CHINATION REPORT©

By: X. Gong

By now we all know that Sarah Palin has accepted John McCain’s pick as his vice presidential running mate. This is an extraordinary moment. As an ambitious professional woman and mother of two young children, I applaud her courage and bravery. She makes many women including myself proud.

After the initial excitement began to wind down, I felt a tiny bit of unease in my heart. My eyes caught the mention of Sarah’s lovely new born baby, Trig. Baby Trig was born with Down syndrome. Her choice of knowingly bringing Trig to life is truly noble and speaks louder of her values than any words. As a woman, I found myself often torn between the choice of climbing up the corporate ladder and keeping a balanced and happy family life. I must say, there is no success of any job in the world that could match the joy of having my two wonderful children.

Ms. Palin was reportedly back to work three days after little Trig was born. She is obviously a strong woman and she is much more capable than I could ever be. I also thought I had little doubt that, if elected, she could still be that responsible mother while working hard for the country.
Wait a minute! Really?

Source: http://www.citizensugar.com/1565605

Source: http://rhymeswithright.mu.nu/archives/images/trig4634_bg2%5B1%5D.jpg

How about that little innocent baby Trig that needs special care for the rest of his life? Is he happy that his mother made the choice to bring him to this wonderful world?  But would he still be happy if he knew how little he would see his mommy since she would be spending most of her time on the campaign trail in the next two months?  And if Ms. Palin and Senator McCain get elected, would little Trig understand the cause and the sacrifice of his mommy and support it?

- Senator Obama’s Other Brother Who Lives in China

A recent UK Times Online news headline reads: Barack Obama’s brother pushes Chinese imports on US 

Media in the US have focused on Barack Obama’s half brother living in Kenya. George Hussein Onyango Obama, Barack’s half-brother, is said to be living in poverty on a dollar a month in a Nairobi shantytown. This article is about Barack Obama’s other half-brother, Mark Ndesanjo, who lives in Shenzhen, a southern Chinese city bordering Hong Kong. While we believe the Times used such a headline to help attract readers, we wonder how those words relate to Mark’s real life in China. 

To clarify in readers’ minds the true subject of the story, Chinationreport editors translated an online article from the Mandarin, as it appeared in the South China Daily. The article was written based on interviews with Mark’s close friends and partners. Below is the English translation of this article:

Slim, healthy, vegetarian, over 6 feet tall, strongly built, short-cropped black hair, often seen with a baseball hat on, dark brown skin, black eyes with very clear facial features. This is Mark Ndesandjo, the half brother of Senator Obama, the US Democratic Party presidential nominee.  Mark has been living in Shenzhen in the past six years and wishes to continue to live in China. He is married to a Chinese woman from Henan province. Mark shares the same father with Senator Obama but carries his mother’s last name.   

The Nanfang Metropolitan Paper reports that - after Mark’s relationship with Senator Obama was revealed - he has gone underground, avoiding public attention. Mark is a pianist. 18-year-old Long Ben, who was raised in the Shenzhen Social Welfare Center Orphanage, is his piano student. On the evening of August 1st 2008,  Long Ben received a text message from Mark, saying: “I have a very urgent matter to take care of immediately. Very sorry that I couldn’t make the lesson that I promised last time. After I deal with this matter, I will try to call you. Okay?”

From the date of that text message until this edition of the paper hit the street, Mark hadn’t come to the Orphanage for classes, a period of three weeks. This is the first absence since Mark started teaching at the orphanage in 2002. Long Ben has no idea what the Mark’s ‘urgent matter’ was, however, he admits the media has recently taken an intense interest in Mark’s young student. “I don’t want to be interviewed, especially by those who would use me to learn something about Mark.”

From Sui Zheng Jun, Mark’s best Chinese friend in Shenzhen, who owns an online information service called Worldnexus, reporters worldwide are gradually learning more about Obama’s half brother Mark.

Since July 27th 2008, when Mark received the phone call from Times followed by the publishing of article, an outpouring of interview requests has interrupted his normal life. In Shenzhen, Mark’s relationship with Obama was exposed at the same time. While Senator Obama lives as a public figure, Mark prefers to lead a quiet, ordinary life in the big, bustling city of Shenzhen.  

After this ‘breaking’ news, reporters, including those from Hong Kong, were searching Shenzen for any possible clues about Mark. According to Sui,“Some of them found the company where Mark used to work. Several dozen reporters were waiting outside the building, collaring anyone they thought might know something about Mark for questioning. “What does Mark look like? How to find him?” were the questions, an old colleague of Mark recalled. “The reporters even found the bar Mark frequented.”

Interestingly, on March 18th, 4 months before the UK Times article appeared, there was a report on Xinhuanet indicating that The New York Times reported on the 17th that Obama’s younger brother is in China. Missing catchy headlines, both Xinhuanet’s piece and the original The New York Times article completely passed under the radar screen. 

In order to evade the irritating reporters, Mark and Sui Zheng Jun have chosen to leave Shenzhen. Sui still found it hard to believe that the media are trying everything to tie his friend of six years with now the very famous Obama.

Mark and  his six years of volunteer work at an Orphanage

Before the revelation of the relationship between Mark Ndesandjo and Barack Obama, the only media article found about Mark dates from March 2004. The Nanfangnet Daily’ English edition reported in an article entitled Not Just a Donation that Mark “…had successful experience in remote communications. He is also a self-taught musician.”

In the article, Mark is quoted as saying “Here the children have enough food. What they are lacking is art and music. Music unites humans in a spiritual level. It has a long and deep effect on children. So I decided to teach music here.”

Since 2002, Mark has been closely connected with Shenzhen. Ever since making their acquaintance Mark’s and Sui’s life in Shenzhen have been closely interconnected. Sui said, “Before coming to China, Mark had never taught school. He came as a member of a Sino-American culture exchange program. As part of this program, Mark worked in a Shenzhen foreign language school. During this period, he nurtured the idea of establishing a non-profit organization in China to help orphans.”

According to Sui, before coming to China, Mark tried contacting a lot of people, including some media and even Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. He sent them his proposal but nobody replied. Back in 2002, who knew the name Obama, let alone Ndesandjo? Finally, Mark got some donations from his MBA classmates in Emory to bring to China. When he first arrived in Shenzhen, he even didn’t know where the orphanage was located. He knew Sui through an English teacher in Shenzhen. Sui brought Mark to the orphanage. They brought milk, milk powder, DVDs, etc to the orphans.

