"Sweep Out the Foreign Trash": Is Anti-Foreigner Sentiment Trending in China?

"Sweep Out the Foreign Trash": Is Anti-Foreigner Sentiment Trending in China?
May 27, 2012 By eChinacities.com

Editor's note: The following article was translated and edited from an article that appeared on DWnews.com. It concerns public and official reactions to two separate incidents involving foreigners behaving badly, with particular regard to the controversial comments of a very public TV personality and his subsequent criticism by a scholar in Hong Kong.

Following a recent incident in which a British man sexually assaulted a young Chinese woman on the streets of Beijing, and another in which a Russian musician verbally abused a Chinese woman on a train, Chinese netizens have begun to express resentment towards the behavior of foreigners in China, and the authorities in Beijing have launched an initiative to expel foreigners who enter the country illegally, overstay their visas, or seek illegal employment. In light of these events, Yang Rui, anchor for China Central Television's (CCTV's) English language channel, has spoken out on his Sina Weibo microblogging account, calling for Chinese police authorities to "sweep out the foreign trash." Some say it marks a new wave of anti-foreigner sentiment in China, a diagnosis denied by a scholar in Hong Kong who believes Yang Rui's comments were unreasonably provocative and inflammatory.

The sparks that ignited the "fire"

In the events leading up to Yang's Weibo comments, a video of an intoxicated British man publicly molesting a Chinese woman made its rounds on the Chinese internet. Shortly thereafter another foreigner, later identified as Oleg Vedernikov, principal cellist for the Beijing Symphony Orchestra, was caught on camera harassing and cursing at a female Chinese train passenger (his dismissal from the orchestra was announced on May 21st).

CCTV presenter Yang Rui's Weibo comments regarding these events have been described by various media as a poisonous injection into the controversy.

On May 14th, Yang tweeted publicly: "The police need to clean out the foreign trash: We should arrest foreign troublemakers and protect innocent young women; Wudaokou and Sanlitun are our primary disaster zones. We must cut off the head of the snake. The unemployed from America and Europe come for our money; they engage in human trafficking and spread rumors to encourage Chinese people to emigrate. We need to identify foreign spies who use Chinese girlfriends for cover while they gather intelligence and GPS information for Japan, Korea, America and Europe. Drive out that foreign bitch and shut down Al-Jazeera's Beijing bureau; make those who demonize China shut up and get out."

The "foreign bitch" Yang Rui refers to is Chinese-American Melissa Chan, who until recently was Qatar-based news organisation Al-Jazeera's English correspondent in China, until she was expelled from the country after being refused a visa extension.

A new wave of anti-foreigner sentiment?

The BBC's Chinese language news site reported on May 22nd that many people now believe the resentment of Chinese netizens towards the two incidents, as well the official actions of Beijing authorities to flush out illegal foreigners, are signs of a new wave of anti-foreigner sentiment in China. Professor Ding Xueliang of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, however, denies the existence of such a trend and calls Yang Rui's comments "unreasonably inflammatory and provocative."

China, asserts Ding, is too big with too many people. According to the professor, one can find people who hate foreigners, but one can also find people who are kind to foreigners; one can even find people who bend over backwards to cater to foreigners; most difficult to find, however, are people who can make clear-headed decisions in the midst of polarised opinions and emotionally charged controversy, people who can assert themselves fairly and reasonably.

Yang Rui's comments not a reflection of China

Ding was severe in his criticism of Yang Rui's Weibo postings. He says Yang's statements were provocative, unreasonable and illogical.

Ding goes on to say that, in Yang Rui's role as host of an English language talk show in which international guests are frequently invited to speak, his responsibility should be first and foremost to foster rational and balanced discourse, yet his recent statements run directly counter to that responsibility. According to Ding, Yang's comments not only failed to reflect the extremely good-natured attitude of most Chinese people towards foreigners, but also failed to reflect the fair and lawful manner in which the Chinese officials are handling the situation.

Ding also denies speculation that the inflammatory statements, as well as the illegal foreigner "clean-up" policy by Chinese authorities, were the result of pressure from popular opinion. He says it's hard to imagine that Chinese officials would risk international backlash just to cater to public interest. According to Ding, when the Chinese authorities do listen to public opinion, it's done only very selectively.

The 100 day crackdown on illegal foreign entry, residence, and employment has been in effect since May 15th. According a statement from the official Chinese newspaper People's Daily Overseas Edition, one out of every 100 people in China has a "foreign face," and the percentage of foreigners in certain communities is now higher than 20%. In 2011, the number of foreigners residing in China approached 600,000, with instances of illegal entry/residence/employment estimated at upwards of 20,000 by Chinese police authorities across the country. According to the report, most illegal entries come from countries bordering China, while most illegal employment issues arise from international students and tourists overstaying their residence, as well as a few miscellaneous foreign criminals.
 

