Bro, you made an astute point. If China points to 5000 years of splendid and uninterrupted history, why bother with 60 years? But then again, it is hard to escape historical programming of the Chinese logic - where anniversaries are always political rather than national. Successive emperors refer to the years of their reign as a way of marking time. Successive regimes use different symbolic characters "hau" (standards or "call-sign"?) as the manifestation of personal power over the state (later they come to symbolize the respective dynasties). In fact, in the ancient time, thats the first thing rebels change to signify taking charge. So the logic of celebrating the anniversary of the new government on 1 October 1949 is that of a political celebration rather than a national celebration. But in China, this logic is accepted. Likewise, it will also be a political celebration when Taiwan ROC (which sometimes still uses the anarchronistic min guo calendar) celebrates the Centennary of the 1911 revolution in 2 years time.
But I have no doubt in my mind that the real celebration is China's breathtaking renaissance as a nation. That is a celebration that takes place each and every day by hundreds of millions of ordinary Chinese as they head for university, change a job, expecting to live to old age, make a phone call, experiencing a nation at peace, take a train, get on the internet, go shopping, go out when they feel like it, learn about the world, understanding the world of science not super-natural, think about a foreign holiday, having choices in life or simply fall in love or getting divorced; seemingly simple acts that represent social progress, economic prosperity and personal liberty that is unprecedented to the lao bai xing, the ordinary Chinese people.
In my view, its is not usual for China to be a world power or to be wealthy and held in awe by the world. In fact, that has been the case throughout history for most of its existance. What is unusual is the level of progress that actually uplifted the lives of the Chinese people as individuals. So a bigger and more important celebration this year, in my view, is the 30th anniversary of the reform and opening up era.
While much of China's progress is new, and the uplifting of the common people is new but China's many demons are old and there are many. Life in China today is sometimes still fraught with injustice, corruption, ignorance, poverty and hardship, capricious officialdom and authoritarianism in its many guises. Everyday perils that bedevil the Chinese people like its many natural disasters since the dawn of history.
Yes, it is impressive for China to go through 200 years of industrial revolution within less than 50 years (1o years between 1870-1930, 5 years in the 1930s, 5 years in the 1950s and 30 years since 1979). But it would be far more impressive if it manages to compress the transformation from a medieval society to a modern society - what took Europe 400 years - within that same time. Well, the jury is still out. In many ways, China may need some time yet to be a modern nation. The process is still ongoing and, judging by the changes in the past 15 years, accelerating and mostly in a positive direction.
While much of China's progress is new, and the uplifting of the common people is new but China's many demons are old and there are many. Life in China today is sometimes still fraught with injustice, corruption, ignorance, poverty and hardship, capricious officialdom and authoritarianism in its many guises. Everyday perils that bedevil the Chinese people like its many natural disasters since the dawn of history.
Yes, it is impressive for China to go through 200 years of industrial revolution within less than 50 years (1o years between 1870-1930, 5 years in the 1930s, 5 years in the 1950s and 30 years since 1979). But it would be far more impressive if it manages to compress the transformation from a medieval society to a modern society - what took Europe 400 years - within that same time. Well, the jury is still out. In many ways, China may need some time yet to be a modern nation. The process is still ongoing and, judging by the changes in the past 15 years, accelerating and mostly in a positive direction.
Of course, much of the credit for the transformation goes to the ordinary Chinese people, whose resilience, tolerance for suffering and deprivation, resourcefulness, industry and intellect ... that are anything but ordinary.
However, the CCP can also claim a lot of credit for this because of - or in spite of - the changes it made to China in the first 30 years of its rule. One can never begrudge history. Without its yesterdays China may never have its today and what it can become tomorrow.
Perhaps it could be said that China would have succeeded anyhow, as unlikely as it may seem, under an Imperial Manchu government or as part of Imperial Japan or under any number of wanna-be overlords; or more likely - under KMT's Republic of China. It could even happen earlier or better or with less suffering and bloodshed. Equally, things could actually be even worse. China might not have risen by 2009 under any of those scenarios. Nothing come from nothing - so just may be - none of these will happen without the sufferings that the people have gone through. The real legacies even of mistakes may never be understood until many more years has passed. One will never know.
It is hard to imagine what it was like for the Chinese people in 1949. But I imagine that in people's hearts are wishes for "simple" things like: food, peace, functioning society, order, education and that their loved ones will be safe. One should not forget the fundamentals.
I imagine a set of parents and children being given a choice on September 30, 1949 that their grand-children and great-grand children will have a future like today - but the price is that everyone in that every one of them will have to go through the tragedies of the first 30 years. I suspect, exhausted by a fate their have no control over and out of self-sacrificing long term thinking they will probably grit their teeth and take it. But as practical minded Chinese, they would laugh at what people say about 2009 as fairy tales that could never happen.
There lies the irony of today's celebration. China has achieved the unimaginable but it still saddens me to think of how China had to sink even lower due to its own mistakes just to rise again.
4 comments:
Happy 60th Anniversary to the Chinese People!
I have to admit that this is the first time I watched Chinese National Day live on TV. It is partly because I happen to be in Asia as well as my Chinese relatives were visiting. They have been waiting for the 10am opening ceremony since 7am. At 10 am on TV(finally,) I saw Premier Hu standing behind a slow riding Jeep shouting repeatedly “ Comrade, you have worked hard!” in his monotonous voice as he ride through rows and rows of Chinese soldiers or may better be known as Chinese Liberation Army.
I can’t help but mocked at this communist era National day display to the whole world in 2009. Why the scrupulously dressed soldiers with almost the same facial features? It made me laughed at the thought of introducing face-recognition software to locate criminals in China….
Later, the parade of tankers, airplanes grossed me out. Is this what the Chinese people are proud of? Ostentatiously displaying their ability to destroy the world? Perhaps they are still living in the shadow of old China….
Hello Anonymous,
This Blog believes in freedom of speech.
Please reflect upon your comment on PLA soldiers with almost the same facial features. That is really smack of racism.
In China, as in most countries, military is one of the more conservative elements. Hence I am not surprised at the "retro" approach.
The idea of a military parade itself is often no longer how modern countries celebrate its anniversaries any longer - with the exception of our French friends on Bastille day.
But the PRC has a tradition of holding military parades on major anniversaries - on the 35th year, 50th year and now 69th year. It was inconvenient to say the least to celebrate the 40th year - 4 months after Tiananmen. The idea was "qiang bing fu guo - strong military prosperous nation". As a show for the pride of the Chinese people its a hit going by the ratings. So who's really complaining?
Speaking of facial features - if one cannot tell others apart, blame it on the lack of skill and ability. And that in turn should be blamed on a lack of curiousity and ignorance. I confess to have difficulty telling Africans apart but that was before I get to know Africans as persons rather than as a generality. Now I can tell my friends apart without trouble, even to roughly guess which part of the continent they come from. The lack of skills is forgivable but lack of curiousity and ignorance is a personal tragedy but to be prideful in mockery - in my opinion, that's just poor taste.
Post a Comment