Becoming a 'Friend of China'

I’ve never met Edwin Maher. From all I’ve heard, he is a very nice man, a New Zealander by birth. I used to see him regularly on CCTV 9, the English language channel of China’s state broadcaster, where he was a principal anchor and newsreader for several years.

I wouldn’t normally think about Maher. Except that his name popped up over the weekend in a Xinhua story about the 15 most influential foreigners on China’s development over the past three decades.

The list includes many notables, like I.M. Pei, the architect famous for his buildings both in China and the United States. Also on there are Chinese-American Nobel physics laureates Yang Chen-ning and Lee Tsung-dao, and Hein Verbruggen, the Dutch IOC commissioner who helped Beijing win the 2008 Summer Games. I was a little surprised to see the name of Henk Bekedam, a former WHO representative in China who was a great source to journalists on health issues. His key role in the 2003 SARS crisis must have earned him a spot.

But Edwin Maher? Read more about Maher here and here to see a storm that was kicked up about him late last year with a Los Angeles Times article by my friend John Glionna. The article gave what I considered a balanced appraisal of Maher, quoting people who see him as a shill for an authoritarian government and others who see him as simply doing a job well in an environment in which everyone helps prop up the state to one degree or another. Fellow blogger and friend Imagethief did a particularly nice post on this a year ago.

I watch that CCTV 9 newscast quite often. It’s my job, after all, to stay abreast of the news. Maybe it’s my imagination, but it seems to me that most of the foreign newscasters are too earnest, taking up the banner of glorifying China. A precious few, however, do the job with a wink and a nod, letting the viewer know subtly, ‘Hey, this is what they told me to read. Believe it or don’t.’

Maher, though, represents the tip of the spear of the broader issue of complicity among foreigners involved in China. It’s an issue that goes far beyond newscasters. A Hong Kong-based academic, Carsten Holz, ruffled feathers last year with an article in the Far Eastern Economic Review -- "Have China Scholars All Been Bought?" -- suggesting that many Western academics pull their punches on China because they need to stay in the government’s good graces to have access and do research. After all, many have spent much of their adult lives honing Chinese skills and can’t easily transfer those skills to other regions.

Chinese government officials are very quick to try to take one’s measure: Are you a Friend of China? Among China veterans, most know what an FOC is. Being an FOC can earn one special access. For journalists, it means getting spots on special trips, or invited to special interviews. For business people, I’m sure it has other connotations.

Personally I find it a bit tiresome. There are times when I find China profoundly interesting, even mesmerizing. Other times, I see things that are truly and deeply disturbing, even inhumane. Some things are great. Some things aren’t. So what? It seems that true friends call it like they see it, pleasant or not.

So as ImageThief said last year, it’s really not about Edwin Maher. It’s about a system that takes any criticism as an unfriendly or even hostile gesture when that is not the case.

Comments

[Josh]

I don't particularly care for Maher - his work doesn't necessarily bother me but I don't think he is really one of the "Top 15" most influential foreigners.

What I wonder about is the absence of DaShan (Mark Roswell) from this list. Is there anybody in China with more influence on the Chinese AND the foreigner population than him? His picture is on billboards everywhere and his face is on TV almost as much as Maher. Did he get booted out of the FOC or something?

[Pffefer]

I agree the whole "FOC" thing is extremely silly. However, it is equally silly to assume that a conscientious foreigner, especially a foreign journalist who opines or reports on China should and must be critical of the Chinese. To think anyone who is not as critical (actually being critical is fine) and cynical (which is really sickening) of China as your regular foreign joe or jane must have been bought by the Chinese government, to think anyone who appears to be fond of China must be mentally sick is equally silly, if not more. Are we saying the morally-superior westerners must find the way China is revolting??

China is like every other country, there are things you love about it and there are things you hate about it. The problem with the "FOC" crowd is that they magnify the good and ignore the bad while the problem with the rest of foreign journalists and foreigners at large is they magnify the bad and ignore the good.

[Pffefer]

I agree the whole "FOC" thing is extremely silly. However, it is equally silly to assume that a conscientious foreigner, especially a foreign journalist who opines or reports on China should and must be critical of the Chinese. To think anyone who is not as critical (actually being critical is fine) and cynical (which is really sickening) of China as your regular foreign joe or jane must have been bought by the Chinese government, to think anyone who appears to be fond of China must be mentally sick is equally silly, if not more. Are we saying the morally-superior westerners must find the way China is revolting??

