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Category: East Asia
State-funded film set during Indochina war attracts surprising interest
A state-funded film about a 1947 battle between French troops and Vietnamese resistance forces has attracted a surprising level of interest from theatergoers who have lined up to watch the movie and requested a wider distribution. “Dao, Pho va Piano” – or “Peach, Pho and Piano” in English (with pho referring to the famous Vietnamese noodles) – was released on Feb. 10, the first day of Tet, the Vietnamese Lunar New Year holiday. Vietnam’s government often uses the state budget to fund films about historical topics for propaganda purposes. But those movies often fail to attract viewers and are usually pulled from theaters after a short run. They sometimes later air on state television. Despite little advertising, word got out on social media that the film was worth watching. Last week, ticket requests crashed the website of Hanoi’s National Cinema Center and long lines were seen outside a Ho Chi Minh City theater. Battle of Hanoi The movie is set during the final days of the Battle of Hanoi, the first battle of the First Indochina War fought between the French and the Viet Minh, an independence-seeking coalition led by Vietnamese Communists. A key scene in the movie shows a barricade in Hanoi’s ancient quarter where Vietnamese militiamen use lunge mines – a type of suicide bomb used against tanks – to resist an attack by French forces. The self-sacrifice allowed Viet Minh units to withdraw from the city to a region north of Hanoi, where they regrouped and later defeated the French. A scene in the film “Dao, Pho and Piano.” (Thanhuytphcm) The film’s director, Phi Tien Son, noted that Vietnam has produced a dearth of good historical films over the years. “The country’s cinema industry still owes the audience a lot regarding films about historical topics,” he told Vietnam Television. “I hope my colleagues will gradually pay that debt in the coming time.” Hanoi resident Nguyen Hoang Anh said the movie does a nice job of depicting the elegant, tragic and romantic characteristics of living in Hanoi in the 1940s. But there are unrealistic battle scenes, some over-the-top theatrical dialogue and many illogical details, she told Radio Free Asia. The filmmakers should have made it clear that the story was a fictional reenactment of an historical event, she said. “What worried me is that the film made viewers wrongly think that the French planned to kill all residents and whoever stayed back [in Hanoi] would die,” she said. “My family – both my mother’s and father’s sides – lived through that time in Hanoi,” she said. “In fact, there were options for those who decided to stay or leave.” Wider screenings The government spent 20 billion dong (US$812,000) to make the film, but didn’t allocate much funding for advertising or distribution, according to the state-affiliated VietNamNet, one of the country’s largest news portals. In response to demand, the few theaters showing the movie have increased the number of screenings from three times per day to 15 daily, according to state media. As of Feb. 20, it has generated a revenue of more than 1 billion dong (US$40,600) – a surprising amount for a government-funded historical film. Last week, distribution company BETA Media agreed to show the movie in theaters nationwide, the head of Vietnam’s Cinema Department, Vi Kien Thanh, told VietNamNet. Translated by Anna Vu. Edited by Matt Reed and Malcolm Foster.
