The Living Antiquity that is CHINA why CHINA should be a world protected heritage This commentary is about the

e importance of retaining and maintaining your Chinese identity, whether as a Chinese citizen or Huaren, Huachiau or a Huayi [Overseas-Chinese]. I was prompted to discuss this matter by the recent tirade in Asiawind Hakka Forum, against Jung Chang, now a British citizen in exile, who wrote Wild Swans, who said in a recent interview - Except my Chinese face, Im a Western woman! Like most of you, I am also westernised and in a sense because of my KL Victorian Institution background, may be considered an Anglophile. Mind you I would not have said I am a Western man! At the most I would say that I am an English educated Malaysian Chinese; the stress being on Chinese. And, if I had to go down one level, I would say that I am Hakka Hokkien; the stress being on Hakka. It does not matter what a person is; as long as he is proud of his roots. I use proud not in the sense of being arrogant or the opposite to humility; in fact the proud in this context is mentored by the respect, humility and reverence for ones biological and cultural heritage. You cannot stand confidently tall and strong, in steadfast fortitude and invulnerable against adversities, discrimination and bias against you, when you are not proud of your roots. It is the basis and foundation of your being. I am sure all nationalities or races that have survived the ravages and turmoils of history will agree on this point; but in particular the Jews and the Chinese. Taking the Jews and the Chinese as a starting point; what do they have in common? Yes! These two ancient races have both survived the changing platitudes and vicissitudes of thousands of years and still remain culturally intact. They are pure in their bloodlines and their DNA and their continuing heritage. Both should be listed on the United Nations Heritage List for protection! But even when you compare these two, the Jews pale in significance. The Jews can only date back to Abraham. The Chinese have existed since they settled along the Yellow River, more than 5000 years ago! The Jews have been outcast from their homeland for ages. The Chinese nation has continued as Chinese since settlement along the Yellow River. The Jewish language was recently revived but even then Yiddish is not quite Abrahamic. The Chinese languages embedded in the Common Written Chinese Script have survived since they started communicating in written form. Mandarin was only declared as the National language when Sun Yat Sen founded the Republic. Cantonese lost out by 2 votes! The so called Jewish culture is basically based on the Torah. Chinese culture is based on the Three Pillars - Taoism, Confucianism [including Ancestral Worship [Filial Piety]] and Buddhism. All other things said and done, mutatis mutandis, is the Chinese race and culture worth saving and preserving or what or not? Is it not a living treasure? Westerners and westernised Chinese and even Chinese citizens who seek radical changes wantonly; who criticize China or the Chinese for whatever reason or quest for reform must tread cautiously and carefully. Most Chinese activists in China brought up under the Communist regime have little or no knowledge of their own heritage and history. For this, the Communist regime has only itself to blame.

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Most Mainland Chinese do not even know about modern Chinese history immediately prior to the Communist regime; let alone ancient Chinese history. Thus they know not about Hakkas liberating China from the Manchu foreigners. They know not of our Hakka Christian ancestor Hong Xiuquan who started the Taiping Rebellion against the Manchu Dynasty; followed by the Boxer Rebellion against the Western Concessionaires. They know not that Sun Yat Sen was Hakka. In fact they know not that Mao Tse Tung and most of the Chinese Red Army were Hakkas. Marshal De and Deng Xiao Peng were Hakkas. During the Long March, the most common dialect spoken among the combatants was Hakka. If it werent for the Hakkas, brought up in the mountains, would the Red Army have survived the tortuous trek through the mountains and ravines and the snow to evade the aerial bombings and to avoid Republican tanks and artillery in the lowlands? Even in present times, the leaders of Taiwan, Singapore and Hong Kong are Hakkas - Ma, Chen, Lee Kwan Yew and Donald Tsang. The Chinese have a different concept of existence as a nation and of time and a different concept of priorities. Given its long history, China sees change as being gradual; as not necessary now or even in this decade or even this generation. They see things in the Taoist way of water eroding stone or bamboo bending in the wind. The Chinese see themselves as the absolute Middle Kingdom. In the Taoist way, like the master stock soup; you can only change the flavour or the texture. Ideally, the soup should reflect all the delectable flavours; salty, sour, hot, bitter etc. Obviously the Chinese may find some flavours not delectable; for example French crme. You can never change China as the [Chinese] master stock soup to make it a French master stock soup but you can change China through its delectable flavours. But this may take time and patience, to change the perception of delectability. Then there is a question of priority; what flavour do you want to change, enhance or add first? Thus you may try to add to the Three Pillars. To add a new pillar you have to do it through the Emperor. The Communist party is the new Emperor. Thus you have to get involved in the management. The last attempt at a pillar change, which came unstuck because the Catholic Church curtailed their activities and even ex-communicated them, were when Jesuit Priests were part of the management. They were senior Mandarins to the Emperor in the Imperial Council. Those were Matteo Ricci and Marco Polo days. Jesuit Catholicism has become like a half-pillar. That is why to this day the Catholics are identified as Catholics and not as Christians in China. There are now a 4th and 5th Pillars; if you will disregard the aborted Catholic Pillar. The 4th pillar is of course Communism. Proponents of democracy do not understand this immutable fact of Communism. It is the new Emperor. China as a nation and a people can never have a democratic government. Why? Because the Chinese expect a strong autocratic government; like an Emperor. If there were to be democracy in China; it would be a democracy in the Singaporean sense. The 5th pillar is of course capitalism; that is a sort of State controlled open market economy. I know that sounds like a contradiction; but it is not. It is just like Chinese Communism is not Soviet Communism; Chinese Buddhism is not Indian Buddhism; Chinese Catholicism is not Christianity and The Living Antiquity that is CHINA Page 2

