Y: Yang Rui, anchor of Dialogue on CCTV-9
Z: Prof. Zi Zhongyun (资中筠), former director of the American Studies Institute, CASS1.
Y: This April, China’s major cities saw raging demonstrations protesting against Koizumi’s persistent visits to Yasukuni Shrine and the history textbook issues.2 What do you think of the rise of anti-Japanese sentiments in China?
Z: It’s quite understandable that the Chinese people should feel indignant and translate their indignation into action. But I think when it gets out of control, developing into irrational activities and broadening its target at innocent Japanese companies and other people, this will be counterproductive. And they will send the wrong message to the Japanese people. Fortunately it has receded in time and has not developed into a more disastrous situation.
Y: The Japanese government and media accused the Chinese government of encouraging anti-Japanese sentiments with patriotic education. Some Western media also say that there is a rise of nationalism in China in the past two decades. What do you think of their accusations?
Z: I don’t think it is the Chinese government’s policy to encourage irrational behaviours. But the rise of nationalism is a fact. This is not something new, however. Since the Opium War3, the collective memory of the Chinese people has been five thousand years of glorious past and 150 years of falling victim to imperialist oppression. So every now and then, when there is some stimulus, there will be a rise of nationalism. But I would like to say that nationalism is a double-edged sword. When it’s contained within a limit of being rational and reasonable, it can serve as a cohesive force for the people to strive for our nation’s prosperity, but when it gets out of control and gets irrational and emotional, it can be very harmful not only to China’s relations with other countries but also to China’s own development on a healthy road.
Y: You said nationalism does exist in China, but for many people and even the official media in China, it’s patriotism, which is legitimate.
Z: Well, there are different definitions of patriotism. In certain ways they coincide with nationalism. And if you say that patriotism is loving your own country, that’s entirely legitimate and is a natural sentiment. You do need to encourage or stimulate patriotism from the people. That’s my interpretation of legitimate patriotism. But sometimes in the name of patriotism people may express in what I would call an irrational way a kind of nationalistic feeling and go into the extreme.
Y: There is an argument that the visit to the Yasukuni Shrine should be viewed as a religious matter. Do you accept such an explanation?
Z: There is the hard truth to prove that this kind of explanation does not hold water4. As far as I know, the Yasukuni Shrine comes from a kind of super-religion called Shinto5 in Japan. It is a religion over all other religions. And exactly after the surrender of Japan in 1945, the occupation forces under General MacArthur representing the ally powers explicitly asked Japan to abandon this kind of concept as a religion over all religions. And so in the Peace Constitution there is an article declaring the equality of all religions. That means that the supremacy of Shinto over all other religions is eliminated. And there is also an article stipulating explicitly that the government’s financing the Yasukuni Shrine should not be allowed and government officials should not pay visit to the Yasukuni Shrine. I think this is in the Peace Constitution though I may not put the wording accurately. The spirit is to remove the supremacy of that kind of religion over all other religions. The emperor Hirohito6, un |