Discourse Power | October 26, 2022
Letting a hundred flowers bloom, a lesson in genetics, becoming one, and who run the world (Jews)
Greetings from Jerusalem,
We have just finished the High Holidays season and are entering the international conference month, so, unfortunately, I may have to skip a few issues come November. The good news is that there are two brand new Substacks you can check out in the interim:
The first is Middle Powers, a newsletter edited by Canadian journalists Lu Xu and Nebal Snan that curates news in Chinese, Arabic, and English about the world's smaller, and yet critical, countries caught between the Chinese rock and the American hard place.
The second is Thomas des Garets Geddes’ Sinification, which I featured earlier this week. He does fantastic work translating soundbites from leading Chinese commentators on current events.
Thank you for reading,
Tuvia
“Strive for international discourse power commensurate with our comprehensive national power and global standing”
In his Work Report to the 20th Party Congress last week, General Secretary Xi Jinping stated that by 2035, China will have "significantly enhanced its national soft power." From then on, the Party must "continue to work hard and build China into a great modern socialist country that leads the world in terms of composite national strength and international influence by the middle of the century."
More relevant quotes from Xi's Work Report (author’s translation):
“Part VIII: Boosting Cultural Confidence and Strength, and Securing New Successes in the Development of Socialist Culture
“We must develop socialist culture with Chinese characteristics if we are to create a modern socialist nation in every way; we will boost our cultural self-confidence, rally the people around the flag, win their hearts, educate the New Man, and rejuvenate our culture.
“Our endeavor must be better represented: a socialist cultural power 社会主义文化强国 in the making, a national, scientific, and people-oriented socialist culture, that is geared toward [socialist] modernization, the world, and the future. To bring about the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, encourage cultural innovation and creativity across the board, and boost our spiritual power 精神力量.
“When it comes to ideology, the central tenets of Marxism must serve as our compass 指导地位. We must remain committed to serving the people and the [great cause of] socialism.
“We must adhere to the principle of letting a hundred flowers bloom and a hundred schools of thought contend, as we shall insist on creative transformation 创造性转化 and innovation-driven development 创新性发展.
“The development of advanced socialist culture, the promotion of revolutionary culture, the dissemination of China’s excellent traditional culture 中华优秀传统文化, and the satisfaction of the people's expanding spiritual and cultural needs should all be carried out under the leadership of socialism and its core values.
“We shall consolidate a common ideological foundation for the united struggle 团结奋斗 of the Party and the nation, as we continuously improve our nation's cultural soft power and the influence of Chinese culture.
“(a) Forge a socialist ideology with the power to unite and lead - Ideological work is what forms the heart of the country and the soul of the nation 意识形态工作是为国家立心、为民族立魂的工作.
“We will consolidate the Party's leadership over ideological work, including the implementation of the Ideological Work Responsibility System 意识形态工作责任制. In addition, we will bolster the New Era’s public opinion and ideological mainstream 主流思想舆论. We must ensure the existence of a robust mechanism for arming the Party 武装全党, educating the people, and guiding their practice with the Party's innovative theories.
“We shall continue to carry out the Marxist Theory Research and Development Project 马克思主义理论研究和建设工程, as well as accelerate the development of a disciplinary system, academic system, and discourse system of philosophy and social sciences with Chinese characteristics [more on the Three Systems here].
“Similarly, we will cultivate and develop a pool of talents in philosophy and the social sciences. We need to strengthen the foundation of the Whole-of-Media Communication System approach 全媒体传播体系, so as to create a new framework for [shaping] mainstream public opinion.
“We shall facilitate the development of a healthy online environment 网络生态 and strengthen the comprehensive system of online governance 网络综合治理体系.
“(E) Expanding the reach and impact of Chinese civilization - We must uphold the international standing of Chinese culture by refining and showcasing the spiritual identity and cultural essence of the Chinese civilization;
“We must accelerate the development of Chinese discourse and narrative systems, effectively communicate the voice of China, and portray a credible, lovable, and respectable image of the country.
“Improve our ability to communicate internationally, boost the effectiveness of our global communication, and strive for international discourse power commensurate with our comprehensive national power and global standing; enhance mutual understanding and cultural exchange, and better represent Chinese culture around the world.” (CN transcript | EN via Nikkei)
“Only by increasing the communicability and influence of Chinese civilization will contemporary Chinese discourse spread and modern China's national image be reflected”
Following the 20th Party Congress, promoting the dissemination of traditional culture and the international propagation of Chinese culture, according to Professor Hu Yu, Dean of the School of Journalism and Communication at Tsinghua University, has become a strategic task for the nation.
