The Globe is hosting an online discussion with Peter Harder, former diplomat and deputy minister of Foreign Affairs, this afternoon. The topic is whether or not the current government's hardline approach to china has been detrimental to the overall relationship. More here:
Continue reading "Online Globe discussion on the Canada-China relationship" »
The problems of China coverage indicated below are not intended to dismiss the exercise entirely. Rather they are intended to point out some weaknesses within the media's coverage of China. Only with these weaknesses in the open can journalists and editors address them, and consumers take them into account when encountering China coverage.
We have seen that China coverage often lacks nuance. It does not provide important cultural context. Rather it unnecessarily frames some story elements as foreign and indeed sometimes beyond comprehension - remember the inexplicable red sashes. China is considered a monolithic entity, where the government can and do whatever it pleases. Furthermore outside of a few minority peoples, the government is often considered the genuine voice of the people. A sense of threat - especially economic - pervades China coverage. It is characterized as a competitor, an international other who is in the process of overhauling the international system.
The media engages in a national discourse when covering China. By covering China as it does it places Canada within a certain international framework, and thereby contributes to public international perceptions. These perceptions are clouded by propaganda, censorship, and an uneven flow of news. Ed Harriman said it well when he argued that: "if journalists and editors wrote about them [international incidents] in more down-to-earth terms and dropped their cliches and - all too often - their clapped out Cold War rhetoric [in our case the globalization rhetoric], then people who depend on newspapers and television for their news would be a lot less confused, a lot less intimidated by the rest of the world, and a lot better informed."¹ One can only hope that Canada's China coverage will mature and internalize some of this advice.
1 Ed Harriman, Hack: Home Truths About Foreign News, (London: Zed Books, 1987), p. 1.
Chinese coverage is not only problematic in that it helps to define the nation and place the nation within an international framework. It also demonstrates some broader issues common to the media and its influence on international relations. Mark Alleyne suggests that the media is problematic for international relations because: 1) the media is a potential propaganda conduit; 2) the media claims to be free of censorship; and 3) the media contributes to an unbalanced global news flow.¹
China coverage clearly demonstrates these three problems. The first two - propaganda and censorship - are often encountered in the Chinese perspective when reporters rely on the official Chinese press agency: Xinhua. A number of the reports from the Globe featured below used Xinhua as a principal - sometimes the only - source. As the state run media agency in a somewhat autocratic one-party state, Xinhua is not an unbiased source. Not only should its reports be confirmed, they should be very clearly qualified so that readers understand the providence of the information reported. But Xinhua is not the only culprit. Many Chinese would consider Western reports on politically sensitive issues - such as Taiwan or Tibet - as anti-Chinese propaganda.
Alleyne's third problem - the unbalanced flow of news - is also clearly evident in China-Canadian media relations. The global flow of information is preponderantly from the North and West to the South and East. That is to say, from developed countries to developing countries. As a result, the Chinese media has a disproportionate coverage of international stories vis-a-vis international coverage of China. While it is outside the scope of this examination, a comparison of China's coverage of Canada with Canadian coverage of China would be interesting. Without having undertaken any quantitative analysis and relying simply on my anecdotal experience I would suggest the coverage is close to equal, which is surprising given that China is a key world state with a population of 1.3 billion compared to Canada's relative unimportance and population which is rivaled by some Chinese municipalities.
1 Mark D. Alleyne, News Revolution: Political and Economic Decisions about Global Information, (New York: St. Marten's Press, 1997), p. 3.
The broad trends within China coverage in Canadian media, as demonstrated by the Globe, speak to the way the media helps to construct national identity, and subsequently place the nation within an international realm.
Benedict Anderson indicates that print media is one of the key elements in the development of national consciousness.¹ By drawing citizens together, distributing uniform knowledge, and relying heavily upon national categorizations, the media helps to create imagined communities such as Canada.
Key to this task in present-day media - which operates in the late nationalist era - is the national framework used in reportage. News is either regional, national or international. Stories that happen outside of Canada are categorized by national origin. Thus, anything occurring within China is by definition both international and Chinese. This framework seems natural to contemporary readers, and enforces national categorizations and enhances international differences. More importantly for a study of Chinese coverage, this national framework clearly defines China as an other.
