Gary McGath <
garym@mcgath.com> wrote:
Canadian author Robert J. Sawyer has been the least controversial
of the Chengdu Worldcon's three Guests of Honor. He's Canadian and
isn't under the same pressures or motivations as Chinese author
Cixin Liu and Russian Sergei Lukianenko. However, he's shown that
just a guest spot and airfare are enough to buy off any principles
he might have had.
As soon as I learned, 19 months ago, that he had been chosen as GoH,
I emailed him:
From: "Keith F. Lynch" <
kfl@KeithLynch.net>
To: "Robert J. Sawyer" <
sawyer@sfwriter.com>
Subject: The Chinese Worldcon
Date: Sat, 19 Mar 2022 13:47:30 -0400 (EDT)
You may remember me as your passenger on the drive from the 2007
Ravencon in Richmond, where you were guest of honor, to your book
signing in Alexandria. I thank you again for that ride.
The bookstore was on the Jefferson Davis Highway, named for the
president of the Confederacy. Since then that highway, like almost
everything else named for Confederates, has been renamed, and nearly
all Confederate monuments, memorials, and statues have been torn down.
I've read all but the latest of your books, and I've enjoyed them all.
I've been to 110 SF conventions over the past 42 years, including
18 Worldcons. (I'm not counting virtual cons, only in-person ones.)
My most recent con was last year's Worldcon in DC. I plan to be at
next year's Worldcon in Chicago, which will be my fourth Worldcon in
that city.
Congratulations for being named as one of the three guests of honor
for the Chinese Worldcon. But I'm writing to ask that you withdraw
from that convention. The Chinese government strongly opposes freedom
of speech and of the press. As such, it's no place for SF fandom.
The current Chinese government's founder, Mao, is responsible for more
deaths than Hitler and Stalin put together, and, unlike those two
rogues, hasn't been repudiated by his successors.
The Chinese government is currently perpetrating a genocide of the
Uyghurs. It's also repressing the people of Hong Kong, in violation
of their 1997 promise to allow freedom of speech there for 50 years.
And it's still occupying and repressing Tibet, and threatening to do
the same to Taiwan, which hasn't been ruled from mainland China since
the 19th century.
The only reason the Chengdu bid won was because it got more mail-in
votes than Discon 3 had attending members. And Discon 3 is a rules-
based organization, unlike some governments I could name, and there's
no way within the rules to revoke Chengdu's win, despite many angry
demands from various fans that they do so.
One bit of rule-breaking is that Kevin Standlee revealed Chengdu's
lead at Discon before voting was closed, so that Winnipeg-supporters
wouldn't waste their money. (For this, he was fired both from the
Winnipeg bid and the chairmanship of the WSFS business meeting.)
Also, look up Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor. They're Canadian
citizens who were detained in China on bogus espionage charges for
nearly three years. They were held as bargaining chips to negotiate
for the release of a Chinese prisoner in Canada, Huawei executive
Meng Wanzhou.
Also, people are known for the company they keep. Your fellow Chengdu
guest of honor, Sergey Lukianenko, is on record as supporting the
current Russian invasion of Ukraine, which has been condemned by the
United Nations, the European Union, the United States, and Canada,
among countless others.
So please reconsider your acceptance. Thanks.
He never replied.
https://www.ichongqing.info/2023/10/19/exceeding-all-hopes-robert-j-sawyer-on-why-chinas-worldcon-is-the-best/
However, I won't condemn him for that, unless, after he leaves China,
he confirms that he actually said that, and that he wasn't under duress.
If and when it's confirmed, I will definitely not be buying any more
of his books, recommending any of his books to others, voting for him
for any award, or recommending him as a GoH at any future con.
Ironically, one of his novels, _Frameshift_, published in 1997, is
about hunting down and fighting an elderly fugitive Nazi. And the
Nazi is not portrayed sympathetically. So his love for genocidal
totalitarians would seem to be a recent change.
"It's said of China that you live in a peaceful country in a world
that is not at peace. Here, people from all over the world unite,
believing there will be a future."
"They make a desert and call it peace." -- Tacitus, quoting Calgacus
"I think China has done in 40-50 years what took the West 200 years.
I'm pretty sure China executed more of its own subjects in 40-50 years
than the West has in all of history.
"This is the best World Science Fiction Convention ever."
That's an insult to everyone who has worked on any past Worldcon,
including me.
--
Keith F. Lynch -
http://keithlynch.net/
Please see
http://keithlynch.net/email.html before emailing me.
--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
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