Ford vans seen in Kim Jong Un’s entourage
North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency released at least two photos of vans used in Kim Jong Un’s motorcade that appeared to be made by Ford Motor Co., suggesting that Pyongyang has again evaded U.N. sanctions. One Feb. 29 photo of a groundbreaking ceremony shows Kim walking on a red carpet lined with soldiers at attention with the black passenger vans in the background. Another shows the four of the vans bearing the Ford logo on the front driving behind a luxury black sedan. The vehicles appear to be fourth generation Ford Transit vans that have been manufactured in North America since 2021. The photos didn’t show any passengers in the vans. A 2013 U.N. sanctions resolution bans the import of luxury cars into North Korea. Another U.N. resolution in 2017 banned the import of all means of transportation. But it’s widely believed that luxury goods are still being smuggled into North Korea. Two black Ford Transit vans are seen in the background during North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s visit to air force headquarters on Dec. 1, 2023. (KCNA) T.R. Reid, director of corporate and public policy communications for Ford, told Radio Free Asia that Ford “fully complies” with sanctions against North Korea and other countries, and “doesn’t provide products or services in, to or through agents of the country.” “How these vehicles were procured for use in and brought to North Korea is unknown,” he said. In January 2023, a vehicle presumed to be a Mercedes-Benz Maybach GLS 600 belonging to Kim was revealed in images from North Korea’s Korean Central Television. And at the end of last year, Kim and other top North Korean officials were seen arriving at Party Central Committee headquarters in a Mercedes-Benz S-Class car. Allowing the Ford vans to be photographed was a demonstration by Kim that he can still access luxury items from all over the world, said Bruce Bennett, a senior researcher at the Rand Institute. “American things like a Ford. German things, like a Mercedes,” he said. “He’s basically demonstrating his power and access that his people can get around all of these sanctions.” Translated by Jisoo Kim. Edited by Matt Reed and Malcolm Foster.
Burmese city of Mongmit left ravaged after months of battles
Months of intense battles between anti-junta groups and junta forces have ravaged the city of Mongmit in Myanmar’s Shan state, resulting in widespread displacement, lootings and arson, according to locals. Currently under junta control, the city was once a battleground where the Three Brotherhood Alliance clashed with junta forces. A ceasefire between the two, mediated by China, was established on Jan. 11, but battles persisted with the Kachin Independence Army, which did not partake in the ceasefire agreement. After launching attacks on Jan. 18, the KIA, in alliance with the All Burma Students’ Democratic Front and People’s Defense Forces, temporarily took over the city, residents told Radio Free Asia on Friday. However, on Jan. 29, the junta forces recaptured the city through a fierce counterattack involving airstrikes and heavy artillery. This offensive led to the destruction of over 200 buildings, including key structures like the market, monasteries, and a school, as well as 100 residential homes. In this tumultuous period, close to 10,000 inhabitants evacuated the city, abandoning their homes and businesses for extended durations. The resulting void has triggered a wave of robberies throughout the urban neighborhoods, according to locals. The Kachin Independence Army joint forces and the military junta fought in Mongmit city in northern Shan state on Jan. 28, 2024. (Citizen journalist) A resident, among those who have returned to the city, told RFA that he saw a group of people holding sticks and swords looting houses. “They took everything without leaving anything behind. It was a group of people in plain clothes and most of them were criminals in the past,” said the resident who wished to remain anonymous for security reasons. “They did not even leave the fence door. They took it away and no one dared to say anything. Then they burned homes. It’s already like a ruined city.” Another woman from Mongmit said that nearly all the shops in the city had been looted, including her own. “Our shop has been looted and there is nothing left, just like every shop in the city now. It was broken into and our goods were stolen,” she said, declining to be identified for fear of reprisals. “It’s worse where there are no people now, some of them are returning to the city.” Mongmit and its neighboring city Mabein have been under martial law since Wednesday. Shan state’s junta spokesperson, Khun Thein Maung, did not respond to RFA’s inquiries. According to the Shan Human Rights Foundation’s statement on Tuesday, a total of 27 civilians were killed by heavy artillery and airstrikes from Jan. 1 to Feb. 2, including two mass killings. Translated by RFA Burmese. Edited by Taejun Kang.
