As we have talked more with our friends familiar with China, and I have learned more about Chinese culture, I have begun to question activist tactics that have focused putting pressure on China through the Olympic games. This is a moment for China to feel pride and dignity in its people, country, and progress, and I'm convinced that any attempts to pressure China through shame will only back-fire with increased nationalism and dogmatism. Plus, the Chinese reactions to Western pressure are completely understandable given our complicated histories and interactions. I still feel strongly that China needs to be held accountable for human rights abuses and its participation in supplying weapons to Darfur and Zimbabwe (not to mention Burma and Tibet). But I think we Westerners need to be careful in how we issue our responses to China, especially because of the sensitivity surrounding our cultural differences and history.
So, I was really excited about this response, which seems a middle way. The video made me smile too!
Join the online handshake here:
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
Great thoughts and well said :)
Post a Comment