The Chinese other is not only a different country, it is the key state in a different - some would say competing - civilization. On top of a national framework the media often utilizes a civilizational framework when it speaks of the "Islamic world" or "European countries" or "Asia" as some sort of distinct unified entity. While it is doubtful that many reporters have internalized Huntington's Clash of Civilization's thesis and are actively pitting civilizations against one another, a civilizational framework has similar end results as a national framework. It creates a distinct 'us' and a distinct 'them.'² China coverage in Canada often displays this civilizational framework. It speaks of an impending rise of Asia led by both China and Japan. More nuance - as always - and a recognition that the national and civilizational frameworks are necessary evils would help the media to present a less divisive, more enlightening view of China and other foreign regions.
1 Benedict Anderson, Imagined Communities, (New York: Verso, 1991), p. 43.
2 Samuel P. Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order, (London: Simon & Schuster, 1996).
The media repeatedly portrays China as a foreign exotic location. This exotic portrayal combined with the distillation of China into a few main trends - principally economic and political development - is indicative of a sort of modified Orientalism. Said's Orientalism indicates an Orient created by Occidental discourse which essentialized the mystic, sensual, foreign nature of the Orient.¹ This new-age media orientalism retains the sense of foreign. It also categorizes China as part of an Asian resurgence. This categorization alone acts to define Asia and China in oppositional relation to the West. In addition, the media essentializes China by focusing over-closely on stories of economic and political developments. China is first and foremost an economically developing nation which is both central to the global economy and in competition with Western powers. Secondly, China lacks key human rights which both deprive its citizens of universal human rights as defined by the West, and give it an organizational advantage in geo-economic affairs. Afterall, China is able to quell political dissent, focus on economic development and ignore calls for labour rights and sustainable development.
This new-age media Orientalism not only defines China in oppositional terms, it also leaves us with an impoverished discourse on China affairs. This in turn plays into greater media trends to both confirm and construct national identity and the national role within the international realm. Next we will turn briefly to these issues.
1 Edward Said, Orientalism: Wetsern Conceptions of the Orient, (New York: Penguin, 1978).
Ten years ago there was a conference on US-media coverage of China. It was hosted by American University’s School of Communication, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, and National Committee on United States - China Relations. The conference encountered many of the issues apparent within the present day Canadian media coverage of China. Those who spoke on behalf of the Chinese at the conference indicated that Chinese officials were upset by the preponderance of negative stories in American media coverage of China. On the other hand, American media representatives suggested the American media was simply trying to present the whole China picture and covering those stories they feel are important and interesting for their audiences.
The increase in China coverage noted by the conference has continued over the past decade. As we witnessed in the Globe's coverage, the shortcomings of China coverage also remained over that decade. The conference indicated that " reporters' unfamiliarity with Chinese language, history, and culture; the bias of an ideological framework; excessive responsiveness to an agenda set either by Washington, D.C.-based editors or by the U.S. government; the effect of market forces and the resulting need for drama and pictures; and control of the U.S. mass media by the U.S. government or corporate elites" were all possible reasons for lackluster China coverage.
I would build on that list of potential biases by suggesting that China coverage is defined by China's categorization as an other to the Western self. Because China is so foreign to the average Canadian experience, including the experience of many journalists, coverage of stories relating to China cannot help but be influenced by this sense of the foreign. The next post will examine this issue in more detail.
It is time to move on from the examination of the characterizations of China within the Globe and engage in a more analytical discussion of our topic.
The preceding examination of the Globe and Mail's China coverage reveals some interesting trends. Most striking of these is the Globe's treatment of China as a single monolithic entity. Rarely is the reportage detailed enough for readers to gain an appreciation of the range of nuance China deserves.
We have also seen the Globe repeatedly characterize China as an economic frontier with hot markets. This sort of economic reportage is often tinged with a sense of threat or superiority. China's rise is, on the one hand, seen as threatening to Western interests. On the other hand, reporters infer that China's economy has yet to truly develop, and that backwardness and shoddy standards remain the order of the day.
Human rights are yet another trend within the Globe's China reportage. Press freedoms, and jurisprudence rank high on reporter's list of concerns regarding China's human rights record.
All of these elements, a monolithic China, economic frontierism, and human rights dialogue, are in recent times often told through the Olympic narrative. As the Beijing Olympics draw closer, it is increasingly popular to relate stories about China back to the Olympic games.
These various trends are overwhelmed by the most important one. Most important of the trends evident in the Globe's China coverage is the concept of China as both foreign and threatening. There are few explanations of the socio-cultural differences that, if misunderstood, confuse and complicate China stories. Stories which depict China as threatening, different, and incomprehensible seem popular. Ultimately this sense of foreigness and threat pervade China stories and influence how readers come to understand China.
In the next installment we will examine some academic discussions pertinent to our topic.