Exclusive: Kim Jong Un is now ‘Great Comrade,’ no longer ‘Great Leader’
North Korea’s supreme leader Kim Jong Un has received a new title, “Great Comrade,” signaling that the leadership wants to emphasize his achievements over his predecessors, father Kim Jong Il and grandfather Kim Il Sung, residents told Radio Free Asia. The shift from “Great Leader” to “Great Comrade” occurred sometime this month, as the country circulated a five-point oath – shared exclusively with RFA Korean – that must be sworn by all North Koreans to pledge their loyalty. The oath, sent to all organizations and institutions in the country, is read by officials at various events, including holidays and national anniversaries, and repeated by the people, said a North Korean resident who requested anonymity for security reasons Each of the five parts of the oath contains the title “Great Comrade.” The promise commits the speaker to “support and defend” Kim Jong Un “politically and ideologically,” and pledges that they will remain “loyal and obedient” to his sole leadership “at all costs,” and will only follow the “Mt. Paektu bloodline,” which refers to the Kim Dynasty. National founder Kim Il Sung and the ruling Kim family is said to have strong connections to Mt. Paektu, the tallest mountain on the Korean peninsula and a sacred peak in Korean mythology. The oath goes on to say the speaker is armed with the “revolutionary ideology of Great Comrade Kim Jong Un” and commits them to “vigorously participate in the construction of socialism,” and fight against anti-socialism. It concludes by pledging to dedication “to the final victory of the Juche revolution and National Unification.” Juche is North Korea’s founding ideology of self-reliance. Elevating his status The five points are preceded by a singular statement about working towards the socialist theory known as “Great Kimilsungism-Kimjongilism” – but after that, neither Kim’s father nor grandfather are mentioned. The lack of emphasis on Kim’s predecessors suggests that the government wants to elevate his status above them, according to Jiro Ishimaru of the Osaka-based Asia Press, a news outlet that specializes in North Korea. The cover of the oath administered to all North Korean residents. (RFA) “In the past there were consistent messages saying that we should not forget the leadership of Grand Marshal Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il and carry out their instructions,” Ishimaru said. “But in this oath, these messages have almost disappeared. It refers to ‘Great Comrade Kim Jong Un’ and only mentions that Kimilsungism–Kimjongilism is to be maintained,” he said. “It certainly seems like a lot has changed.” The new oath places unique emphasis on Kim Jong Un, whereas previously the government included adherence to the ideologies of the predecessors to project a sense of continuity to enhance the perception of his legitimacy, Cheong Seong-chang, the director of the Center for Korean Peninsula Strategy at the Sejong Institute, told RFA. “In the past, they expressed their stance to inherit the ideology and policies of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il. But there are many differences between Kim Il Sung-Kim Jong Il’s policies and Kim Jong Un’s policies,” he said. “This oath basically puts Kim Jong Un’s instructions and guidance forward as the absolute standard. So, it seems that Kim Jong Un’s leadership is firmly rooted now.” Dropping national unification Recently, the North Korean government has reversed its official stance on reunification, and no longer considers it a priority. This makes the fifth clause of the oath, which mentions national unification, obsolete. Experts therefore believe that this oath was written in 2021 or earlier. A resident of North Korea who requested anonymity for safety reasons said that instructions were given to officials to skip the part about national unification when reading the oath. Experts expect that a revised version of this oath will be circulated soon to reflect the shift away from the South, which in recent months North Korea has defined as its “primary enemy.” Additionally, Pyongyang has ended economic cooperation with Seoul, and has stopped using language that considers Koreans on both sides of the DMZ as belonging to the same race of people. Translated by Claire Lee. Edited by Eugene Whong and Malcolm Foster.
