As a foreigner today I want to introduce the concept of
socialisation,by discussing the issue of western perceptions of Chinese communism.

When I came to China,in 2004 ,three years ago I was completely unaware
or unconscious of personal bias toward, or preconceptions of China and
its’ people. I was aware of course that as an indian I disliked and
disapproved of communism and therefore felt sorry for the Chinese
people. But now after spending 3 years in china, I can say without
qualification, that every day brings for me, a new appreciation of Mao Ze Dong
and the Chinese Communist Government.
If you had ever spent time living in (rural) China, you would know
that the cultural norms here, center around a couple of well used phrases
such as, “It doesn’t matter, it is not important, and don’t worry about
it”. Add to this, ‘It is normal’, and you have a mindset that just
‘accepts’ what happens and otherwise is not interested in doing anything
unless ‘forced’.

A Chinese businessman I met on the plane from nanchang to shanghai
explained to me that he is being paid big money to hold seminars in
Mainland China. He is very happy to take the money, but admits that it is a
complete waste of time, for no one will listen to him or ‘learn’ about
business procedures. ‘The Chinese businessman’ he informed me, ‘thinks
only of the immediate sale and of making the greatest profit possible,
and never considers his loss when the potential customer turns away and
goes elsewhere.’

Now on the point of changing from traditional thinking to something
more modern, I would draw your attention to a press conference I read
about a few months ago. A Chinese politician was being interviewed by the
western press, and was asked about the introduction of Democratic
processes into China. His reply was that ‘this will take a long time. Chinese
people are not very well educated. It will take about 50 years before
the people are ready for democracy.’

I could just imagine what the journalists were thinking. I on the other
hand, just laughed. ‘Fifty years?’ I thought, ‘ More like 150 years!’
Before you condemn me for my particular take on Chinese Democracy,
let me tell you something when I entered into a lengthy discussion with
some of my Chinese friends about china and its future and this is what
they told me- “If democracy were introduced into China tomorrow, next
week we would have a bloodbath. The country would fall apart.” My
personal observations lead me to concur.

We in the india decry communism, because we have a particularly
‘western’ politico/cultural worldview. But China has never known democracy.
The system in place in China today is no different to that under which
the people of China have lived for the last 2000 years. The standard of
living and education of the people however, has grown and progressed in
leaps and bounds under Communism.

I have also been to the rural areas of China. I have come to know the
rich and the poor. I see the poverty and the waste (of money). I see the
disregard for the poor, and the arrogance of the rich. I know the
types of people who are getting rich without paying taxes. I follow the
political scene in China and read the Governments blueprints for the
country’s economic future. I know that the Government is trying to even out
the system, to make it work better, and to make it more honest and
accountable. I know that they are trying to lighten the burden of the
peasant farmers. I know they are striving to raise the standards of living
and education in this country. I see their attempts to keep the country
in one piece whilst trying to bring the people into the 20th century
(forget about the 21st).

In short, my first hand knowledge of daily Chinese life, leads me to
admire the Government’s ability to have succeeded so well, in the short
time it has been in power, and I know that without Communism, China
would not be where it is today. I also know that the future is precarious,
and that at any time, a return could be made to more severe times and
policies.

I have no illusions about the Chinese people, and I no longer hold to
my western preconceptions of them. I know them for who they are. If
westerners have one big flaw in their cultural self perception, it is that
they fail to see themselves as the rest of the world sees them. They
judge the rest of the world by their own standards. They think, for
example, that racism and sexism can be cured by legislation, while in most
countries both are enshrined in legislation. They think that their
cultural beliefs are so admirable, that everyone will race to embrace them.
This is just not so!

People in China see their world as they have always seen their world,
and despite their love of modern technology, have no desire to become
like Indians or Americans. How can they think like this? The answer is
simple. Foreigners are just foreigners. “We are Chinese! Being Chinese is
better than being American”. A foreigner may become a Chinese citizen,
but he will always be a foreigner.

Whether we talk about China, Afghanistan, Iraq, or any other country,
culture or religious custom, we need to understand that our perceptions
of what is ‘valuable and desirable’, is tainted by our national
‘prejudices’, and if we ‘altruistically’ force our ways of thinking and
lifestyle on others, what we so generously offer, may be thrown back in our
faces. Our thinking and many of our cultural beliefs are no less a
result of ‘political and media propaganda’, than are those of people raised
in totalitarian states. Think about it!

———————HIMANSHU SETHIA (ALL RIGHTS
RESERVED)———————-
READERS CAN MAIL ME AT-himanshu28102000@yahoo.co.in