More recently,
during the spy plane incident over Hainan,
American President Bush
changed the American position toward China
from that of being a world partner
(the approach of the Clinton Administration),
to that of being a competitor
or an opponent in international affairs.
This “bashing” propaganda about China
is considered by many people
a cover-up (or a smoke screen)
for growing American insecurity
in international affairs
and this distortion is accumulative in the brain
washed minds of the American people.
It is also degrading to say the least.
It is like a champion football team that
does not want to play fairly any more
because it is afraid of losing.
It is the fear of being beaten fairly
and decisively on the field,
according to an agreed upon set of rules.
This obsession with human rights
has flared up in many areas
of American foreign policy in recent months.
This rash, sometimes graphic ChinaBashing attitude
is probably driven, in part,
by powerful economic interests
in the United States.
The positions of these powerful interests
will be seriously threatened
by China's entry into the WTO.
These industries, if they are forced
to face stronger competition,
fear losing their shares of their respective markets.
These same interests also
heavily support political parties financially
and therefore have some indirect influence
over government policies.
China has enough ballots to get into the WTO.
The United States alone cannot veto China's entry,
but can make things difficult.
Both China and the United States
will have to adjust themselves
to raise economic efficiencies,
a fact that normally results
from greater competition.
However, what must clearly be seen
are the comparative advantages,
which will benefit all trading partners.
With the reduction of trade barriers,
more efficient use of the world's productive resources
will emerge through greater specialization
by the various countries involved.
In the short-run,
(in the first few years)
there will be dislocations of productive resources,
particularly of labour.
For some industries,
the future will be bleak.
There will be short run unemployment
in some sectors of each country.
It is important that
these countries develop plans,
such as retraining and increased technology,
to make adjustments easier as productive resources
shift from one sector to another.
With greater sharing of international expertise,
these transitions should become easier.
The longrange result will mean
more benefits for all countries;
meaning higher standards of living all round.
China has already made persistent strides
in this direction through its partnership
arrangements with foreign corporations
over the last twenty years,
since the reforms
at the end of the Cultural Revolution.
China has no alternative but
to move forward into the international markets
and in other areas of globalization
of the twentyfirst century.
Not to do so would mean inevitable deterioration or,
perhaps, even complete evaporation of China's strong economy.
Some sacrifices in socialist economic
and political philosophies and policies
are imperative if these goals are to be achieved.
The big advantage that
China has had over the former Soviet Union
is that of cautious gradualism in economic policy.
China's political hierarchy is slowly embracing the theories
and practices of a new socialist market system.
The knowledge and skills gained
from this approach places China
in an excellent position to succeed.
The country sees quite clearly that
a pure command economic system
will not endure to the end
under the inertia of this epoch of brisk globalization.
In the end, China is destined to succeed.
Much of what China will face in the WTO
will be the coincidence of internal policies
that have been formulated in recent years,
although some reconfiguration will be necessary.
To suggest immediate success for China
may be premature at this point,
but there are precedents
that are favourable to China's aspirations.
Such success is difficult to quantify or generalize,
as there are so many factors
that are constantly changing.
It is a gamble.
World recessions, strong economic growth periods,
and disasters such as the September 11th,
2001 terrorist attacks,
can drastically create economic casualties overnight
followed by the “trickle down” negative impacts.
All these being said, it would be
a mistake to underestimate China's legitimate presence
in this period of globalization.
It is indicative, as well as fitting,
that almost all countries of the world
will benefit from the potential contributions
that China can make in the years to come.
The WTO's success hinges on international cooperation
and ceaseless pursuit of positive common goals
rather than focusing on negative issues
that could only handicap good economic
and social relations along with progress
in international trade.
It is hoped that such barriers
between China and other countries
will dissipate now that its membership
has finally been certified.
