Human Rights Compared, the need for a White Paper

Anti-China bashers – Political leaders, journalists, pseudo academics and thinkers, and paid Sabre rattlers from the West, Japan and in the less-informed world – often cite China’s “record” in human rights as a cause of their championship. Of course, political leaders have agenda, even though many of them are stupid, or outright ignorant of the world beyond theirs. But journalists, and academics and thinkers are supposed to look for truths. I suppose many of them, for the former category, are really simply too lazy to learn or check, and for the latter, too intellectually inadequate to discern. After all, they have CNN, BBC, Nikkei, The Economist, the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, etc to fall back on if they are questioned about their sources.

Typically, the hypocrisy or disinformation at the moment is about the forced labour and genocide claims in Xinjiang and the protests in Hong Kong, Soon, once these political leaders and pseudo thinkers will also shift their radar to Tibet. New accusations will surely be hurled.

Joe Biden has described Xi Jinping as a thug. He has to ask himself on that basis has he formed that conclusion? From one of the many thinktanks in America? Or from all the prejudices he has built up over the years? Ditto all the wild claims of Nancy Pelosi, and virtually all the leaders in both sides of the US’s political divide. Ditto in Europe and the UK.

I understand about 80% of the people in the regions that I have mentioned view China or Chinese negatively. This is to be expected, given the fake news that they have been fed since the new cold war began. In some respects, I also blamed China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. They did play into these detractors’ hands. I also blamed the greediness and pompousness of the Chinese nouveau riche in and outside the country. Their behaviours do create jealousy amongst the locals or in their adopted lands.

There are many talented political analysts in both mainland China and Taiwan who hold very balanced views about the inter-Straits relationship between China and Taiwan, and the political, military, the technological developments in China, and China’s relationship with the outside world. However, their productions are all in Chinese. CGTN does do a few, but CGTN is not well heard by audiences besides ethnic Chinese.

What can or should China do?

First, China must understand that the West and Japanese do not think like them. Their logic and mindsets about values are different. Theirs are more event-specific, not in terms of overall perceptions like we Chinese tend to think. For instance, the British, American and Australian soldiers had also been humiliated by the Japanese forces during World War II. But today, they are largely events to commemorate without much rancour in many cities in these countries. We Chinese are different, we remember the atrocities committed by the Japanese and if they have not genuinely expressed remorse, Japan will one day rise again to commit the same thing. Likewise, the deliberate exterminations of natives in Canada, the US and Australia have largely been forgiven, since they have been “acknowledged.” They were deemed as isolated incidents. Similarly, the misdeeds and cruelties committed by Europeans and Americans during their colonial and slave-master heydays are to them “historical” and do not warrant repeated reminders or even mentions. Chinese, on the other hand, view all these as culturally ingrained, and though their attitude appears benignant at the moment, will certainly turn malignant when opportunities present themselves. (Two school of philosophical thoughts in China: One, humans are born san; and the other, humans are born er.) It is not difficult for Chinese to form the opinion that the West and Japanese belong to the latter category. Chinese believe in slogging hard to earn its place; the West plundered to build their wealth and expand their empires. (The introduction of opium to China is a case in point.) The Japanese think they are genetically and culturally superior to Chinese and Koreans, even though they are basically of the same stock.

Perceptions can be corrected, but it is a long haul. But there is always a first step.

China should document FACTUALY AND OBJECTIVELY the genocides, slavery, cruelties and atrocities committed by the West and Japan over since colonialization began until today – right from the Spanish cruelties in the New World, to Europeans’ plundering of resources in Africa, India and other colonies, and the enslavement of Africans therefrom, to the extermination of natives in America, Canada and Australia by immigrants from Europe, and the forced removal of aboriginal children from their parents in these countries, to the atrocities of the Japanese (many volumes can be compiled on this alone), to America’s carpet bombings of Vietnam and Laos and liquidations of country leaders and massacres like Agent Orange and My Lai, and to the more recent cruelties or murders in Guantanamo Bay Detention Camp, Syria, Iraq, of Iranian leaders. The world should also not forget the white lies that are spewed even by statemen-like Colin Powell.

All the accounts should be expressed in SIMPLE but GOOD English, Spanish, French Arabic, and Indonesian, and disseminated to every part of the world – to serve as a reminder what the West and Japan have done to their people and country.

Second, China should continue to inform the world what they have done to alleviate poverty and to improve the life of people in Xinjiang and Tibet – again all in languages that can be understood by as many as possible in the world.

Third, China should openly invite them to take a first-hand look at situations in Xinjiang and Tibet. There is no need to hide the retention or reeducation camps from them. In these camps, the host should show pictures of what the West have done to contrast. And they MUST not forget to place a giant mirror for them to take a look at themselves before they enter the briefing room. (There is no need to invite the media people from Japan. They know too well what is really the truth in China. Their political leaders and Nikkei just love to polish the West’s apples.)

Do not be DEFENSIVE, that is where the Western journalist are very good at in flooring you.

Birth right to accuse - like what the West have been doing for ages - can be eliminated - if all of us make a concerted effort to expose hypocrisy.