Will China apologise for ‘shut up’?

Even as Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi is preparing to go to China later this month, his party, the BJP, has demanded that the Centre ask for an apology from the Chinese ambassador to India who recently told a Delhi journalist to ‘shut up’.

On Thursday, at a function in New Delhi the Chinese ambassador, Zhang Yan, told a Delhi journalist to ‘shut up’ when the newsman persisted in his queries about the wrong map of India printed on the cover of the brochure of a private firm.

The map showed India minus some parts of Kashmir and Arunachal Pradesh. The firm on whose brochure the wrong map was printed is the Chinese energy company, TBEA, which recently signed an MoU with the Gujarat government for a project involving an investment of Rs2,500 crore. 

Defence analysts and experts on China have warned the Centre not to take the Chinese show of arrogance lightly. The experts say that diplomats across the world are known for their skill in handling the media, particularly on sensitive questions.

“But Chinese diplomats are not so well-trained in handling the media and they have a certain kind of arrogance. Their language skills are limited, which is another reason why they tend to lose their cool.    

The case of incorrect Indian maps being circulated by them is a very old issue," said Delhi-based defence expert, Ajay Sahani.

Talking about the incident in New Delhi, defence expert Major-General (retd) Sheru Thapliyal also said that the Chinese ambassador had lost his temper because in China the media is state-controlled. He further said that the Chinese have fixed viewpoints on some issues such as the boundary question, the Dalai Lama, the media and India.

"Moreover, China does not want India to compete with it as an Asian power. It wants Indian influence to be limited to only South Asia," he said.  Defence experts can be ignored for political expediency but what makes chief minister Narendra Modi's position vis-à-vis China rather ticklish is the belligerent stand of his own party on the issue.

BJP spokesperson Tarun Vijay said in a statement on Friday that the Chinese envoy had used "undiplomatic and undemocratic language at a public function, in trying to 'shut up' an Indian media-person. The journalist had raised "a very legitimate query" about the brochure of a Chinese company that showed a map of India minus Arunachal Pradesh and parts of Jammu and Kashmir, Vijay said in the statement.  He further said that the Indian government should also warn the Chinese ambassador "not to indulge in such unfriendly acts in future".

"Obviously, the Chinese ambassador forgot that he is posted in a vibrant democracy where Tiananmen-like episodes are not allowed and the media is free and not a state-run apparatus taking orders from party bosses who can 'shut up' a journalist," Vijay said.

Major-General (retd) Thapliyal said that if the Gujarat chief minister is going to China, he has to play a diplomatic role. "Narendra Modi values economic engagements more than ideology and he may well go there. But the issue is that the central government does not want us to disturb China by raising sensitive issues," Thapliyal said. "Trade between India and China may have increased but it is heavily in China's favour. The Chinese share of the trade is huge and Indians are worried about it. Trade between the two countries must be evenly balanced," he added.

Defence expert KH Patel agrees that the Chinese want to keep India on tenterhooks but he said that they are equally eager to boost trade relations with India.

"They are not interested in solving pending problems between the two countries. At the same time, they are keen to develop business and trade relationship with India. It is a very smart move by the Gujarat government that it is promoting trade ties with China. As for the incident in Delhi, I would not attach any political significance to it," Patel said.

— With inputs from agencies