Upset China gives lecture on democracy to India, US

A seemingly upset spokesperson of the Chinese foreign ministry on Wednesday gave a lesson on democracy to India and the US, the largest and oldest democracies no less, after it appeared that the two had ganged up against authoritarian China.

All because the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, visiting India at present, talked about a rising global threat to democracies and that the two leading ones should stand together to support the threatened ideals.

A Bloomberg question on whether the Blinken statement pointed a finger at the Middle Kingdom during the Chinese foreign ministry briefing on Wednesday triggered a passionate discourse on democracy from spokesperson, Zhao Lijian.

“I want to stress that democracy is a common value of humanity. It is not a patent to any country. The way to realise democracy is diverse without a certain pattern or only one answer. A multiparty political structure is not the only form of democracy and democracy cannot be used to stoke confrontation,” Zhao said.

The reference to the US went like this: “Some countries claim themselves to be democratic, but they face the problems of racial discrimination, political polarisation, among other issues.”

“Is this the kind of democracy that they pride on?”

Then, came the reference to neighbour, India - with the inevitable conclusion that money wins elections in India - and rhetorical questions, one after the other. “In some countries, without money you cannot get votes. Political parties place their interests above that of the people. Is this democracy or the rise of the wealthy? Some democratic countries contain others’ development. Is this democracy or hegemony? Is this the kind of democracy that you want?”

The way to judge which country is democratic and which one is autocratic should not be decided by one certain country, Zhao mused. “The way to judge whether a political system is good is to see whether it can deliver progress of society, better livelihood and whether it is endorsed and supported by its people and whether it can make contributions to the progress of mankind.

Zhao didn’t name either India or the US but clearly did not leave much to anyone’s imagination. Maybe, like Blinken’s statement.

Elsewhere, the state-run tabloid Global Times was direct. “Such an arrangement, (Blinken’s visit) which closely follows (deputy secretary of state Wendy) Sherman’s visit to China on Sunday and Monday, is seen as a sign that the US will spend more efforts to rope in India to contain China and play the ‘India card’,” analysts told the tabloid.

But all isn’t good between India and the US, the analysis said.

One of the major rifts between New Delhi and Washington is the US decision to withdraw its troops from Afghanistan, which has left India’s investment in the region for the past 20 years hanging in the air, Long Xingchun, from the Beijing Foreign Studies University, said.