MEDIA REACTION: SECRETARY CLINTON IN AFRICA, U.S.-CHINA

UNCLAS BEIJING 002273 DEPARTMENT FOR INR/R/MR, EAP/CM, EAP/PA, EAP/PD, C HQ PACOM FOR PUBLIC DIPLOMACY ADVISOR (J007) SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL ECON KMDR OPRC CH SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: SECRETARY CLINTON IN AFRICA, U.S.-CHINA RELATIONS, CHINA IN WTO -------------- Editorial Quotes -------------- ¶1. SECRETARY CLINTON IN AFRICA "Africans snubbed Hillary" The official Xinhua News Agency international news publication International Herald Leader (Guoji Xianqu Daobao) (08/10): "On her visit to Africa, Secretary Hillary Clinton held in one hand a big stick and the other hand a carrot, revealing the combination of "preaching" and "assistance" in U.S. foreign policy. Because of this, her visit was viewed differently by African governments, African people, and African media. In general, people in Africa had a similar view: they believed the visit had nothing to do with them. For example, with more than fifty percent of Kenyans suffering from food shortages, they did not really care about Hillary's visit. Analysts believe that Hillary's visit to South Africa had two goals: first, to repair the 'so-so' relations between the U.S. and South Africa that developed during the previous U.S. administration; and second, to persuade the new South African government to put more pressure on Zimbabwe to improve the operation of Zimbabwe's joint government. The U.S. clearly understands South Africa's influence in Zimbabwe. It is interesting that Western media reports on Hillary's visit focused on the Zimbabwe issue, whereas South African media emphasized the two countries' desire to improve bilateral relations. One South African journalist even complained that there was nothing new in the talks between Secretary Clinton and the South African Foreign Minister." ¶2. U.S.-CHINA RELATIONS "Look at some Western media's anti-China propaganda" The official intellectual publication Guangming Daily (Guangming Ribao) (08/10): "Western media outlets, which have been arduously reporting on [Uyghur activist] Rebiya Kadeer's anti-China comments, suddenly became mute when some of Rebiya's relatives sent messages to the victims [of the riots in Urumqi] and Rebiya herself to express their dissatisfaction about Rebiya's separatist activities and her failure to keep her promises. Western countries have long adhered to the following guidelines when dealing with China-related news: all news about China must be negative; all Chinese government proposals must be wrong; and any support from China for counterterrorism activities must only be the result of external pressure. However, Western media outlets' decision to willingly stand side-by-side 'terrorists' (i.e. Kadeer) is not simply fodder for their reports, nor an ordinary political prejudice, nor even just an ideological stereotype; rather, it is a behavior that tramples on international norms and damages civilization. It is also a public provocation of the Chinese people. These Western media outlets are in fact being manipulated by certain political powers. It is these anti-China organizations that have manipulated Western media, intentionally created misunderstandings among Western publics, and defamed China's reputation." ¶3. CHINA IN WTO "Use the rules to maintain China's self-interests" The official Communist Party People's Daily (Renmin Ribao) (08/10): "China has recently called on the World Trade Organization (WTO) to establish an expert team to investigate the legitimateness of U.S. measures to restrict Chinese poultry imports. China is actively seeking to use WTO rules to protect its own interests when facing various protectionist measures. Making use of the WTO disputes resolution system is a better way to solve issues than having a trade war that will harm both sides. As a member of the WTO, China is willing to accept the binding nature of the current WTO rules based on reciprocal rights and obligations; however, this does not mean that China acknowledges the reasonableness of all of the current international trade rules. Some of the current rules are the result of specific economic and social factors; some are only partially or temporarily reasonable; and some only represent developed countries' interests and exert a negative influence on developing countries." GOLDBERG