Is Democracy Possible in China?

In late January, two previous ambassadors to China (Gary Locke and Jon Huntsmen) came together at the 1990 Institute's 25th Gala to discuss U.S./China relations. They spoke about the American policy shifts towards China, China's recent achievements (Beijing Olympics, space program, economy), and the importance of Chinese-Americans in the U.S./China equation. (See posts one, two, three). The final question of the night was, "Is Democracy in China possible?"

Gary Locke: Obviously, the Communist government is very, very strong, and it still is a Communist country.  I do believe that the more that Chinese people from the mainland come to visit and experience and witness our imperfect democracy, but our diversity and the egalitarianism where a person can rise from a very poor background to become a head of a major corporation or a university president or a governor or president of the U.S., the more the Chinese are able to come to the U.S. to see and experience first hand, perhaps it will whet their appetite when they go back to China to want some of the same for their country, and perhaps hasten that progress and reform within China. 

I do believe that change comes slowly in China, and the Chinese are so concerned about threats to the authority –the Communist party. That’s why there’s a crackdown on human rights. There’s a
crackdown on non-profit organizations, on the press, etc., etc. They spend more money on public security inside China than they do on their military.

They’re worried about corruption, about another food scam or environmental problem that could unleash the people of China leading to another Tiananmen Square. So, the Chinese government is really cracking down on people as they go through environmental reform –but I’m hopeful that with more exposure and more people-to-people visits--people from the west going to China and Chinese visiting America and other countries--that will hasten the time needed for greater Democracy.

**(February 19th President Xi JinPing said that "media should serve the party," and announced a regulation --to go in effect March 10--that will prevent foreign companies from publishing and distributing content online in China. In response, Chinese billionaire--and Communist Party Member-- Ren Zhiqiang blogged to his 38-million followers: "When did the people's government become the party's government?" The government immediately shut his blog down. )** 

Jon Huntsmen: If you were to ask the young kids in China twenty years ago who they admired most, it would have been Mao Tse Tung, Deng Xiao Ping, maybe someone else. If you ask today, I’d say the top three answers live twenty minutes down the road: Mark Zuckerberg, Steve Jobs, Jack Ma--the innovators, the creators, the freedom-seekers. So there’s something happening with the younger generation. What will be most telling over the next couple of years will be whether or not a framework is created for them."

The Role of Chinese-Americans in U.S./China Relations

Ambassador Jon Huntsmen, Moderator John Chen, Ambassador Gary Locke

Gary Locke and Jon Huntsmen, both previous ambassadors to China, met at the 1990 Institute  in January to discuss U.S./China relations. Locke was not only the first Chinese-American governor to be elected on the U.S. mainland, but he was the first to be sent to China as an ambassador. He is also well-remembered for establishing a more accurate measure of pollution levels in Beijing.

Jon Huntsmen, who ran as a G.O.P. candidate in the 2012 Presidential election, served as Ambassador from 2009-2011. He speaks fluent Mandarin, created Mandarin programs in 118 schools in Utah where he was governor, and also adopted a little girl from China.
Both men spoke about America's recent focus on China, and why that was happening. They spoke about China's recent strength, and the development of the Asian International Infrastructure Bank. (See posts one,  two.) At the end of their discussion, an audience member asked about the role of Chinese-Americans in U.S./China relations.
Gary Locke: I’m proud of my Chinese ancestry and I’m proud of the contribution that the Chinese have made over thousands and thousands of years, and I’m proud of the Chinese influence that my mom and dad always instilled in me growing up, but I’m also an American and proud to be an American and proud of the American values of freedom, hope, opportunity, equality and diversity. Think about it. In China, could a person of my origin and background ever rise to a high position, whether as provincial governor or mayor or even an ambassador to another country? And here in America, we have Barack Obama as the first African-American president. I was the first Asian-American governor elected on the mainland. So it shows that in America, all things are possible.
But the question was, what can Asian-Americans do to foster US-China relations? I think we have an opportunity to tell the rest of the people in America about China—its history, its values, its culture, its complex society. We can help the policy makers understand that they shouldn’t expect instant results. China will never be like the United States. The U.S. will never be like China, just like it will never be like France or Germany. They have different systems, histories and cultures. And we can’t expect anything different from China. I think that we also as Chinese Americans should reach out and help people in China, whether it’s in scholarships or development of China. I think also, if we have an opportunity to visit China, we should showcase American values and freedoms. It may not make a difference in the next five years. It may not happen in the next fifty. But that’s one thing we can bring to China as well.
Jon Huntsmen: I tell my daughter, “You’re more important than I am. You are Chinese American and you can cross cultures.” I’m appointed to go to China, and they sent me as Ambassador. But my daughter bridges cultures. So the point there is, “Don’t forget your origins and history while living American values.” We can talk values. But when you live the values , there’s something being said without the words being spoken. Grace gets that. She’s now sixteen years old. She’s so proud of her heritage. But she’s proud of her American values—equality, fairness, human rights and the goodness we practice in this country. I wish we did a better job of it. Every Chinese-American can be a bridge of sorts by not forgetting their heritage that goes back 5,000 years, and blending it with the values of the new world. I think that’s very powerful.
(...to be continued. Next--and final--installment: Is Democracy Possible in China?)

