Having lived in China, I can tell you that life isn't remotely how you'd imagine it to be from reading or watching Western news reports. You know, propaganda exists in all countries; one might argue that it is simply more subtle and sophisticated in Western ones.
Having said this, I don't condone the more extreme and brutal methods of control that the Chinese government occasionally resorts to. But you need to understand that the Chinese have a different concept of human rights. Recently, Luo Haocai, the China Society for Human Rights Studies director, said:
"China believes human rights like other rights are not 'absolute' and the rights enjoyed should conform to obligations fulfilled. China opposes separating rights from obligations."
I agree with this, but this philosophical difference between Western and Chinese thought is a major source of misunderstanding between cultures. Unfortunately, the press - both Western and Eastern - often fail to report the news in a sufficiently nuanced manner (often due to a combination of a lack of understanding, a political agenda, and commercial considerations) to make this clear. They're more interested in sensationalising the news and emphasising the worst extremes - that's what people want to read and hear about.
What people often fail to understand is that many Chinese people don't need to be manipulated to express hatred for foreigners or to engage in activism (although they are manipulated, none the less). Believe it or not, but the policies of the Chinese government that seem most ludicrous often reflect the opinions of the Chinese public.
I respect your points, and many of them are valid, but they seem rather simplistic and naive to me. I particularly object to the implication that if european values are right and good and just, other value systems (in this case Chinese ones) must be wrong and bad and unjust. It's not as simple - not as black and white - as that.
Having said this, I don't condone the more extreme and brutal methods of control that the Chinese government occasionally resorts to. But you need to understand that the Chinese have a different concept of human rights. Recently, Luo Haocai, the China Society for Human Rights Studies director, said:
"China believes human rights like other rights are not 'absolute' and the rights enjoyed should conform to obligations fulfilled. China opposes separating rights from obligations."
I agree with this, but this philosophical difference between Western and Chinese thought is a major source of misunderstanding between cultures. Unfortunately, the press - both Western and Eastern - often fail to report the news in a sufficiently nuanced manner (often due to a combination of a lack of understanding, a political agenda, and commercial considerations) to make this clear. They're more interested in sensationalising the news and emphasising the worst extremes - that's what people want to read and hear about.
What people often fail to understand is that many Chinese people don't need to be manipulated to express hatred for foreigners or to engage in activism (although they are manipulated, none the less). Believe it or not, but the policies of the Chinese government that seem most ludicrous often reflect the opinions of the Chinese public.
I respect your points, and many of them are valid, but they seem rather simplistic and naive to me. I particularly object to the implication that if european values are right and good and just, other value systems (in this case Chinese ones) must be wrong and bad and unjust. It's not as simple - not as black and white - as that.