Let down the culture-guards, China

As Chinas economic clout in the world grows, seemingly trivial and yet, consequential concerns have started surfacing. After the ado about the rising wages of Chinese workers, the Chinese Communist Party appears to be on guard of a very nationalistic too-culture. In an essay published in the Communist Partys policy magazine Seeking Truth, the Chinese President Hu Jintao called for protecting the countrys culture and ideology from growing Western influence. "We must clearly see that international hostile forces are intensifying the strategic plot of Westernising and dividing China, and ideological and cultural fields are the focal areas of their long-term infiltration," said Comrade Hu; quoted by the New York Times last week. In a very stark move taken by the government last week, several prime-time television shows were pulled off the local media under allegations of being vulgar and Westernised. Consequently, the number of prime time television shows fell down from 126 to only 38. Besides this, China allows only 20 foreign movies to be presented at the local box office every year, in an attempt to bolt the seepage of other cultures in the country to some extent. And yet, American movies Avatar and Transformers 3 had been the top grossing last year. The Chinese government is going to the extent of ensuring that people on microblogs register using their real, Chinese names, thought they can enter posts under a pseudonym. And the government is also trying to popularise the Chinese language through opening up institutes all over the world to aid foreigners in learning the language. Many have questioned the rationality of the Communist Party in tightening its culture so. But culture, traditionally, has been a very strong nationalistic tool-one that becomes the face of a nation in all its diplomatic, political, and even economic endeavours, particularly promoting its industries. Various countries have been resentful of the American influence over their citizens, particularly the youth, and it is often seen as a subliminal means of US hegemony over various countries. However, before critiquing the US for propagating its cultural dogma, the simplicity and informality of the American way of life deserves credit for making it so easy and convenient to adapt. If the Chinese wish their culture to be accepted and adopted globally, shutting the doors on another culture may be a counter-strategy to culture globalisation that they are striving to achieve. Rather, perhaps, the government should encourage cultural ministries and institutes to bring out the simplicity and creativity in Chinese values to propel youngsters towards by way of will rather than by force. And then, again, how stark are cultural boundaries in our globalised world today? Its the day of Spanglish, Roman Urdu, and several other intermingled cultures. The Chinese seem to be worrying too much. Perhaps Mandaran-glish is on its way too.