Is China Feeling Contained?

In late January, the 1990 Institute hosted a fireside chat with two previous ambassadors to China: Jon Huntsmen and Gary Locke to discuss U.S./China relations. Moderator John Chen, CEO of Blackberry, asked why the U.S. was re-pivoting towards Asia. Ambassador Gary Locke mentioned that it was time. He said half the world's GDP is from Asia, and it was time to sit up and take notice. Ambassador Jon Huntsmen argued that the U.S. had been in Asia since the late 1800s and never totally diverted its attention from Asia. (See Fireside Chat, part one.)

John Chen: You pointed out that this pivoting was originally viewed as some kind of containment policy. So this whole issue in the South China Sea and the AIIB, is that anything like a reaction to this containment?

(The issue in the South China sea refers to a territorial dispute over an area in the South China sea which has two sets of rocks--I mean, islands: the Paracels and the Spratlys. The value of the area is not these "islands," but the minerals that may or may not lay beneath, as well as their strategic position. Along with China, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Brunei all lay claim to the area. Recently China has been moving in--building onto the "islands," sending people there, even in 2015 building an airstrip.

The AIIB--Asian International Infrastructure Bank-- plans to fund the building of infrastructure in the Asia-Pacific region and was created by the Chinese Government in 2015. It has 57 members, including the Philippines--who set aside the above island disputes for the moment-- and many U.S. Allies who joined despite Washington's opposition--Australia, Britain, Germany, Italy, and South Korea.)

To repeat the question: 

John Chen: So this whole issue in the South China Sea and the AIIB, is that anything like a reaction to (China's sense of) containment?

Gary Locke: I don’t think China’s assertive position in the South China Sea—building up the shoals in the region—is in any way a reaction to the American Pivot. Nor do I think the formation of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank is a reaction to that. I think it’s really a matter of China feeling its confidence. Trying to reassert itself. Trying to overcome the humiliation that it has felt for the past hundred years. You’ve seen it already in the past years—the Beijing Olympics, putting a man into space, landing a spacecraft on the moon, and of course the economic transformation. So I don’t see these as a reaction to the pivot. And again the U.S. and China are really cooperating on a lot of military things. China has participated now –at the invitation of the U.S.—in joint military exercises in the Pacific. They’re working together to try to stop piracy off the coast of Africa. And they engaged in a lot of joint humanitarian exercises and relief exercises too.

John Chen: Governor Huntsman, when AIIB first came out and China extended the invitation to the U.S., we outright rejected it. Did we fumble the ball?
Jon Huntsmen: Absolutely, we fumbled the ball. It was a huge strategic mistake. We should be engaging in creating and shaping ideas and working to promote ideas in an area in which, during 2010 and 2020, we’re looking at 8 trillion dollars being spent on infrastructure projects. That’s a lot of procurement that could come out of the U.S. and creates jobs. So, why we weren’t fighting for a seat at the table was a bit beyond me.

But I think it represents a broader behind-the-scene’s puzzle . So there’s been a bit of a power vacuum due to a couple of things 1. America’s pre-occupation with the Middle East. And yeah, when you’re president and you’re running the National Security Council, and everything is focused on one region, it really does create a void in other parts of the world. It’s a combination of our calamities in the Middle East, the economic collapse in 2007, and the rise of Xi Jin Ping.

He hit the ground with a different vision of China’s role in the world. I think he has a very distinct sense of what that looks like. It isn’t the old. It isn’t the status quo. I think he saw the Asian Development Bank of which the United States and China have a voting share—the U.S. is quite substantial, maybe 40% and China has maybe 3-4-5%. The World Bank is old. The IMF is part of the post-World II configuration. And he wanted something new. So –wham—you put a hundred billion bucks into this new thing and you get 57-60 new members who rally around it, and you’re off to the races. I think the next step will be what is done with the AIIB, which is probably the most ambitious undertaking of Xi Jin Ping’s first term. 

Gary Locke: I also agree that the United States made a very big mistake in number one, not joining, and number two, insisting our Allies not join. I thought that whatever misgivings we had about the rules, etc, etc, it would be better if we tried to change it from the inside rather than standing outside. Safe water, transportation, everything else is in this.

