Murong Xuecun | Chinese dissident writer speaks at USJ

Murong Xuecun, one of China’s first web-based novelists, social critic, and now contributing opinion writer for The New York Times, delivered a speech at the University of Saint Joseph (USJ) on Monday as part of The Script Road.
As one of the most vocal writers against censorship in China, Murong is known for his defense of freedom of expression. In recent years, he’s also gained notoriety for his fearless blogging and opinion pieces. He had about 8.5 million followers on Weibo, China’s equivalent of Twitter, before censors shut down his account in May 2013.
Shortly after, the dissident author gained a powerful platform for his views with The International New York Times. However, web publications of his opinion pieces are blocked in mainland China. Under the tense circumstances, Murong left Beijing and is now based in Hong Kong.
Sewell Chan, deputy editor of the newspaper’s op-ed section, previously told Foreign Policy that the paper decided to invite Murong “because of the literary acclaim his fiction has received, as well as the popularity of his essays, his blogging, and his other non-fiction writing in China.”
The writer, whose real name is Hao Qun, was born in 1974 to a farming family in Northern China’s Jilin Province, and studied law at the China University of Political Science and Law in Beijing, graduating in 1996. His debut novel “Leave Me Alone: A Novel of Chengdu,” first published online in 2002, propelled him to stardom and later sold more than one million print copies. His 2008 novel, “Dancing Through Red Dust,” delved into the secretive world of China’s legal system, and has been translated into French and English.
According to a source, the writer was sent by The Script Road to USJ Monday morning, replacing another speaker – author Joe Tang – at the last minute.
The same university stunned local society and academia last year in its dismissal of Eric Sautede, a senior lecturer of Political Science, for his active comments on local political affairs. Rector Peter Stilwell saw Sautede’s comments as putting the university’s pursuit of a new campus project in danger. The event that triggered the sacking, according to Sautede, was a dispute over a lecture with historian Frank Dikotter – whose books show a critical view of communist China.
The Times sought comments from the USJ’s vice rector yesterday, as Stilwell is currently out of town, but did not receive a reply by press time. USJ’s News & events  website page has not mentioned the presence of Murong on campus. BY