Battle Over Mao Secretary's Diaries

A significant trial has commenced in California, centering on the fate of diaries belonging to Li Rui, a prominent Chinese official known for his reformist stance. The case is being portrayed as a battle against Chinese government censorship, as Li's widow, Ms. Zhang, seeks the return of the documents to Beijing, asserting ownership. Li, who passed away in 2019, had previously donated his diaries to Stanford University, fearing they would be destroyed by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) due to his critical views. Stanford's legal team argues that returning the diaries to China would likely result in their censorship, citing the country's poor track record on allowing criticism of its leaders. Mark Litvack, one of the university's lawyers, emphasized the importance of preserving the diaries, stating that if they were sent back to China, they would be banned. Li Rui, who held influential positions within the CCP, was both respected and marginalized by the party, and his daughter, Li Nanyang, began donating his documents to Stanford's Hoover Institution in 2014, fulfilling her father's wishes. In contrast, Ms. Zhang contends that Li intended for her to control the release of his documents, claiming they were wrongfully given to Stanford. The university has initiated a separate lawsuit against her in the U.S., arguing that Chinese courts lack impartiality in politically sensitive cases. While Stanford has been permitted to keep copies of the diaries, it is fighting to retain the originals, asserting that Li Rui wanted them housed at Hoover.