China-Bashing on the Rise

Sing Tao Daily, Commentary, Joseph Leung, translated by Eugenia Chien, Posted: Aug 25, 2007

Editor's Note: environmental issues and product safety should be the responsibilities of the Western companies that run the factories there, according to the editor-in-chief of the Chinese-language newspaper Sing Tao Daily in San Francisco.

Wave after wave of negative news about China is only going to get worse before the Beijing Olympics. China’s continued development and economic growth have been viewed as a threat. With the long-held discrimination against China, the market for the anti-China theorists is only bound to grow. One can say that the negative criticism of China by the mainstream media is at least partly purposeful and discriminatory.

Take the most talked-about topic of the day – contaminated Chinese products. The impression is that Chinese manufacturers, under the protection of the Chinese government, have neglected the safety of consumers. But this is only part of the truth. Sure, we cannot deny that there are some unscrupulous businessmen in China. But the real situation is not one depicted by mainstream media where the government has tacitly allowed contaminated goods into the market. When dangerous products come into the market, the first victims would be local Chinese consumers. The Chinese media has been reporting extensively on contaminated, dangerous products far before the Western media caught on. The fact that these products have not completely disappeared can be attributed to the lack of educational and legal enforcement, as well as the immensity of the population there.

Regarding problems with exported Chinese goods, such as the recall of toys containing lead, the responsibility does not lie only with China, as Western media would like to claim. These products were investments by Western companies in China, and therefore these companies should be held responsible for the products they produce, whether the products were produced in China, the United States or India.

On the topic of global warming, there has been a recent trend to push the responsibility on China. Even countries that resisted the Kyoto Protocol seem to feel justified in criticizing China’s role. China has only stepped into its industrialization no more than 30 years ago, and it has already caused such extensive environmental damage. China’s lack of knowledge in environmentalism and environmental laws is at fault, but the responsibility also lies in other industrialized countries that have moved manufacturing into China. When China has improved its environmental protection laws, these businesses would simply move their polluting manufacturing plants to other countries.

A concrete issue needs concrete analysis. In the analysis of international issues, it seems impossible for the Chinese government to be treated fairly. To change this situation, the only hope lies in China’s continued growth and self-improvement.



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