First, China's per capita GDP has grown leaps and bounds for the recent years. When the loans were given out to them, we were still NOT at current level yet. Those money are our hard-earned money when we were still quite poor then.
Second, cancelling loans will make those African locals better off. It only makes those elite put more in their own pockets. I can bet most of our cancelled $30 billions, little will flow into the normal people's pockets. Isn't the goal to cancel loans to make normal people to live better? Do you think people in Zim, Gabon and etc will live better off after the cancelling of the loans. It simply means those corrupted officials at top in those countries get another $30 billion in their bank accounts, which should be our Chinese hard earned money.
As for those "set-backs" as you have claimed, what kind of "set-backs" would you consider major one???
Money for friendship proves to be the most historically stupid policies China has ever adopted. Why don't you look at our surrounding countries and those we have helped throughout history by using such policy???
Which ones are exactly China's friends??? How many of them have been anti-China in the past even after receiving so much help either monetarily or materially???
Does our money given to them by cancelling loans make the normal locals better off??? We did cancel loans in the past many times. Why don't you ask the african locals how much money they have received from such cancellation of loans or how much better off they have been???
1. If you want to talk about the past then say, "China had a lower per-capita GDP when the loans were handed out." That's not what you said in all of your former posts. You were misleading forum members.
2.
Did you bother to read the news article that I posted where China forgave 50% of African rail debt?! If African rail doesn't benefit the local people then who does it benefit? You really should stop spewing your propaganda and look at the facts.
3. The countries surrounding China are all hostile. I would rather China help all African nations industrialize than help Vietnam or the Philippines. Let the Vietnamese and the Filipinos stay in the Stone Age forever. When neighbors are merely pawns of a foreign Western power, China should never give them one cent in aid. Ever.
Africans are China's friends. Vietnamese and Filipinos are China's enemies (see second citation below). It is absolutely correct for China to forgive $30 billion in African debt.
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I have reposted the news article again. Try reading it this time.
http://www.china.org.cn/world/2011-01/20/content_21783269.htm
"China to forgive half of [African] rail debt
Xinhua, January 20, 2011
China has signed a protocol with Zambia and Tanzania in Zambian capital city Lusaka, writing off 50 percent debts of Tanzania-Zambia Railway (TAZARA)
Chinese Deputy Commerce Minister Zhong Shan, Zambian Minister of Finance and National Planning Situmbeko Musokotwane and Deputy Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs of Tanzania Pereira Silima signed the protocol on Wednesday evening at Lusaka's Intercontinental Hotel.
Zhong said the decision made by the Chinese government to remit the partial debts is of the friendship between China and the African countries, and Chinese people wish to support Zambia and Tanzania in their capacity of development by seeing the railway getting off its burden of current operational difficulties.
Musokotwane praised the move by the Chinese side, saying the writing off of the partial debts will help boost trade among the three countries and revive the dream Zambia once had when the line was built."
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Vietnamese and Filipinos are China's enemies.
http://www.globaltimes.cn/NEWS/tabid/99/ID/680694/Dont-take-peaceful-approach-for-granted.aspx
"
Don't take peaceful approach for granted
Global Times | October 25, 2011 01:22
By Global Times
Recently, both the Philippines and South Korean authorities have detained fishing boats from China, and some of those boats haven't been returned. China has been increasingly confronted with sea disputes and challenged by tough stances from the countries involved. These events have been promoting hawkish responses within China, asking the government to take action.
China has emphasized its reluctance in solving disputes at sea via military means on many occasions. Peace is vital for its own economic development. But some of China's neighboring countries have been exploiting China's mild diplomatic stance, making it their golden opportunity to expand their regional interests.
What has recently happened in the South China Sea is a good example.
Countries like the Philippines and Vietnam believe China has been under various pressure. They think it is a good time for them to take advantage of this and force China to give away its interests.
Their inspiration is illogical and it is rare to see small countries using "opportunistic strategy" on bigger countries. Hard-line response will cause trouble for China, but if the problems and "pains" these countries bring exceed the risk China has to endure to change its policies and strategies, then a "counter-attack" is likely.
The sea disputes that some countries have created not only threaten China's long-term interests over the sovereignty of its sea borders, but also challenge the unity of China's politics on the issue. Growing voices urging the government to "strike back" will eventually form through influence.
Currently, China's mainstream understanding is that it should first go through the general channels of negotiating with other countries to solve sea disputes. But if a situation turns ugly, some military action is necessary.
This public sentiment will influence China's future foreign policy. Countries currently in sea disputes with China may have failed to spot this tendency, as they still perceive China through conventional wisdom. Thus, the South China Sea, as well as other sensitive sea areas, will have a higher risk of serious clashes.
If these countries don't want to change their ways with China, they will need to prepare for the sounds of cannons. We need to be ready for that, as it may be the only way for the disputes in the sea to be resolved.
Conflicts and disputes over the sovereignty of the seas in East Asia and South Asia are complicated. No known method exists to solve these issues in a peaceful way. Although China has proposed a strategy that calls for countries in the region to put away differences and work on shared interests, few have responded.
The reality is that each country in the region believes it has what it takes to force China to bow down. China wants to remain calm but it is a lonely role to play. China will have to adjust itself for this reality."
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