism. We take the response of womens groups on the protest against the interpretation of the Basic Law by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress on April 11 2004 as an example. AAF, as a regular practice, published a review of its involvement and attitude in the rally on the same day as the action taken. In Gutsy Women, no call was sent out from the host group of the website, either. However, in its Message Board, user Barber2 posted a message entitled Will you join the protest against the interpretation of the Basic Law in the early morning one day before the action, giving details of the meeting place and time, and called for university students to attend. User redeyed responded that I will go, too at night while shortly after his/her reply another user Uphold posted that Support NPCs interpretation. The second way for organisation/mobilisation is to call for an action that normally happens offline, but can be more efficiently done online (Vegh 2003, 74). This way of cyberactivism has been conducted in both mainland China and Hong Kong. For example, Gutsy Women as a young, small and self-helped womens concern group in Hong Kong, gives a good example of mobilising users to take online petition. The group conducted a survey on the situation of sexual harassment on public transportation in Hong Kong and found that the problem was serious. Consequently, they called for contacting the public service through email and demanding for a change. Nu Xing Wang joined the email petition as a womens group by offering the action information in its Activity Information section and a link to Gutsy Womens website. In July, The bus route No. 9 became the first public transport travelling with a pink poster to remind female passengers not to keep quiet if sexually harassed on the bus. Until now, such posters can be seen in all the subways, buses, and trains in Hong Kong region. It is seemly a very good example of how small womens groups manage social changes with the help of ICTs. However, this achievement caused a debate on their BBS afterwards because male users felt discriminated by the specific use of female passengers in the poster. They said male passengers might face similar problems but they would not be encouraged and supported in this case.
2

All of the names in this paper have been changed to protect the identities of

those whose postings cited.

14 Overall, this online petition is a successful example addressing how small womens groups can achieve its goal by mobilising the public to attend online activity collectively. In mainlands case, similar online action has been taken in seeking solutions to certain womens issues. An example is the involvement of women organising in the ongoing online petition demanding complete investigation on the strange death of Huang Jing. Stop DV set up a special section on the investigation of the death of a female teacher Huang Jing. She was found died alone in naked at her school dormitory in Hunan Province in February 24 2003. Huang was suspected to have suffered date rape and died upon it. But the stalking behaviour of the suspect partner has not been fully investigated. The attitude of the local police station and some other mechanisms with authorities in this case were blamed of trying to cover the truth. Huang Jings case has caused the public attention on date rape and domestic violence, and further on the social justice especially in the online communities since the tragedy was uncovered by Huangs desperate families. The justice of the execution of the law has been called into question. Progress in judicatory implementation and systematic reform in medical check for legal purpose have been demanded to solve the case and alike. In the special section on Huang Jings case, users can find detailed medical reports given by different medical bodies, Huang Jings online memorial, netizens comments and articles, special sections in other websites, and especially, an online petition link to the National Peoples Congress of China, High Court, High and the Ministry of Public Security. The first set of more than two thousand netizens signed their names via email to join the online petition in 2003. The action has been continuing until the case is finally solved. A donation movement has simultaneously been called by users to support Huangs families. The third way of organisation and mobilisation in cyberspace is action/reaction, that is, to call for an online action that can only possibly be carried out online (Vegh 2003, 75). It is also considered by Vegh as falling into the last category of cyberactivism: hacktivism, referring online attacks committed by hachers (Vegh 2003, 75). There is no evidence of women organising engagement of this type of cyberactivism.

15 Conclusion In this paper, we have examined the uses of different types of cyberactivism by womens organising in advocating and organising to achieve their desired goals in Beijing, Shaanxi and Hong Kong. The study indicates that womens groups in Hong Kong have taken more advantage of the technologies and techniques provided by the Internet to distribute their information. The forms of cyberactivism women organising apply are different from group to group. The effectiveness of these forms of online action also needs to be justified from case to case. But it might be safe to summarise that women organising in mainland China are still concentrating on the very first step of online activism starting from basic information seeking and distribution in advocating public awareness. Even in Huang Jings case, it is not the women organising initiated the online petition. Rather, Stop DV jointly becomes the organiser on the half way. However, womens groups in Hong Kong occasionally progress to the second step of organising and mobilising their websites users to take online or offline actions on their own initiation. Despite the above-mentioned difference, the strategy of all the ten women organising is essentially Internet-enhanced rather than Internet-based. As Vegh (2003) puts forward, In the former case, the Internet is only used to enhance the traditional advocacy techniques, for example, as an additional communication channel, by raising awareness beyond the scope possible before the Internet, or by coordinating action more efficiently (72). Such a move in cyberspace benefits the feminist movement from linking the online actions and offline actions on the one hand. On the other hand, if overused, it takes a risk of changing the websites into the electronic notepad of women organising. To overcome this problem, one of the effective ways is to attract more users to participate in websites discursive community and inspire them to take action on the side of womens cause.

Related Websites AAF www.aaf.org.hk GAD in China www.chinagad.org Gender Watch China www.genderwatchina.org Gutsy Women www.gutsywomen.org.hk

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