A cascade of generally negative Western commentaries about China and its intentions is spread on social media, traditional news outlets in print, and on-screen by the mainstream Western media. Objective assessment of independently verifiable and available facts and figures reveals a far more nuanced and positive picture. However, it is very difficult for most casual and generalist observers to separate fact from fiction, as most information digested today is promulgated by a few influential and wealthy media barons who control the dialogue and agenda as they see fit, where objectively applied checks, balances, and fundamental fact-checking are increasingly feeble or even absent or, as is recently the case for several key players, rescinded on the altar of rising anti-woke, anti-DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) sentiment.
A case in point is the right-wing-dominated UK press. During the recent general election there, I could not believe the disinformation, obfuscation, and bias among certain “in-name-only” newspapers, even though I admit myself to be a middle-of-the-road capitalist with socialist characteristics. Today, they are attacking the new Labour government for problems created during the previous 14 years of Conservative rule as if structural issues built up over a decade can be sorted out in a few short months! People can have short memories.
Similar issues were at play in the United States, and the recent mind-boggling general election returned former president Donald Trump to a second term. Although many are aghast at what is happening, I reserve judgment until we see how quickly peace can be restored to Ukraine and how he deals with world trade, especially with China. I remain hopeful.
Most people worldwide base their opinion of China on what they read in news feeds, media outlets, and the like, with little direct personal experience. I was the same until I moved to Hong Kong, but as a forensic, evidence-based scientist, I always question everything. However, I can now base my opinions on my personal experience in Hong Kong and, more importantly, my 50-plus visits to multiple cities on the Chinese mainland, including to the north, south, east and west, over the last 10 years.
The fact that China is reopening this way shows a government that is not afraid of what visitors may discover — quite the reverse. It demonstrates self-confidence, honesty, and a genuine desire to welcome and engage foreigners for tourism, trade, cultural exchange, work, and more
This started with my visit to Hangzhou a mere three weeks after I began at the University of Hong Kong, and it is still my favorite Chinese city after Hong Kong. It has been a real eye-opener, from the incredible variety of terrain to the fantastic public transport systems and high-speed rail, to the well-stocked shops and malls and beautiful, perfectly manicured parks across the many first-, second-, and third-tier cities I have visited. Of course, this extends to the fantastic, diverse food, and especially the people! I realize I typically mix with fellow scientists, technologists, academics, entrepreneurs, students, and company leaders, so perhaps not enough with the local folks, but even so, on the few occasions that I do, the generosity, keenness to engage, and genuine kindness seem universal in my experience. It has been as enriching as it has been enjoyable. I then share my experiences with friends, colleagues, and others, especially if I hear what I consider unfair or biased opinions from people who have never set foot in China.
This brings me to the focus of this piece — personal experience. The more foreigners who visit China in all its glory, complexity, tradition, culture, and modernity, the more likely they are to testify to their own valid experiences when they return home and be less inclined to parrot hostile propaganda when their own eyes, ears, taste buds, and encounters conflict with such narratives.
China’s reopening to foreign nationals on upgraded visa arrangements is a game-changing reintroduction to the outside world, and it is to be celebrated on both sides. Indeed, in the last year or so, China has significantly revised its visa- and foreign-visitor policies. China has recently enhanced its 240-hour visa-free transit option, which allows travelers from 54 countries to explore major transit hubs like Beijing and Shanghai for up to 10 days without a visa. Promoting tourism to bolster the economy is a primary aim, but there are even more critical results.
This is because a significant and rapidly growing numbers of foreign nationals from a large range of countries are getting to experience China firsthand. They can then decide what they see, discover, and tell their family, friends, colleagues, and more. It is a grassroots opinion formed shorn of propaganda and other external influences but direct from the horse’s mouth, so to speak. The fact that China is reopening this way shows a government that is not afraid of what visitors may discover — quite the reverse. It demonstrates self-confidence, honesty, and a genuine desire to welcome and engage foreigners for tourism, trade, cultural exchange, work, and more. I have benefited from it, as have so many overseas visitors, and we are now witnessing its snowballing effect. Mutual respect, improved understanding, shared humanity, new friendships, higher levels of trust, and broader perspectives will be the welcome outcome. When egregious forces attempt to create discord to meet their self-serving agenda, shared stories of friendship may be an effective antidote in this uncertain world.
The author is the director of Lab for Space Research, Hong Kong University.
The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.
