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China’s 2009 Remake

By Rana Foroohar, Melinda Liu and Mary Hennock

Wu Jianmin seen in a March 2007 file photo. He is one of China’s most experienced envoys. He once worked as a translator for Chairman Mao and now teaches communication skills to officials as president of China Foreign Affairs University.File photo/AP/Greg Baker/China

Chinese leaders are predicting 2009 will be full of tests, as job losses stoke fears about stability. It’s a year peppered with sensitive anniversaries — 20 years since troops crushed student protesters in Tiananmen Square , and 50 years since the Dalai Lama fled into exile . Ambassador Wu Jianmin is one of China’s most experienced envoys. He once worked as a translator for Chairman Mao and now teaches communication skills to officials as president of China Foreign Affairs University. Last month, he chatted about China’s next challenges with NEWSWEEK’s Rana Foroohar, Melinda Liu and Mary Hennock.

NEWSWEEK: How would you comment on the cooperation between the United States and China in solving the financial crisis and setting up new financial systems?
WU: President Hu Jintao has on many occasions stressed the need for global cooperation in face of the financial crises. In 1997, China played an important role in the Asian financial crisis. China should act as an engine of economic development, helping to restore confidence and seeking common interests. Its foreign reserves are $2 trillion, and domestic savings are $3.5 trillion. China has the budget, and its economic situation is still good. We have to be on guard against trade protectionism. Protectionism means everybody tries to protect his own interest — it’s a separate approach, not a common approach.

We’ve heard of lot about China’s policy on Green GDP. Does the crisis make it harder for China to pursue environmental protection while keeping growth up?
No, it’s an opportunity. China’s development model up until now is no longer sustainable. There is too much pollution and low efficiency. Now there are about 320 million people with no access to safe drinking water, and 75 percent of disease comes from water pollution. If you go around China, as a tourist you’ll see that there are many places that need cleaning up. The West also passed through this stage, and Charles Dickens in the 19th century wrote about how the streets are dirty. Green GDP should be emphasized in the next five to 10 years. The current financial crisis has provided China an opportunity for doing this right now. This is a time for change &mdadh; since China’s exports have encountered challenges we need a new growth point.

How will the central government make Green GDP work? Many central government policies are derailed because local officials focus on economic growth to get promoted. How will you make them pay attention to the quality of growth?
We send officials abroad for education and that can change their mindset. In the past the most important criterion to get people promoted was GDP growth, but not anymore. The environment is very important nowadays. Around Lake Tai [in Jiangxi province] where water quality is very low we had a problem with blue algae. Now many factories have now been ordered to stop production — more than 1,000 have been closed. People have started to understand the importance of protecting the environment.

What are the communication problems between Americans, Europeans and Chinese?
Americans don’t know the Chinese language well and view China simply in the American way. Take the way the press treats human rights and religion . You fail to put China in context. When you judge a country, you should judge it by whether the country is progressing or regressing. In the past, China had 400 million people who could not feed themselves, but now the problem is basically solved. China is making progress, so you should be patient. Nothing can be completely changed in one single night. I’d say you Americans should change your attitude because if you don’t, the Chinese people will suspect your sincerity.

China drew criticism for canceling the EU-China Summit over the French president’s meeting with the Dalai Lama.
There are many misunderstandings in human rights issues. China and the EU have many important issues to solve. But the French president intended to meet[the] Dalai Lama only three days before the opening of the EU-China Summit. Such a high-profile statement drives the Chinese government into a corner. China believes that important things should be discussed first, then the other issues. We can talk about Tibet today or tomorrow, but the financial crisis needs cooperation. First things first.

Why does the China model work in China, but not in Africa and the Middle East?
The secret of China’s success for the past 30 years was privatization. Thirty years ago we did this [decollectivization], and it made so many peasants rich. The majority of the Chinese are enjoying the fruits of the reforms. We used to have grain tickets and meat tickets, but all of them are gone. Deng Xiaoping was patient; when people didn’t fully understand privatization, he waited until they accepted his ideas.

What do you expect from the G20 Summit’s declaration on supporting the world economy?
The G20 Summit [in November 2008] was a milestone. It means the G8 is no longer relevant, so we have to reform the global financial system. This is a new starting point. Doing it enabled the main players to come to the global table. We would rather call it evolution than revolution because revolutionary change brings too much pain. China has been changing all the time during the past 30 years of reforms. Maybe the new U.S. president can do more because he also advocates change.

Copyright © 2009 Newsweek, Inc.

Published in Newsweek.com