Mark doesn’t have much money. His goal is to bring the art of music to the orphans. He believed an orphan’s life needs not only the essentials. The arts are needed, too. Mark began teaching piano lessons at the orphanage every week – at least until events of this year overtook him.

The orphanage workers were all moved by his persistence. He came almost every week. No other volunteers gave of themselves as much. Since 2002, Mark has taught several dozen piano students. Two of his students studied with him for more than two years, one is Xing Yun, who went on to college in Guangzhou. The other is Long Ben. 

So, who is this Mark? He is a very talented, self-taught musician The only printed material that can be found is on the sleeve of a compact disk which was sent as a gift to Long Ben in the Orphanage. It’s printed in black and white, titled Nightmoods and includes some Chopin pieces. On the dedication, it says, “To my most trustworthy and best friend Ruth Ndesandjo”

Ruth Ndesandjo is Mark’s mother, the third wife of Mark and Barack Obama’s late father. When Mark was very young, they divorced. An honor student from Harvard, Ruth runs an upscale daycare center in Nairobi, Kenya.

Within this CD, the short biography of the performer says: 

“Mark is a writer, painter and composer who spends most of his time in Asia and USA. He was born in Kenya. He studied at Brown and Stanford Universities. He published 3 CDs and one book. The book’s title is Observations in Africa and others. This (semi-autobiographical) book is about a young Kenyan man who immigrated to the US and lived in a metropolitan city there. He studied Communications and worked at Lucent Technologies and Notel Networks in high positions. His hobbies included sky diving, skiing and surfing.”

Mark’s friends know that he moved to the US after spending the first seven years of his life in Kenya. He graduated from Brown University with a mathematics and arts degree. Then, he attended Stanford University in Palo Alto, California for a Physics degree. After that, he received an MBA degree from Emory University. In 12 years, he worked for several companies in the US.

After playing a piece of Chopin, Long Ben revealed to the article’s reporter, “I have become a lot happier since I started taking piano lessons from Mark.” Long Ben was born in Shenzhen in 1990. He came to the orphanage at the age of three. After finishing middle school in 2006, Long Ben started to take piano lessons from Mark. Before Long Ben, Mark taught several other kids. But none of them continued for various reasons. Mark taught Long Ben every weekend, no matter how busy he was. He always seemed to be in a hurry. On the evening of August 1st, Long Ben received the short text message from Mark saying that he had something very important to deal with and he would call after he handled the urgent matter. At 10PM, Long Ben called Mark and chatted to him about his own small issues. At 1:19AM, Mark left another message saying: ‘Don’t worry. I support you. Try your best to practice piano.’  

Teachers at the orphanage noted that Long Ben has become confident and strong thanks to Mark’s help. Long Ben says he loves music, especially classical music, particularly Chopin to whom he feels emotionally connected. Long Ben says he received a lot of support from others and he will also try to help people in return. “I am happy and content with what I have.”

Mark’s real passion and life in China

Sui Zheng Jun said, “You will never guess what Mark imagined about China before arriving there!” Before 2002, Mark felt that China, though beautiful, was undeveloped. He thought that China was a very poor country with many orphans. He wanted to walk in the country with a backpack, getting to know China while helping them. After he settled in Shenzhen, he realized there was a big gap between his old perceptions and reality. It was a lot better than he had thought. He liked Shenzhen very much. More than one time he expressed his wish to live and work there. 

Not Just a Donation mentions that Mark wanted to organize a charity concert performed by foreign musicians in order to collect donations to buy musical instruments and equipment for the orphanage. To prepare, Mark and Sui strategized and planned for a long time. It did not happen for a variety of reasons. During this time, both of them cemented their friendship. They decided to continue to do something together.   

Sui used to be a branch manager of a bicycle company. When he met Mark, he was planning on getting his MBA and needed someone to help him improve his English. He was also making his next career move. He registered an information consulting company under the name Worldnexus. Sue was the owner. He appointed Mark chief consultant. “We are partners!”

Business was very tough. Day after day they worked hard but made no profit. Sui, Mark and other partners worked for free, receiving no salary. Each was using up savings. In the evenings, after an exhausting day, they got together to have a beer and barbeque from street vendors. Mark always ate dried tofu and potato chips. He is a vegetarian and always wondered why Chinese grilled tofu tasted so delicious. 

While dining, Sui came up with a plan: Instead of just consulting, why not also open a barbeque stand? This idea excited Mark a lot. He said he wanted to open such stands in Kenya to introduce grilled tofu and potato chips to his countrymen. While enjoying their beer and chips, they drew up a business plan on a piece of scrap paper. They even designed a menu. Mark insists that it has to be natural. He wanted a very simple, unpretentious hut instead of a fancy restaurant. They named the hut-restaurant Cabin BBQ. At the end of 2003, the first Cabin BBQ was opened in Shenzhen, adjacent to their existing information consulting office. ?
 As of today, Cabin BBQ has seven branches, including one in Yingchuan in the northwest of China, far away from Shenzhen. They are also planning on entering the Kenyan market with their next Cabin BBQ. Sui said, “From a simple joke out of desperation to a viable business, we feel like we’re in a dream!” Thanks to the opening of their first Cabin BBQ, which became a very successful, profitable business, they were able to pay themselves a salary while covering the overhead of the consulting firm, which is still not profitable.

In the beginning of 2006, Mark said he wanted to leave our team to start learning Chinese. Mark spent a whole year just studying Chinese at Shenzhen University. He is very capable of learning. After just more than one year, he started reading A Dream of Red Mansions, the most famous work of Chinese classical literature. Mark’s Chinese friends often tease him when they see him read the book (as reading this book is often considered old fashioned by the young generation -ed.). 

Although they are not working together any more, Mark and his Chinese friends get together often. They go hiking, swimming, and especially, all activities involving nature and Chinese tradition. Sui asked Mark to come back to work with him again. Mark promised that he would come back after 2008. Sui was pleased to hear that but had no clue why he needed to wait until after 2008. Sui felt that it was probably a personal issue. 

Regarding Mark’s personal life, Sui knows very little. He knew that some of Mark’s siblings are in the USA and some are in Kenya. Mark rarely spoke of his family. He only talked about his career, education etc. Sui learned more about Mark’s family only after his mother’s visit to Shenzhen.