Yesterday's Globe featured three length articles on China. The first touches on the familiar Olympic theme. On a recent visit to Vancouver the IOC chief Jacques Rogge claimed that China's human rights record is something to be optimistic about. While China may only have have a glass of human rights, Rogge insists "the glass is half full." Rogge tries to provide some useful contextualization for the human rights debate, arguing that China's human rights record has been steadily improving and that the Olympics has brought new freedoms including freedom of movement for foreign journalists. This story is another example of the current Olympic fever, and the expectations that the Olympics should act as an agent of change in China.
The next story isn't strictly a China focused story, but it does provide a useful anecdote and continues on the Olympic theme. In a larger report on attempts to control the weather, Ken Hunt reports that China regularly controls rain fall using silver iodine cloud seeding. Hunt suggests this technology will be crucial for the Chinese to present the perfect Olympics. Later in the article this sort of climate tampering is likened to playing God with a complex system we do not yet fully understand. Chinese applications of science are often framed this way in the Western media discourse. While the West is oftentimes skeptical of genetic engineering, China has no such qualms and engages in large scale experiments and production of GE crops. This, like the climate science application, is often characterized as careless and hubristic by the foreign press.
The final story continues the Olympic theme and is potentially the most interesting of all today's articles. Geoffrey York reports on the opening of Beijing's new airport terminal. York characterizes the new terminal as a product of China's "Olympic frenzy." This sort of terminology is often used in relation to Beijing's Olympic preparations. I would suggest that similar reports on, for example, Vancouver's Olympic preparations use more refined verbage. Next York comments on the staff who for the first arrival dressed in red sashes to welcome the first set of passengers. York claims they are dressed like "beauty queens." He ignores the fact that red sashes are often used in China as a symbol of good luck and welcome. Presumably, as York is the Globe's principal China correspondent, he is aware of this significance. Nonetheless he uses an outlandish characterization in his report. This again demonstrates how China reportage takes on a very 'foreign' flavour even when the report focuses on fairly universal phenomenon such as airport construction.
There are many China stories to catch up on today. The first item was written by Lori McLeod and appeared in the business section. McLeod reports on new ventures by two major Canadian pension funds (Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) and the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan) in China. Both funds are investing significant money in China because they feel the growth potential is significant. The CPPIB has just opened its first overseas office in Hong Kong. McLeod's article characterizes Asia, and China in particular, as an economic frontier. This theme appears regularly in Western coverage of China. At times difficulties investing in China, or perceived unfair advantages (such as those formerly enjoyed by People's Liberation Army controlled companies) are presented as obstructing free access to the Chinese economic frontier. However, that view is notably not echoed when protectionist voices protest potential Chinese investments in important Canadian industries.
The next item was pulled off of the AP wire. The article deals briefly with the trial of Mining company employees tried for the deaths of 105 workers in an industrial accident. There has been a surge in coverage of Chinese industrial accidents over the last year. However there has not been much coverage of the aftermath. This article very briefly (ie. one paragraph) lets readers know that 3 individuals were sentenced to life while 14 others were given sentences ranging from 1-20 years. It is interesting to note that there is no mention of China's crackdown on illegal mining and attempt to increase industrial safety. Rather there is simply an explanation that "the mine had been operating with complete disregard for the law."
Andrew Torchia filed the next item from Shanghai. Torchia reports on a "clampdown" on IPOs on China's faltering stock markets. The article characterizes the current problems with China's market as a result of Chinese companies abusing the recent vogue for IPOs. Torchia quotes Xinhua's explanation that "companies should not regard the stock market as an automatic teller machine." This particular story is guilty of one of the major problems with Western China coverage. The reporter's major source for the article is Xinhua. He requotes the quotations Xinhua used from a China Securites Regulatory Commission Spokesman, but also quotes Xinhua's own editorialization. It is impossible to tell whether Torchia used the English or Chinese version of Xinhua. Not that the language in particular would matter. The English and Chinese Xinhua reportage is usually almost identical. However it would possibly indicate one of the major reasons for relying so heavily on official media. Many Western reporters in China have limited Chinese language proficiency. Using state-run English media to pound out a quick story is therefore easy and doesn't require calling your translator in to work.
