The Interpersonal Tragedy Behind the Decoupling of China and the West: Lost Friendships

Author: poureaux , Translator: Tang Weicheng, April 30, 2023

I traveled in China for half a month in April in late spring and early summer, and when I left, I expected to be reluctant to part. Although at the end of any trip, there will be an inescapable sense of loss, feeling sad for those corners and corners that were once vividly searched for and the wonderful encounters in the corners; but this time it is unprecedented, because it is not only my lonely figure that runs counter to China, but the whole world. This kind of loneliness and confusion that is drifting away is the silent background of this trip. Although it has been more than three years since I first expressed my thoughts on the "new cold war" between China and the West , it is the first time that I deeply realize that the rupture of cultural exchanges caused by the isolation between China and the West is an immeasurable global loss.

China is a bright pearl of human civilization, with a long history and profound culture. Anyone who tries to explore China's all-encompassing humanistic thoughts and cultural heritage is like a child standing at the foot of a mountain looking up at the peak of the sky: a lifetime of trekking is nothing but the end of the road. As a half-knowledgeable layman, I often feel overwhelmed: the etiquette of giving gifts, the intricacies of multilateral interpersonal interactions ("guanxi"), and the "challenges" of wine table culture make me feel stretched. The variety of Chinese civilization makes people linger and forget to return: exquisite craftsmanship, music that haunts the clouds, fascinating legends, delicious food with a variety of dishes, gardens with easy scenery, temples with carved beams and painted buildings, rich and exquisite language... At the same time, the later The "New China" in the era of revolution has also made amazing achievements: majestic and ingenious museums and airports, an efficient and clean national high-speed rail network, a prosperous middle class, and cities with complete facilities (common social problems in the West - high residence High crime rates, homeless and refugee management, poorly repaired infrastructure—rarely appear here). On this piece of soil that combines ancient and modern Chinese and foreign cultures, Shanghai has been bred with a variety of styles. As a model and leader of China's first-tier cities, Shanghai can satisfy all your dreams for a prosperous society: the advanced and dense supply chain brings efficiency and convenience, a wide range of high-quality goods can be seen everywhere, noisy nightlife and clean and quiet streets Complement each other - everything attracts you to explore, grow and enjoy here.

Of course, in addition to the feasting and entertainment life and the magnificent architecture, what I am most impressed with is the peaceful and friendly people here. The blustery populism that pervades Western social media seems to have disappeared here. The reason, I think, is that ordinary Chinese people are unable to fully participate in global social media communication due to the Internet blockade, which makes the " Wolf Warriors" who spread extreme emotions stand out and stand out. The ordinary people I have contacted have no geopolitical interests or ambitions, and only care about the prosperity of their families and the stability and peace of society. Such a restrained and down-to-earth thinking mode seems to me to be a learned behavior—not only because politics is a closed topic here; For those whose parents experienced the June 4th incident in 1989, they themselves witnessed the blind and endless anti-human rights illegal blockade in the later stage of the epidemic.

Of course, I recognize that there must be a certain selection bias - although I have tried my best to expand my social contacts. Those at the bottom of the social pyramid, and those who don't have access to VPNs and only receive internal media information, may have strong ultra-nationalist overtones, but I have no way of knowing. But in any case, I have not encountered such radicals-even in small remote towns far from the core area, or when asking friends and parents for their views on "sensitive topics", I have not encountered bigoted views.

There are a lot of mutual learning and compatibility between China and the West. Although the theories of government construction claimed by the two sides are very different, we cannot deny that we all obey the de facto capitalist system. The Chinese people I met are all very curious about the outside world, and many of them use VPNs to bypass the firewall to access the Internet every day. Similarly, the world is also full of curiosity about China. Before the epidemic, there were a large number of flights connecting major cities in China and the United States every day. Countries in North America, Europe, and other regions have considerable Chinese diaspora. Chinese people, culture, history, and wisdom have enriched our life in the West—similarly, I sincerely hope that Western elements can inject energy into Chinese society. Continuing this kind of vigorous communication and mutual promotion between people, we will eventually usher in a world of harmony.

Sadly, however, the days of prosperity hand-in-hand are over, and I try to pick up the last rays of the sun on this land. Part of the campus of Peking University I visited was designed by American architects, and there are buildings (now renamed) named after the president of the United States. The state-run West Lake State Guesthouse where I stayed in Hangzhou was the venue for the 2016 G20 summit. The nightlife venues I visited in Shanghai used to be home to many foreign musicians with questionable visas.

Visiting China after the epidemic has become extremely difficult, and the situation is getting worse. At present, American Airlines only provides 12 flights per week (as of May 1, 2023) to China; The total in one week between the largest economies - only 6% of US flights in 2019. Negotiations on the resumption of flights have stalled due to the flight advantage of Chinese airlines being able to fly through Russian airspace (from May 4, 2023, the Chinese side is allowed to add 4 more flights, for a total of 12 flights; however, this is only achieved on the basis of the "principle of reciprocity" negligible progress).