Excerpts:
“Enhancing the impact and communicability of Chinese civilization in order to strengthen the influence of our international discourse power - The issue of international discourse power has become a major challenge in the process of adhering to the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics.
“Being able to match China's global prestige in relation to its contributions, cultural soft power, and hard power and development has become a mission of an era for modern China to fulfill. This task is mentioned in the report of the 20th Party Congress under the section "enhancing the influence of Chinese civilization," which emphasizes the significance of global communication from a civilizational perspective.
“It also underlines the importance of cultural communication in future external communication. To complete this epochal task, it is necessary to clearly explain the genetic code 基因密码 inherent in the path to socialism with Chinese characteristics, namely our excellent Chinese traditional culture 中华优秀传统文化, and to uncover and disseminate it in a straightforward and profound manner.
“When viewed in the context of cultural exchanges and development in the modern world, the phenomenon of "cultural deficit" faced by non-Western and developing countries, which is primarily due to Western centrism, remains very conspicuous.
“This causes issues such as "cognitive deficit" and "trust deficit." According to some French scholars, Europe has not been tolerant of other faiths since the fall of the Roman Empire, and it no longer tries to understand civilizations that are fundamentally different from its own.
“To overcome this ossified civilizational cognitive bias 僵化的文明认知偏见, we must spread Chinese civilization more widely. Only by increasing the communicability and influence of Chinese civilization will contemporary Chinese discourse spread and modern China's national image be reflected. It should be done as part of the process of promoting civilizational exchange and mutual understanding and of creating a world of cultural diversity.
“Enhancing the influence of Chinese civilization by going back to its foundations and exploring new avenues - As a large country with a 5,000-year history and one of the major cradles of human civilization, Chinese culture has always been the most profound bond that sustains the Chinese nation's survival and the most powerful engine that drives the Chinese nation's development.
“To be able to spread Chinese civilization, one must first study the origins and characteristics of Chinese civilization, as well as have a thorough understanding of the genes and concepts of Chinese civilization.” (Tsinghua News Network)
“Universal values are boring! It’s time to move on”
Media mogul and billionaire public intellectual Dr. Eric Li thinks that it’s high time for the world to do away with the Western-led "universal values" and adopt Chinese-promoted "common values of mankind."
On October 13, the Hong Kong-based Global Institute For Tomorrow (GIFT) think-tank founded by Malaysian businessman Chandran Nair, held an online conference titled “Finding Common Values: Plurality in the Emerging New World Order”.
Eric Li (Li Shimo) is chairman of Chengwei Capital and the founder of the popular nationalist media platform Guancha. He also serves as vice chairman of the China Forum at Tsinghua University and a trustee of Fudan University's China Institute headed by Zhang Weiwei.
There have long been attempts by China to redefine universal values. Nonetheless, a reminder was provided by the Sino-Russian Joint Statement on the Future of International Relations, signed by Putin and Xi three weeks before Russia invaded Ukraine.
Chinese thinkers hold that the West has taken advantage of the concept of universal human rights. They often add that the West uses its control over international discourse power to impose its own standards, laws, and norms on non-Western countries, either to remake them in their image or to hamper their development.
But not all “common values” that China promotes are created equal, as exemplified in General Secretary Xi Jinping’s work report to the 20th National Congress on October 16, for instance, Democracy: “Whole-process people's democracy is the defining feature of socialist democracy; it is democracy in its broadest, most genuine, and most effective form” [emph. added].
Paradoxically, PRC diplomats frequently recount how the universal values enshrined in the UN Charter and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights were not only supported but also drafted by the [Taiwanese] Chinese representative, Zhang Pengchun. This might be explained by claiming that the West has since appropriated and abused them.
Below is a full transcript of Eric Li’s address to GIFT on October 13, 2022:
“The word “universal” comes from the Greek word óynos and the Latin word unus; it means “one”. So, universal means all in one. It's a concept of singularity, and it's by definition, exclusionary, because there's only one and that one pertains to all, and there's nothing beyond that all.