Our final report for this installment offers a welcome diversion from the business pages. It's an article by Beverly Smith forebodingly titled "Chinese domination may be nearing its end." Judging by the title it would be difficult to guess Smith's topic. She is, in fact, reporting on the recent diving World Cup test event in Beijing. While the Chinese won seven of eight gold medals, Canadian chief technical officer Mitch Gellner claims they are vulnerable to the competition. The piece is a rather work-a-day report covering the ins and outs of the international diving scene leading up to the Beijing Olympics. While it is interesting to see non-financial stories on China, the sports page characterization of China as dominating enemy is not much better. While it is certainly the norm in national sports discourse to discuss opposing countries as the enemy, Smith presents China as a monolithic diving force. Little room is given to China's individual competitors. Rather it is a case of 'us' against 'them.'
Today's globe featured some interesting China stories. The first two are both off the AP wire, and focus on the familiar topics of markets and economics.
First we have a story reporting on the rise in patent filings from Asian countries. China is singled out as having greatly increased applications for patents. This evidence is used to confirm the hypothesis that there are indeed "shifting patterns of innovation around the world." The article's characterization of "Asian" countries is interesting. It sets up an us and them, East and West, Occident and Orient binary relationship. If one believes the article, 'we' are losing ground to 'them.'
Next is a very interesting story which turns many common assumptions about the Chinese market on their head. It reports that China is losing its international competitive advantage, resulting in a flood of imports from other countries onto China's market. In addition, increasing numbers of manufacturing jobs are leaving China for more competitive (read cheaper) countries. These observations are interesting in that they run corollary to observations in the West about China's impact on our own markets. While these observations are interesting, they still dwell on China as an economic entity. If one were to come to his or her views of China purely from Globe and Mail reportage those views would be highly skewed and not representative of China's real complexities.
Today's third story maintains the focus on China's domestic market. This more in depth piece written by Jason Shubler for Reuters, reports on the PRC's new subsidy program to encourage rural residents to buy consumer durables. The article focuses on the disparity between rural and urban residents in China and how the state is utilizing new rebates to both diminish this gap and increase domestic consumption to off-set the threat to exports. I feel like a broken record, but again we have stories which are interesting in their own right, but focus on a very narrow range of topics pertaining to China. The reasons for this level of tunnel vision in the Globe's China coverage will be explored in coming posts.
In more frightful stories of unfair advantages for Chinese producers, the Globe picked up an AP item detailing how the USA plans to impose duties on Chinese fridge magnets.
Olympic coverage is also heating up. Spielberg's decision to not work with the Olympic team has led to controversy in the Chinese media which is being picked up on over here. The Globe ran this AP item explaining how China's state run media has been criticizing Spielberg.
Also in on the Olympic theme is the Reuters piece which quotes a "Chinese Olympic official" claiming that marketing revenues will pay for the Olympic games.
Again we see some pretty clear themes in the Globe's China coverage. Human rights, press freedom, and money make the paper.
The espionage case involving Boeing has been one of the more prominent China stories recently. The Globe has pulled this one of the AP wire. It details both an American charged with selling secrets to China and a Chinese and Taiwanese immigrant charged with buying state secrets. How the Taiwanese figure fits into things is left unexplained. In Cold War style the article argues that the "arrests mark China's latest attempts to gain top secret information about U.S. military systems and sales." Articles like this one build on the China as adversary discourse used in most financial reportage on China.
Next we have another of the Press' favourite China topics: human rights. The debate over Chinese human rights abuses has raged for decades, but has been especially prominent since the Tiananmen massacre of 1989. Some argue that China's human rights record is deplorable and unjustifiable, while others take the stance that China has drastically improved its situations over the past three decades and that outside observers should not expect overnight miracles, but rather appreciate the slow-but-sure progress China is making. James Christie with the help of AP takes a new approach by reporting on athletes and celebrities who are advocating against China's international human rights record in Sudan. Two Canadian swimmers along with other athletes and celebrities such as Steven Spielberg condemn Beijing's support of the Sudanese government. While this is laudable in its own right, it also speaks to the double standard often applied to Chinese rights policy. Where as not many athletes would balk at competing in the USA which has a long record of rights abuses both domestically and abroad, China is fair game for this sort of advocacy.
Following trade and human rights, China's censorship laws rank up there with the most active Western media interests in China. The next article reports on how the Chinese government has refused to approve a new John Cusak and Gong Li vehicle to shoot in Shanghai without script revisions. The most interesting aspect of the story is how it refers to the Chinese authorities as simply 'China.' As in: "China has blocked a Hollywood movie." This sort of approach, which is common in Western media accounts of Chinese stories characterizes the Chinese government and bureaucracy (and even occasionally business interests) as a single monolithic entity. It would not have required many more words to nuance the story by explaining which body had blocked the film.
