China-Japan relationship over East China Sea (10-10-10)

With Fujita Corporation’s four Japanese workers released from detention two days ago, the hostage game between China and Japan has finally ended, which began with a Chinese trawler ramming into two Japanese patrol ships on September 8th.

Notwithstanding the upshot, the impact of the incident was heavy enough to keep Japan concerned about the whereabouts of the neighbor, like its military expansion, even more, as the world’s attention is paid to the country and Japanese broadcasters continue to provide issues about it.

Diplomacy and democracy are the key things China needs to better practice, to prove a global leader, though.

China is no longer considered an emerging economy, having taken over the world No. 2 economic status from Japan. China is already a major market, and the demand for appreciating the yuan is constant to make trade relations with other countries better balanced.

More and more Chinese are becoming global-minded and indeed going overseas. Meanwhile, it’s ideal for Japan to have a mutually beneficial partnership with China, as, although public concerns about it have been developed through the Senkaku (or Diaoyu in Chinese) islands issue and an incident in which toxin-spiked frozen dumplings imported from China were sold and consumed, the two neighboring countries have been building a better relationship as well.

Doubtless, there have been unwanted cases for Japan in its relationship with China, though, it’s also true that many Chinese expats in Japan are pretty friendly. While it’s telecast that there was a slew of cancellations of tour packages from China to Japan as a reaction against the detention of the trawler’s captain, according to my experience no Chinese resident in Japan has been blamed by Japanese. (In turn, if there are Japanese companies which position Chinese workers under exploitative conditions such as marginal wages, they should immediately address the situation.) When I was studying Mandarin, the cheerful atmosphere between the teachers and the students was identical to that in English classes. Indeed, despite intensified tensions between the two countries, mid- or upper-class Chinese tourists continue to come to Japan.

As long as China keeps showing economic growth, meanwhile, to see their military scaled up and strengthened may be normal. When the objectives of the military expansion are uncertain (about rightfulness, for example whether the forces are intended to fight the Taliban and/or Al Qaeda), surrounding countries have a fair reason to have reservations, though, China, with the renewal of the economic status and the recognition from the world, can and ought to be receptive to their opinions and avoid stoking their concerns. In the context, in the autonomy issue in Tibet for instance, China should not press its brutality on the weaker. Instead, China must recognize and practice the greater sense of responsibility and leadership, respecting the global perspective and standards.

Back to the trawler incident, what the crew insist is actually out of question. It’s insensible for China to claim the territorial right of the Senkaku islands, because according to what was telecast in the Japanese media, the territory has been under Japan’s authority since the Treaty of Peace with Japan was concluded in San Francisco in 1951.

To reinforce the credibility of this information, in the October 6th edition of the International Herald Tribune had an article on the matter, which read: The day Mr. Zhan [the trawler’s captain] returned to China, he said he planned to go back to the Diaoyu islands. About three years ago, an official document circulated in Shenhu County, where Mr. Zhan lives, telling fishermen not to go to the disputed waters, said Mr. Chen, an employee at a local information center. But there has been no such warning in recent years, he added. [what’s the significance of this quote vis-à-vis your thesis?]

If China’s military is a manifestation of cracking down on its citizens, censorship is the other. There is no way to credit Beijing as a global leader if it doesn’t allow its people broad access to world affairs.

Unfortunately, yet, China is much behind other developed countries in the area of providing citizens with the right to learn the facts, as Google, for instance, has moved its search engine to Hong Kong and the service is not accessible to ordinary Chinese.

Besides this fact, Beijing’s imprisoning one of the most influential dissidents against it, Mr. Liu, the Nobel Peace Prize winner, was also disappointing to the world. [or perhaps just US allies...?] Being aware of universal sentiments, Beijing must reconsider the manner of treating him.

It’s the colossal Communist Party which manages to bind its citizens. However, as of something seeming to be a watershed moment, China is asked which course it opts to take—toward either greater communism or greater democracy. To whatever extent Japan’s structure of democracy can be seen as demonstrative, there are items China with its people can take into account:


1. Openness to world information


It’s disappointing if the immediate shutting down of airing the nomination of Mr. Liu on the NHK (Japan’s semi-national broadcaster) TV news in the land of China is true, while Chinese tourists in Japan or some country else are free of the restriction.


2. Freedom of speech


3. The government’s heed to citizens


Under healthy democracy, people’s opinions should be reflected by the government.


4. Education


5. High Quality of Life (Q.O.L.)


Citizens in all social classes should ideally receive each decent set of those entitlements.


While being able to have a greater say, China sees its presence felt more than ever, as its compliance with universal norms is becoming more meaningful. If it chooses to become a country with greater democracy, it should definitely happen that its citizens are entitled to have larger freedom of thought and expression, and responsibility with a sense of independence.

The New York Times article on the Diaoyu islands dispute also read:

The Chinese Navy uses civilian vessels in several ways. One is to command militias consisting of fishing vessels. Another is to coordinate operations with five maritime law enforcement organizations similar to coast guards, most notably the Fisheries Law Enforcement Command, which is charged by the Agriculture Ministry with enforcing fishing bans and operates regularly in disputed waters. Some fisheries officials now go out on boats wearing uniforms and carrying firearms. [why is this quote important?]

Then, my question is: Which social class their soldiers and marines belong to in general?