Tibetans in India march in solidarity with those arrested in dam protest in China
Tibetans and Buddhist leaders in northern India on Wednesday participated in a march to show their solidarity with Tibetans in southwestern China’s Sichuan province arrested for peacefully protesting the planned construction of a dam. Similar solidarity rallies were held in London and other cities the same day. The large Buddhist community in Ladakh – in Jammu and Kashmir – expressed concerns that the dam project will submerge several significant monasteries with ancient murals that date back to the 13th century. The Regional Tibetan Youth Congress, which organized the march and rally, said Buddhists there were concerned about the humanitarian situation and the violation of cultural and religious rights stemming from the expected impact of the dam on several monasteries and villages near the Drichu River. On Feb. 23, police arrested more than 1,000 Tibetans, including monks and residents, of Dege county in Sichuan’s Kardze Autonomous Tibetan Prefecture, who had been protesting the construction of the Gangtuo Dam, meant to generate electricity. If built, the power station could submerge monasteries in Dege’s Wangbuding township and force residents of at least two villages near the Drichu River to relocate, sources told RFA. Rigzin Dorjey, president of the youth wing of the Ladakh Buddhist Association Leh, said there is an urgent need to address the ongoing human rights abuses and environmental destruction perpetrated by China’s communist government. He underscored the interconnectedness of global Buddhist communities and the shared responsibility to stand in solidarity with Tibetans in their struggle for justice, freedom and dignity. ‘Collective commitment’ Lobsang Tsering, vice president of the Regional Tibetan Youth Congress of Ladakh, said the rally serves as “an expression of solidarity and support for Tibetans facing challenges and oppression in Dege county.” “It symbolizes a collective commitment to standing up against oppression, promoting human rights and preserving Tibetan culture and identity in the face of adversity,” Tsering said. Tenzin Peldon, who participated in the march in Ladakh said while Tibetans everywhere usually gather to raise their voices against China on politically significant dates such as March 10, known as Tibetan Uprising Day – which commemorates the thousands of lives lost in the 1959 uprising against China’s invasion and occupation of their homeland – it is crucial that they come together during dire situations like the one being faced by Tibetans in Dege to collectively speak up against China’s oppression. “I urge all Tibetans in exile not to give up hope and to continue to raise awareness on online platforms about the plight of Tibetans in Dege county,” she said. Other protests were held in Bir village and Clement town in India, and in London, where Tibetans demonstrated outside the Chinese Embassy to show their support for the Dege county protesters, demand the release of the detainees, and call for an immediate halt to the dam construction. “Risking arrest and torture, Tibetan residents of Kham Derge [Dege county] have shared images and videos of the protest with the outside world,” the Tibetan Community UK said in a statement. “They want the international community in the free world to know about their plight and to raise their voice.” Authorities released about 40 of the arrested monks on Feb. 26 and 27, RFA reported on Tuesday. Chinese authorities released about 20 monks each on Monday and Tuesday, said the sources who spoke on condition of anonymity for safety reasons. Also on Wednesday, Human Rights Watch called on Chinese authorities to immediately release the detained Tibetan monks. “The Chinese authorities have long been hostile to public protests, but their response is especially brutal when the protests are by Tibetans and other ethnic groups,” said Maya Wang, the group’s acting China director, in a statement. “Other governments should press Beijing to free these protesters, who have been wrongfully detained for exercising their basic rights,” she said. Translated by Tenzin Dickyi and Tenzin Pema for RFA Tibetan. Additional reporting by Pelbar for RFA Tibetan. Edited by Roseanne Gerin and Malcolm Foster.
US official expresses concern over crackdown on Tibetans protesting dam
An American official expressed deep concern about the arrest of over 1,000 Tibetans protesting a dam project in central China that would destroy several Buddhist monasteries, saying the United States “stands with Tibetans in preserving their unique cultural, religious, and linguistic identity.” Tibetan advocacy groups condemned China’s actions, calling for the immediate release of those detained. On Feb. 23, police arrested more than 1,000 Tibetans, including monks and residents, in Dege county in Kardze Autonomous Tibetan Prefecture, who had been peacefully protesting against the dam, which would also force two villages to be relocated, sources told Radio Free Asia. Over the weekend, police began interrogations, beating some detainees so badly that they required medical attention, sources told RFA. Uzra Zeya, U.S. under secretary for civilian security, democracy and human rights and U.S. special coordinator for Tibetan Issues, said on X on Feb. 25 that she was deeply concerned by reports of the “mass arrests of Tibetans protesting the construction of a dam that threatens displacement of villages & destruction of monasteries.” “China must respect human rights & freedom of expression and include Tibetans in the development & implementation of water and land management policies,” she tweeted. “These centuries-old monasteries are home to hundreds of Tibetan Buddhist monks and contain irreplaceable cultural relics,” she wrote. “The U.S. stands with Tibetans in preserving their unique cultural, religious, and linguistic identity.” ‘Wiping out culture and religion’ The arrests “should be a reminder to the world of how brutal daily life under China’s occupation is for the Tibetan people,” a statement issued Monday on X from the International Campaign for Tibet by its president, Tencho Gyatso. “China tries to hide its forced relocation of Tibetans, its destruction of their environment, and its attempts to wipe out their culture and religion,” the statement said. Saying the protesters demonstrated “incredible courage,” Gyatso said they needed the support of the international community. “We call on the Chinese government to free these Tibetans at once,” she said. “We also call on the U.S. and other governments to step up pressure on China to end its vicious occupation of Tibet.” Chinese authorities arrest Tibetan monks during a protest against a dam project on the Drichu River in Dege county, southwestern China’s Sichuan province, Feb. 22, 2024. (Image from citizen journalist video) Four Tibetan NGOs based in Dharamsala, India, home to the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, issued a statement of solidarity with the Tibetan community in Dege county. They said that the displacement of Tibetan communities is “not new phenomena,” just one of many examples. “The continued disregard for the rights and well-being of Tibetans in the face of such development projects is unacceptable and demands immediate attention from the international community,” said the statement by the Tibetan Women’s Association, National Democratic Party of Tibet, Regional Tibetan Youth Congress and Students for a Free Tibet. Environmental disruption The four groups went on to say that the construction of the dam not only threatens the local Tibetan community but also poses a risk to the fragile ecosystem of the Tibetan plateau. “Any disruption to Tibet’s rivers and a diversion of the rivers could have far-reaching consequences for the environment, biodiversity, and livelihoods of millions of people downstream,” they said. William Nee, research and advocacy coordinator at Chinese Human Rights Defenders, or CHRD, told RFA that his organization was concerned about the situation of the detainees, whether they are being maltreated and if they have sufficient food. RFA reported earlier that authorities told those who were arrested to bring bedding and food, suggesting they would not be released soon. CHRD was also concerned whether authorities were giving those arrested access to relatives and lawyers, and whether they were being detained according to Chinese Criminal Procedure Law. “But beyond that, there are also concerns about the livelihood of the potentially affected communities by the dam and whether this has been taken into consideration,” Nee said. “And also the cultural rights, given that this might impact monasteries – some having ancient murals going back to the 13th century.” Khenpo Sonam Tenphel, speaker of the Tibetan parliament-in-exile, tweeted on X that Tibetans worldwide condemned the crackdown. “We urge China to promptly release those detained and to cease the dam construction,” he tweeted. “It is crucial for China to acknowledge the peaceful protests of Tibetans, addressing their concerns about preserving historic monasteries and safeguarding their homes.” Translated and edited by Tenzin Pema. Edited by Roseanne Gerin and Malcolm Foster.
Six-day battle in central Myanmar kills 7 civilians
Ongoing junta shelling across central Myanmar has killed seven civilians as of Monday, locals told Radio Free Asia. Battles began last Wednesday when anti-junta forces in China state attacked the junta troops in the state’s Tedim township, in Khaikam city near the border with Kale township. Kale township of Sagaing region has been the site of other junta attacks in the last few months. On Wednesday, a drone crash, perceived by locals to be an accident, injured 13 children when the drone’s explosives detonated over a village monastery. In September, four family members died when a junta shell exploded on their home in the township. A Kale resident who wished to remain anonymous for security reasons told RFA Monday that seven people were killed by heavy artillery in other neighborhoods of Kale city, the capital of Kale township, but the whereabouts of the other six have not been identified yet, as the fighting is ongoing. “One was killed and one was injured on Feb. 25. Now people in Sin Ywar neighborhood have also fled to safety,” said the resident. “Many homes were damaged due to the military junta’s shelling and many people were injured.” All the victims were from Kale city, the resident added. The extent of civilian and soldier injuries is still unknown at this time. Roughly 5,000 residents of Kale city have fled to safety, according to aid workers assisting internally displaced people. Kale city became the first to resist the February 2021 military coup in May, with civilians arming themselves with age-old Tumee rifles. This mobilization came in the wake of one of the deadliest single-day massacres, with junta troops killing 110 people across the nation on March 27, 2021. According to Myanmar’s 2019 General Administration Department statistics, Kale township is home to more than 340,000, of whom almost half are ethnic Chins. Translated by RFA Burmese. Edited by Taejun Kang.