In keeping with our hit parade of Western media's China interests the last story for this installment reports on China's illegal trade practices. Steven Chase reports on the leaked WTO's ruling on China's unfair trade barriers to auto parts. Trade deficits with China feature large in the Western media discourse. This attempt to crack into the China market by Western part manufacturers represents a broader struggle to achieve something close to trade parity with China. Chase's article isn't terribly interesting but it does fit into the broader pattern of the obsession with economic-slanted China stories.
We have four stories to touch on briefly for this installment of our examination of the Globe's China coverage.
The first is from today's travel section. It expounds the virtues of a trip to Hong Kong for the Lunar New Year celebration. Amongst the recommended activities is a long list of engineering feats and shopping excursions one should partake of while in Hong Kong.
Second we have an article by David Berman from the front page of the Report on Business. Berman argues that the spread between prices on domestic shares and shares available to overseas investors is abnormally large and indicative of overheating in the Chinese stock market. In fact he argues that it is "arguably the most dangerous thing facing the Chinese economy right now." This article demonstrates very limited reporting. It is essentially a repetition of a report from another analyst (Heather Bell) made the preceding day. It is also indicative of the chicken little phenomenon so common in much China reportage. No matter what, there always seem to be indicators of impending sky collapse to be found.
Third we have a short piece by James Christie for Globe Sports. It reports on the (already often covered) route for the Olympic flame, which will bypass Canada en route to Beijing for the opening of the 2008 summer Olympics. Apparently this isn't a snub. Although some commentators at other sources have suggested it is related to China's overall diplomatic displeasure with Canada. They would have us believe that the Lai Chang Xin issue, Falun Gong, and the government's insistence on human rights dialogue play an important role in flame route design.
Finally we have a very interesting article suggesting that China's reluctance to invest in Alberta's energy sector is due to political concerns. This report written by one of the Globe's chief reporters on China, Geoffrey York. York points out that China is a growing economic concern and a key global energy consumer. He points to experts, such as Wenran Jiang, who claim that China's reticence to do business in Alberta is due to poor relations between Ottawa and Beijing.
This is another excellent example of the focus on economic matters as central to the Chinese narrative. It is often suggested that China's authoritarianism is rooted in economic imperative, and that these imperatives drive international policies from energy investments to tourist classifications. While this article in particular is well researched and largely accurate it makes the commonly made mistake of conflating Chinese business interests with the Chinese government. While there are certainly close relationships between the two, especially in the energy sector, they are clearly two distinct entities. It generally leads to inaccuracies when one says "the Chinese" to refer to both the government and business interests in the same breath.
There were two stories about China in today's Globe. Both were in the business section. The first is a story from the Bloomberg news service reporting on the upcoming sale of China Coal shares on the Shanghai stock exchange. Reports on both the Chinese stock markets and major companies, especially government owned ones or ones formerly controlled by the military, are commonplace in contemporary Canadian China coverage.
The second story is interesting in that it largely contradicts one of yesterday's stories. Whereas Marcus Gee suggested China need not worry about the present economic downturn, Joe McDonald argues today that China needs to brace for a manufacturing slowdown resulting from the global economic situation. In a position almost opposite to yesterday's the Globe now characterizes China as economically dependent upon the global community.
I've decided that with my limited resources the best way to examine representations of China in the Canadian media is to also limit my media sources. The Globe and Mail, being the only truly national newspaper (the National "Post" isn't available by subscription in many regions, including Halifax) provides a good starting point. At this time, I've decided to limit the study to stories about China appearing in the print edition of The Globe and Mail.
Today's Globe carried three stories dealing with China. One from the business section reports on China's rising oil imports. The report from the AP suggests that the rise is largely due to China's auto boom. For more detailed analysis of China, Canada and Energy see: http://www.canasianaffairs.com/2006/12/chinese_energy_demand_and_cana.html
The next story written by Mitch Moxley special for the Globe details the experience of a Canadian Chef opening a new high-end restaurant in Beijing. Much of the story deals with the biography of the Japanese-Canadian chef Makata Ono. Beijing is presented as a fast-growing newcomer to the culinary scene. The coming Olympics act to define Beijing as a city reaching maturity. This theme will no doubt become much more obvious over the next few weeks. Beijing, and China more generally, are often depicted by the Canadian media as reaching an important point in its development, both economic and cultural.
Today's third story was written by Marcus Gee, again for the business section. Gee provides an analysis of the Asian, and more specifically the Chinese, reaction to the present financial market downturn. He concludes that unlike the 1997 Asian financial crisis, China and other Asian economies are better set to cope with this downturn. Using an interesting modernist metaphor he claims that "the locomotive of Asian growth will stay on the tracks." Gee suggests that Asia has become more economically independent over the past decade. While the Western financial woes will invariably have negative impacts on the Chinese economy, it is supposed that the Chinese economy will continue its impressive growth nonetheless.
