For most Westerners, Chinese are all of the same race. In fact, there are profound ethnic differences that can easily mutate into open conflict and war. An example is the Punti-Hakka Clan Wars (Chinese: 土客械斗) in Canton in 1855 that lasted a decade. The war's estimated death toll was roughly a million, with many more fleeing for their lives. Hakka means immigrant and Punti means native. The same type of ethnic resentment survives in Taiwan and in Fujian Province.
I believe that this chronic internal divisions make China such a tempting target for imperialists.
8 comments:
Ethnic conflicts continue in Europe to this day (Yugoslavia, Basques, Irish, etc.) so it would be surprising if a nation the size of China was totally free of them. At this point I think the Han have enough of a unified identity (and there has been so much migration from home regions) that intra-Han conflicts should not flare into violence but that still leaves the Uighurs, the Tibetans, etc. Still China has so much momentum and the party is currently so strong that I think these conflicts can be suppressed, at least as long as the economy remains good. So the central gov. will do all in its power to see that it remains good. Unlike the US where everything Obama does in the way of "stimulus" only makes the plight of the private sector worse.
K
As the private sector goes, so will the public sector after a relatively short delay.
Anon.
Historically, China is a weak state, united and prosperous mostly under foreign rule. Its invisible fault lines are there to be exploited by the barbarians.
Depends what you mean by foreign. The Manchus were "foreign" originally but they stayed so long that by the end they had forgotten their own language and knew only Chinese. China, like the US, has great assimilating powers. By the end the Kaifeng Jews looked Chinese and had forgotten all their Jewish customs. They didn't eat pork but they didn't know why.
K
Mongols and Manchus are foreign to Chinese and they did not mix with them. Even today you have Manchu as a nationality in China. Mongols too are more or less appart. These Northern peoples looked down the Chinese and did not assimilate to the point of becoming one with the Chinese. Regarding Kaifeng Jews, I think it would be most correct to take as an example the local Muslim community, that conserved its identity through the centuries. Muslims - mixed with Middle Eastern elements - are a separate ethnic group in China. The 98% Han population is a fiction fomented by the Communist regime. Under Mao there were almost no Manchus in China. Today there are about ten million who identify as such. Should ethnic identity be socially acceptable, more Chinese would discover their roots. I estimated that in the Western provinces there are hundreds of thousands aware of their Jewish descendant status. They may surface as hidden Polish Jews are doing.
A lot of "hidden" ethnic identity is just bogus - see the Ethiopian "Jews" who are not Jewish at all according to DNA testing. (In the US, a lot of African Americans believe that they have Native American ancestors to explain their relatively pale skin - proud free brave warriors. DNA testing proves that the family legends are almost all wrong and the pale ancestors are white, not Indian). This phenomenon emerges when it becomes profitable to be X. Say you are 1/16th X (Jewish, Amerindian, Manchu, whatever) according to family lore. Your mother told you that family legend has it that your great grandmother/father was X and used to light candles on Friday night (or dance the war dance or whatver). You regard this as a charming bit of family history and live your life as a member of the masses of your country. Maybe being X is not a good thing at that time and it's best not to tell your friends about your supposed X ancestor at all. Then one day you read in the papers that all persons who are X are now eligible to emigrate to a richer country or to open a casino or receive some affirmative action benefit. Suddenly you are a full blooded X, filled with ethnic pride at your X ancestry. You have always (secretly, because of the past oppression) regarded yourself as X and nothing but.
K
Imagine 20 million "ethnic Chinese Jews". Would it be good for the Jews?
I don't know about 20 million but a couple of million Chinese "Jews" would probably be better for Israel than all those Africans. Chinese are generally terrific Americans - patriotic, hardworking, low crime, highly educated, etc. so why can't they be Israelis too?
K
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