Junghee Lee, a professor of art history at Portland State University, let me know about a North Korea-related event which may be of interest to readers in the Northwest USA: I would like invite you to come to the LiNK (Liberty in North Korea) screening of the documentary “Inside North Korea.” What: “Inside North Korea,” a documentary produced by Lisa Ling and National Geographic. Lisa … Continue reading North Korean Refugee Event (Portland)
On March 11, the English-language China Daily contained an editorial upbraiding the city of Portland for its “Tibet Awareness Day.” Suffice it to say that while China Daily has recently had a makeover, the publication’s content remains as stodgy as ever: Portland politicians were “celebrat[ing] a handful of fanatics trumpeting Tibet independence while turning a blind eye to either history or the status quo of … Continue reading Portland-Tibet Update
Today Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao gave press conference in the Great Hall of the People. A question from an AFP reporter got him focused on US-China relations. Although I haven’t been able to find it yet in English (or in French, for that matter), the Huanqiu Shibao (Global Times) has released a transcript of the related content: [温家宝]:不畏浮云遮望眼，只因身在最高层。我们应该从这样的高度来把握两国关系。奥巴马总统入主白宫以后，中美关系有个良好的开端。 [温家宝]:但是最近一段时期，美方在达赖喇嘛访美和对台军售等问题上触犯了中国的主权和领土完整，使中美关系受到严重的干扰，这个责任不在中国，而在美方。 [温家宝]:中美三个联合公报是中美关系的基础，我们希望美方能够正视问题，以实际行动回到三个公报的基础上来，使中美关系得以恢复和改善。 [温家宝]:我曾经讲过，中美建交30年的历史告诉我们，和则两利、斗则俱伤，互信则进、猜忌则退。对话比对抗好，合作比遏制好，伙伴比对手好，我们应该从这样的角度来努力促进中美关系的发展。 I’ll translate this later … Continue reading Wen Jiabao: America Offends China with Dalai Lama and Arms Sales to Taiwan
American mayors, human rights activists, and N.B.A. fans take note: A recent decision by the Portland City Council to declare March 10 “Tibet Awareness Day” is making big waves in China, and may result in a boycott of Portland Trail Blazers broadcasts in the Middle Kingdom’s immense market. The message is delivered in the form of the following short news item from China’s Huanqiu Shibao … Continue reading China to U.S. Cities: Hoist the Tibetan Flag, Lose N.B.A. Broadcast Rights in China
As of 5:07 a.m. Pacific Standard Time, it seems this story (described in a post below) has picked up 318 comments on the Huanqiu BBS alone. How nice to know that people care so much. Among the comments are plenty of the usual suspects (“Those who support Tibet’s independence should be nuked,” “Give Alaska independence,” etc.), but I prefer the quizzical: 3月10日设立为“西藏自觉日”（Tibet Awareness Day）。谁翻译的？ Continue reading Huanqiu Netizens Sound Off on the City of Portland
The city of Portland, Oregon, is known as an aspiring utopia and somewhat left-wing city enamored of coffee, bicycles, religious tolerance and sustainable living. It is, at least as cities go, a bit remarkable. It is also one of the more friendly places in North America for people who believe that Chinese policy in Tibet is without moral justification. On March 8, The Oregonian, Portland’s … Continue reading Portland, Tibet, and “Meddling in Internal Affairs”