Mark’s mother Ruth came to visit Mark about three years ago. She left Sui deeply impressed. She is a woman, but one almost has to borrow the word gentleman to describe her. She plays the piano beautifully. She was Mark’s first piano teacher. 

There is something in which Mark put Sui, a real Chinese, to shame. Mark started to become interested in Chinese calligraphy. Mark thought this was an authentic representation of Chinese culture. Once making up his mind, Mark soon found a teacher. He even learnt the Xing (cursive) style of calligraphy. Sui remarked, “I first thought he was just kidding. After he showed us his work, we were all shocked. I admit, although I am Chinese, his Chinese calligraphy is much better than mine.” 

Not long ago, Mark visited his brother Barack and gifted him with his Chinese calligraphy. “I saw Mark do the Chinese idiom in calligraphy. But I promised him to keep its content a secret. It is between him and his brother.” 

Mark’s friends did not find out about his relationship with Senator Obama through the media. Mark revealed it by himself after he had been exposed by Times. (Note: Although Mark’s Chinese friends did not read the story published by Times, Mark had to admit his identity to his friends to explain the foreign media’s intense pursuit of him. He feared that they would find out about it sooner or later – ed.) On July 27th, some friends invited Mark to go to an outdoor photography event. The organizer of the event was a Chinese-American, ‘Hua Jiang,’ (meaning a gardener) who had heard from Sui a few times about this American friend of Sui’s. What intrigued Sui and ‘Hua Jiang’ was that Mark was trying to avoid having pictures taken all day long. They all knew he was a passionate photographer, but he refused to pose as the subject before anyone else’s camera. 

Everyone was puzzled by Mark’s actions on that day and wondered what was wrong with him. On the way home, Mark started talking: “You know that I am from Kenya. You know that I have a brother in America. My brother is Barack Obama” Sui stopped breathing for a moment. “What? How come you never told us?” Mark explained that he never wanted to tell anyone, but now, referring to the news article from the United Kingdom, the cat’s out of the bag. Everyone stood there awestruck in mute silence.

On the same evening, some pictures from that day’s event got uploaded to the Internet. At midnight, Sui called ‘Hua Jiang’, asking him to delete all pictures containing Mark. Sui had to explain the real reason.
 Since then, Sui has not been left in peace. He gets hundreds of messages and phone calls daily. Everybody wishes to get information about Mark through him. He has even received girls’ love letters addressed to the married man. Mark’s Chinese friends all share the same view about Mark. He is intelligent and well educated - an intellectual with high class wishing to keep his modest, simple, anonymous life in a rented apartment in Shenzhen, a city with a population of millions. Mark’s Chinese friends also believe that Mark likes China, especially now, since he married a Chinese girl from Henan. 

Chinationreport is not responsible for the accuracy of the content of this article.
The original article in Chinese was posted on www.wenxuecity.com with credit to Nangfang Daily

US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson: “One of the first challenges the next US president will face will be how to respond to China’s emergence as a global power…I believe that engagement is the only path to success.”

Let’s examine Sr. Joseph Biden’s experience and records on China issues in chronological order:

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BBC NEWS:
Tuesday, 7 August, 2001, 14:49 GMT 15:49 UK

US senator offers help to China

Senator Biden (l) met Shanghai Mayor Xu Kuangdi
(Chinationreport: Mr. Xu has since retired.)

The most senior United States senator dealing with international relations, Joseph Biden, is in China for talks likely to include US plans for a new missile defense shield, Chinese arms sales and China’s human rights record.

Senator Biden, chairman of the Senate’s Foreign Relations Committee, is due to meet senior government leaders at a seaside retreat on Wednesday, including President Jiang Zemin.

In Shanghai on Tuesday, he said he wanted to help China understand the US policy on the sensitive issue of Taiwan.

But he warned the Chinese Government that it must do its part to prevent President Bush’s controversial missile defense system from becoming a reality.

Senator Biden’s visit to China comes at a key moment, with Chinese leaders bitterly opposed to the Bush administration’s missile defense plans.

(Biden says he admires Taiwan’s President Chen Shui-bian)

(Chinationreport: Mr. Chen Shui-bian has since been replaced by Mr. Ma Ying-Jeou who is a Harvard Law School alumnus to Senator Obama. Mr. Chen is currently under criminal investigation due to alleged severe corruption and money laundering. )

They say it could be used to defend Taiwan if China ever decided to use force against the island, and as such could spark an arms race in Asia.

Senator Biden, whose Democratic party recently won control of the senate, has also warned Mr Bush that introducing such a system without addressing the concerns of China and Russia could have a destabilizing effect.

In Shanghai he kept up the pressure on President Bush not to break off unilaterally the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, a necessary first step for building such a system. Mr Biden said he did not believe President Bush would do this but he said if he did he was unlikely to win the support of the Senate.

However, he also put pressure on Beijing, calling on President Jiang Zemin to urge neighboring North Korea not to develop new intercontinental missiles - Senator Biden warned that if North Korea did so, it would increase support in the Senate for a missile defense program.

Taiwan clarification

He did, however, stress his admiration for Taiwan’s President Chen Shui-bian, who is seen by Beijing as a key supporter of independence.

Another member of his delegation, Republican Senator Fred Thompson, highlighted another strand of US political opinion, accusing China of breaking its commitments not to transfer missile technology to Pakistan.

He said the US congress had to decide whether it should continue to engage in trade with a country which he said was making the world a more dangerous place.

He stressed the US did not see China as a hostile country and he said he hoped China’s leaders would understand the US was only committed to selling weapons to Taiwan for defensive purposes, and did not support Taiwan independence.

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Source: BBC:
Wednesday, 8 August, 2001, 17:34 GMT 18:34 UK

Senator rejects China missile promise

Smile but talks were described as “candid”
(Chinationreport: Mr. Jiang Ze-Ming has been since replaced by Mr. Hu Jing-Tao)

Influential US Senator Joseph Biden said after talks with Chinese President Jiang Zemin that they had “agreed to disagree” on whether China was keeping to its commitments on missile proliferation.

The matter was at the top of the US delegation’s agenda after fresh allegations this week in a US newspaper that China had sold missile technology to Pakistan despite promising last year not to do so.