China is like every other country, there are things you love about it and there are things you hate about it. The problem with the "FOC" crowd is that they magnify the good and ignore the bad while the problem with the rest of foreign journalists and foreigners at large is they magnify the bad and ignore the good.

[Chris Stevens]

I find these lists rather silly and pathetic. By constantly emphasising the foreigner/ Chinese distinction China is simply bringing itself even more in line for criticism.

The Chinese government seems to perpetuate the view that you are either pro or anti-China. Is it not possible to hold a variety of beliefs on different issues?

Who really cares about Edwin Maher? Surely he is just doing a job- the Chinese seem to think that he lends credibility to what he says purely because he is white. You would have to be pretty dumb to accept that.

For once I actually agree entirely with Pffefer- but i do think that if the Chinese stopped constantly emphasising their view that there is 'China' and the 'rest of the world' then people would feel less inclined to have to chose a side.

[Xiefeilaga]

The list is interesting both for people included (Verbruggen) and the people omitted (Da Shan).
This shows that though they're still addicted to the dichotomy (China - World, For us - against us), they wanted to go beyond a simple FOC list.
Contrast that with Lenovo's recent contest to select foreign torchbearers. These foreigners were falling all over each other to prove themselves the most accomplished boot licker.
There are a lot of issues involved in working with a country like this. But let us not forget the progress in economic integration and human rights that has actually been achieved through engagement. Nothing is perfect...

[tony chen]

good article with an interesting tastes on China. maybe holding a cup of carbenert sauvignon while reading this article is much better. anyway, i like this article.

[Mekhong Kurt]

I lived in China (Tianjin and Beijing) 1985-1988 -- during which time I married a native Beijinger -- and in Macau 1990-94. Further, I spent another 10 months 1999-2000 in Shunde, a small city south of Guangzhou.

While living in Macau, I regularly crossed over to Zhuhai to shop. One day there were only two immigration lines on the Chinese side, and the officers were giving everyone -- a tour group -- a hard time, so I expected the worst.

I happened to be the very last person to reach an immigration officer, where I handed over my passport. Much to my surprise, the lady immediately stamped me in with a smile.

I asked her about the vastly different treatment. In response, she turned her computer screen towards me and asked if I could read a certain block. Though my knowledge is *very* limited, I could read what was there: "Friend of China."

I was greatly surprised, as I'm a nobody, and asked her about it. She didn't know, but did a little checking on her computer. Finally, she told me all she could tell is that someone in the Foreign Ministry in Beijing had ordered it for reasons she couldn't determine.

So, yes, the whole FOC thing is pretty silly (though it served me well then and after, personally).

As for Maher, I see him daily on CCTV 9 International, and don't hold much of a view one way or the other about him.

[Overseas Chinese]

When we were still in China, we grew to hate our own system, distrust our own news, treated the Western perspectives like gospels, thought that all is heaven in the West...

When we landed on Western soils, we began to romanticise the so-called freedom we had had, marvelled at the apparent affluence, the high-society living standard etc...

The longer we stayed, we began to have second thoughts..
.democracy? Oh no, the West is actually controlled by a small group of industrial-military complex/greedy capitalists/exploiters/marverick Wall-Street cheats
.liberalism? Oh no, they actually preach racial superiority, religious bigotry, political correctness etc & hold themselves as the only shinning beacons while despising the rest of humanity not of their kind as mere savages/animals
.journalistic professionalism? My shit I would give it! They literally consider others as second class except themselves & cannot tolerate "political incorrectness"
.the most ridiculous of all, they think their version of 2-party Westminster democracy is the ultimate model which the rest of the world's savages must adopt either by persuasion or by force. It has somehow become a commodity they would like to export to the rest of the world as if it is Jesus' gift to his believers

No wonder the rest of the world is rebelling against this unwanted "gift" & the Western influence is crumbling all around the world.

[stan]

Sounds like Overseas Chinese could not hack it in the West and is trying to justify his failure.Hey big guy the door swings both ways.Just because you ended up waitng tables in a restaurant does not mean you should take out your bitterness on all of us......check please!

[carryanne]

That's so funny, they take a shill and call him influential, as if they were his own mind at work. It's perfectly crafted propaganda.

Commenter mentoned: "However, it is equally silly to assume that a conscientious foreigner, especially a foreign journalist who opines or reports on China should and must be critical of the Chinese"

Classic inability to distinguish "Chinese" from the authoritarian regime. This is a great resource for the party and it would not survive without this phenomenon.

