Federation for a Democratic China (FDC ) is a Canada-based political group that advocates the

democratization Democratization, or democratisation, is the structural government transition from an democratic transition, authoritarian government to a more democratic political regime, including substantive political changes moving in a democratic direction ...

of China through opposition of the

Chinese Communist Party The Communist Party of China (CPC), also translated into English as Chinese Communist Party (CCP), is the founding and One-party state, sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Founded in 1921, the CCP emerged victorious in the ...

and the support of

human rights Human rights are universally recognized Morality, moral principles or Social norm, norms that establish standards of human behavior and are often protected by both Municipal law, national and international laws. These rights are considered ...

. It was founded on September 22, 1989, in

Paris, France Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, following the

1989 Tiananmen Square protests The Tiananmen Square protests, known within China as the June Fourth Incident, were student-led Demonstration (people), demonstrations held in Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China, lasting from 15 April to 4 June 1989. After weeks of unsucces ...

. The group has members all over the world, including mainland China. Active members are located in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Canada, the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Britain, France, Germany, Japan, Thailand and in other European and Asian countries. The group was very active in the five years following the

Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 The Tiananmen Square protests, known within China as the June Fourth Incident, were student-led demonstrations held in Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China, lasting from 15 April to 4 June 1989. After weeks of unsuccessful attempts between t ...

and was then substantially reinvigorated after 2003, with large congresses attracting a broad cross-section of leading Chinese democracy activists and exiles. In 2005 Chen Yonglin, then Chinese consulate-general working in Sydney, defected to Australia in a formal claim for

political asylum The right of asylum, sometimes called right of political asylum (''asylum'' ), is a juridical concept, under which people persecuted by their own rulers might be protected by another sovereignty, sovereign authority, such as a second country or ...

. Chen claimed that a network of 1,000 Chinese government spies was operating in Australia, leading the chairman of the Australian branch of the FDC to comment that such claims could "lead to natmosphere of distrust and even antagonism towards the Chinese community." On October 8, 2012, during the 11th Congress of FDC,

Sheng Xue Sheng Xue or Reimonna Sheng (; born 1962), is the pen name of Zang Xihong (), a Chinese-Canadian journalist and writer, and human rights activist. Background Sheng Xue grew up in Beijing, and moved to Canada soon after the 1989 Tiananmen Square p ...

, who lives in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

was elected as the president of the FDC. She was the first female president of the FDC, and the first female president of any major organization in the overseas Chinese pro-democracy movement. On March 24, 2017, during the 13th Congress of FDC, Chin Jin, who lives in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, was elected as president.

Jin Xiuhong Jin may refer to: States Jìn 晉 * Jin (Chinese state) (晉國), major state of the Zhou dynasty, existing from the 11th century BC to 376 BC * Jin dynasty (266–420) (晉朝), also known as Liang Jin and Sima Jin * Jin (Later Tang precursor) ...

of the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, Wang Dai of

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

and Zhang Jian of

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

were all elected as vice-presidents, and

Luo Le Luo or LUO may refer to: Luo peoples and languages *Luo peoples, an ethno-linguistic group of eastern and central Africa **Luo people of Kenya and Tanzania or Joluo, an ethnic group in western Kenya, eastern Uganda, and northern Tanzania. *** Luol ...

from

was elected as the Chair of the Supervisory Committee. Other former presidents of the FDC include

Yan Jiaqi Yan Jiaqi (; born December 25, 1942) is a Chinese political scientist and dissident. Biography Yan was born on 25 December 1942 in Wujin District, Changzhou, Jiangsu, during the Chinese Civil War. In 1959, he entered the University of Science ...

and

Wan Runnan Wan Runnan (; born 29 October 1946 in Yixing, Jiangsu) is a software engineer, entrepreneur and a Chinese human rights activist who is known for his involvement in the Chinese democracy movement. Life Wan was in college studying engineering w ...

, who both lived in France during the FDC's initial stages and later moved to the United States. Wan Runnan currently lives in Paris. The group had 3000 members at its peak. By 2017, membership was reduced to 100. The group split in 2017.

References

External links

Federation for a Democratic China Official WebsiteForum for a Democratic China (Australia)
{{authority control 1989 establishments in France Chinese democracy movements Political organizations based in France