China has denied the allegations but Senator Biden said increased weapons proliferation would make a US missile defense system, which China opposes, more likely, and could endanger trade agreements.

Chinese state media reported conciliatory remarks by President Jiang, highlighting “common interests” and the need for China and the US to strengthen “mutual understanding… and cooperation”.

But Defence Minister Chi Haotian was also quoted taking a harder line on US arms sales to Taiwan and explicitly opposing American missile defense system plans, which China fears could be used to defend Taiwan.

Senator Biden is the Democratic chairman of the US Senate’s Foreign Relation’s Committee. He advocates engagement with China and has spoken against Republican plans to build a missile defence system unless there is wide international agreement.

Diplomatic relations between the US and China have been warming slowly since a low point a few months ago during a row over an incident involving a US spy plane in which a Chinese pilot died.

Warm words and warnings

Chinese state television quoted President Jiang after the meeting as saying: “Whether… tackling weapons proliferation, environmental degradation or international crime, China and the United States have common interests.”

The president said China had kept to its commitments on weapons proliferation, according to Senator Biden.

“We agreed to disagree on that point,” he said.

Senator Biden said President Jiang was specifically opposed to North Korea and Iran gaining ballistic missile technology.

Human rights

Other issues raised included China’s judicial system and the treatment of the banned Falun Gong spiritual movement. Senator Biden’s delegation, which includes three other senators, have already visited Taiwan.

They are due to travel to Beijing for two days of meetings with business leaders and officials, and on Saturday fly to Seoul to meet South Korean President Kim Dae-jung.
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Source: pg.china-embassy.org/eng/xwdt/t47645
Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan Meets Biden
2001/08/10

Tang noted that China attaches importance to the visit of Biden, and welcomes more US congressmen to visit China. He said the Chinese government values Sino-U.S. relations and China and the U.S. have shared common interests although differences still exist. He also noted that China hopes to expand contact and dialogue with the United States, to promote mutual understanding and trust, and to seek the converging points of bilateral interests so as to improve Sino-U.S. relations

Expressing thanks to the Chinese side for its warm reception, Biden said that Sino-U.S. relations are at a critical time, and it is important for both sides to strengthen trust and avoid misunderstanding. Biden said he came to China to exchange views with the Chinese side and to promote mutual understanding. He noted that great changes have taken place in China over the past 20 years, and China’s international influence has expanded, adding that the development and prosperity of China conforms to the US interests.
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Source :
Transcript: Sens. Biden, Levin on ‘FNS’
Monday, January 22, 2007
WALLACE: And, finally, Senator Biden, China, which showed this week that it has the capacity to launch missiles and take out satellites in space — how provocative an action? And what do we need to do about it? I think it is provocative. I think we have many options to deal with it.

BIDEN:

We accomplished that goal 25 years ago. It was a kinetic kill, as they call it. It did not use lasers. There are ways to blunt that.

But one of the things we have to talk about is whether or not the, sort of, ideological base notion about how we deal with space and weapons in space and the use of weapons from space is something that is a path we should continue to follow.

This is basically — this administration’s policy has been the Rumsfeld proposal prior to him coming in as secretary, and it radically changed our view of how we’re going to use space.

I think it’s worth us beginning to consider it, but I don’t think we should be overly worried about this at this point. We have ways to deal with that ability that they’ve demonstrated they possess that will put us in a position where we still have clear eyes in space.
But the other side of that is, though, this is not the direction we want to go, in escalating competition in space. And we should be talking about it.
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Source: 2007 AFL-CIO Democratic primary forum Aug 8, 2007
Q: Is China an ally or adversary?

Joe Biden: China holds the mortgage on our house, to pay for war 

They’re neither. The fact of the matter is, though, they hold the mortgage on our house. This administration, in order to fund a war that shouldn’t be being fought and tax cuts that weren’t needed for the wealthy–we’re now in debt almost a trillion dollars to China. We better end that war, cut those taxes, reduce the deficit and make sure that they no longer own the mortgage on our home.

Barack Obama: China is a competitor, but not an enemy

China is a competitor, but they aren’t an enemy, as long as we understand that they are going to be negotiating aggressively for their advantage, and we’ve got to make sure that we’re looking after American workers. That means enforcing our trade agreements; it means that if they’re manipulating their currency, that we take them to the mat on the that issue; it means that we are also not running up deficits and asking China to bail us out.

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Source: glassbooth.org/explore/index/joe-biden/2/trade-and-economics/6
August 15th 2007
“There ain’t no such thing as free trade unless it’s fair trade,” the Delaware senator said. He also warned that the U.S. is too dependent on Chinese credit. “We have to get off sucking that breast that is China,” Biden said.
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SOURCE: 2008CENTRAL.NET

LIVE BLOG OF NPR DEMOCRATIC DEBATE (DECEMBER 4, 2007)
2:46: Question - Would you restrict trade with China? Biden would not restrict trade through tariffs. He justifies this by saying that we are over emphasizing the significance of China.
3:07: What kind of human rights commitment should the U.S. try to get from China? Biden says hold China accountable at the United Nations.
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Source: cameron.blogs.foxnews.com/category/candidates/joe-biden-candidates
Biden:” We’re making them 10 feet tall. A country with 800 million in poverty does not have greater leverage over us ..Preposterous.” Biden said.

” What we’ve done is yield leverage (to big corporations)….As president, Bang, no importing of those (Chinese)toys.”

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Source:
Expressindia.com/latest-news/Terror-obsessed-Bush-ignored-rise-of-India–China–says-Biden/336431
Terror-obsessed Bush ignored rice of India, China, says Biden
Posted online: Wednesday, July 16, 2008 at 06:58:01

Washington, July 16: Slamming the Bush administration for “ignoring” major global developments that included the rise of India and China, a prominent US lawmaker has said that it was pursuing a policy that seemed “obsessed with the war on terrorism”.

“… by exploiting the politics of fear, instigating an optional war in Iraq before finishing a necessary war in Afghanistan and instituting policies on torture, detainees and domestic surveillance that fly in the face of our values and interests, President (George W) Bush divided Americans from each other and from the world,” Senator Joseph Biden said in Washington in a campaign speech on “Renewing American Leadership”.