In addition to the inconvenience caused by the sharp drop in international flights, electronic payment has also become a major obstacle for international tourists. If it wasn't for my local Chinese friends, I'd never have been able to experience the country as it is: almost all commerce here is done through WeChat and Alipay, and WeChat payments are largely unavailable to non-Chinese citizens - because Requires a local Chinese bank account, cumbersome identity verification, and a Chinese SIM card; even a Hong Kong bank account (such as HSBC) cannot be verified unless the account is opened in mainland China. However, WeChat is the key to maintaining the normal operation of life: transportation, shopping, entertainment, and even health declarations at airports all rely on WeChat payment and its small programs. After many attempts, I was finally able to use Alipay in some cases; and my "payment anxiety" was completely relieved after I exchanged Bitcoin from a local friend for RMB in my Alipay account. In addition, international tourists must purchase and install a VPN in advance (and need to face normal failures) or use mobile phone data roaming-because major network services such as Gmail and Google, and almost all social media outside of mainland China, cannot Runs on local wifi without VPN. Even Google Translate — an essential travel tool in any country — was recently banned in China. Finally, China's massive national security screening system also presents a burden that cannot be ignored: my passport was probably scanned (and/or had a passport number confirmed) 25 times during a two-week trip; 4 of those times were just for entry The National Museum of China next to Tiananmen Square (the museum itself is magnificent and its collections are exquisite).

Restricted by the precipitous drop in flight volume, difficult-to-adapt basic financial transaction systems, blocked communication that isolates the global Internet, and the pervasive security review system, international tourists are placed at an obvious disadvantage in Chinese society. Against all odds, I still had a highly acclaimed and far-reaching trip to China — thanks to the close friendships I've made over the years (and some new ones I've made along the way). As an American, I would never take it for granted that I would feel at home in another country; however, after traveling to many countries, both friendly and hostile (including two other communist countries: Cuba and Vietnam), I prefer to be "compatible" as an international tourist through basic skills such as using the local currency and accessing the open internet, rather than being shoehorned into a "do-it-all" app with no choice but to constantly solve problems in unfamiliar ways. System error in language display.

The decoupling of people-to-people exchanges is not only happening in the tourism industry, but in all levels of society. Harvard University closed the " Harvard Beijing Academy " in cooperation with Beijing Language and Culture University in 2021 and moved the project to Taiwan "because the host institution [in Beijing] believes that Harvard University lacks goodwill (due to a perceived lack of friendliness from the host institution [in Beijing])". In addition, American students studying in Beijing are prohibited from celebrating American Independence Day (the National Day of the United States). At the same time, the U.S. State Department is advising U.S. tourists to "reconsider travel" due to the unreasonable and arbitrary detention of international tourists. And China recently expanded the scope of its anti-espionage laws, raiding the Beijing offices of Bain & Company, a top U.S. consulting firm .

In the process of China's transition to "internal circulation", the global situation is gradually deteriorating, and each of us is paying the bill. China and Western countries are endlessly pulling in the increasingly fierce confrontation; and the origin of this conflict is a longer and longer "complaint": human rights issues, Taiwan differences, intellectual property disputes, Russia-Ukraine war, South China Sea conflict... However Beneath the turmoil, the people of these countries are kind and open: shared values, ample empathy, and mutual curiosity. If the bonds of friendship based on shared values are strained by the lack of smooth access to each other's countries through convenient online communication, then this mutual goodwill is eventually destined to be exhausted. So, here, I sincerely hope to join everyone in doing what we can to fight against this breakdown of human connection: to insist on international travel even inconvenient circumstances, to meet new friends from different cultural backgrounds with an open mind, to use VPN and adjust Network Paths to stay connected with the world and fully engage with the diaspora community. While we as individuals cannot really influence the great power conflict between China and the United States, the bonds we forge with each other will outlast any geopolitical fallout.

When I left, I was moved by the beautiful vision written by Eileen Chang and Lancheng Hu in their marriage letter—this is also the common wish of all people and countries, although this wish seems to be drifting away in today’s turbulent global situation:

"The years are quiet and good, and the world is stable"

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Disclaimer: I am just an ordinary tourist, not an "expert" in any sense, nor a "China observer", let alone a "China hand"; this article is just me as an international What visitors think and feel after their first visit to China. This is not a scientific or systematic research paper, but based on my communication with Chinese classmates and friends living in the United States for a long or short period of time, exchanges with native Chinese citizens who have visited the United States or have not visited the United States, and other Han cultural areas ( Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan), a rough impression of a short trip produced. This article is even less devoted to investigating the root causes of the deterioration of relations between China and the West.