The author is a reporter with the Global Times.
Is the promotion of the mutually beneficial cooperation over infrastructure construction in countries along the One Belt and One Road initiative bound to be applauded? The rising China-related rumors in a number of Beijing’s neighboring countries mirror that this may be to some extent a wishful thinking from the Chinese side.
Some Pakistani and Indian media recently claimed the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) was accused of being beset with corruption, favoritism and Chinese prisoners have been used as laborers to save costs. Zhao Lijian, acting Chinese ambassador to Pakistan, rebutted these groundless allegations on Twitter last week, calling them “nonsense.” He also cleared up the suspicion in a seminar lately by noting all information over the CPEC programs was readily available.
Pakistan is not the only country that is buzzing with similar slanders. In Indonesia, the Internet is filled with false stories such as “China using chile peppers as biochemical weapons,” “Indonesian President promotes wider use of yuan” and the latest one argues “there are 10 million Chinese workers in Indonesia and more will come to steal out jobs.” The most recent hearsay was so hyped up that President Joko Widodo had to personally clarify it, claiming the number of Chinese workers in Indonesia is only 21,000 so far.
When Chinese media present projects on the One Belt and One Road initiative to the world, they can predict strategic concerns from the Western societies, including worries about whether the initiative will turn into Beijing’s colonialism. Nevertheless, few have ever expected that this economic plan, which aims at common development and prosperity, would not necessarily receive warm welcome among China’s peripheral regions. The truth is, specific promotions often get entangled with a variety of local problems.
Take Pakistan, for example, different political parties have been arguing over the location and routes of CPEC projects. Some provinces believe they have been treated unfairly for not being allocated in any programs. In terms of the latest rumor about China in Indonesia, it was mostly created by nationalists who want to make race an explosive issue in the country as well as a challenge for Widodo. Since he started to attach great importance to attracting foreign investments, previous benefits of some local interest groups have been jeopardized. That said, the rumors seem to come from local people’s prejudice toward Chinese on the surface, but they are in fact caused by the domestic political struggles in those countries.
Stumbling blocks in the path of promoting the One Belt and One Road initiative are diversified in different countries. Yet recent rumors from Beijing’s surrounding nations should be a reminder that public opinions about China in those countries are not as optimistic as we expect. To cap it all, when anxieties emerge given distinct reasons, the first reaction of some citizens or parties in other economies tend to be simply shifting the blame onto China or Chinese investments.
Under the circumstances, China should respond timely and forcefully like Zhao. More crucially, Chinese media must realize they have to make more efforts, apart from merely advertising the altruism of the One Belt and One Road initiative, in dispelling rumors. Practical and efficient measures need to be adopted. Besides highlighting the fact that peace and prosperity of Beijing’s neighboring countries is in favor for China’s security and development, more down-to-earth improvements and achievements in the projects should be discovered and spread, in order to win the heart of other nations’ governments and people and exert positive influence in their public opinions. http://www.globaltimes.cn/content/1026116.shtml
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