China: U.S. target
By Victor Perlo
Anti-China propaganda by the U.S. government, the establishment media and various private organizations has escalated sharply. Washington has taken important anti-China actions: blocking China's entry into the World Trade Organization; trying to break away Tibet and Sinkiang provinces from China; threatening military action to prevent Chinese assertion of its sovereignty over Taiwan. Why?
Economic and political issues are involved. China, the most populous country in the world, remains a socialist state, despite its concessions to some capitalist enterprises. As such, since the disintegration of the USSR, it is considered Public Enemy #1 to the imperialist agenda of the United States: world domination. With the support of U.S. propaganda, anti-Chinese issues are a constant diet.
Much noise is made about the U.S. trade deficit with China; hardly any mention is made of the larger deficit with Japan. In fact, the deficit with China in the first five months of this year was below last year's rate, although the overall trade deficit went up. Misleading articles by journalists report the "slowing down of the Chinese economy," slanted to give the erroneous impression that there is an actual decline. Actually there is a slow deceleration - reduction in the rate of growth. But the growth rate, still over 7 percent per year, is one few countries can match.
The latest negative revelation on Chinese deflation is that living costs are going down. But even The New York Times reported that that's because people are saving instead of spending their income. And only near the end of the long article is it revealed that Chinese consumer spending this year has gone up at a 6.4 percent annual rate - slightly less than last year's. Thus, taking account of lower prices, the Chinese are getting an 8 percent or larger volume of goods and services.
The Chinese government is spending vast sums for infrastructure, many times more, relative to the size of its economy, than any proposed in the United States. This program will combine useful projects with reemployment of millions of workers. It is possible because of China's socialist government's ownership of key sectors of production and its central planning.
China's situation contrasts with the deepening decline in the Japanese economy, the still unresolved bad debt problems in other Asian countries, Latin America and Russia.
Now consider the fact that probably 80-90 percent of the $28 billion annual U.S. intelligence budget is directed against countries headed by Communist parties. And China is by far the largest. Thousands of CIA agents are posted there, fostering and financing economic sabotage, mobilizing and manipulating counter-revolutionary political groups. When Chinese authorities catch any of these spies, these agents are promoted by the U.S. media as "dissidents" being undemocratically abused. Unfortunately, sincere liberal and progressive U.S. groups support these campaigns for "human rights" in China.
Much attention is given to the Dalai Lama of Tibet, the traditional high priest, who is allied with the ruling feudal lords and international traders. Since the victory of the Chinese revolution and the "exile" of the then-14-year-old Dalai Lama and his cohorts, attempts to split off Tibet have been constant, despite China's centuries-long sovereignty over Tibet.
FDR explicitly recognized Tibet as part of China, but since his death and the onset of the Cold War, U.S. presidents and the CIA have organized and supported attempts to break Tibet away. Recently President Clinton thumbed his nose at China by hosting the Dalai Lama in the White House at a session like those normally granted heads of state.
The latest development is the fuss being made about a cult that is combining special exercises with anti-government demonstrations. The group's leader lives in New York City! (I don't know whether he is a U.S. citizen.) There have been two other comparable organizations, formerly, that were a cover for anti-regime movements.
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From the 07/31/99 edition of the People's Weekly World newspaper 235 West 23rd Street; New York, NY 10011 http://www.pww.org
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