Ludicrous suggestion

THE EDITOR, Sir:

I AM certain that the good Mr Lipton Matthews, author of the Letter of the Day, 'China: an emerging threat', that appeared in Tuesday's edition does not live in a bubble, or a vacuum for that matter.

His suggestion that the greatest threat to the future stability of the world is China's rise in economic power is ludicrous! His further presenting of evidence from "knowledgeable and credible sources", while not reviewing context and allowing for biases, leaves room for his argument to be considered "short-weighted".

"The Chinese are willing to provide African leaders with infrastructure and financial capital, as long as they allow China to exploit the continent." This is alleged to have been said by an African who works for a Western media house. What context is this in? Is this to say that it (China) is the opposite of the Western democracies, who are this world's upholders of human rights and civil liberties?

"China's authoritarian regime could inspire non-democratic governments in the East to adopt the capitalist model without becoming a democracy." This is to say that the dictatorships of Asia (Pakistan, Taipei and the Indo-Chinese Kingdoms) are currently using socialist or even communist economic models?

There are only two "non-capitalist" nations in Asia, China and North Korea. As it relates to respect for "democracy", has Mr Matthews forgotten who put General Fulgencia Batista in power? Who put General Augusto Pinochet in power? Which government blocked repeated attempts by the United Nations to halt a GENOCIDAL CAMPAIGN IN AFRICA in a bid to maintain their mineral extraction rights?

I think that China's respect for the sovereign rights of a people to determine their domestic and international affairs is more in keeping with protecting democracy than those who claim to "bring and protect democracy", while telling a sovereign parliament that "they are going to continue voting on the motion until they get the result right!"

A. Dominic Brooks

andre.dominic.brooks@gmail.com