Saturday, April 09, 2005
Japan and China
100,000 chinese students marched in protest of Japan's bid for a permanent security council seat. This was triggered by the Japanese government's recent approval of a textbook that Chinese people think whitewashes past Japanese atrocities.
Germany faced such demands to come clean with themselves about their history, and Germany has largely succeeded in doing so. Often, it seemed they were bending too far backwards to accomodate complaints, but today, Germany isn't facing the same kinds of demands from the descendants of those affected by its imperial ambitions as Japan, who hasn't done as good a job of being honest about the fact that their wartime ambitions were at least as bad as the atrocities committed by the German Nazis.
Of course, were Koizumi to decide to start the process that would satisfy his neighbors, he would lose power in the next election. Japan is clearly a different place than self-reflective Germany.
What's more interesting about the article is evidence of pent-up demand for self-expression among the Chinese people. Extreme nationalism seems to be a common direction among people governed by repressive regimes who don't permit a political outlet. Still, it DOES make me nervous. 1.3 billion nationalistic Chinese can be a good thing (provided they direct it towards improving Chinese people) or a bad thing (as Japan's was during WWII). The ex-soviet republic of Georgia's rose revolution was an expression of nationalism, and it hasn't turned into the more virulent sort. Then again, Georgia is a small country that lacks the imperial history of China.
Even if China decides to aim its nationalistic bent towards self-improvement, I doubt they will stop coveting Taiwan. I simply see no alternative to some form of reunification. If the two parties start talking, maybe it could involve more of a separation of powers than exists in Hong Kong. Hong Kong had no history of self-government (save for the hastily assembled sort put together by the outgoing British administration of Chris Patten), whereas Taiwan does. Furthermore, the British negotiated with China, whereas Taiwan would be negotiating on its own behalf as owners of their own destiny with a moral right to demand fair treatment (versus a colonial power that really shouldn't have had control of Hong Kong in the first place).
The world would support their insistence that they continue to be able to govern their own affairs. Further, their example would provide a glidepath for the Chinese mainland to start thinking about a shift to democracy.
I think it would be good for Taiwan to reunify with China. Again, though, that's easy to say for this non-Taiwanese safely ensconced in his LA home. Things might seem like the right tactic when viewed from the eyes of the general overseeing the battlefield, but not so great when you are the soldier tasked with taking that enemy-controlled hill.
100,000 chinese students marched in protest of Japan's bid for a permanent security council seat. This was triggered by the Japanese government's recent approval of a textbook that Chinese people think whitewashes past Japanese atrocities.
Germany faced such demands to come clean with themselves about their history, and Germany has largely succeeded in doing so. Often, it seemed they were bending too far backwards to accomodate complaints, but today, Germany isn't facing the same kinds of demands from the descendants of those affected by its imperial ambitions as Japan, who hasn't done as good a job of being honest about the fact that their wartime ambitions were at least as bad as the atrocities committed by the German Nazis.
Of course, were Koizumi to decide to start the process that would satisfy his neighbors, he would lose power in the next election. Japan is clearly a different place than self-reflective Germany.
What's more interesting about the article is evidence of pent-up demand for self-expression among the Chinese people. Extreme nationalism seems to be a common direction among people governed by repressive regimes who don't permit a political outlet. Still, it DOES make me nervous. 1.3 billion nationalistic Chinese can be a good thing (provided they direct it towards improving Chinese people) or a bad thing (as Japan's was during WWII). The ex-soviet republic of Georgia's rose revolution was an expression of nationalism, and it hasn't turned into the more virulent sort. Then again, Georgia is a small country that lacks the imperial history of China.
Even if China decides to aim its nationalistic bent towards self-improvement, I doubt they will stop coveting Taiwan. I simply see no alternative to some form of reunification. If the two parties start talking, maybe it could involve more of a separation of powers than exists in Hong Kong. Hong Kong had no history of self-government (save for the hastily assembled sort put together by the outgoing British administration of Chris Patten), whereas Taiwan does. Furthermore, the British negotiated with China, whereas Taiwan would be negotiating on its own behalf as owners of their own destiny with a moral right to demand fair treatment (versus a colonial power that really shouldn't have had control of Hong Kong in the first place).
The world would support their insistence that they continue to be able to govern their own affairs. Further, their example would provide a glidepath for the Chinese mainland to start thinking about a shift to democracy.
I think it would be good for Taiwan to reunify with China. Again, though, that's easy to say for this non-Taiwanese safely ensconced in his LA home. Things might seem like the right tactic when viewed from the eyes of the general overseeing the battlefield, but not so great when you are the soldier tasked with taking that enemy-controlled hill.
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