( Asian Cold War ) "Global Power Shift: Is China's Alarming Rise Creating The Decline Of White Supremacy's Global Hegemony ?
The accelerating, unstoppable rise in Chinese hegemony raises questions about how people globally perceive those identified as members of the white/Caucasian demographic. Are they potentially viewed as racially criminal, contributed to by the stain of global questionable traits ( enslavement of non lookalikes, IMF, Human rights abuse willy nilly, UN staff crimes, NGO Crimes, Church Crimes, ETC ) —some ongoing, some in effect and legal for over 400 years?
This piece aims to explore the reasons behind the widespread acceptance of Chinese businesses and people worldwide. However, the focus will be on the interaction between Chinese and Africans.
Globally, little is known about Chinese Admiral Zheng outside of China at the time of writing. Originally born as Ma He in a Muslim family, he later adopted the surname Zheng conferred by the Yongle Emperor. Commissioned by the Yongle Emperor and later the Xuande Emperor, Zheng commanded seven expeditionary treasure voyages from 1405 to 1433, reaching Southeast Asia, South Asia, West Asia, and East Africa.
In charge of fleets dispatched across the oceans to present gifts and receive tribute on behalf of the emperor, Zheng He left Aden to Somalia and from Somalia to Zanzibar as part of his African itinerary. He observed several Swahili coastal towns, with Chinese chroniclers describing the coast as hot and dry, detailing the hardships of the people. Despite this, they viewed the coastal people as very pious while providing minimal information about their commerce.
After returning to China for a festival, Zheng He did not embark on the sixth voyage, but African ambassadors accompanied him back to China in 1419, staying for approximately two years until their homeward-bound trip in 1421, per Emperor Zhu Di’s orders. Between 1416 and 1423, Mogadishu sent three ambassadorial envoys to China. Emperor Yongle died in 1424. Despite his successor's disinterest in foreign voyages and ideas, Zheng He was commissioned by the fifth Ming Emperor Xuan Zong to embark on a seventh and final voyage in 1430. The final voyage returned in 1433 after an attempt to reinvigorate tributary relationships established or maintained during the reign of prior Ming emperors.
Following Zheng He's death, China isolated itself from the world for over 400 years. The tremendous fleets were burned, and building ships beyond minimal specifications was forbidden, punishable by death. Zheng He’s voyages held significant importance in China’s history, particularly during the Ming dynasty.
It is interesting to note that while China can be accused of a twisted form of xenophobia by isolating itself from the world, thereby asserting that it doesn't need slaves or to build China on the back of other people, historical events shed light on contrasting practices in the west.
In 1441, two Portuguese explorers, Nino Tristao and Antonio Goncalves, sailed to present-day Mauritania in West Africa, kidnapped twelve natives, and returned home to offer them as gifts to Prince Henry the Navigator. By 1460, seven hundred to eight hundred African slaves were being taken annually into Portugal.
All Western religious beliefs, including Islam, are very ambiguous about slavery; not one outright condemns it. Instead, guidelines on how to treat slaves are provided. I haven't come across a single Chinese spiritual practice, be it modern or ancient, advocating the enslavement of human beings or those who look different.
Even in medieval and modern times, records indicate the Catholic Church's involvement in the transatlantic slave trade and, more recently, its assistance to Nazis escaping persecution through something called the "rat line" after World War II.
Shaolin temples in China may not have been as collaborative with Japanese allies of the Nazis, there are no records to prove or disprove Chinese spiritualists' involvement with criminals pre or post WW2 as we have in the case of Catholic churches representing the epitome of Western spiritualists.
So far, it seems that two seemingly different cultures, with distinct approaches towards humanity, emerge.
One appears to be extroverted, seeking visibility, appreciation, worship, praise, and direct control using hard power, while the other seems to be introverted, observing before making a move and believing in soft proxy_power.
In my recent transactions with Chinese companies, despite the propaganda from the West regarding quality and non-delivery issues, I have found them to be more respectful of my business. Even with a non-English-sounding first and second name, the service level or tone of the person I'm dealing with remains consistent, without a patronising or passive-aggressive change—a pattern I've noticed throughout my life with Western companies.A recent encounter with an American trader highlighted a stark contrast.
Initially polite when he thought I was a Briton, his tone changed upon discovering my African name and surname.
Rudely directing me to read and understand a contract, he treated me as if I were a subordinate overseer on a slave plantation, advising me not to include ChatGPT in my communication with him. His demeanour only normalised when I cancelled the business and demanded a refund. Even then, his representatives, initially dismissive, later apologised and sought more business from my racially violated self.
This is an experience I've never encountered with people from other backgrounds, but I consistently face it with Western business individuals of Caucasian extraction. Even when I'm the one providing them business and they are the beneficiaries, they often exhibit the well-known trait of wanting to assume a role akin to plantation overseers in this age and generation, over their benefactors.
I believe this trend is contributing to a global shift towards Chinese partnerships.
While my case is personal, it serves as a microcosm of global politics.
Consider the example of France, currently extracting resources from African countries through colonial tax, despite the insult that current and past French presidents have imposed on their African counterparts. If these African nations were to resist, they would face severe economic consequences.
In the United States, the legacy of making Blacks work for over 500 years persists, with their descendants still facing disparities today. Even in Europe, including Eastern Europeans I've encountered in the West, there seems to be a collective trait when dealing with people of African descent.
This dynamic is notably absent in the Chinese world. While you may find a group of Chinese individuals in a room, when it comes to survival, I am convinced that each of them priorities his or herself over the Chinese race.
This is a stark contrast to the Europeans, especially when a Black person is present. My experiences lead me to this conclusion.
As you read this, there may be a member of the demographic who thinks or says, "How dare this uppity individual write this ? Who does he think he is? He has a chip on his damned shoulder"
RLFO .......Here and therein lies the reason for the observed/ alarming accelerating rise in Chinese hegemony, a shift fuelled by the perceived fairness and lack of inherent prejudice in their approach and behavioural pattern in the global community, be it intentionally or otherwise, there it is in my opinion .
Warm regards,
IAM Olofin
IAM Olofin
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