Vacation is over for Cambodian strongman Hun Sen
Every politician, especially one whose chokehold over a country lasted nearly four decades, needs some time off. Hun Sen, who handed over the prime ministership of Cambodia to his eldest son last summer, has had his feet up for the past seven months. Not that he’s been idle; he’s still president of the ruling party and head of the King’s Privy Council, and has occasionally intervened to publicly chide his son for some mistakes. But after the Senate elections on Feb. 25, he’ll be coronated as the new Senate president. The position will make him acting head of state when King Norodom Sihamoni is out of the country, as he often is for health checkups in China. With Cambodia now a Hun family fiefdom, you’ll have Prime Minister Hun Manet as head of government and Hun Sen as de-facto head of state. What does it matter, you may ask, since Hun Sen is already all powerful? But the question contains the answer. Clearly, Hun Sen doesn’t think of himself that way or else why would he want the Senate presidency? Indeed, he stated on the day that he resigned as prime minister last July that he would become Senate president, so clearly this had been decided when the ruling party was crossing the T’s on its vast succession plan in 2021 and 2022. Moreover, it’s not a risk-free move. It means the current Senate president, Say Chhum, has to retire. This has the added benefit of pensioning off another graying ruling party grandee and one who some think controls a rival faction within the party. Say Chhum had agreed to resign last year, perhaps safe in the knowledge that his family’s patronage networks are now in the hands of his son Say Sam Al, the land management minister. But for those in the party (and there are some) angry that the CPP has become a family-run affair, the Hun duo as heads of government and state won’t sit well. Hun Sen stated last July during his resignation speech that by becoming Senate president, “I will not intrude into the responsibilities of the new prime minister,” but it certainly appears that may to some. Cambodia’s Prime Minister-designate Hun Manet, center, and incoming cabinet members pose for a group photo at the headquarters of the Cambodian People’s Party in Phnom Penh, Aug. 10, 2023. (Kok Ky/Cambodia’s Government Cabinet via AFP) Moreover, it seemingly goes against the spirit of the party’s generational succession scheme in which the aging “first generation” CPP leaders (Hun Sen included) were supposed to retire from frontline politics and give formal powers to the “second generation”, even if the elders still called the shots behind the scenes. So why not give the Senate presidency to a younger, “second generation” politician? Given that the CPP took years to meticulously plot this succession process – so it cannot be that they were stuck in making a decision about who would become Senate president and Hun Sen was the easiest option to fill the void – the only logical conclusion is that Hun Sen wants the Senate presidency because he thinks he needs it. First, it will allow him to travel abroad on state visits or welcome visiting leaders in an official capacity, which he hasn’t been able to do since August. Despite having been the world’s longest-serving head of government, he never gained acceptance as a world’s statesman, certainly not one spoken of with the same reverence as Lee Kwan Yew of Singapore. The Senate presidency might give him another decade or so to attempt to claim such a mantle. Second, according to some, it gives him official diplomatic immunity, which may come in handy at some point in the future. Third, and while one ordinarily ought to avoid psychoanalyzing politicians, it’s probable that Hun Sen detests being away from frontline politics and not being able to make public displays of his power, so maybe it’s the case that he is taking the Senate presidency