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Leadership spelt with a 't'

By Brendan John Worrell (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2008-06-16 19:45

Some both home and abroad misunderstood the recent display of unity among Chinese, insinuating that China's leadership was exploiting the recent Sichuan quake, where almost 70,000 died and millions were made homeless.

The Economist last week wrote of populism and condescendingly pointed the finger at Premier Wen in an editorial titled, "Why Grandpa Wen has to care".

To be fair, it wasn't the Chinese media's construction of, "The cult of 'Grandpa' Wen," as the June 13 editorial put it. Rather it was coverage of a major disaster area, where a leader in his 60s, rushed to the scene, directed relief efforts around the clock and eased the suffering of many.

Wen made himself accountable and transparent. Traits westerners love to point their finger at when criticizing China. At times like this people need to be brought together. He helped do this.

Concerning leadership, readers of The Economist may benefit from a critique of their own PM and Gordon Brown's recent poor reception over the last 10 months. Or they may seek clarification on the more recent implosion of the opposition conservative Tory party.

Likewise when PM Brown canoodled with the Dalai Lama just weeks after doing business with Beijing – his integrity was open to question - though little reportage was granted here.

Leadership without the p and replaced with a t, spells and smells what British citizenry may be thinking of their men in charge - ever since Blair was hoodwinked into invading Iraq.

It may also be what media savvy consumers realize has been going on regarding recent reportage on the middle kingdom.

On May 15th, 3 days after the earthquake, The Economist ran a rather stinging piece "Flying the Flag", regarding China's quest to build regional air carriers which it called, "a recipe for wasting money", prophesizing Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China's chance at success as "dauntingly low".

A response from one of their readers recognized the irony, as the UK was also no stranger to state assistance when it came to their aviation industry and British Airways. The French governments nurturing of Airbus, and the US' promotion of Boeing as a national asset also warranted comparison, though absent in The Economist's article.

To be fair, the UK has an excellent tradition of robust journalism particularly in the realm of finance and politics. Globally, as in China, people look to the Times, the Guardian, the Financial Times and the BBC for balance - though they may be a little disappointed recently.

Rather than reacting to last week's Economist editorial or the other more woeful comments across the Atlantic by CNN's Jack Cafferty and his lax remarks about China's leadership, it is best to appreciate the context in which such comments are generated.

Such a landscape promotes criticism and demands that you 'take it on the chin'. The western tradition requires you present your side of the debate and 'give as good as you get'. This is considered fair game.

Now changes are afoot evidenced recently when Sharon Stone exposed her profound philosophy regarding karma and the death of innocents from the earthquake. The uproar generated among China's citizenry was eloquent and equal to the task.

China has been taking it on the chin for over a century and no longer has a glass jaw. Her people are starting to stand up and as we see today economically they are wielding some collective might. Culturally the people have been learning the English language for decades and are becoming more articulate and confident to present their side of reality. This needs to be appreciated. Traditionally it was less encouraged here to criticize authority or be too outward in expressions of emotion. But times are changing.

Call it populism, call it media manipulation, call it collective exasperation call it what you will. Joint grieving as seen last month in China may actually represent group therapy and from a social psychologists' perspective it isn't necessarily bad.

Perhaps more importantly the constant domestic media coverage served a greater purpose towards rallying the country and generating donations to those in need – perhaps something the Economist could have considered assisting appreciating their readerships' fiscal muscle.

Moreover, The Cult of Grandpa Wen, as perceived by some, lacks appreciation of this man's success as a leader over almost 3 decades of public service.

The majority of Chinese today seek stability and improvement in life outcomes and they have, in part, the present leadership to thank for this situation.

E-mail: brendanjohnworrell@hotmail.com