Editorials

Understand China better

(China Daily)
Updated: 2010-04-22 07:46

Editor's note: True blue will never stain. The deeper western public understand China, the better attitude they will hold toward China.

Chinese people are generally seen as being sensitive about their reputation, or "face".

So it is understandable that many Chinese people feel happy when a poll sponsored by British media agency BBC finds China's international image improving.

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Understand China better Global poll shows uptick on China

The positive result of the poll, which was revealed on Monday, can serve as a barometer to the rising role China is playing in the international arena. It is heartening to see more people recognizing China as a responsible player in world affairs and an important force for world peace and development.

Still, the poll is by no means a comprehensive and fair judgment on the country's overall achievements at home and abroad.

In a world where Western media still play a dominant role in shaping public opinion, the international community has long been exposed to assorted views and attitudes toward China. These are unsuitably seasoned with misunderstanding, misinterpretation or even bias and enmity.

The fact that many Americans and Europeans polled still hold negative views toward China is a case in point. No matter what China has done to shore up the world economy last year, a number of Westerners still felt unimpressed.

Some may have mixed feelings toward China's rising economic clout. That is why we have heard many more unfriendly remarks about the country - even a revival of the "China threat" theory - from abroad recently.

As mutual understanding deepens, public opinion will change with the times. What will not change is China's determination to continue pressing ahead for the benefit of its people and the world at large.

(China Daily 04/22/2010 page8)