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Show A7 The Salt Lake Tribune WORLD Tuesday, March 26, 1996 A Blurry Nationalism Keeps China Unified BySteven Mufson WASHING’ BEIJING — As 150.000 troops. lashed by cold rains, massed last month on China’s Sen, who founded the Chinese republic in Last in a Series 1911, oncecalled China “adish of loose sand As a result, the answers to the Communist Party's nationalist rallying cries often seem southern coast to prepare for an exercise in missile diplomacy, people across the rest of China’s nationalist rhetoric and missile diplomacy are seen as endangering Asia's prosperi- the nation celebrated the Chinese New Year ty. Singapore Senior Minister Lee Kwan Yew with family, food. drink and the most popular holiday pastime: tuning in to the annual Spring Festival TV variety show an ethnic Chinese, has tried to calm the diplomatic waters by urging China and Taiwan to put aside their differences. “After suffering This year, the show featureda rendition of the hit song “Big China.” Dressed in a tailored, off-white, two-piece suit that combined the simplicity of the uniform madepopularby the late Communist Party chairman Mao Ze- dongwith the collar worn by Confucian scholars in imperial times. singer Gao Feng crooned: We all have a family whose name is China Lookat that 10,000-mile Great Wall shuttle through the clouds Our big China, what a big family This is what Chinese nationalism has become in the 1990s: a ladle of militarism. a pinch of Maoism, a spoonful of Confucianism: one part modern, one part traditional, one part belligerent — and onepart lounge act Andyet Chinese nationalism, however mud- died, is emerging as a potent force in a country striving to shake off its image as the sick man of Asia and regain ancient glory in a modern era. Driven by recent economic achievements and dreamsof ancient splendor, Chinese na- tionalists also harbor a sense of wounded na- tional pride left over from the 19th century, a love-hate relationship with Western culture and an uncomfortable feeling that China’s 5,000 yearsof history are as much a burden as they are a foundation for the future. Regional Concerns: Thatnationalist ferment has been greeted with mixed emotionsin Asia andtherest of the world. Americans have waited eagerly for China to open its doors to the outside world, but from behind those doors some strong anti-foreign sentiments have emerged And Asians whosee a stable, healthy China as the key to their regional prosperity now worry that resurgent Chinese nationalism will lead to a modern form of the Qing Dynasty tribute system of centuries ago, with China's neighbors providing investment, technology, cheap credit and diplomatic compliance in place of the 18th-century ritual prostrations and gifts. The current crisis over Taiwan encapsulates the region's fears about Chinese nationalism even though Chinaclaimsit is purely an internal matter. Regardlessof the dispute’s merits, so patiently for two centuries, the Chinese people and their leaders can surely afford to be patient a little longer,” Lee said. “East Asia's high economic growth depends on continuing peace andstability.” unfocused, ‘What is Chinese nationalism?” asked Beijing writer Wang Xiaoboas he sipped a cupof tea at a Kentucky Fried Chickenoutlet here People always talk about traditional culture las a Chinese don’t know what they're talking about He pointed to a small paper windmill the franchise was giving away. the sort of gimmick that fast-food franchises use around the world. “Is this nationalism?” he asked. “The But the newChinese nationalists have other government says we have missiles, an army, a priorities. “You can't deny the Chinese ration.” said a prominent Communist Partyofficial with close ties to top military leaders. ‘This isn’t a question of what the partysays. This is what the Chinese people say. There's not muchto say about theoryand international relations. That's just the way it is.” on hearing these things. But the Belgians have national pride and they have no missiles, they don’t havea big army, and they can’t threaten other people.” American political scientist Lucian Pye has seat at the United Nations, and ordinary people have beenbrainwashedto feel proud The Nationalistic Crutch: China’snationalist rhetoric is largely driven by China’s own internal dynamics. Many Communist Party leaders and theorists are looking to nationalism to serve as a crutch now that thepillars of Marxist ideology and class struggle have crumbled. Mao also appealed to Chinese na- tionalism; on the founding of the People’s Re- public on Oct. 1, 1949, he declared fromthe top of Beijing's Tiananmengatethat “the Chinese people have stood up.” But contemporary Communist leaders have gone to new written that Chinese nationalism lacks substance or commonvision. Instead, it is fueled bya set of common enemies — imperialism hegemonism and corrupting foreign influences. And that is what many people in Asia find unsettling “China's nationalism is: If you're interestedin making the wisest ‘We won't allow anyone to come and tearus apart.’ deepest part of the Chinese soul,” ranking government official who longs to the Communist Party only decision for your IRA deposits, This is the declared a says he bebecause it’s achanceyou'll jump at. When y« makeyour 1995 or 1996IRA cori tion by opening one of United's sp the best vehicle for his nationalist sentiments. lengths to wrap themselves in the flag and identifythe partywith the nation, thus making criticism of the partyline an unpatriotic act. mensionis a productof Chinesehistory. For a icons in Tiananmen Square, itself symbolic of the mandate of heavenin imperial times. Na- century, starting in 1842, whenBritish troops defeated the Qing emperor to defend the British-dominated opium trade, China struggled to rid itself of foreign imperial powers. In portraits of Communist philosophers Marx burned down the emperor's summerpalace. “The previous ideology has gone into decline,” says Xiao Gongqin, a professor at the Shanghai Normal University, “A large coun- anese forces invaded, occupied much of the country and massacred millions. The Communist rulers have reshuffled tional daycelebrations no longerincludelarge cial IRA BumpRate CDs, you can tie up agreat CD rate now andbe able to Bumpyour rate when interest ratesrise. Seedsof Nationalism: Theanti-foreigndi- Pick a term of 18 months, 3or 5 years andinvest as little as $500, After six months —if rates go up — you can Bumpyour CD to the higher ratethen being offered on new BumpRate CDs of the same term, You'll earnthehigherrate forthe remaining termof the CD or until you choose to exercise your Burpoption again. 1860, British troops marchedinto Beijing and and Engels; instead, a giant portrait of the non-Communist Chinese nationalist Sun Yat Sen standsalone in the square. try such as China needs something to keep the countrytogether. So nationalism is taking the place of the previous ideologyas the coaleseing force.” Oneobstacleto thatstrategyis that the definition of Chinese nationalism remains fuzzy. The country hasatleast 55 ethnic groups,dialects that cannot be understood from onepart of the countryto another, at least five major religions and a history subject to divergent interpretations. Small wonder that Sun Yat In 1900, anti-Westernism fueled the Boxer Rebellion and the slaughter of foreign missionaries andtheir converts, In the 1930s, Jap“Chinese nationalism is almost exclusively based on an anti-foreign mentality and is a rather recent product,” says Huang Yasheng, a professor at the University of Michigan. “It evolved in the last 150 years or so mainlyin reaction to the forcible opening by the West, and for that reason it can be virulent and al- You Can BumpYour Rate As Often As Every Six Months! most always anti-Western.’ A neo-nationalist party official with connec- tions to top government leaders agreed that “If you want to understand China, there’s only oneclass you have to take, and that’s history.” Plus, whenyou open your new BumpRateCP onorbefore April 15, $100 CASH BACK e n i M e e r F O D T iN $19.95 Reg.$79.95 AUDIOVOX MV 405 MOTOROLA FLIP PHONE Light Weight © 14 hr. Battery « Name Memory FREE Reg.$99.95 FREE CELLULAR SALT LAKE CITY 3355S. 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