“At the heart of this failure is an obsession with the ‘war on terrorism’ that ignores larger forces shaping the world and the lives of Americans in this new century: The emergence of China, India, Russia and a united Europe; The spread of lethal weapons and dangerous diseases; Uncertain supplies of energy, food and water;… A rapidly warming planet; The challenge to freedom from radical fundamentalism.”
“It is critical that the Chinese government and the Dalai Lama engage in a mutually respectful dialogue to restore peace and stability in Tibet,” said Senator Biden. “By engaging in talks with Tibet instead of violence, President Hu would gain the opportunity to speak the motto of the Beijing Olympics – ‘One World, One Dream’ – to the entire international community. I can think of no greater symbol of peace than to have President Hu Jin-tao and the Dalai Lama jointly attend the opening ceremony of the games, united in their commitment to promote genuine reconciliation on the Tibetan plateau.”

Specifically, the resolution:

* Condemns the violence in Tibet and calls for restraint by the Government of the People’s Republic of China and the people of Tibet;

* Calls for a dialogue between the leadership of the Government of China and His Holiness the Dalai Lama on meaningful religious and cultural autonomy for Tibet within China and urges that these discussions take place with all deliberate speed;

* Calls for the release of individuals who protested in a peaceful manner and for medical care for those injured and wounded in the violence that followed the protests;

* Calls on the Government of China to cease its efforts to enter monasteries to “reeducate” monks and nuns, to respect the right of the people of Tibet to speak of the Dalai Lama and possess his photograph, and to respect and protect basic human rights, as provided in the Constitution of the People’s Republic of China;

* Calls on the Government of China to honor its commitment to allow international journalists free access to China from mid-2007 to October 17, 2008;

* Calls on the Government of China to provide a full accounting of the March 2008 protests in Tibet, the response of the Government of China, and the manner and number of detentions and deaths that occurred following the protests;

* Calls on the United States Department of State to fully implement the Tibetan Policy Act of 2002 (22 USC 6901 note), including the stipulation that the Secretary of State “seek to establish an office in Lhasa, Tibet to monitor political, economic, and cultural developments in Tibet”, and also to provide consular protection and citizen services in emergencies; and

* Urges that the agreement to permit China to open further diplomatic missions in the United States should be contingent upon the establishment of a United States Government office in Lhasa, Tibet

Instead of focusing on these forces, Biden, the Democratic Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee charged that Bush “has fixated on a small number of radical groups that hate America, turning them into a ten-foot tall existential monster that dictates every move we make.”
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SOURCE:
ALLAMERICANPATRIOTS.COM/48745496_SENATORS-INTRODUCE-RESOLUTION-CONDEMN-VIOLENCE-TIB
SENATORS TO INTROUDUCE A RESOLUTION TO CONDEMN VIOLENCE IN TIBET

 

The resolution is cosponsored by Senators Joseph Biden (D-Del.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Elizabeth Dole (R-N.C.), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Olympia Snowe (R-Maine), Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Barack Obama (D-Ill.), Senator Robert Byrd (D-W.V.), Senator George Voinovich (R-Ohio), and Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.).

Mainstream Western media stages “Blemishing China Marathon”

By James Shen

Synopsis

Ignoring outpouring hospitality of the Chinese people, Mainstream Western media has waged a negative campaign against China recently to punish the country’s failure to comply with Western requests at the Beijing Olympics. This article examines the roots of the mainstream Western media’s anger towards China, exposes its hypocrisies and double standards, and advocates the development of a positive-spirited media system that is built on the basis of upholding Chinese public welfare and interests.

Full text

If you google “China” or “Olympics” on any given day in recent months, with the exception of the few weeks China was stricken by deadly earthquakes, you will be overwhelmed by the shower of negative coverage from the mainstream Western media against China and its hosting of 2008 Beijing Olympics.

For months leading up to the Beijing Games, China has been put under the Western microscope with accusations and complaints against the country and its government sweeping across all terrains, from big political issues such as Tibet, human rights, protest rights, press and religious freedom; to social problems including air pollution, government relocation of Beijing residents; to conspiracy stories about special visual effects of the opening ceremony and ultra performance of Chinese athletes; and to more trivial displeasures about losing a pair of expensive sunglasses, difficulties to access Olympic Green, English standard of volunteers, and over-eagerness of residents to help the foreigner visitors. The list goes on and on.

As if that is not enough, an NBC correspondent went on a live TV hunt for Chinese foods in Beijing. Let’s take a look at what she found: giant scorpions, lizards, silk worms, seahorses, iguana tails and dung beetles. Other Western reporters also cited rabbit head, pig brain and animal penis. Being a native of Beijing with 20 plus years of living there and a food lover myself, I have little knowledge where to look for these exotic things, not to mention ever eating them. Come on, China has a civilization of 5,000 years – Western reporters can’t be seriously thinking about portraying the Chinese as barbaric aboriginals or man-eating cannibals, right?

In fact, Dave Barry of Miami Herald admitted to a blog “beijingboyce.com” that “The Chinese people I saw all seemed to be buying things like lamb kebabs and fruit. On the other hand, the people gathered around the centipedes and scorpions on a stick were, in almost every case, tourists or American TV reporters doing fun features on weird Chinese food…. The Chinese don’t eat scorpions. They feed their scorpions to TV reporters. I would not be surprised to learn that the Chinese word for scorpion is “TV reporter food.”

Granted, China is not completely innocent from many of the aforementioned allegations and criticisms, but it is neither an evil host which deserves no credit at all. As the world’s fastest growing economy and one of the world’s most ancient civilizations, there has got to be something positive to report on.

You can be easily frustrated, however, if you are looking to read something more positive or, at the least, constructive about the country and its hospitable people. Sure, there is always the official Xinhua News or China Daily one can read for a change, but any praise from self-proclaimed independent and objective mainstream Western media is surprisingly hard to come by.

Meanwhile, for average Westerners, it is hard not to be misled by the drowning negative coverage on China. A homemaker in the US told reporters that she does not want to “legitimize the Chinese government” by supporting the Beijing Olympics.” Didn’t President Bush just open a bigger US Embassy there? What are we talking about here exactly? I am as puzzled as an Atlanta man who demanded an online answer for not seeing Russian tanks there.

As much as I disagree with President George W. Bush on many things, I have to applaud his recent TV interview in Beijing with NBC in which he stressed that the US and China as two very different countries and cultures are bound to have agreements and disagreements on a range of things, but it is important to have a constructive relationship which will help each other communicate disagreements.