“On the other hand, the word “common” comes from the Latin communis, which means “shared by all,” a “community shared by all”. It is about what we have in common, but it is not singular.
“There can be things that we do not share, things that differentiate us so by definition, it seems to be much more inclusive as a concept. We have common values, but we also accept and accommodate differences.
“Since the end of the Cold War, we've been dominated by the concept of universal values. Its advocates believe that when it comes to politics, economics, society, or even morality, there is only one set of values to adhere to, namely, liberal values. We all know what they are. I would argue that this idea that there's only one way to do things or even to think things is the cause of many failures in our world today.
“Take politics for example. I think it is clear that in today's world, we all want to be democratic; democracy is a “common” value, if you would. Yet, there have been strong forces that have been pushing the world to accepting and implementing [sic] only one kind of democracy, liberal democracy, democracy based on liberal values.
“If you look at all these organizations and measure and rank countries to show how democratic they are, like Freedom House, for instance - they rank everybody - they measure liberal procedures. Your people can be starving and miserable and have very low trust in political institutions, but if you follow liberal procedures, you're ranked higher.
“This is ridiculous, really. This has resulted in many developing countries, in particular establishing political institutions that are ill-suited for their democratic development. Furthermore, the arrogance of those who advocate universal values [has] been ruining liberal democracy itself on their home turfs.
“Let me use this opportunity to put out one idea for discussion. Maybe we can move beyond this universal idea about how to realize democratic politics and think about it based on common values instead.
“Perhaps we can begin to measure democracy based on “outcome”, not on “procedure”. Are people generally satisfied? Do they trust their political institutions are their lives getting better? Do they feel secure?
“Democratic outcomes are what we can all share in common. [The] kind of procedures and institutions we use to achieve democratic governance can and should differ based on different cultures and circumstances and values.
“So my final “commercial” for common values is this: It is by definition more interesting because accommodates differences. Who would want a world in which there is only one way? Universal values [are] boring! It's time to move on.” (Guancha)
“Soros is a key chess player for Jewish capital in its quest to control the world and engage in "color revolutions"
Apparently, you don't have to be a college dropout to become antisemitic. Consider Professor Qin Bo of the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China (UESTC) in Sichuan, who claims that firebrand billionaire activist Geroge Soros is the embodiment of the "sinister worldview of the Jewish merchant: an attempt to enslave and control the entire world."
For a largely balanced introduction to Soros and his “political philanthropy”, see Daniel Bessner's article. I also suggest listening to the man himself, in remarks he made earlier this year, in which he called Xi Jinping the "greatest threat that open societies face today."
Excerpts from Qin Bo’s screed, published on Friday:
I. “Soros is the flag bearer of subverting regimes around the world and destroying the world's diverse cultures”
“Soros is at the heart of an intricate and broad web of business interests. The sinister 邪恶 worldview of the Jewish merchant lies at the core of his philosophy: an attempt to enslave and control the entire world through a hierarchical and diverse "operating system".
“Soros founded the Open Society Foundation, which has affiliates in more than 70 nations and contributed to 527 political organizations in the years 2003 and 2004 alone.
“Soros' influence has long permeated many state institutions. The [former] executive director of the Open Society Georgia Foundation (Soros Foundation) is the secretary of the Georgian Security Council.
“Speaking about the color revolution [the Rose Revolution in 2003], former Georgian Foreign Minister Salome Zourabichvili stated that institutions like the Soros Foundation are the cradle of democratization and that all NGOs drawn to it are undoubtedly carrying out this revolution. She believes that after the revolution, the Soros Foundation and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) were integrated into the regime.
“Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan have both banned Soros' foundation. Soros's homeland, Hungary, declared him an enemy of the state. Macedonia has also stated its intention to oppose Soros. Furthermore, Soros supports separatist movements all over the world, including Kosovo, Cyprus, and Somaliland, to name a few. Soros has also worked to legalize drugs in the United States. Soros established a foundation in Ukraine in 2014 with the goal of turning the tables on Russia and Ukraine.
“Political correctness has been carved deep into the bones of the state apparatus in the United States by Jewish plutocratic forces 犹太财阀势力. You can criticize the president all you want in America because he is merely a tool for benighting 愚民 and entertaining 娱民 the masses. Any criticism of Soros, on the other hand, is immediately labeled as "racist."