Of note in Gee's article is the way he treats China as representative of broader Asian trends; a leader within the Asian financial community. This "regional giant" is now assumed to be more independent and on better financial footing than it was even just a decade ago. This developmental discourse features large in Canadian reports about China.
For the next two months I will engage in a study of the Canadian media's coverage of China. While this will focus on contemporary reports, I hope to also incorporate historical reporting trends so as to contextualize the present situation. It is my belief that much reportage, especially of foreign countries or easily defined group interests, defaults to an easily digestible essentialized narrative. In China's case in recent years this narrative has been one of rapid economic expansion and the concomitant rise in global power. Resultantly the Chinese story is largely an economic story. This lack of nuance leaves the average consumer ill informed to form educated opinions.
The reasons for this uni-dimensionality are complex. It is partially motivated by the media's desire to remain within the expectations of media consumers. It also stems from the economics of simplicity. It is easier and more efficient to pound out numerous stories of similar thematic nature, than to examine a wide range of issues. Wide-ranging coverage would require more skills, insight, time and expertise and thus be more costly. Wide-ranging coverage is also more difficult to provide. Most mass mediums are limited in the amount of detail they can effectively provide. Newspaper articles are limited in length. Television reports are limited in duration. These and other factors create this uni-dimensional coverage I will examine over the next two months. I hope that during this examination I am able to further understand the phenomenon and its causes, thereby better understanding not only the media's relationship to China, but the media's relationship with its audience and the world at large.
Lu Shumin, the Chinese ambassador to Canada, claims that the reasoning behind the delay in granting Approved Destination Status to Canada lies in concerns that an increase in Chinese tourists will lead to an increase in refugee claimaints in Canada.
More detail at Embassy: http://www.embassymag.ca/html/index.php?display=story&full_path=/2008/january/16/china/
Vincor, a major Canadian ice wine distributor, has signed a deal to distribute a significant amount of wine to the Chinese market. Sweet wines are popular in China which has become the world's second largest ice wine market.
Link: http://www.wines-info.com/Newshtml/200708/1892007082410492071.html
Bombardier has announced a deal with China Aviation Industry Corporation (AVIC) to cooperate on product development. AVIC has known plans to become a major player in the international aerospace industry. Bombardier as the third larges manufacturer of civilian aircraft can be an important strategic partner in achieving those plans.
Link: http://www.forbes.com/business/feeds/afx/2007/06/19/afx3838046.html
There were reports last week about a declassified CSIS report, which indicated China has been increasing its soft power initiatives. Articles appeared in a number of news sources. Unfortunately they were overly alarmist in their approach to this relatively non-notable situation. Most countries want soft power. An emergent China shouldn't be any different in this regard. The fact that the PRC funds their Confucius Institutes is news worthy, but not deserving of the alarmist tones it has generated recently.
Link: http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Canada/2007/05/28/4215201-cp.html
Jim Judd, the director of CSIS has publicly stated that China is Canada's top concern when it comes to who is conducting espionage within Canada. While unsurprising, the articles which report on meetings of the Senate committee of national security and defense are poorly timed to coincide with Peter MacKay's visit to China.
Link: http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20070430/csis_china_070430/20070430?hub=Canada
China National Petroleum Corporation has announced a deal to purchase EnCana's operations in Chad for just over $200 million.
With China’s rise from backwards developing economy to the new workshop of the world, the Chinese economy’s demand for energy has risen to the point where many are concerned that Chinese energy demand may have serious consequences on the international stage. Increasing international activity by China to secure oil reserves and their transport to China presents both opportunities and challenges to the world at large; opportunities in that it offers a chance to further integrate China into a globalized market; challenges in that energy is a sensitive security issue, and China’s energy sector is still highly influenced by domestic politics.
China’s energy requirements can be utilized by a country such as Canada to leverage economic and diplomatic influence with the People’s Republic of China (PRC). As a strong player in nuclear technology, uranium mining, and petroleum products Canada is well positioned to play an increasingly large role in East Asian relations. By further diversifying petroleum exports, offering to supply Beijing with much-needed uranium, and improving promotion of CANDU reactors in China the Canadian government could significantly strengthen its position in regards to the Canada-China relationship.
