The Three Ts

The Three Ts in the context of China are Taiwan, Tibet, and Tiananmen. These are the three most contentious issues to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

Overview

The Three Ts are greatly restricted from speech as they are all examples of times when the CCP committed atrocious human rights violations.[1] Within China no dissent from the party line is allowed on any of the Three Ts.[2] Foreigners are advised not to raise these topics in discussion with Chinese citizens as this could put them in an "uncomfortable" situation.[3]

Journalists and reporters working in China are reminded to avoid stories about the Three Ts if they want to be able to remain in China.[4]

Academics at British Universities have faced pressure to avoid the Three Ts and praise the CCP. They were threatened with the cancellation of their Chinese visas which would have ended their ability to do research in China.[5]

Variants

They have also been referred to as the Forbidden Ts.[6]

The Two Ts

For businesses only two of the three Ts are generally relevant, Tibet and Taiwan. Foreign companies operating in China must be careful to avoid appearing to violate the party line on either topic.[7]As many large businesses benefit from outsourced Chinese labor, they are unable to speak up about the human right's violations in China without angering the CCP and likely losing their profits within China. This occurred in 2019, when Daryl Morey of the Houston Rockets tweeted in support of Hong Kong's protesters, a contentious issue the CCP wishes to shut down. After threats from China, the tweet was deleted and the NBA apologized.[8]

The Three Ts and Two Cs

The Three Ts and Two Cs is an alternate formulation with the same Three Ts with the addition of “cults” (a euphemism for Falun Gong) and “criticism” of the CCP.[9]

See also

References
  1. "World Report 2020: Rights Trends in China's Global Threat to Human Rights". Human Rights Watch. 2020-01-03. Retrieved 2021-01-14.
  2. Volodzko, David. "China's Biggest Taboos: The Three Ts". thediplomat.com. The Diplomat. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
  3. Schiller, Bill. "Beijing braces for 'The Three T's'". www.thestar.com. The Star. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
  4. Chao, Eveline. "Me and My Censor". foreignpolicy.com. Foreign Policy. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
  5. Das, Shanti. "Beijing leans on UK dons to praise Communist Party and avoid 'the three Ts — Tibet, Tiananmen and Taiwan'". www.thetimes.co.uk. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
  6. Mohan, Geeta. "German MP sports T-shirt supporting Taiwan, Tiananmen and Tibet". www.indiatoday.in. India Today. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
  7. Spector, Mike; Ma, Wayne. "If You Want to Do Business in China, Mind Your T's: Taiwan and Tibet". www.wsj.com. Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
  8. Yglesias, Matthew (2019-10-07). "The raging controversy over the NBA, China, and the Hong Kong protests, explained". Vox. Retrieved 2021-01-14.
  9. Watts, Jonathan. "Backlash as Google shores up great firewall of China". www.theguardian.com. The Guardian. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
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