simply because he can. Institutional capture Now 71, he has been a senior politician since the age of 27, and he never seemed the type to enjoy retirement nor to shy away from publicity. Hun Sen is never happier than when delivering a three-hour monologue to a crowd of bussed-in workers. But he’s had few opportunities to do so since August, although that’s partly because he has wanted to give his son the limelight. As Senate president, he will have a captive audience (in more ways than one) again. Fourth, and perhaps most importantly, the Senate presidency gives him yet more institutional power to intervene if something was to go wrong with his son’s government – or, indeed, if there was ever a putschist attempt against Hun Manet. Remember that Hun Sen has repeatedly said he would return as prime minister if any major crisis befouled the government; the insinuation being that his vacation from the premiership may be temporary. For the best part of a decade, the Hun family has been on a long march through the institutions, wary that some of its rivals may also be on their own such project. Today, he has the King’s ear as head of the Supreme Privy Advisory Council. He controls the powerful but unruly (and quick to disgruntlement) business tycoons, the oknha, as president of the newly-formed Cambodian Oknha Association. He’s also president of some other CPP-linked “uncivil society” groups. Through constitutional reforms in 2022, he greatly weakened the power of the National Assembly to reprimand ministers or the prime minister, and in 2023 he helped make the loyal but politically weak Khuon Sudary the new president of the lower chamber of parliament. These steps gave even more power to the CPP over personnel choices. Cambodian People’s Party President Hun Sen, left, addresses supporters in Phnom Penh as his son Prime Minister Hun Manet, right, listens during a ceremony marking the 45th anniversary of the fall of the Khmer Rouge regime, Jan. 7, 2024. (Tang Chhin…
China’s diplomatic reach dominated global index
China has the world’s farthest-reaching diplomatic network, according to a new study, closely followed by the United States. It has a bigger diplomatic footprint than its larger economic rival in Africa, East Asia and the Pacific islands, according to the Lowy Institute’s 2024 Global Diplomacy Index released Sunday. It also has a bigger presence in East Asia, following the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. Washington’s reach is more extensive in Europe, North and Central America and South Asia, with the same number of diplomatic posts as Beijing in the Middle East and South America, the survey found. China’s expansion has come at the expense of Taiwan, as China courts lower income nations with offers of infrastructure, economic and administrative assistance. In January, Nauru switched diplomatic allegiance from Taipei to Beijing. The move by the tiny Pacific country reduced Taiwan’s diplomatic allies to 12 nations, including the Vatican, Paraguay and Eswatini. The index showed a rapid growth in diplomatic missions in the Pacific islands, seen as key geopolitical allies by the world’s two leading superpowers. “The Global Diplomacy Index shows that governments continue to invest in diplomacy to project power and achieve their interests,” said Ryan Neelam, the director of the Public Opinion and Foreign Policy Program at the Lowy Institute. “The ongoing rivalry between the United States and China is reflected in the superpowers’ dominance in the 2024 rankings, while geopolitical competition has propelled Asia and the Pacific into focus.” The index was launched in 2016. This year, it covers the diplomatic networks of 66 countries and territories in Asia, the Group of 20 nations and members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Data was collected between July and November last year. Edited by Taejun Kang.