Research in Motion expects Asia to become its largest market. While RIM has been doing business in China by supplying Blackberry email service through a variety of mobile providers, it has yet to start selling Blackberry handsets in the Chinese market. RIM execs claim that once Blackberry sales in China take off, Asia will quickly become the company's largest market.
Link: http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/12/07/business/rim.php
The big issue in Canada post APEC summit has been the state of Canada's relations with China and how the Conservatives are approaching the issue. There isn't much consensus on the issue. Many individuals have competing assessments of what needs to be done to best pursue Canada's goals. Some are pro-trade, others claim human rights trump trade, others argue that the two are not mutually exclusive.
Harper said he will not "sell out" Canadian values for trade dollars. No one is really sure what he meant by this. He followed up with a bunch of buzz words including human rights, and democracy without really defining what he meant.
First off, Harper and his handlers should look at the China question from a longer perspective than they seem to be taking. China has been on a road of improving human rights for about thirty years now. Since the end of the cultural revolution the situation has improved drastically, and it continues to do so in slow increments. There are certainly still issues in China, and they need to be dealt with. But the best way to deal with them is not blowing the human rights horn at a summit intended to discuss economic issues.
Harper has clearly been playing to voters in Canada. He hopes to attract voters who may vote liberal, but feel 'human rights' are an important issue. The problem with this tack is that by playing for the Canadian voters he has compromised Canada's efficacy in China. The Chinese see Harper's treatment as condescending. We have less influence than Harper would like to think. The way to effect change with the Chinese is to treat them with the respect they deserve, foster ties and thus influence, and address issues when and where it is appropriate to address them.
China has indicated that it is interested in importing Canadian uranium for use in its nuclear power generators. It has also suggested that it may consider purchasing more CANDU reactors for its anticipated nuclear power expansion project. However China has already snubbed Canada once on CANDU after the Canadian government hesitated at transferring technology to them. Another issue is that Canada has very strong controls over uranium export and as of now will not export large amounts to China. The usefulness of this policy is highly questionable. China already has a complete nuclear arsenal. By refusing to sell them uranium Canada is doing itself no favours. Australia certainly appreciates Canada's stance. They recently signed a lucrative deal with China to provide massive amounts of Uranium for China's growing nuclear power generation.
The IAEA and nuclear non-proliferation treaty have processes and institutions in place to control uranium. Canada should sell uranium to China with the simple caveat that if breeches in proper handling conduct occur the supply will cease.
I wrote a letter to Peter MacKay quite some time ago regarding the Celil case. Today, a few months after my letter, I received this response:
On behalf of the Honourable Peter G. MacKay, Minister of Foreign Affairs, I am responding to your email of July 22, 2006, co-addressed to Ms. Alexa McDonough, Member of Parliament, in which you express concerns regarding the detention of Mr. Huseyincan Celil. I regret the delay in replying to you.I wish to assure you that officials at Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada are very aware of Mr. Celil's case and have been working tirelessly toward a resolution. Officials are actively continuing their diplomatic efforts and are in regular communication with Mr. Celil's family.
The Consular Affairs Bureau is mandated by the Privacy Act, which prohibits the disclosure of personal information by a government department or agency unless the consent of the individual who is the subject of the information has been obtained. Any personal information cannot be disclosed to unauthorized parties without the explicit written consent of the individual concerned.
As you can appreciate, the Canadian government has a legal obligation to safeguard the privacy of Canadian citizens. We would like to stress, however, that the Government of Canada is pursuing this matter very seriously.
Thank you for writing and taking the time to express your concerns.Sincerely yours,
Janice Hayes
Director
Ministerial Correspondence Division
From what I understand DFA has been quite vocal with the Chinese about their concern for Celil. It's a difficult case as the Chinese refuse to recognize his Canadian citizenship. I do not envy the officers charged with pursuing his case on behalf of DFA.
Prime Minister Harper was officially snubbed by the Chinese when Hu Jintao declined a private meeting. Harper has responded by telling Canadian reporters that his government will not back down on its stance on 'human rights' in order to improve the Canada-China relationship. This noble position is going to do nothing except compromise the small amount of influence Canada once held with the Chinese. If Harper is going to take such a principled stand he needs to define what he means by human rights, and he needs to let China know what he expects. Not that he'll get any response from them but then at least everybody would know what he's on about.
As it stands the treatment of the China relationship has been bungled and confusing. Different departments have been saying different things. The Conservatives need to unify their message. And if they want Canada to have access to China they need to unify that message in a way that keeps dialogue open. The pushing of 'human rights' needs to be measured and well defined. Western human rights weren't built in a day. Many Asian countries argue that Western individualistic values are not applicable to their societies. While this is debatable, it deserves to be treated as a valid concern when criticizing China's treatment of its citizens.