Wow, how I wish that he had possessed this wisdom before starting the Iraq war – lives of estimated 1.2 million Iraqis and 5,000 US soldiers could have been saved.

Should the 2008 Olympics be awarded to Beijing in the first place?

Although the closing ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games is coming up in a matter of few days, the arguments surrounding if IOC had made a mistake in letting China host the 2008 Olympics and if China had fulfilled its relevant promises seem to have just started.

Why pick a heavily-polluted country that is dictated by “free market Stalinists” which suppresses human rights, religion and press? China broke its promises to IOC for all of these areas, charges the mainstream Western media.

However, according to the IOC, its mission is “to build a peaceful and better world in the Olympic Spirit which requires mutual understanding with a spirit of friendship, solidarity and fair play - Olympic Spirit strives to inspire and motivate the youth of the world to be the best they can be through educational and entertaining interactive challenges. Olympic Spirit seeks to instill and develop the values and ideals of Olympism in those who visit and to promote tolerance and understanding in these increasingly troubled time in which we live, to make our world a more peaceful place.“

Does China deserve to be awarded the hosting right of Olympics? Apparently, the Chinese people said a loud “yes”. The whole world witnessed how much grass-root support China got from its people when it applied for and won the hosting right of the event.

As a country with more than one fifth of the world’s population – should it not be given a chance to host one of the many games? With 1.3 billion people not represented, can any Olympic Games truly promote its mission of “building a peaceful and better world with mutual understanding”? That is why the IOC made its decision and it is undoubtedly a correct one.

By comparison, I have serious doubts if the mainstream Western media truly understands and honors the spirit of Olympics – questioning China’s legitimacy to host such an international event only gives away its arrogance, self-righteousness, entitlement and cultural supremacy in international affairs.

If the mainstream Western media is still the true believer of human rights and continues to uphold the universal belief that “all men are created equal”, it should acknowledge the birthright of any country including China, for hosting the Olympic Games.

While China needs improvements in many areas as every other country on this earth does, the changes and progresses made by the country in the past 30 years are unmatched in the its own history, which can not be hidden from view by the mainstream Western media.

China should not be forced to make any concessions or promises to any interest groups in order to be “bestowed” the hosting right of Olympics, thanks to the downfall of colonialism and imperialism! The country’s pursuit of reform in all domestic political and social-economic fronts, including but not limited to human rights and freedoms of its people, can and should only be driven by desires of its own people, rather than being imposed on by external forces.

In addition to disputing China’s hosting rights, the mainstream Western media also has aired many conspiracies about China’s intention for hosting the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Show of power? Self-interiority? Promoting China’s development path to replace the US model? Bla, bla, bla….

We all are humans and predictably we all want similar things in life at the end of the day. Splendid displays, inflated egos or decorated ideologies can not replace people’s basic needs for food, clothing, shelter and healthcare.

For hundreds of years, the Chinese people have craved for a peaceful environment where they can focus on making a better living for themselves rather than laboring for self-serving emperors or greedy foreign opium traders. They have been quite successful in the past three decades and now they simply wanted to party and celebrate with the world through Beijing Olympics. Is that so hard to understand?

Why is the mainstream Western media so angry with China?

In his recent article “Are the Media Being too Mean to China?” published on slate.com, Prof. Tim Wu of Columbia University wrote that “China’s idea of what makes for a better Olympics for foreign consumption—tightened security and cleaning up marginal elements—is exactly what makes Western reporters crazy.”

While Prof. Wu’s observation only touched on one of the surface symptoms that irritated the mainstream Western media, it does shed some light on the current tension. What he described is in fact a cultural difference in how the Chinese and the Western people receive and entertain their guests. But the root of problem is the ethnocentric mindset of the Western reporters to the cultural differences and their entitlement that things should only be done in their ways.

Similar examples are abundant, whether it is about different ways under which Chinese and Western athletes are trained or about how they differ in keeping their personal appearance or etiquettes. I am particularly disappointed with Prof. Wu’s comments that “China doesn’t have the manners and grace of the richer countries, even if it has increasing economic and political clout.”

While making noises during eating is a taboo in many Western cultures, being openly confrontational in social interactions is a sin in many Asian cultures. These are simply cultural differences that should not be judged as superior or inferior, or we risk entering the boundaries of cultural supremacy.

Unfortunately, it is this arrogant mindset that has led the mainstream Western media to judge China by its own culturally biased standards and self-centered expectations. It is not a surprise they drew the conclusion that China broke its promises for hosting Olympics, an allegation China has denied.

What followed was an irrational unleash of anger by the mainstream Western media towards China in an attempt to force the country into the direction the Western media desired to see. The collective media assault on China, however, is more based on self-interests and ethnocentrism, rather than fairness, objectivity and independence which the mainstream Western media often preach.

Let he who is without sin cast the first stone!

A recent issue of Newsweek carried an article, “Rise of the Sea Turtles”, that found “Westernized Chinese people” tend to be more resentful to the West. Although I wasn’t particularly impressed with its analysis of the root causes, the article does provide us with a good pointer to an emerging trend.

I can probably qualify as one of the “Westernized Chinese people” the article was referring to, although I prefer to identify myself as a Chinese American after becoming a naturalized US citizen for many years.

I think it is unfair and simplistic to conclude that the “Westernized Chinese people” are more resentful to the West, because the situation is far more complicated than portrayed. The resentments, in fact, are not the towards the West in its entirety but more targeted at the double standard and intolerant attitudes often adopted by the mainstream Western media and Western governments towards China and other non-Western countries. “Westernized Chinese people” tend to be elites who are educated in the West and their advanced training and intellect make them independent thinkers. They are sensitive towards the hypocrisies of the mainstream Western media which scrutinizes China with one set standards while closing its eyes to the same problems at home.

No one person or one country is perfect and the Bible tells us that everyone is a sinner. If we (Americans) can allow ourselves make mistakes and accept skeletons in our own closets, why should we dissect other countries under our tinted lenses and punish them for not satisfying the standards that even ourselves often can not meet?

We should pursue “constructive dialogues” rather than endless “regime changes” by using force - ironically both strategies were supported by President George W. Bush. I salute his newly-found wisdom which helped him reach a peaceful resolution with the North Koreans and hopefully the same can be done with the Iranians.

