‘China must become the nation which wins the peace’ |30 July 2014
“China should advance and support the policy of right is might and becomes the nation which wins the peace.”
This was said by Seychelles’ founding President James R. Mancham at the 4th Huatuo forum held in Guangzhou, China.
The forum, attended by over 2500 Chinese business leaders, was hosted by Yan Jiehe, the nation's most respected and successful business entrepreneur who is the founder and majority owner of China's leading construction company, The China Pacific Construction Group.
Former President Mancham was speaking at the one day forum when he was sharing the speakers platform with former President of the U.S. Bill Clinton, UK'S former Prime Minister Tony Blair, Australia’s former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, former President Lee Myung-bak of South Korea, Nobel Peace Prize winner Thomas Sargent and former director of the U.S. National Economic Council, Gene Sperling.
Earlier Sir James had condemned the prevailing atmosphere of "might is right" which sees competitive powers being allocating more and more money to defence military budgets at the expense of human resource development such as alleviation of poverty, housing, water supply, energy and other essential services.
“Against the background of nuclear capacity, nobody today or tomorrow can envisage a lasting victory through war,” Mr Mancham declared.
The former President said that he has not been taken by surprise with China's rise as leading economic power today because he has always known that the Chinese people have exceptional genes when it comes to entrepreneurship, business and trading.
“Otherwise how can one explain after all the decades of Marxist socialist indoctrination you find Chinese people all over the world today with entrepreneurial talents in the pursuit and creation of wealth?”
He said that China's challenge in the consolidation of this position as the top economic power in the world is more internal than external. With one fourth of humanity being Chinese, China's society is understandably a complex one. For this reason, China would continue to need a leadership which can deliver internal stability as a foundation stone, upon which to consolidate its economic success.
Mr Mancham said that China should adopt an overview situation when dealing with other nations. He said many waters have gone under the bridge of international politics and development over the last years. Today China is no longer a sleeping giant which is inwardly focused. China has expanded its influence abroad and is now acting with justification on the international diplomatic stage with new found confidence anchored in its growing economic power. Of course China's success is a matter of concern by other nations who are anxious as to the impact of a Chinese dominated world .
“We have known Chinese smiling diplomacy and Chinese ping pong diplomacy but will China adopt an arrogant diplomacy if it predominated in world business and politics?”
Recalling to mind the fact that from 1949 to 1974 the gate to China was closed, former President Mancham spoke about his first visit in 1978 just after opening up when Lars Eric-Lindblad, the Swedish-American who was promoting eco-tourism worldwide, had invited him as his guest on the Yangtze river cruise which he was organising with China International Travel Services.
“Through the entire voyage, a cross section of China 's life and culture could be viewed along the shores in the most colourful panorama. The trip took us all the way up to Shanghai and from Shanghai all along China's eastern coast into ports which had not seen foreign faces for over 25 years. You can imagine the curiosity of the younger Chinese people when we disembarked on their shores,” Mr Mancham said.