(...to be continued. Next: the role of Chinese-Americans in U.S./China Relations)

Ambassadors Discuss America's Re-Pivot to Asia

Jon Huntsmen and Gary Locke both served as Ambassadors to China. Jon Huntsmen was born in Redwood City, although he grew up in Utah and became their most popular governor there. He served as ambassador to China from 2009-2011. He speaks fluent Mandarin, and introduced the language to 118 schools in Utah. He adopted a daughter from China and one from India. In 2012 he ran as a G.O.P. candidate in the U.S. Presidential race.

Gary Locke, who was the first Chinese-American governor of Washington State as well as the first Chinese-American ambassador to China, served as the U.S. Ambassador in Beijing from 2011-1014. He’s well-known for establishing an honest reading of pollution levels outside the American Embassy in Beijing.
The two gentlemen came to the 1990 Institute’s 25th Gala in late January to discuss their views on America/China relations.

Moderator John Chen, CEO of Blackberry, asked about America’s recent re-pivoting to Asia: “What is the intention of our pivoting?”
Gary Locke: “I think we have spent so much time in the last several decades in the Middle East—the war in Iraq, Afghanistan—we have neglected the strong countries and allies in Asia--in all of Asia. What the pivoting and rebalancing means is that we need to spend more time and attention on Asia. The Asian-Pacific countries make up more than half the world’s GDP.
“A lot of people in China felt that we were trying to contain and restrain the role of China. But actually the re-pivot—spending more time with Asia—also included more interaction with China, which included not only humanitarian, but military exercises. We also had a lot more delegations of high-ranking military officials, national security officials, CIA directors, defense department secretaries all going to China, and more contact and exchange with Chinese coming to America as well. So the Pivot means just spending more time and attention and focus on Asia.”
Jon Huntsmen: “Well, I would argue that we never pivoted away from Asia. If you trace history back to 1898, we’ve had a strong presence in Asia. It’s just had a different focus. But the message of the incoming president was that we need to focus elsewhere. So, again, I think it was Obama’s sincere desire to take the focus away from where it had been under George W Bush, and really focus on a geographic region and economic area that was different—a rising power , growth-trade-investment, all that. What’s been the biggest outcome is the Trans-pacific Partnership, which has been the backbone of our engagement with the region. Twelve nations representing 40% of the world’s GDP, which I think is probably the most significant thing we’ve done in Asia for a really long, long time. Yet to be completed."
Gary Locke: Let me go back to what Mr. Huntsman said. America has been in the Pacific for over a hundred years. We’ve had our military there. We, of course, engaged during WWII. But our diplomatic and military presence has actually provided stability and peace throughout the region for the last fifty odd years, which has really enabled the region to grow as well.
(...to be continued. Next: Is China Feeling Contained?)

Peace Begins At Home

Author Margaret Zhao struggled through her childhood to attain education, and achieved the impossible when she was accepted into university and received her teaching certificate. She came to the United States in 1989, returning to China once every five years. In China she saw great changes--more cars, bigger buildings, elegant foods--as well as great challenges: pollution, quality concerns, corruption. (see earlier posts one, two, three )

Margaret said that the U.S. and China shared many of the same challenges—corruption, pollution, moral decay. “For the U.S.," she said. "The changes have been more gradual. But before, you probably said, ‘Mrs. And Mr.’ Now you don’t have that. This western society is getting worse because you’re emphasizing on self. You have no respect to adults, authorities. You work on your rights.“

She gave an example of the issue. A woman came over and complained that a tree on Margaret’s property was dropping leaves in her yard. Margaret's husband was not concerned. In fact, his initial reaction was to tell this woman to take a hike. Surely he wasn't responsible for where a tree dropped its leaves. It became a stand-off of over who was right.

“But what is necessary is trust. How do you have trust? Religion. It doesn’t matter what religion. The authentic religions all have the same goals. The only answer is education and spirituality—and to get back to the nature and morality.”

In the instance with her neighbor Margaret remembered her religious teachings (a mixture of Christianity, Buddhism, Taoism, etc.), looked beyond the immediate issue, and asked, “What does the neighbor want? How can we help her?”

Margaret found a tree trimmer to take off the branches hanging in the neighbor’s yard, and asked her husband to go over to clear out the leaves that had fallen. Peace reigns.

“It could have gone a whole different way. That is how it starts—from your family, from your neighborhood, from your world. You create the ripple.” 

“We are humans and we are one. We are all from the same ancestors.  When we understand this, we are going to have a harmonious world.”

(Next: Fireside Chat with Previous Ambassadors to China)

An Aqueduct of Many Colors: Margaret Returns to China

Chinese-born intellectual Margaret Zhao moved to the United States with her husband in 1989. While she had been a highschool English teacher in China, she soon realized that she could not just slip into the same career in the United States, and struggled not only to put food on the table, but to find her place in American society. (See interview part one, part two)

Margaret returned to China for the first time in 1996.   