If we desire international solidarity against terrorism, why is the mainstream Western media always so reluctant to condemn those who terrorize China? Read its coverage of recent terrorist attacks in Xinjiang and you know what I am talking about.

If the mainstream Western media wants to be the role model for its Chinese peers, why does it conveniently distort facts, use phony pictures and brush away people who have different opinions and deny their right to have their voices heard? A Chinese American confronted a CNN journalist a few months ago in LA when she and many other pro-China protestors were denied chances to be interviewed, the journalist responded harshly - “don’t tell me how to do my business!”

We teach every citizen in the West to respect laws and regulations, yet the mainstream Western media participated in cheering the illegal protests and vandalism in Beijing.

Personally I had a painful experience demonstrating on London streets in 1989. It was cold in that morning and I stepped out of the picketing line for a few minutes to get some desperately-needed sunshine. I was subsequently handcuffed by force and arrested by the London police. When my petite wife disputed their action, she was also handcuffed and arrested. We were locked into separate cells for hours with no food and water, not to mention access to a phone and legal advice. We were only released after the demonstration organizer intervened and after being forced to sign the British equivalent of confession statements.

If being out of the picket line for some sun is a crime that deserves to be handcuffed and thrown into jail in London, why should the Chinese be criticized for expelling illegal protestors in Beijing who purposely climb lamp-posts, buildings and advertising billboards to display unauthorized banners?

Why should an American “pastor”, who proudly vandalized the two Beijing hotel rooms and then cowardly sneaked away, be cheered as a “righteous protestor” by the mainstream Western media?

If a Chinese protestor goes to the 2012 London Olympics to protest against the British suppression of Northern Ireland and hang banners on the Big Ben – can he or she count on the mainstream Western media for for the same “heroic” coverage? Should we also question the right of London for hosting Olympics and its commitment for press freedom if its police arrests the protestor?

Food for thought - “Don’t do unto others what you don’t wish to do unto yourself” (Confucius) and “let he who is without sin cast the first stone!” (Jesus, John 8:1-11, Matthew 7:12)

Is Western-styled press freedom what China needs?

A highly-respected US scholar once told me that the Western media is founded on the spirit of challenging authorities and it is the media’s job to be cynical, vigilant, critical, defiant and negative.

I am a strong believer of the fundamental principles on which the US political system is founded. Besides many merits of the system, media stands out as an indispensable component designed to supervise, on behalf of the public, the three branches of the federal government. This is almost a perfect setup except three potential flaws – firstly, there is no mechanism in place for the supervision of the media itself; secondly, there are serious conflicts of interests between the two contradictory roles of media both as a representative of public interests and, at the same time, as self-serving profit-making enterprises; and thirdly founding media on the basis of cynicism and negativity has its own social costs.

For media to fulfill its role to supervise the government, it needs to serve public interests, rather than its own interests. It needs to be unbiased, objective and independent.

Nonetheless, it is well-known that the mainstream Western media has long blended its role for public welfare with relentless pursuit of ego, power and profits. As the world enters the information age, the mainstream Western media has become a new rising superpower with ever-increasing influence on domestic and international politics, economy, social structure, value systems and people’s everyday life.

Does Americans really have as much freedom as the mainstream media would like us to believe? As the mainstream Western media pursue freedoms in other countries, Americans are losing so many freedoms that once made them so proud.

In the past few decades, America has experienced a string of serious challenges and setbacks including the breakdown of family/social structure and value systems, falling religious influence and freedom, popular abuse and dependence of narcotics and prescription drugs, rising violence across the country, escalating racial tension and police brutality, widening gap between the rich and the poor, dropping standard of literacy and basic education, failing healthcare system that denies coverage of 23 million Americans, and a tendency of resolving international disputes with “regime change” by military force rather than diplomacy, violations of on constitutional civil and human rights under the cover of anti-terrorism, to name just a few.

Our children can no longer walk to the school bus by themselves for fear of drug pushers and child snatchers on the way. By the time they arrive in their schools, metal detectors await for them in some inner city schools. They have to leave their bags in lockers and no colored drinks are allowed for fear of bombs. Their teachers are not allowed to mention any religion or teach morals in schools. Even “Christmas trees” must not be called “Christmas trees” but “family trees”. They have to go through evacuation drills often to remain vigilant because school shootings are spreading. Now people are even more scared because a school district in Texas took the lead to allow teachers carrying guns to the classroom. But can we trust the teachers? Do we have to outsource our teachers from India or China one day?

As an American citizen, nothing is more valuable than my voting right. But even that has depreciated. Why? Because the mainstream media is not doing its job of dissemination of objective information. Instead it confuses me with a constant stream of selectively edited, distorted and manipulated information in order to advance its own preferences, agendas and commercial interests.

Let’s take a look at the tainted media pictures of presidential candidates. John Edwards is a wife cheater, but that has been kept from the public until now; Hilliary is a liar who believes she is entitled to be the President and her husband Bill is hostile to the mainstream press; John McCain is a patriot but a war monger who knows nothing about economy; and finally Obama, alas, is actually a celebrity, radical of racial politics, Muslim (not that there is anything wrong with it) and “Anti-Christ”! For God’s sake, stop harassing me with all this sensational talk designed to boost ratings and I want to vote for Paris Hilton, but unfortunately she is not on the ballot. So my pathetic one vote looks quite useless, well, at least for now.

Moving back to topic of Beijing Olympics. A Western journalist was quick to point out his disagreement with the slogan, “One World One Dream”, which is meant by the host nation to stress the commonalities all peoples share. Nevertheless, this reporter chose to emphasize the different values he has from the Chinese host.

Fine, let’s talk about the differences. If the mainstream Western media can acknowledge that peoples on this earth are different and that there are vast differences between them in the geographic landscapes, population structures, social-economic hierarchy, cultural values, beliefs, religions and ideologies, it should not be difficult to appreciate that their political, legal and media systems also need to differ from each other to accommodate for the specific needs of each country. It is dangerous to assume the systems of the West are somehow superior which can be transplanted to other countries.

Does China need a Western-style media system? I doubt it. While fundamental Western media principles of cynicism, defiance, negativity and confrontation may or may not work well in the Western cultures, they most-definitely will not be successful in the Chinese cultural environment which values hierarchy, harmony, benevolence and tolerance among people.

