I Left Beijing In 1987, Shortly Before

I Believe That The Power Of Literature Is Stronger Than The Power Of Tyranny.

It Is Vitally Important For Me, Both Personally And For My Writing, To Be Able To Return To China Freely, So Being Barred Entry Has Caused Me Deep Concern And Distress.

In 1989, I Was On Tiananmen Square With The Students, Living In Their Makeshift Tents And Joining Their Jubilant Singing Of The Internationale. In The Two Decades Since, Each Time That I Have Gone Back, Visions From Those Days Seem To Return With Increasing Persistence.

Everything I Was I Carry With Me, Everything I Will Belies Waiting On The Road Ahead.

I Will Not Let A Political Party Tell Me How To Live, When To Die Or What To Believe In. Our Souls Are Linked To The Universe, But We Can Never See Heaven, Because Our Flesh Ties Us To The Earth And The People Around Us. But When The People Around You Have Lost Their Will To Be Free, Then Earth Becomes A Hell.