Source: china.dwnews.com  
 

Related links
Protect Yourself from AFS (Arrogant Foreigner Syndrome)
How (Not) To Get Deported from China
Be Warned! Top 10 Chinese-Westerner Misunderstandings (According to Chinese)

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Keywords: CCTV host anti-foreign comments Yang Rui comments anti-foreigner sentiment China

33 Comments

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tomgee

I think Mr. Yang Rui is an excellent newscaster and many of his comments directed to the people who he interview is excellent. I think his comment of driving out 'foreign trash' is legitimate. I have lived in Japan, US, Canada, and Southeast Asia. Nobody wants foreign people who have no appreciation of they country and the people that let them work or stay should has no business being here. Some Chinese are not welcome in foreign countries too: those people that embezzled riches from China, people who are rich and consider poorer people as second class, and people who drive their BMWs and Mercedes like they own the road. Hey wait! These people are not welcome in China as well. I think Mr. Yang Rui have the right to say 'Sweep all the foreign garbage out of China'. May be it would have been better to say Sweep all these assholes (please pardon my use of this word but trash is not a strong enough a word) foreign or domestic out of our society was a better way to put it. So I say Mr. Yang Rui, GOOD ON YOU! I just do not know why you have such a negative impression for that lady that works for that Arab station.

Aug 22, 2013 22:40 Report Abuse

tomgee

Sorry Dan, but I think Mr. Yang Rui wanted to make a strong impact. This is a common sentiment in many countries about foreigners. Anyone that knows how to read English can figure out from the context of the whole passage and know what he means. I think people that cannot make that connection or too lazy to read everything will make a wrong assumption anyways. Tom

Aug 22, 2013 22:45 Report Abuse

tomgee

Dear Sinojade, I believe most of the people agree with you and I am very glad that even with the awful experience, you still have trust for the Chinese people. People like you, who do not judge a country or a race by a few bad apples have your head on right! I hope that your business in China is successful. Tom

Aug 22, 2013 22:48 Report Abuse

tomgee

Ha ha ha ha...sorry Fabi, there are too many corrupt officers in the world, there's nowhere for them to go...even in your own country. China is one of the few responsible countries that gets rid of them when caught....permanently.

Aug 22, 2013 22:49 Report Abuse

tomgee

Terence, I agree with you. Your countries has a heavy burden from SE Asia who do not contribute much. But you are paying for the sins of your ancestors so you cannot do to much. I agree with you but every country should accept as many foreigners who contribute to the well being of their country. Racism is a product of jealous, stupid, lazy losers, whiners, and manipulators who have no play anywhere.

Aug 22, 2013 22:54 Report Abuse

yinguoren

I was a little surprised at the uninformed comment here. If you do some research about the investment of the Chinese government in African countries you will find that many of them are made with little profit and much of the profit made put back into infrastructure development within the African countries. Chinese overseas investment is much less profit-motivated than any Western 'investment' so please check facts first

Jun 09, 2012 03:27 Report Abuse

tomgee

Did you read the comment from the Englishman? Chinese investment into Africa has been going on for donkey years. It was not based on making quick profit. China needed friends. I think could have been too young but most of the Western world did not recognize this country. Yes, they also thought Africa was a place to make a quick buck but the countries there except South Africa did not hold much significance. The only thing I heard about Africa when I was young is from my mom...'Eat all the vegetables...think of all the starving children in Africa!!!' I used to say just mail my leftovers. To most of the world, Africa was a continent full of starving uneducated dark-skinned heathens. But China saw that they had a commonality with these countries and this may not be fair but they were sending investment to Africa from aid money they were receiving from other countries. There are many ways to take this but I take this as China treasures friendship over full stomach. So, it is very natural for China to a CCTV there. As for Englishman's comment, yes, the ROI from the investments may be small; but everyone who invests has intention to make profit and if their moral conscience is present, they will put back a good percentage of their profit back to help the people. This may be good business too. So please do not feel that it seems unusual for China to get the people of Africa to know Chinese more by putting CCTV Africa. After all, China's entry into UN would have been impossible if it were not for China's African Allies. Tom

Aug 22, 2013 23:07 Report Abuse

tomgee

Half Indonesian.

Aug 22, 2013 23:22 Report Abuse

tomgee

I as a foreigner think Mr. Yang Rui is a great journalist. He is objective and not afraid to ask awkward questions. I do not agree to many of his points of view too. But who in any country does not want to get rid of trash. Nothing wrong with that. Tom