However, it is the Chinese people who should decide eventually what political, economic and media systems are the ones they need. I have faith that with five thousand years of civilization, China has the wisdom to draw from the strengths of the West, avoid its fundamental flaws and ultimately develop a positive-spirited media system with Chinese characteristics that is built on the basis of upholding public welfare and interests.

Final conclusion

By blemishing a hospitable nation, which worked hard and sacrificed dearly to be a good host, mainstream Western media only exposed the self-interest and ethnocentric facets of itself to the whole world. Such irrational and frantic behaviors will only serve to bolster more media scrutiny by the Chinese government, further alienate the Chinese people and erase any remaining credibility and relevance of the mainstream Western media in the post-Olympic China.

I love the motto of Beijing Olympics - “One World One Dream” - the dream of the Olympic Spirit under which all peoples of the world will be united with mutual understanding, friendship, solidarity, fair play and tolerance to build a peaceful and better world together.

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James Shen is a US-based independent business analyst supporting multinational companies that seek cohesive growth in China. He is a native of Beijing and a naturalized U.S. citizen. He studied in the UK in the 1980s and has lived in the US in the past 19 years.

On August 5th Frederic W. Barnes appeared on Fox News ‘Special Report with Brit Hume.’ According to original transcript provided on Foxnews.com, when asked about his view on the Olympics, Barnes says:

Barnes:

I don’t care how many other stories they do that are not about the athletes. I don’t want to read them! I don’t want to hear them!

Look, it was a terrible idea to give these games to China. The Chinese are going to run them like Hitler ran them in 1936!

But here is what matters. Here is what I want to see. — I want to see the American basketball team, see if they are as good as the greatest basketball team ever, the “Dream Team” in 1992 with Barkley and Jordan…

That’s what I want to see. I want to get–look, horrible politics there. As Charles says, what do you expect out in a dictatorship? But let’s concentrate on the athletes.

Read the full text here.

Is this horrible statement from pure ignorance or evil intention? I am ashamed!! I am ashamed to hear this statement from a station that runs in my house every day. I am ashamed that this kind of necked China bashing is happening still today, not just twenty or even ten years ago. I am ashamed that this comes from someone that is a well-educated journalist, who happens to have studied history.

Please don’t use the same excuse that he is merely comparing the Chinese government with Hitler and NOT the Chinese people! Does he really believe that the Chinese are stupid? Don’t we read English? He says the term Chinese!! Chinese people!! 1.4 billion of us, if we count all of us around the globe!

Barnes and Fox News, your excuses won’t fly. So please explain to the Chinese people the link between Hitler and Chinese people! We demand an answer!

Barnes and Fox News, you are for democracy. How about having a vote on Olympics hosting rights? You know that Chinese people will prevail in this vote!

Barnes and Fox News, why is it such a tragedy for you to accept that the world’s oldest civilization, largest population, the people that count for 20% of the world’s population, is embracing the Olympics? We are embracing it not because we are told to by our ‘dictators’, we are embracing it from the bottom of the heart!

Barnes and Fox News, wake up!

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Dear readers,

Please join this blog to send Barnes and Fox News your strong voice!

Thank you!

Your Chination Report Editor

A poem dedicated to the last 150 years of this planet by a ‘Silent, Silent Chinese’

Watch the video: A Silent, Silent Chinese

When we were labeled as Sick Man of Asia, we were called The Yellow Peril.
When we are billed to be the next Superpower, we are called The China Threat.

When our doors were closed, you launched the Opium War to open our market.
When we embrace Freed Trade, you blame us for Taking Away Your Jobs.

When we were falling apart, you marched in with your troops and wanted your “fair share”.
And you killed, burned, maimed and looted, we were broken into pieces.
Just go to the British Museum and The Louvre, which of those Arts and Relics were bought fair?

( Even Woodrow Wilson Couldn’t give back the Birth Place of OUR Confucius back to Us, But But, He did buy a ticket for the Famine Relief Ball for us…
-A trickle of good will in a sea of despair. )

Never again, we said, we stood up and fought for our survival.
And piece by piece we put our nation together again,
“Free Tibet” you screamed, “it was an invasion!”
Never mind, that those who shouted did the original invasion.

When we tried Communism, you hated us for being Communists
When we embrace Capitalism, you hate us for being Capitalists.

When we reached a billion People, you said we were destroying the planet.
When we try limiting our numbers, you say it is human rights abuse.

When we were poor, you treated us like dogs.
When we loan you cash, you blame us for your debts.

When we build our industries, you called us polluters.
When we make your consumer goods, you blame us for global warming.

When we buy oil, you call that Exploitation and Genocide.
When you fight and invade for oil, you call that Liberation.

When we were lost in Chaos and Rampage, you wanted Rules of Law for us.
When we uphold law and order against Violence, you call that Violating Human Rights.

When we were silent, you said you wanted us to have Human Rights and Free Speech.
When we are silent no more, you say we were Brainwashed-Xenophobics.

Why do you hate us so much? We asked.
“No,” You Answered, “We don’t hate You.”

We don’t hate you either,
But do you understand us?

“Of course we do,” You said,
“We have AFP, CNN and BBCs…”

What do you really want from us?
Think hard first, then Answer…

Because you only get so many chances,
Enough is Enough, Enough Hypocrisy for this One World.

We want One World, One Dream, And Peace On Earth.
- This Big Blue Earth is Big Enough for all of Us.
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Any one is free to use this poem,
Copy Right Notice,
Just Give The Credit,
to the Silent, Silent Chinese.
Username【SilentChinese】

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Please pour in your support to bridge the gap of understandings between East and West. We need you to make this world a better place with less hatred, more compassion, less ignorance, more understanding. East and West, we are together from beginning to eternity.

Please join us in this blog.

By Kent Ewing

HONG KONG - While China’s crackdown on Tibet and heavy-handed approach to dissidents in general have reinforced its international image as a ruthless, totalitarian state ahead of next month’s Summer Olympic Games, the reality on the ground is that the Middle Kingdom has never been more democratic and is, step by small step, becoming even more so.

That reality was bolstered with the recent announcement by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), as reported by the official Xinhua News Agency, that it has adopted a “tenure system” that will give real power to traditionally rubber-stamp delegates to party congresses. In the past, party elites made all the decisions. The future could be quite different - but that all depends on implementation of the new system.

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Kent Ewing is a teacher and writer at Hong Kong International School. He can be reached at kewing@hkis.edu.hk.