Challenges And Countermeasures Of China 's International Public Opinion On Non - Aid

Foreign aid is an important part of a nation’s foreign strategies. Since the ‘50s ofthe last century, China has been laying a strong foundation for friendly bilateralrelationships through providing aid to Third World countries within the framework ofSouth-South cooperation. Today, as China is maintaining remarkable advance in itsdevelopment and keeping a steady progress to the role of a significant stakeholder inworld affairs, the country is becoming an increasingly important player in the systemof international aid. Due to its distinct features and prominent results, China’s aid tooverseas countries has long been closely watched by the international community. Inthe arena of China’s aid to Africa, such scrutiny is accompanied by doubts andreproaches in overseas media. Media backlash against China’s aid to Africa not onlyhas a negative impact on the aid efforts, but also cast a shadow over the relationshipbetween China and African nations.The major part of international media’s skepticism and rebukes against China’said to Africa revolves around such themes as China’s push for neo-colonialism, itsdisregard for human rights, the opaqueness of the aid, China’s grabbing of Africa’snatural resources and dumping of its goods in Africa. One of the most fundamentalreasons for those unfavorable views lies in the anxieties felt by the U.S. anddeveloped European countries, who have long viewed themselves as the guardians ofworld order, over their status being eroded by a rapidly developing China. As a result,those countries hold a prejudiced belief that China’s aid to and investment in Africa isself-serving. Moreover, the differences between China and Western countries in theirvalues and ideologies also lead to unfounded or even malicious reports by Westernmedia, which aim to distort China’s motivation for aiding Africa. The voice ofdiscontent that originated in Africa, by contrast, focuses on over-reliance of Africa onChina, local commerce suffering from the influx of Chinese goods, and destruction ofthe environment, all of these worries encouraged by Western media.To deal with adverse international media, China should take a proactive stance,putting more emphasis on publicity efforts about its oversea aid. In the meanwhile, China should also deepen its communication with the international community,Western and African countries included. Last but not least, respecting local Africanculture and local way of thinking, and improving localization policies of Chinesebusinesses in Africa are also indispensable to projecting a positive role of China inAfrica.