Democracy Wall

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The Democracy Wall (Chinese: 西单民主墙) was a long brick wall on Xidan Street,^[1] Xicheng District, Beijing, which became the focus for democratic dissent. Beginning in December 1978, in line with the Communist Party of China's policy of "seeking truth from facts," activists in the Democracy movement — such as Xu Wenli — recorded news and ideas, often in the form of big-character posters (dazibao), during a period known as the "Beijing Spring". The first posting on the Wall was by a poet from Guizhou province, Huang Xiang. These activists were initially encouraged to criticize the Gang of Four and previous failed government policies as part of Deng Xiaoping's struggle to gain power but the wall was closed in December 1979 when the leadership and the communist party system were being criticized along with acknowledged mistakes and previous leaders. The shutdown coincided with suppression of political dissent. The Democracy Wall was moved to Ritan Park prior to being closed down. As visitors to the wall then had to show identification to enter the park the open and free access to the wall was curtailed.

The Fifth Modernization was a signed wall poster placed by Wei Jingsheng on December 5, 1978 on the Democracy Wall in Beijing. It was the first poster that openly advocated further individual liberties. It caused a spectacle, espousing that freedom was the only "modernization" that really mattered, rather than improved living standards. The poster was in response to the government's "Four Modernizations" campaign.

Nepal had its own Democracy Wall, in Ratna Park, Kathmandu. After the establishment of democracy in 1990, the square became a rallying point for protesters, but the wall itself was demolished by the city government in August 2005, six months after King Gyanendra dismissed the elected government and assumed direct power himself.