I HAVE read an enormous amount of information on China’s pathway to becoming one of the world’s superpowers and one of the most sought-after countries.
To date, the most illuminating, scholarly and penetrating analysis of China is a recent publication by the former Chilean ambassador to China, Jorge Heine.

This is top-class scholarship on China’s superpower status that you can only find from an intellectual in the Global South. Heine’s analysis lacks the American-centric and Eurocentric approach to the study of the international system that does not paint the reality of the greatness of China in today’s world.

Heine’s book is in Spanish (there has to be an English edition shortly; that is common sense) and I have not read it. What I have produced here are the contents of an interview that the diplomat gave to Boston University’s Global Development Policy Center. His interview brings out what he has put into his book.

What I have done here is to reproduce some of his contents in the interview because I honestly believe the peoples, politicians and scholars in the Global South need to read what Dr. Heine has to say about China. This is fascinating stuff from a diplomat who knows the Third World because he served in Africa, the Caribbean and China. There may be more enlightening publications to come about how China has achieved its global penetration but for now, Heine’s output is the best so far. I will offer the relevant quote (Q) then give my comment (C).

Q1- I never expected to see what I saw in China, a big country that thinks in big terms and that acts accordingly. It has thus achieved things like lifting 800 million people from poverty in 40 years. In much of the developing world, people tend to find reasons for not doing things, and for kicking the can down the road. In China, I found that is not acceptable. People are expected to find a way to get things done. A mayor says a bridge will be up in six months, and it is. In many countries, the same bridge may take five or ten years, or may never be built.”

C1- isn’t this the contrary what we see in the developing word that explains maybe the reason why China is on top of the globe and after 60 years of Independence many Third World countries are yet to enter the modern world.
Q2- “True modernity in today’s world can be found in China more so than in North America or Western Europe.

Just looking at the airports in Beijing, Shanghai or Guangzhou and comparing them with the airports of many Western cities is revealing. The difference could not be more striking. The train that takes you to Pudong Airport in Shanghai does so at 450 kilometers per hour. I call Shanghai the first city of the 22nd century, building scores of 100-story skyscrapers in Pudong, just across the Huangpu river, interspersed with bike-lanes, walk-ways and parks of the highest quality urban design.

In 1990, Shanghai did not have a single subway line. In 2012, it had 14. Rio de Janeiro had two subway lines in 1990. In 2012, it had the same two. 44 cities in China have subways today.”
C2. I have friends that been to China, and they would tell me that compared to China, Manhattan and John F. Kennedy Airport look old as if they are Third World stuff. When you look at China today, you understand why the West wants the Global South to shun it.

American Secretary, Anthony Blinken was in Malaysia recently and told the Malaysian Prime Minister to distance Malaysia from China. I don’t need to tell you what the PM’s reaction was. Just Google it and you will see it.
Q3 – “China does things fast. The longest bridge over seawater in the world is the one that goes from Zhuhai to Hong Kong, spans 50 km, was built in six years and was inaugurated in 2018.

My own country, Chile, is the most developed country in Latin America, has some of the best infrastructure in the region and some of the best engineers. A bridge in Southern Chile, from Puerto Montt to Chiloe, across the Chacao Channel, spanning 2 km, was started in 2012. Ten years later, it is not even half-done.

C3- When you read these quotes, you understand the frustration of President Ali which explains his delivery at the recent meeting he had with ministers, contractors, engineers and Permanent Secretaries. China is the future of the world. Ruling politicians in the Global South need to start comprehending that reality.

DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Guyana National Newspapers Limited.