Link: http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2006/11/15/harper-snub.html
Harper has requested a private meeting with Hu Jintao at next week's APEC meeting. However the Chinese have yet to get back to him as to whether or not the meeting will go forward. The prevailing interpretation is that this is a not so subtle diplomatic signal that China is less than pleased with the Conservative's handling of the Canada-China relationship.
It' surprising how much coverage this situation is getting in the media. It seems every week there is another story or two about how the relationship is being bungled.
Link: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20061110.wxchinaharper10/BNStory/National/home
Trade Minister David Emerson has indicated that Canada is considering joining the United States and Japan in pursuing tougher intellectual property law enforcement in China. China will not seriously enforce IP laws until it is in the interest of the Chinese state to do so. If concerned countries utilize the WTO to punish lax IP rights enforcement it may have some impact. But the natural increase in Chinese innovation and patent/copyright ownership is the only thing that will really lead to compliance by the Chinese authorities.
Two news stories popped onto the radar today. One is an editorial from Embassy, which argues that Canada still has time to change its stance towards China. It advocates a balanced approach between business 'rights' and human rights. While the thought is nice, it might do little beyond hampering Canada's business prospects in China. Harper can crow all he likes about being an 'energy superpower' but as of yet Canada has very little clout even with energy hungry giants like China.
Trade Minister David Emerson claims that Ottawa has not given up on the China relationship. Apparently how best to pursue Canadian objectives in China is as of yet undecided. Any observer could have told reporters that. Emerson is pointing out the obvious. What he should be doing is talking about how he and his compatriots are going to work on the relationship, and figure out a policy. On a positive note, he mentioned that he and Peter McKay are likely to make a China trip in early 2007.
Links: http://www.embassymag.ca/html/index.php?display=story&full_path=/2006/november/1/china/
http://ca.today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=domesticNews&storyID=2006-10-27T231559Z_01_N27283489_RTRIDST_0_CANADA-CHINA-COL.XML&archived=False
Cai Wu, China's Information minister has publicly invited Harper and fellow high-level Canadian politicians to come to China. This demonstrates succinctly the fact that the Conservative Party's bungling of the China relationship has not gone unnoticed across the Pacific. The Chinese are not happy and want the relationship to improve. Of course their idea of improvement involves a cease to all the official chatter about human rights abuses, industrial espionage, and Taiwanese statehood.
The Conservatives on the other hand seem to not know how to approach the problem. They can't keep their message clear. In the world of diplomacy mixed signals leaves too much room for misinterpretation. The Harper government needs to formulate a constructive China policy and stick to it.
According to the Globe and Mail, Ottawa is considering abandoning the annual human-rights dialogue that takes place between Canada and China. Critics claim the dialogue is used by China as a way to divert attention from its human rights issues. The Chinese claim to be dealing with the problem by having a conference with a purportedly upstanding international citizen: Canada.
The talks have been running since 1997 and have accomplished very little except photo-ops and a few newspaper stories. That said, Chinese press has suggested there will be serious repercussions if Canada drops the talks. A better plan would be to continue with the talks but insist on doing some serious talking and try to limit the positive spin China can use the conference for.
Link: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20061027.CHINA27/TPStory/TPInternational/Asia/
The government has cut the first cheques to surviving head tax payers and/or their spouses. The cheques are for $20 000. There has been some controversy over the decision not to pay other surviving descendents of people who paid but have since died.
Link: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2006/10/20/head-tax.html
Lai Changxing, one of China's most wanted men, has won the right for a judicial review of his deportation order. He suspects, understandably, that China will ignore its promises to stay the death penalty if he is deported to China. He knows too much about too many high ranking officials to be safe in China. One must suspect that were he locked up in a Chinese jail he wouldn't last very long.
I was under the impression that the Chinese were ready to drop this issue. No one wins if they bring him back to China. He loses, whoever he uncovers as co-conspirators will lose and the government will lose face by uncovering so much of the rampant corruption.
Embassy had a good article today about the Canada-China business relationship. It springs from Harper's recent announcement that the Conservatives plan on honouring the Liberal promise to invest hundreds of millions in a port strategy to capitalize on increased Asian trade.
The article goes on to address a number of issues including changing trade balances with the US, energy prices, and Chinese political power. It's a good read if you've got the time.
Link: http://www.embassymag.ca/html/index.php?display=story&full_path=/2006/october/18/china/