The Chinese leadership’s penchant for secretiveness is proverbial. But the veil that exists over how that omnipotent party makes important decisions is being lifted somewhat because a volume of unique materials about the behind-the-scenes events surrounding the infamous Tiananmen massacre of 1989 is being published this month.

The materials contained in that book, which I brought out of China and decided to make public, consist of hundreds of documents, including minutes and transcripts of meetings at which the most important leaders of the People’s Republic deliberated on how to handle the Tienanmen demonstrations; key speeches; notes on crucial telephone conversations between leaders; classified reports from security agencies; and dispatches from the police and military. Taken as a whole, these documents provide a rare glimpse into the modus operandi of China’s leaders.

As a witness and participant in the Tiananmen events, and as someone with access to the historical archive, I felt it my duty to publish this record of the decisions that lay behind what happened. The real truth of what happened in l989 was locked in secret Party archives in Beijing for over a decade. I chose to involve myself in this personally risky project because I believe those who wish to serve China must reflect deeply on the lessons of the Tiananmen events. Despite undergoing great changes in the years since 1989, China needs not only to reverse the verdict on the June 4th movement as "a counter-revolutionary rebellion," but also to restart its stalled process of political reform and democratization. I believe that these documents will help serve those elusive ends.

Although the massacre in Tiananmen Square of June 4, 1989 happened over ten years ago, it has not faded from people's memories. Chinese history seems frozen at that date. Far too many questions about those events remain unanswered. The first step in achieving an accurate, complete, and objective re-evaluation of what happened must involve, as Deng Xiaoping famously said, a "search for truth in facts." Only then can the true face of history be restored.

I believe that the following four lessons should guide those who are working for change in China and have motivated my actions in this case.

First, even though the Chinese Communist regime has become thoroughly corrupt, it has strengthened itself through economic growth and improvement in people's lives. These achievements have enabled it to intensify its organizational penetration into almost every corner of society. No political force in China can stand up to it. People who do not like what the Party does must realize that they have nowhere else to turn; they can rely only on themselves. Even though the end of communism in China may seem a foregone conclusion, the fall of the Chinese Communist Party will be accomplished not by an outside force but only by its own members.

Second, given the lock that the Communist Party holds on all the levers of power, the building of democracy in China depends on forces rooted inside China. Those who have worked overseas for democracy, freedom, and the rule of law and who have sought the support of the international community have done necessary work. But real solutions to China's problems must be sought at home.

Third, change from inside is possible because the Chinese Communist Party today resembles the Communist Party of the Soviet Union around 1989. What looks on the outside like a solid structure can break into pieces overnight. The Chinese Communist Party has long since ceased to be a traditional Communist party. It is now a mélange of factions with diverse goals and differing ideologies. The differences between radicals and conservatives in the Party are now sharper than those between the Party and its historic rival, the Kuomintang.

The key force pushing for political change is the pro-democracy faction within the Party. So what will replace the Chinese Communist Party will probably be a new force that emerges from inside the party; a group that regrets the errors of the Communist system, a group committed to establishing a healthy democracy. This group will unite with forces of democratization both at home and abroad to establish a truly democratic system.

Fourth, reversal of the verdict on June 4th is an historical inevitability, as well as the wish of most of China’s people. June 4th weighs on the spirits of every Chinese patriot; almost every Chinese person knows that official reevaluation is just a matter of time. Indeed, the Party's top leadership has been divided about the event ever since it occurred. Today, many of those responsible for the decision to crack down - notably Deng Xiaoping and others of the Party Elders – have died. So calls to reverse the verdict are growing, both inside and outside the Party. These calls will eventually form the mainstream, and the liberal forces within the Party will undoubtedly respond by seizing a historic opportunity not only to reverse the verdict but to move toward discarding the Communist system.

Chinese democracy still has a long, hard road before it. Among other things, it needs a class of well-educated activists it lost when many young people left China to study and build a better life elsewhere. Even if risk and a large degree of self-sacrifice are required, these young people should return to join those in China, including those within the Communist Party, that are working for change. As Lu Xun said, "A true warrior dares to stare the sadness of life in the face and to see the blood that drips there."