China's "Holy 8"
I’m pretty sure the rest of the world is not seeing the news here in China, but it is quite disturbing. We have yet another prime example of the States manipulation of the minds of the people, and how worried the rest of the world should be, about the levels of nationalist pride in China… to the point of xenophobia.
8 Chinese “peacekeepers” were killed during the earthquake in Haiti… along hundreds of thousands of estimated Haitians. Obviously this is a tragic thing, and nobody wants to tread on the fact that people lost their lives. However, China seems to be focusing all of their attention on those 8, and completely neglecting the fact that Haiti is facing its worst time in history.
Chinese news coverage has turned into a PR effort for the State to boost the already frightening levels of national pride within the population. Open any Chinese news source and the focus will NOT be on the destruction in Haiti, or the aid efforts for Haiti. What you will see is total coverage of all things Chinese, dealing with those 8 dead.
It is almost as if the measly “rescue” effort that China put on, was simply to find their own nationals, and get the hell out of Dodge.
Anyone who has seen the news in China knows of the staged video and sound bites, used strictly to boost the moral of the people, but this has gotten to the point of being literally sickening.
China went through the same thing in 四川, with its earthquake. The people here seem to have forgotten how the rest of the world focused their efforts on helping China.
Go to the Chinese news and what do you see? Chinese rescuers, digging for Chinese dead. Staged memorial ceremonies (in Haiti, for those 8), complete with banners. A “welcoming home” ceremony, complete with military honors, TV coverage, more banners, funeral processions. It is downright sickening.
People are starting to use words like “martyrs” and “heroes” when they speak of them.
I’m waiting on a telethon to raise money for the 8 families, and propaganda posters, complete with photographs of each of the dead… seriously.
If you are from outside of China, take a look at your news and see if you can find more than one article about any of your native citizens who died in Haiti. I bet you would have to dig for it. I had to search high and low to find out that there are 16 dead and 70 missing US citizens. But, in China, every schoolchild is going to be taught that 8 patriotic PLA members lost their lives… for their country… in Haiti.
There is one common irony with stories like this in China. The people only seem to learn about their own nation when things like this happen. I’m sure most Chinese never knew that there were “peacekeepers” in Haiti, and they probably learned this the same way they learned it when Chinese peacekeepers were killed in Lebanon. Yet most Chinese will point out every other nation (mainly the US) that has soldiers in another country, and label them “invaders” or “imperialists”.
China does not have diplomatic relations with Haiti; the reason for this is the same reason China does not have diplomatic relations with other nations, or will not trade with other nations (yes, there are actually nations that China does not trade with): Because they will not sign papers stating that Taiwan is a part of China.
Maybe this whole “hero” thing, is just a way for the State to keep the minds of the people off of the fact that they also have armed soldiers in other nations, so as not to look too hypocritical when they report on other nations.
****!!!!!**** UPDATE !!!!
Yesterday they put on a full network coverage (meaning most every station), of a government sponsored memorial service, complete with Hu and Wen. The indoctrination continues.
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8 Chinese “peacekeepers” were killed during the earthquake in Haiti… along hundreds of thousands of estimated Haitians. Obviously this is a tragic thing, and nobody wants to tread on the fact that people lost their lives. However, China seems to be focusing all of their attention on those 8, and completely neglecting the fact that Haiti is facing its worst time in history.
Chinese news coverage has turned into a PR effort for the State to boost the already frightening levels of national pride within the population. Open any Chinese news source and the focus will NOT be on the destruction in Haiti, or the aid efforts for Haiti. What you will see is total coverage of all things Chinese, dealing with those 8 dead.
It is almost as if the measly “rescue” effort that China put on, was simply to find their own nationals, and get the hell out of Dodge.
Anyone who has seen the news in China knows of the staged video and sound bites, used strictly to boost the moral of the people, but this has gotten to the point of being literally sickening.
China went through the same thing in 四川, with its earthquake. The people here seem to have forgotten how the rest of the world focused their efforts on helping China.
Go to the Chinese news and what do you see? Chinese rescuers, digging for Chinese dead. Staged memorial ceremonies (in Haiti, for those 8), complete with banners. A “welcoming home” ceremony, complete with military honors, TV coverage, more banners, funeral processions. It is downright sickening.
People are starting to use words like “martyrs” and “heroes” when they speak of them.
I’m waiting on a telethon to raise money for the 8 families, and propaganda posters, complete with photographs of each of the dead… seriously.
If you are from outside of China, take a look at your news and see if you can find more than one article about any of your native citizens who died in Haiti. I bet you would have to dig for it. I had to search high and low to find out that there are 16 dead and 70 missing US citizens. But, in China, every schoolchild is going to be taught that 8 patriotic PLA members lost their lives… for their country… in Haiti.
There is one common irony with stories like this in China. The people only seem to learn about their own nation when things like this happen. I’m sure most Chinese never knew that there were “peacekeepers” in Haiti, and they probably learned this the same way they learned it when Chinese peacekeepers were killed in Lebanon. Yet most Chinese will point out every other nation (mainly the US) that has soldiers in another country, and label them “invaders” or “imperialists”.
China does not have diplomatic relations with Haiti; the reason for this is the same reason China does not have diplomatic relations with other nations, or will not trade with other nations (yes, there are actually nations that China does not trade with): Because they will not sign papers stating that Taiwan is a part of China.
Maybe this whole “hero” thing, is just a way for the State to keep the minds of the people off of the fact that they also have armed soldiers in other nations, so as not to look too hypocritical when they report on other nations.
****!!!!!**** UPDATE !!!!
Yesterday they put on a full network coverage (meaning most every station), of a government sponsored memorial service, complete with Hu and Wen. The indoctrination continues.
posted by You know at 1/19/2010 04:14:00 PM
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