“Additionally, Soros stands for the powerful Jewish interests that dominate US politics. Soros labels people everywhere because he wants to force the Jewish view of history on all people.
“Additionally, Soros wants every nation to submit to international organizations that he will define and control. The sovereignty of nations, in his words, "must be subordinated to international law and international institutions so long as there are collective interests that transcend national borders."“
II. “Soros has long infiltrated other nations and instigated "color revolutions" with the help of his affiliated institutions”
“Soros wants to see more countries give up their sovereignty, national identity, or borders. China, Russia, and North Korea are the only obstacles in his path. A number of "color revolutions" have occurred around the world, many of which were financed directly or indirectly by George Soros, implying that they were financed with taxpayer money.
“It is well known that non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have played an important role in the planning and carrying out "color revolutions" in several countries. The Soros Foundation is the most common example.
“Soros has actively participated in "color revolutions" and contributed to political turmoil in Central Asian countries, and this "financial predator" 金融大鳄 [lit., a giant financial crocodile] has become one of the iconic figures in America's involvement in infiltrating and subverting other countries' regimes and promoting nonviolent regime change.”
IV. “Main tactics used by the Soros Foundation for subversive actions”
“The first step is to lead the youth astray. The demagoguery of the Soros Foundation is subtle but pervasive. It prioritizes youth education and recreation in these countries, in addition to strengthening democracy, improving the rule of law, and funding the establishment of independent media.
“Second, it meddles in internal affairs [of sovereign states]. The Soros Foundation closely monitored domestic developments in these nations during the "color revolutions" and swiftly used a variety of communication channels, including the press and the Internet, to malign and distort 抹黑和歪曲 the image of the local governments and their political systems.
“Third, it funds and facilitates illegal political activities. Soros and his organization, in particular, excel at lurking in the shadows and planning for the long haul. Once their dormant period is over, they would use anything from elections and the rollout of new policies to a major public health emergency or public opinion crisis and the exploitation of ethnic tensions to compel and organize street protests in the country and promote "color revolutions."
“Fourth, Soros is skilled at gathering intelligence in illegal and gray areas. Soros and his subordinate organizations are highly skilled at conducting illegal and dubious intelligence-gathering operations, looking into and researching a wide range of topics including politics, the economy, the military, foreign policy, public opinion trends, and shifts in culture and ideology. This was their goal in Georgia, Ukraine, and Kyrgyzstan, as well as in writing reports for the US government.
“The fifth step is to sow ideological seeds through international study visits and study abroad programs. Soros has sponsored trips abroad to cultivate pro-Western forces among the social elite and young students, as well as to find agents to his liking 中意的代理人.
“In the sixth step, you put intense pressure on local governments. Typically, the Soros Foundation applies pressure to target countries on two fronts. On the one hand, Soros Foundation, as an international NGO, plays the public welfare card, and at this stage, it is often able to gain the trust and goodwill of the people and those who admire the West, and then use the power of the public, or so-called civil force 公民力量, to pressure local governments.
“On the other hand, the Soros Foundation also applies financial pressure. The nations where the "color revolutions" occurred are slow to develop and have premature social and economic structures; as a result, there may be a number of issues that prevent them from achieving their goal of reviving their own economies without outside help.”
V. “China is Soros's main target after the Soviet Union: The best examples are in Hong Kong, Tibet, and Huawei”
“Soros attempted to short-sell Hong Kong [starting in the 90s]. This was the opening salvo in his war with China.
“Soros had secretly funded the University of Hong Kong in order to turn it into a bridgehead for a "color revolution" [on the mainland].
“Of course, Soros is interested in both Hong Kong and Tibet.
“Likewise, Soros is very interested in Huawei.
“Soros has also targeted China's social credit system, which he believes threatens the claims advocated by his Open Society Fund.” (Kunlunce)
Playing in the Background
Speaking of color revolutions and universalism, here is Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan in a rendition by André Antunes: “I drowned myself in the color of love so that we became one”:
Discourse Power is written by Tuvia Gering, a researcher at the Israel-China Policy Center at the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS), a non-resident fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Global China Hub, and a Tikvah’s Krauthammer Fellow, specializing in Chinese security and foreign policy, and emergency and disaster management. Any views expressed in this newsletter, as well as any errors, are solely those of the author. Follow Tuvia on Twitter @GeringTuvia