Letters: Jan. 27, 1986

Man of the Year

To the Editors: Deng Xiaoping as Man of the Year is your best choice ever [MAN OF THE YEAR, Jan. 6]. Deng is proving again, as the U.S. did many years ago, that the most powerful and beneficial force in the world is individual freedom and enterprise. James Sumner Sedona, Ariz.

Yours is the finest report on events in China since Marco Polo's. Jàn Gadzo Chisholm, Minn.

TIME's choice is ludicrous. It would be much more appropriate to have on your cover the silhouette of a lone terrorist, symbolizing the murder and carnage that occurred in 1985. Dale K. Weighill Farmington, Mich.

Congratulations on your selection of Deng Xiaoping as Man of the Year. While the choice of Mikhail Gorbachev would have had obvious merit, your arguments for deciding to pick Deng were too persuasive to ignore. Timothy A. VanDerbosch Garrett, Ind.

You say that if "Deng's bold experiments" succeed, "Communists everywhere, notably in the Third World, would see an alternative to the failures of Soviet Marxism." Yet you say that "Deng's goal is to lift per capita income to $800 by the year 2000." This is less than 20% of per capita income in the U.S.S.R. today and less than 10% of that in some East European countries. Soviet-style Marxism is a failure only by Western standards. Compared with the mess that China is in after 35 years under Deng and his associates, the Soviet Union is Nirvana. Thomas A. Metzger Professor of Chinese History University of California, San Diego La Jolla, Calif.

As a Taiwanese, I am both shocked and disappointed at this year's selection for Man of the Year. Choosing Deng Xiaoping primarily because of his "sweeping economic reforms" focuses only on the brighter side of China. By honoring Deng, you praise a leader who has tried to isolate Taiwan, an emerging democracy; has sheltered Pol Pot, a genocidal maniac; has continued to deny basic human rights to Tibetans; and has denounced as selfish those who question China's wavering policy on democracy for Hong Kong. When admiring the sleek, beautiful head of the mighty Chinese dragon emerging from the depths of the Pacific, keep a sharp eye for the shadowy tail that is sure to follow. Dave Lin Marlboro, N.J.

Your choice of Deng Xiaoping is a just one. Deng has transformed China from a restless Communist giant to a peaceful nation committed to stability and cooperation. Mao's two upheavals, the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution, caused millions of Chinese misery and death; Deng's changes have brought joy and happiness. Now China, the erstwhile protagonist of socialist revolution, and the U.S., the greatest capitalist country, have become friends. For that, Deng deserves a Nobel Peace Prize. Mahmood Elahi Washington

Last September the Chinese government celebrated the 20th anniversary of the carving up of Tibet. To observe the occasion, a delegation of Chinese officials flew from Peking to Lhasa armed with gifts of silk, desk clocks and tea. Tibetans do not need desk clocks or tea. They would appreciate having returned to them their rights, their cultural identity and their national leaders. As the eldest brother of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, I can tell you that Tibetans are waiting for these reforms before they will nominate Deng Xiaoping Man of the Year. Thubten Jigme Norbu Bloomington, Ind.