I think a lot of the people who are the new middle class, the people who are able to travel and live overseas etc. A lot of them have issues with being tied to the CCP, living off the exploited 80% of the population, benefiting from the regime's anti-human rights fervor. Maybe this poses some sort of explanation why some people mentally cannot make a distinction between themselves as Chinese and China and the party.

The regime is terrible, it is a gangster regime that is totally lawless and exploitative. It is not for the people, but has the mechanism of survival of bribing a certain lump of the population (the new middle class)

[A. Balabu]

I believe that China, Russia and maybe Japan will be the last bastions of western culture long after the rest or the world will fall under Islamic dominance. The western democracies will collapse because they cannot withstand organized and violent groups bent on exploiting the democratic freedom to destroy it from within. It does not matter whether they are based on religious, political or racist ideology. The concept of democracy as a superior system of governance is an illusion that exists only in the fantasy world of the liberal media. In the 20000 years of human society the concept of democratic government in a way that it is practiced today exists less than 100 years and I have no doubt that it will disappear within the next 100 years. I hope China will not give in to the misguided advise of western politicians that barely can govern their country but feel free to interfere in internal affairs of other countries.

[David Moser]

There is an article on danwei.org that deals specifically with this issue of "foreign friends of China", and specifically the feeling of being a shill for the Chinese government. Check it out:
http://www.danwei.org/tv/selfcensorship_the_2000_pound.php

[Jean-Baptiste]

Overseas Chinese post is a classic of a returnee who plays down his Chinese-ness in the West to blend in, and plays up his American accent (most likely mimicking African-American accent) in China, because he doesn't feel good anywhere. You clearly do not understand "the West", you think that your Orange County ghetto equals to "the West".
Going back to the more interesting topic of "FOC", it is interesting to see how the current Chinese government is treating former "allies" like France. The first Western country to establish diplomatic links with PRC, France has always been lauded by previous Chinese governments as a FOC, mostly because France has never been America's lapdog,which has a strong appeal in Zhongnanhai. Now, Sarkozy is being pragmatic, bringing the relationship with the US of A back to the basics of our common values, and adopting a less romantic stance about the France-China relationship. And immediately, the FOC label is stripped off by the current Chinese government, and France is turned into an enemy. Maybe we forgot for a moment that there are no friends in politics, just temporary bedfellows.

[Nanjinger]

I am just like many of Chinese students came to the Us and made home here. Often I feel US is my adopted country and took me in without any reservations. I don't have to be a member of the 'Friend of US' in order to gain access in this society. China is always going to be my birthplace and US is my home!I love them both!!

[Bluesman]

Let's rid of this country of those Whitey-Trashy hypocrites,(just these bastards, not decent foreigners with proper jobs, balanced-minded or missionaries here,who are welcome), those SOBs who keeps bashing China for human rights while turning a blind eye to Dalai Lama's atrocities again Dojie Shrugden practitioners, repudiating every Chinese claim about its territorial integrity while supporting every dissident or wantonly-absurd secessionist claim by some exiled traitors(God bless the soul of Abraham Lincoln who stood up for the unity of America), blaming China for every dispute it has with neighboring countries whereas supporting Japanese or Vietnamese or Philipino claims on contested islands, or blaming China for arresting and take rightly forceful measures against violent rioters in Tibet in March while supporting 'the protection of Georgian territorial integrity and sovereignty' in the face of anti-human atrocities commited in South Ossetia by a pro-western mad man of Sakkashvilli(sorry for my spelling). Damn you, you hypricites will be judged. you are supposed to promote international justice,given your greater influence, but you have failed your and my God, you have failed all the once-pro-western intellectuals in China(me included). Fukk you all. call me babarian, call me uncivillized, call me a shill. I respect CCP for the good it has done for Chinese economy, education, longer life-span for all, while hoping for more political progress. but for you hyprocrites, fukk you !!!!!!!!! it is my daily prayer that one day a Strong-minded Chinese President will drive you hyppie hypocrites out. you will have an enemy if you are fukking bent on making one. I don't mind the fire in hell if I can one day kill you fukking hyprocrites. I won't ask for His forgiveness for what I said, you fukking disgusting reptiles. I will translate as many of your stupid articles as possible for Non-English-speaking Chinese who sometimes, as I fukking did, labor under the 'the West tells the truth and is here to help us' illusion. screw you. I wish I could find you all out and cut your throat in defending God's will for a more just and righteous world. fukk you!!!!

[Pffefer]

Carryanne,

As much falted as the CCP is (or might be), I would take it over the FLG lunatics and manics any day.

