China's president says 20 more years of social stability are needed

Sad news on the religious freedom front in China: A May 23rd Xinhua article quotes Chinese President Hu Jintao as saying:

"The first 20 years of this century is an important strategic period for China's reforms and development. We need a stable social environment to realize our lofty goals in this period."

First off, I'd like to paraphrase President Hu's remark:

"We need to restrict free speech, freedom of assembly, and other basic freedoms for the next 20 years until Chinese society is ready for such things."

I understand China is dealing with tremendous change as it tries to spread wealth and foster continued economic growth. I even understand the arguments for limited political freedom. But the idea of restricting basic freedoms to ensure stability is just wrong, not only for moral reasons but for practical reasons, too. What happens when you restrict orthodox Christianity is that you get unorthodox pseudo-Christian cults such as Eastern Lightning. Yes, America also has cult groups, but they are more limited because the free marketplace of ideas effectively limits their appeal. In an open society, people can find out information about Eastern Lightning's history and compare it with basic Christian tenets. Just as it's easier to spot fake products in a free market, it's easy to know what is outside the pale of orthodoxy in a religiously free society. Using the same analogy, fake products abound when market controls make something illegal or restricted.

Restricting religious freedom does not make society more stable. Rather, it makes it less stable.