INTERVIEW: How the West has been misreading China for years
Frank Dikötter, author of the “People’s Trilogy” about China under of Mao Zedong, has been chair professor of humanities at the University of Hong Kong since 2006. He recently published “China After Mao,” in which he argues that claims that the Chinese Communist Party has significantly changed direction in the post-Mao era are a misreading by those outside the country who “live in a fantasy world.” He told RFA Mandarin in a recent interview that Chinese leaders have been very consistent in their messaging on political reform, and their economic goals and determination to maintain their dictatorship at all costs. The interview has been edited for length and clarity. RFA: What is the difference between the Mao era and the post-Mao era? Dikötter: So, what have [Chinese leaders] been telling us? A very simple story: China is in the process of “reform and opening up.” So, there will be economic progress, and with economic change there will be political progress. China will become first a capitalist country and then a democracy. Of course, what has happened is the exact opposite. If you read the documentation carefully, you find out that never at any one point did Deng Xiaoping, Hu Yaobang, Zhao Ziyang, Jiang Zemin, all the way up to today, never did a single leader ever say, “We want a capitalist system.” They all said the exact opposite, that they would uphold the socialist road. It is in the Constitution. People take pictures in front of portraits of, from left, the late Chinese chairman Mao Zedong and former Chinese leaders Deng Xiaoping, Jiang Zemin, Hu Jintao and current president Xi Jinping at an exhibition in Beijing, Sept. 26, 2019. (Wang Zhao/AFP) All along, they were very clear about what they wanted. They wanted to reinforce the socialist economy. So what is a socialist economy? [It’s] not necessarily something that you have under Mao. A socialist economy is one where the state has or controls the means of production. Money, labor, fertilizer, energy, transportation, all these are the means of production. They all belonged to the state. Today the money belongs to state banks. The land belongs to the state. Energy is controlled by the state. Large enterprises are controlled by the state. That was their goal, and they achieved it. Workers are seen near pumpjacks at a China National Petroleum Corp oil field in Bayingol in northwestern China’s Xinjiang region, Aug. 7, 2019. (Reuters) The second point is democratization. At no point did anyone say they wanted to have a separation of powers. On the contrary, Zhao Ziyang said very clearly back in 1987 that China would never have the separation of powers. Xi Jinping also made that very clear. But nobody in the West heard them, because they didn’t want to hear it. RFA: Has everyone misjudged the Chinese Communist Party? Dikötter: There is a profound failure on the part of a great many people, politicians, experts and scholars outside China to simply listen to what all of these leaders said very clearly and also to read and understand what’s been happening. The failure is reasonably straightforward. It is a refusal to believe that a communist — a Chinese communist — is a communist. Delegates attend the closing ceremony of the 20th Chinese Communist Party’s Congress at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Oct. 22, 2022. (Noel Celis/AFP) The truth is that the origins of the People’s Republic of China are not in the Tang Dynasty, not in the Song Dynasty, not in the Ming or the Qing. They are in 1917, when Vladimir Lenin seizes power and establishes a communist system. That is what inspired China after 1949. That was the system behind it. So, if you do not understand that China is communist, if you keep on saying it’s not really communist, that they pretend to be communist, you will never understand anything. RFA: Will China ever have a true democracy? Dikötter: In the People’s Republic, you have a dictatorship, but they call themselves a democracy. They have no elections, but they say they have free elections. So what is an election in the People’s Republic? If you vote for the person they tell you to vote for. They give you a list one, two, three names. You can you can pick one of these three. That’s it. That’s an election. People walk along a street in the Dongcheng district of Beijing, Dec. 3, 2023. (Pedro Pardo/ AFP) RFA: You devote an entire chapter in your book to the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989, but you don’t go into the rights and wrongs of it. Why not? Dikötter: The Tiananmen massacre is … the most important moment after 1976. The 200 Chinese tanks that entered Beijing in June 1989 crushed Chinese people. That’s really quite extraordinary. It’s important because it shows that the party had an iron determination to retain its monopoly on power. RFA: Do you believe that the Chinese people want democracy? Dikötter: Nobody knows what people in China want, for a very simple reason — they can’t vote. … If you do not have freedom of expression, if you cannot express your opinion at the ballot box, then we simply don’t know. You don’t know what people think in a dictatorship. But it’s probably safe to assume that a system based on the separation of powers, including freedom of the press and a solid judicial system, would probably be beneficial, for instance, for the economy. … This is basically a modern economic model based on debt. You spend to create the illusion of growth. Then you spend more. My feeling is that there may be people in the People’s Republic of China who are probably thinking about whether this is really a successful system or not. That’s all we can say. Police detain a person in downtown Hong Kong on the 34th anniversary of the 1989 Beijing’s Tiananmen Square crackdown, near where the candlelight vigil is usually held, June 4, 2023….