Stan,

I agree, people like you and "overseas Chinese" should go back to where you came from. Stop being so bitter.

[Stan]

Pffefer...ACHTUNG!
I am back at where I came from...I never left. I travel to China once or twice a year (Business and Circumstance). As the reigning cynic on this blog I find it amusing that you could be so tone deaf as to call anyone bitter. I have said this before but you long ago lost your direction and you "live" the game and you "play" the life.The real world should be your home not some contrarian cesspool of anti-western bias.Maybe a hot date with some tree hugger would point you in some other direction. Just a thought mind you!

[Stan]

Bluesman
OK..As you requested so eloquently..You're a barbarian,You are uncivilized and you are a shill. Feel better now little bozo?...Say you don't know Marvin the Mutt do you?...He is another clown who haunts this blog. As they say in my neck of the woods..You are stuck on stupid!

[Menin]

While it's true that China has both good and bad to it, it seems that Tim Johnson seems to concentrate the majority of his articles on what's mainly considered the "bad" in China. As a Chinese person myself, I couldn't give a shit less who's a "FOC" or not. But if you come to China just to talk trash, don't complain when you're thrown out. I'm surprised Johnson himself hasn't been deported for all the articles he writes. I'm not a supporter of the Communist Party but at the same time, I have no respect for the Western liberal countries and their lapdog journalists who seek only to force China to "Democratize" or "Respect human rights." It's all a bullshit scheme to try to get China to join their spheres of influence. Power, and the attempt to spread the Western system of influence, is what's behind all this, not Western countries actually caring about China or Chinese people.

[Pffefer]

Stan,

Funny that you call me drowning in a "cesspool of anti-western bias". If I am anti-western, what are you? At least I don't have to deal with something I don't like, you on the other hand just can't choose principle over money no matter how you feel about it. To me that is a lot worse than what I am doing.

[Chris Stevens]

oh my lord, Bluesman you are one very very angry young man. I assume that you are young, a man and probably single, which could be the only reason for such anger.

You do know that countries are just arbitrary political boundaries and that territorial integrity is a stupid phrase don't you?

You do realise that we are all descended from apes and that we have very little genetic differences between the races don't you?

Nationalism on your level is just an excuse for not having any self confidence, getting that riled up because someone insults your tribe is negating the thousands of years of supposed civilisation and culture that you claim to have.

Foreigners do not have the monopoly on disrespecting their host country- what about the thousands of Chinese illegals in Britain and Australia who refuse to learn the language, hate the country and engage in criminal activities? Do you know how much that bothers me every day (not all that much to be honest).

Seriously dude, calm down, get over it. So some people have an opinion that doesn't fit with your own. Who cares?

Why is there an obsession with so many Chinese that westerners cannot criticise China is any way? Criticism never killed anyone and you can always ignore it.

China is just a bit of Earth where people live. It has its good and its bad like anywhere else. Can't you just accept that, move on and get on with your life?

[Menin]

To Chris Stevens,

Can you show us any link or documentation on how the Chinese are engaging in "criminal activities" in Britain or Australia?

[Menin]

And to answer one of your questions, it's not so much that Chinese feel criticism will "kill" them. It's just that they want Westerners to stay out of their internal affairs and mind their own damn business. In all seriousness, I think China's more than capable of taking care of its own domestic issues without Westerners butting in and telling them how they should govern themselves.

[Chris]

Two links grabbed at random from recent paper cuttings:

Britain:

http://tinyurl.com/5gh382

Australia:

http://tinyurl.com/6k5lrx

So that'll be bribery and cheating, which are national sports as far as I remember in China.

Look, my point is not that there is anything wrong with the Chinese in Britain and Australia or even that they commit crimes- just that all of this pathetic rhetoric getting het up about foreigners is pointless.

Why should westerners stay out of Chinese internal affairs? Our economies are inextricably linked. What happens in China affects us all and as such I think that all governments have a responsibility for dialogue and openness. What about China's involvement in Africa? Do you not think that China tries to protect its investments there through influence? Wasn't that why the Africa summit was held in Beijing, something I applauded China for doing.

Are you saying that just because someone wasn't born in China that they have no right to live there and no right to express an opinion ? What about the Chinese people who have come to Australia and entered politics here? What about their rights or is it simply one way for you?

Chinese people clearly feel indignant if not accepted into western society as evidenced by the comments above but foreigners should just shut up and be grateful they are even allowed to enter China? Really?

Personally I couldn't give two figs about Taiwan, Tibet or Tiananmen and I care even less about the FLG morons. However, I still fail to understand why you would either.

