In the aftermath of these events, the Chinese concluded that even this response was insufficient. To prevent the democratic wave then sweeping across Western Europe from spreading to the East, China’s leaders set out to eliminate not just the people but the ideas that had motivated the protests: the rule of law, the separation of powers, the right to freedom of speech and assembly, and all the principles that they described as “spiritual pollution” coming from the democratic world.
1989 as the USSR imploded and democracy rose in some countries subjected to USSR rule, e.g., Poland.
