chinese fakery

The European Council on Foreign Relations | China Olympics blog

Wednesday, 13 August 2008, 6:30pm

Chinese fakery is the debate of the day. Op-eds, message boards and discussion groups are surprisingly surprised by a little Chinese girl miming during the opening ceremony and a computer-generated simulation on television of the firework footprints over Beijing. Miming is not out of the ordinary for major ceremonial events, and a simulation seems reasonable given the alternative of a helicopter being blown out of the sky by fireworks. So does the outrage/disappointment reflect wider frustrations over never knowing if anything is real in China?

From the macro level, the assertion that China is a communist county, to the micro level, beer and cigarettes, anything can be fake in China. It can be a frustrating experience living in a country where the question is often not if a product is a fake, but what quality of fake it is. Chinese citizens have long suffered serious consequences from fake drugs and fake food products. How strong is an economy that relies on fake financial information from a news agency that is also the state regulator and bans competitors? Or is built on infrastructure that fakes environmental assessment and energy efficiency reports? Where fake companies trade in fake brands? Or relies on transport links that fake safety and quality standards (is there anything more mad than faking aircraft parts?)? And that's just the economy.

China is less proficient than Russia at faking democracy. But it is pretty good at faking the rest of the political system. The Chinese constitution sets out a picture that often bears little resemblance to China today. It guarantees rights and freedoms that we take for granted in Europe but are faked at every level of government in China. From the fake idea that Chinese citizens can take their grievances to Beijing (internment camps have been set up outside Beijing to house and send back the thousands that fall for this one), to the fake idea that they will get justice through a legal system which serves to protect the Party. Europeans are tired at being lied to by politicians about healthcare or education - so how do we think Chinese feel about being told black is white whilst their land is being expropriated by corrupt officials?

Perhaps the Olympics were the one thing in China that the government was supposed to do properly, without cutting any corners or faking any sweet smiles. Enthusiasm in the country at hosting the games is genuine. The Chinese government has made an unprecedented effort to try and stamp out fake merchandise and fake tickets. It has even genuinely lifted some controls for foreign journalists (although those too were tested today by an ITN journalist). So why did it think that faking key parts of the opening ceremony would be OK? Sadly because those that made the decisions have got all too used to bending reality to suit their convenience.

----------------------------------------------------