Chinese master stock soup is not French master stock soup. Whatever pillar it is; it has to be a Chinese oriented pillar. China has always tiraded [is there such a verb?] the Western nations at the United Nations about hegemony; about dominating world affairs and wanting China to be a mirror image of the West. This, the Chinese can never be. I am westernised but I am not a Westerner! Also, not much is known that Lee Kwan Yew was instrumental in Deng Xiao Peng opening the Chinese economy to capitalism. After a visit to Singapore and being counselled by PM Mentor, Deng said It does not matter if the cat is black or white; as long as it catches the rat! The 5th pillar is still in its metamorphosis stage; it is still being fine-tuned; as China has still to fully develop its financial and economic prudential management institutions. Presently the leaders of China are mainly scientists or engineers; so they are ideally suited to dealing with manufacturing, infrastructure and technological issues impacting on trade. I say this because until China has leaders with a background in the humanities law and social sciences; China will not be ready to attend to issues involving Human Rights. That might be the 6th Pillar? But it might have to wait to the next generation. But even then it will be a Chinese form of human rights not a Western form. It will have to be Confucian based; giving preceding priority and transcendence to filial piety and family above all else; then the people, then the nation, then the "Emperor" in new clothes. Family is the basic unit not the individual! I should mention something about the Chinese idea of existence as a nation. As the Middle Kingdom, it does not believe in hegemony but co-existence. This means with other countries China only believes in a relationship based solely on trade. They do not believe in interference. There will be no Chinese colonies or Chinese troops fighting foreign wars. Chinese only believe in protecting its borders and being involved with domestic matters. This has a downside as China will trade with a nation even if that nation was the Devil! When China gives aid it believes in BT [Build and Transfer using Chinese labour and materials rather than giving money] and not BOT [Build Own and Transfer]. When China gives free cash instead of loans; it gives it by way of free trade credit whereby the money had to used to buy goods from China. I think I have said enough. The West must understand that China is not the Yellow Peril. We are yellow because we are men of the Yellow River and men of the yellow loess soil; that we owe our existence to. Imitating Kermit the frog, by way of parody Its not easy being yellow Its not easy being Chinese You have to stand tall and proud against the world when the world hates you! I should also point out that the ancient civilisations of Egypt, Mesopotamia, Mohenjo Dero and South America no longer exist. The modern Egyptians do not speak the ancient form of Coptic; they speak Arabic, write Arabic and have a Muslim culture. Even India in comparison, if they followed on from the Indus civilisation were never one nation in the past until the present or during the British rule [even then with numerous rajahs], except for a short time under Emperor Ashoka. Ancient Sanskrit is no longer spoken or written. Spoken and written present day Urdu is quite different. Yet it is not the national language; English is. Even the more recent Greeks and Romans, in the sense that they do not have the same antiquity, are not the modern Greeks and Romans of today. Greek culture is not in any sense ancient Greek; being totally Christian, they do not worship ancient Greek Gods. The same with the Romans they do not speak Latin nor worship ancient Roman Gods. The Living Antiquity that is CHINA Page 3

Vince Cheok Hong Chuan 20/10/10

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