Thread: What's Next, Fellow Chinese?

I am an ethnic Chinese. I grew up in Taiwan and moved to USA 20 years ago. I am just a “normal” software engineer, not affiliated with any political organization. I am proud of my Chinese heritage and I want my children in USA to be proud of their ethnic Chinese identity. The recent Tibet-Olympic news became too painful for me to watch. I have to do something.

I understand your anger and frustration. After more than 100 years of humiliation, Olympic is a golden opportunity for Chinese to be proud again. Yet, Tibet-independence supporters threaten to ruin the party with all the negative news. Western media filled the air with their side of the stories. Westerners insist that they criticize the Chinese government, not Chinese people. But when I parse their message, I can sense the arrogance:
(1) We know what Chinese need: more human rights.
(2) We are pressuring your government to give you more human rights.
(3) Why can’t you tell the difference?
I understand why you don’t appreciate that message. Feeling inferior and losing dignity is worse than short of human rights. I applaud your effort to demonstrate and register your support.

But Olympic is only a few months away. What do you want to do next? Do you want more demonstrations to vent your anger? Do you want to bring the anti-West sentiment to its climax and make Olympic a fireball? Do you want this Olympic to mark the beginning of escalated hostility between China and the West? Or you want to play gracious host and show Westerners Chinese hospitality? Do you want the world to fear China’s power, or you want them to respect Chinese people?

If you want their respect, I have a good news for you: Westerners actually do not want to beat up China or Chinese, because that is against their interest. Westerners want China to provide significant leadership, in proportion to its economic power and influence in the world. That’s why Darfur became an issue for China: “You have influence to that part of the world; please use your influence to make that part of the world better.” If that’s not a request for leadership, what is? Unfortunately, a prerequisite to be a leader in the Western world is to have a thick skin. Leaders here are closely watched and criticized all the time. Westerners use criticisms to voice disagreement on issues, typically with no intent to show disrespect to the one being criticized. I know Chinese have a hard time accepting this western style of criticism. In Chinese culture, a person criticized will lose face and bring shame to self, family and even the nation. Nevertheless, be prepared for criticism. As China gets more attention, more criticism will come. Accepting criticism graciously will make China a more respected leader in the world.

One major Chinese accusation surrounding Tibet-Olympic events is media bias and demonization of China. Most Chinese fully believe that Western media wants to demonize China, because Westerners fear “the rise of China.” My Western experience tells me that the opposite is closer to reality. Westerners want China to be a dignified and responsible member of the international community, to be able to resolve international conflicts and reduce tension. That’s why US insisted on China’s participation in meetings with North Korea on nuclear weapon. A dignified and respected China benefits the Western world. Nevertheless, Western media loves graphically shocking pictures and explosive news to boost their viewings and their revenue. Most of you can recall many graphically shocking pictures of American soldiers abusing Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghraib. (You can see some of them at Abu Ghraib torture and prisoner abuse - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
Those pictures were all over the American newspapers and TV broadcasts in early 2004. They could really hurt US image abroad and change the outcome of the Iraq war. But American people did not think their media demonize their own country or unpatriotic. They wanted the media to investigate the scandal and hold the officials accountable. I love that, don’t you?

I understand Tibet is an emotional issue. Traditionally, Chinese treat their territory as an inheritance from their ancestors. Whoever reduces the current definition of China’s territory is “squandering away” their ancestor’s inheritance and will bring shame to self, the family and the whole nation. So the only honorable thing for a Chinese to do is to “defend” the territory. In contrast, Westerners generally favor self-determination of ethnic groups. The Referendum of Quebec in 1995 was a vivid illustration that Canadians believed the current residents should decide the independence issue. I suspect that some of the “media bias” can be attributed to this Western attitude. So we have a culture clash of fundamental value: does your ancestor’s land ownership trump the will of the people living on that land? How do you settle a question like that? Taiwan’s President-elect Ma Ying-Jeou proposed a pragmatic approach: Let’s set aside the independence question and focus on economic collaboration. China’s President Hu Jintao was receptive to this approach. That’s good news for all Chinese. Is this a viable model for Tibet? How about extending the same courtesy to Tibetan leaders? I am sure that Western media will run favorable reports of Chinese leaders meeting Tibetan leaders, if that happens.

Historically, sages and intellectuals, not clergy or officials, provide thought leadership to Chinese society. Confucius was a sage. His teaching had provided the cultural foundation for Chinese feudal society for more than 2000 years. We need updated thinking to build up the modern Chinese society. Westerners push democracy, but I don’t believe democracy can be pushed from the outside. Improvements to the Chinese society have to come from Chinese intellectuals. Growing up in Taiwan, I used to hate those democracy fighters. They criticized the government, which hurt my patriotism. I still disagree with their pro-independence agenda, and many of them are corrupted by power. But I come to deeply appreciate their courage, sacrifice (many of them were jailed for many years) and contribution to Taiwan’s democracy. Their progressive voice stimulated the thinking and propelled the society forward. Where can I hear progressive voice from Chinese intellectuals after the Tiananmen Incident?

In this Tibet-Olympic movement, I am alarmed by the unison of Anti-West sentiment, especially from overseas Chinese who have experienced the Western society and are free from government control. If you can’t bridge the culture gap, who can? If you turn anti-West so easily, who is left to make peace? I don’t expect you to go against the government, but you can explain to fellow Chinese how the Western media works, or how the Quebec Referendum worked without supporting Tibet-independence. Chinese are so smart that they can see world’s events from many different angles, if you help them to get started. I believe that’s how you can prevent the Olympic from becoming a fireball. That’s how you can help Chinese to win respect from the world. I understand the timing is bad, as the anti-West emotion is high. That’s why I write this posting. It’s relatively safe to forward a posting to start some discussion. I don’t expect you to agree with me, but I challenge you to develop your own progressive voice. So after you vent your anger, do something constructive to help the Olympic and future generations of Chinese.

Let the 2008 Olympic mark the beginning of Chinese renaissance!