Everyone has a right to their opinion, you have a right not to read it. The opinions of many foreigners are ill-informed, prejudiced and poorly researched and the correct thing to do would be to rationally point out why they are incorrect.

Resorting to swearing, insults and racism is hardly an intelligent approach now is it?

Personally I think Tim's blog is usually very balanced, I don't think there is any implied criticism of China in the above article.

To a western viewpoint the inability to take criticism is hard to understand. To a Chinese viewpoint it is hard to understand why some people have to be so negative all of the time. We are all different- that is part of the fun of travel and getting to know other cultures.

And whilst I am posting links- why not go and read: http://devilskitchen.me.uk/ you think that some are harsh in their criticism of China- check out this blog on the British government. Now that is criticism.

[Menin]

Listen, my point is not that to be "insulting" or "racist." What I'm giving you is a criticism which I'm sure you can also take. Yes, everyone has a right to an opinion. But the last time I checked, people also have the right to respond and give rebuttals to opinions they disagree with, which is what I'm doing with you. You have the right to criticize China but I also have the right to criticize you in return. I've already posted a message on your blog responding to some of the points you've made very clearly and concisely without resorting to any flagrant insults.

Why should Westerners stay out of China's affairs? Well, let's see. For one thing, China's not your country. Personally, I really don't care how America, Britain, France, Canada, etc. run their own affairs domestically. If you want to legalize gay marriage, go right ahead. If you want to lower the drinking age to 14, go right ahead. If you want to legalize heroin, go right ahead. I really don't care at all what other countries do in their own backyards. However, I do have a problem when said countries think they can pass their system off as the greatest thing since sliced bread and expect everyone to embrace it or suffer the consequences. And yes, I would equally be against it if China went out and started telling others how they should live or what system they should have. And as I mentioned to you before in my message on your blog(which so far you haven't responded to), I agree with you that China is overreacting a lot in certain instances such as the whole Guns N' Roses debacle.

As for the Chinese living overseas, that's really not my concern. China is not a country that's giving in to multiculturalism and allowing in immigrants from all parts of the world. Most Western liberal countries are the ones doing it and if you really don't like Chinese immigrants coming in and not wanting to assimilate/fit in, that's really more of your problem than mine. If America and Britain don't agree with certain overseas Chinese attitudes, why do your governments continually support a system of open immigration where people from all over the world come over who don't assimilate and constantly criticize their host countries? And this isn't just with Chinese people, by the way. There are Paki's in Britain, Turks in Germany, etc. who aren't assimilating and being openly contemptuous of their host countries. If liberal Western democratic countries really don't like people criticizing them in turn, why do they have a system of government that allows for freedom of speech in the first place even for unpopular views? China's role is to look out for its own people first and foremost, not act as a babysitter for foreigners moving in(though this is not to say that China should mistreat them either). If Western governments want to continue having more immigration and more multiculturalism, more power to 'em. I just don't think that stuff is for China.

And how is it that you suddenly know how I feel about Taiwan or Falun Gong? I told you my view about Tibet in the message to you but thus far, I've said absolutely nothing about Taiwan or Tianenman. Yes, I do have an opinion on them, but I don't feel that's relevant to our current discussion. Please don't assume that you know exactly how I feel about those issues when I really haven't even mentioned them.

As for Johnson's blog being balanced, I guess we can just agree to disagree on this. We're two very different people and we view his blog quite differently apparently. I don't think much more can be said about this one.

And frankly, you're right. We're all from different cultures. However, the key point is that we're different. There are just some Western customs Chinese society will never accept and there are Chinese customs Western countries will never accept. I've never been the bleeding heart internationalist type who believes we're all "one people" and that we're "one race." We might have been one human race at some point in the distant past but that was the past. Humans have diversified and evolved into different races of people and despite our ability to reproduce with one another, the cultural differences are still strong enough to warrant that we HAVE indeed changed. But being of different cultures, does that mean we can co-exist in the same society. I'm not sure, that one's up to debate. There are an equal amount of reasons for "yes" and "no." I don't know you personally, Mr. Stevens, so I really can't say if I'd get along with you in real life culturally/politically/personally or not. But I think in the end, even you have to acknowledge that there are aspects of China that you don't like and clearly feel are incompatible with your views while at the same time, there are simply some Western views you espouse that China and Chinese people simply don't want in their country or their traditions. And believe me, I'm really not saying this to promote some notion of Sino-supremacy. I'm saying this as an acknowledgment of the real cultural differences between China and the West.