The 24th of April marks the day when Australia will have her turn to host the Olympic torch on our soil for the lead up to the Beijing Games. I am writing this article to plead with both sides of the Tibetan debate to show restraint in their respective views on Tibet. Activists for a Free Tibet see the Beijing Games as their best chance to save Tibetans from decades of Chinese oppression. Many Chinese people, both within China as well as those in the wider Chinese Diaspora, see the numerous pro-Tibetan protests and assaults on the Olympic torch as an insult to Chinese pride. Let me clarify that my intention is not to sell out the people of my birth place – China. Nor am I a propaganda mouthpiece for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Rather, I want to use my experience of Aussie and Chinese cultures to build a bridge between the two sides of this very thorny and divisive subject.
In order to gain the trust of both sides, I will lay bear my past to show that I am fair dinkum about my desire to be a bridge builder. My family migrated to Australia when I was 11. Chinese of Australian descent are often referred to as “bananas” because we are yellow on the outside but white inside. Unlike most “bananas”, I have always been interested in Chinese history. In recent times, I have even started attending a Chinese speaking church in order to regain some proficiency in Chinese.
I was born in Hong Kong and was concerned for her future well before the twilight years of British Colonial rule in Hong Kong. Hong Kong does not have democracy but she still has the rule-of-law which was a far cry from the communist system on the mainland. I watched and felt the anguish of many Hong Kong people who dreaded the return of the colony to the mainland in 1997.
Their anguish was reinforced when on the 4th of June 1989, the Chinese government sent in troops and tanks against protesting students in Tiananmen Square. I joined many mainland students in Brisbane’s Chinatown Mall protesting against the massacre. Days after the initial crackdown there were still troops and tanks occupying key areas of Beijing. The reformist leader Zhao Ziyang was purged for siding with the students. In light of the uncertainty many of us lobbied the Australian Government to allow mainland students to remain in Australia. The position of Deng Xiaoping, the chief architect of China's economic reforms, was significantly weakened by the protests. In 1992, Deng went on a tour of Southern China in order to reassert his economic reform agenda which was being threatened by fractions in the CCP who opposed his policies. Deng succeeded in putting China back on the road to economic reform. One has to wonder what would have been the consequences if Deng had failed. Would China be the economic powerhouse she is today? There would be no political reforms, no democratic elections and persecution of political activists still continues today. However, this is not the full story; economic reforms inevitably led to a growing middle class. Even in the former colony of Hong Kong, the Chinese Government has not succeeded in stifling democratic reforms initiated by the last governor of Hong Kong, Chris Pattern (even though it was too little and too late). The CCP of old had relied upon class struggle and ideology to give the party political legitimacy but this has been partially replaced by a new found ability to bring about much improved living standards for many Chinese.
In spite of improved living conditions, the continual political oppression in mainland China continues to draw protests from groups such as Falun Gong and those calling for an Independent Tibet. Unfortunately many well-intentioned Western activists fail to understand that their call for an independent Tibet not only fails to help Tibet but inflames many ordinary Chinese. Historically, China in the 19th century was weak and open to Western exploitation. Many Chinese see the West once again humiliating China through the pro-Tibetan protests. The South China Morning Post reported (“Restraint sought as protests flare”, South China Morning Post 19/4/2008) that French President Nicolas Sarkozy's comment regarding the boycott of the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics has sparked anti-French protests across China.
What will another violent pro-Tibet protest achieve in Canberra? The CCP will certainly not soften her stand against the Dalai Lama. And if the report regarding the call to Chinese students to defend the Olympic Flame is true (“China calls for a people's army to march on Canberra to defend torch” Sydney Morning Herald 16/4/2008) then we will see further fanning of nationalists feelings in China extinguishing the slimmest hope of political reforms in China.
Wikipedia has a picture of Zhao Ziyang addressing students in the 1989 protest. Next to Zhoa was a younger Wen Jiabao who is now the Premiere of China. Wen, like every other Chinese official, also attacked the “Dalai clique” for inciting recent protests in Tibet. Although Wen is considered to be a moderate conservative once allied to Zhao, Wen has not dared to “look soft” in the current environment. Many Western leaders, including our Prime Minister, have urged the Chinese Government to begin dialog with the Dalai Lama but if moderates like Wen are unable to step out of line how can there be dialog? I therefore plead with both sides to step back for the good of the World, the Games, China and Tibet. Perhaps on the 24th of April, the Aussie spirit of a fair go will prevail long enough for the torch to travel peacefully through the streets of Canberra.