“When I stood in the crossroads at the center of town I couldn’t remember the direction anymore. It was changed.There were more cars. It was much bigger.   We had so many vendors on the street now because it was a free economy.”

Margaret returned again in 2001, then 2006. She noted that people were living in luxury she never knew as a child. She pointed to a photo of a large round table piled high with all kinds of specialty dishes: braised duck and beef and chicken, handmade dumplings, dishes of oysters and fish.

“You notice the change in life. The luxury. Before we wouldn’t have this kind of banquet.”

In addition to the wonderful changes--of which there were many each time she went back-- she noticed some challenges. 

“When I arrived to my brother’s hometown and was walking to the house, the trash was piled against the house and along the street. I asked, ‘Why is there so much trash piled here?’  He said, ‘Welcome home.’  

"And the water—I saw the aqueduct where I used to carry water from. They don’t use it anymore.  Alongside of the bank of the aqueduct is full of trash of all kinds of colors. The pollution was the worst this last time. It was unbelievable." 

To her siblings, who still live in her hometown, things have become expensive.  She said that they worry about the quality of the products on the grocery shelves and, as much as they can, grow their own food. Their biggest concern of all, though, is corruption.

“It’s everywhere. Even the doctors and teachers are corrupt. You want a good education? You have to give money to the principal. Then you are allowed in the school. If you want to be better treated, you give a red envelope (filled with money) to the teacher. When you go to the hospital to get a surgery procedure, you not only pay for the procedure, you still have to give a red envelope to the doctor to do a good job. That’s very tragic. So people have lots of anger."

I asked what could be done.

"How can you get rid of it? Working from the bottom up.”

(...to be continued. Next: Peace Begins At Home)

A Lazy Toad Attempts to Eat Swan

Chinese-born intellectual Margaret Zhao was thwarted from education from the 3rd grade onward as she was labeled the 'enemy of the state.' She continued to learn where she could (the odd book here, test papers confiscated there.) So, when leader Deng Xiao Ping opened the universities in 1979, she was ready to take a shot at one of the highly-coveted spots. (Less than 1% of applicants received an acceptance.) Margaret did not receive much support--many proclaimed she was "too old" (23), calling her a 'toad attempting to eat swan.' This is an old Chinese saying suggesting a person is dreaming of the impossible. (See Zhao Interview part one. ) 

Margaret forged ahead anyway. 
“I just wanted to go and just believed in myself and made my effort." She spent every free moment before the university entrance exam preparing--reading books, taking lessons from her educated brother-in-law, listening to the English programs on the radio. As she had declared that English would be her major, she didn’t have to test for Physics and Chemistry.

“The Chinese education system is different from the U.S. In China when you take the test you have to choose what major.  Also you pre-decide what college you want to go to. You fill out the application and decide what three colleges you want. Then you take the test. It depends on how much score you have, whether the school will take you or not.

“The national entrance test was very severe—a serious test. You had only one chance to succeed.”

photo courtesy bbc.com

The test took three days, and included politics, history, geography, Chinese, and English. Margaret did not get into her first choice. She did not get into her second choice. But she did succeed. She was accepted into E Xi Normal College in Szechuan province."To the local people it was like a miracle. For many years the local schools used me as an example, saying, ‘If you work hard, you can succeed like Really Enough.’"
Upon graduation she became a high school English teacher. She met an American man, married, and came to the California in 1989 “where she was immediately struck,“by the waste of food, and the use of paper and water. It was amazing to me. Overwhelming.” At the same time, she was equally amazed by all the lovely possessions people had. And she couldn’t believe that people mocked the President openly. Or used the word “sex” on the radio. But the hardest adjustment for her was English.
“I thought my English was good –I was a high school English teacher--and I would fit in well. But immediately I understood that when people speak their normal speed I could not understand but every other word. I watched TV, and didn’t know which was the program and which was the commercial. Suddenly I felt like I could not work anywhere. I felt very helpless.”
Still, Margaret went about looking for work—as a cashier at Taco Bell (although she'd never eaten Mexican food), a clerk at UCI Medical Center, a stand-up Comedian--anyplace that would give her a chance. She went to night school to improve her language skills. When she did find a job, she still found herself isolated.
“The coworkers didn’t pay much attention to you. What do you have in common to talk? I didn’t know about shopping. I didn’t know about make up. I didn’t know about men. These daily life things."
She persevered and eventually found her niche as an author and speaker, sharing not only her story, but her thoughts on life, community, world peace.
(...to be continued. Next: An Aqueduct of Many Colors: Margaret Returns to China)