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A screen in Kasghar, Xinjiang, shows an image of President Xi Jinping in 2019. The damage done to China’s international reputation over its handling of the coronavirus pandemic and Hong Kong, among other issues, will take time to repair. Photo: AFP
OpinionLetters

Letters | In China’s defence of its Xinjiang policy, facts and transparency are allies

  • While officials are getting better at countering criticism, it will take more to rebuild China’s reputation
  • Beijing must stick to solid proof, and strike a balance between being open and upholding its sovereignty
Xinjiang
Letters
Letters
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I’m writing to express my view on the article “Xinjiang ‘internment camps’: research institute got it wrong, official says” (April 9). China is surely getting better at countering criticism from the West, as shown by Xinjiang government spokesman Xu Guixiang’s approach of using data to debunk the claims of a Canberra-based research institute.
The conspiracy theory that China is operating concentration camps in Xinjiang has been around for several years. Amid the recent controversy over cotton produced in Xinjiang, this conspiracy theory has resurfaced, but this time the Chinese government is geared up to counter the critics.

However, I doubt any of these new pieces of evidence presented by the Chinese government would be effective in improving its reputation, which has been damaged multiple times. It would take way more effort than this to rebuild China’s reputation in the world.

01:08

Xinjiang, China’s top cotton producer

Xinjiang, China’s top cotton producer

In this back-and-forth conflict between China and the West, China is in a disadvantaged position, following all the reputational damage from Covid-19, Hong Kong and so on. It’s rather like starting a game of xiangqi, or Chinese chess, without the two cannons.

China still has a chance of winning this game, but it really needs to stick to straight facts and solid proof in countering the criticism. One way to do that is to embrace transparency and openness, which China seems to have realised and to be slowly moving towards. China also needs to strike a balance between transparency and sovereignty, which is a dilemma often faced by the Chinese government.

Both China and the West should adopt a more conciliatory attitude to resolve their differences, instead of pointing the fingers at each other. The most important thing is to accept that both sides have flaws: instead of being gutted by the criticism, find a solution so that the critics can be silenced.

Wang Yam-yuk, Tseung Kwan O

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