Aug 22, 2013 23:25 Report Abuse

Smooth

This Yang Rui's rant has put many things into perspective. When the cowardly rape act was committed,those who have been erroneously nursing the feeling that they are "special foreigners,from special countries" and therefore untouchable jumped out of their moleholes vocifering about the special passepartouts they had been legally granted.They started calling on their less polished brethen to make their return home imminent.It was just like seeing an earthquake in the horizon and deflating the tyres of a car for others not to escape.Then came Yang Rui's ground shatering pronouncements,then everybody tried to recaliberate and climb back on the brotherhood boat.This is human nature,"L`ennemi c'est toujours les autres".The second point is that most of the people from the West residing in China haven't yet come to terms with the fact that Chinese do not actually discriminate when it comes to their distrust of foreigners.All the KFCs,Apple telephones cannot change this fact.Next time when there's a crisis,foreign expats in China should better speak with one voice and not jump on stereotypes to yearn for what is as fleeting as the wind.This brings us to the third point about employment. Before the number of foreign expats in China swelled mostly due to the economic downturn in the US and Europe,the Chinese employed everybody from Bangladesh to Yemen without discrimination. It seems with the influx of some who kept force-feeding Chinese with stereotypes about others, the mood soured.The selected ones spare no effort to show the difference between them and the lowly of the world. The morale here is that don't feed Chinese with what they can easily use against you."Don't keep the hay where the gaot will easily reach for ".

Jun 01, 2012 00:59 Report Abuse

lils

He is entitled to his personal opinion. But this 'foreign trash' is'nt a widespread common problem in China. This guy presents a show that encourages and promotes balanced discourse and representation. As such a highly regarded tv presenter, he should keep his personal views to himself and not be trying to influence other people just because thats how he feels. This is definitely not a trend forming, this is just one guy abusing his position. Most Chinese know that the majority of foreigners are friendly and respectful and the misbehaving foreigners are far and few between.

May 30, 2012 19:57 Report Abuse

Carrie

I agree wholeheartedly with your statement.

May 30, 2012 00:34 Report Abuse

Carrie

Fair enough. I guess you have a point. Everyone has a right to say whatever they please on this website, so I acknowledge yours. On a second glance, perhaps I was a little hypocritical. Thank you for your criticism (despite how immaturely it was presented).

Jun 01, 2012 06:19 Report Abuse

kaka

@sailor great job buddy, who cares english or nonenglish speakeies, all u need to understand the points. biggest fool Bill, u still dreaming of correct english. ha ha ha

May 29, 2012 01:17 Report Abuse

Bill

Can I just say one thing?

The vast majority ( not all) of you suck at English. Please reconsider your "careers." You are lowering the English proficiency of the Chinese public and making a fool out of yourselves to boot.
Especially you @Sailor, where was it you got it your BA? Good job proving how qualified expats are here in China.
The Chinese are stupid for doing this media stunt though.

May 28, 2012 07:11 Report Abuse

her

A good reply Sailor, it's nice to have an intelligent reminder that 'foreigner' does not equal 'English speaker".

May 31, 2012 20:50 Report Abuse

Carrie

Chinese media is dumb for over-emphasizing this. Rapes go on every day and, just because it was a foreigner who committed the felony, doesn't mean it has to be repeated over and over on Chinese media. It's just propaganda for the uneducated public.

That being said, it is unfair to declare all of China to be a "sick nation." China has its stupid tendencies and we recognize it. It doesn't mean you people have to go off on how bad China is or how Chinese people have committed wrongdoings too. This just adds oil on the flames. Lets all be decent people and move past it. People will eventually come to their senses in this nation. Remember, it took the West a while too.

May 28, 2012 06:59 Report Abuse

mike

If this was in USA this guy already would have been fired. he is here only to preach the China Goverement proganda . Maybe we should in all the countries of the world get rid of all chinese how would they like that. I hate to say this but this must stop blaming foreign people for everything the police in china do nothing people are robbed and they cannot even help their own people. in any other country you see police evry where maybe they should stop sleeping on the job. They should find the bad chinese hookers and people who steal their own kind and stop going agter forign people who have onlt helped this country , where do they think they would be without foreign people and manufacturing still in the 10th century

May 28, 2012 05:00 Report Abuse

mesterp

If he was on Fox News he would get a bonus and extra shares.

May 28, 2012 10:08 Report Abuse

MissA

Yes, and the Chen incident.... what good timing that they suddenly have evidence of how awful us foreigners are!

May 31, 2012 20:46 Report Abuse

Gene

I think the chinese people should relaize their is bad in every country whaty if in all the rest of the world we said get rid of all the chinese out ot the country. I think you should also relaize their are many quality foreign people that have helped the chinsese people look at world war 2 if not for american pilots where and what would have happent to China, Maybe China should allow its people to think for themselves and show more articles on the good that foreigns do. The chinese people are to brain washed to even realize that

May 27, 2012 23:29 Report Abuse

pkp

one thing i don't understand is how is it different from many of the such incidents involving chinese men in similar situation. How does it make it different for the woman if a chinese man do the same thing. Because its foreign face it became a nation pride issue. People looked at Yang rui program me as reflection of chinese view point on many of the current subjects but his behavioral will make many rethink if they are true reflection or hidden propaganda of a biased mindset.

May 27, 2012 21:47 Report Abuse

MisterP

not all chinese are stupid, but they do have their fair share of ignorant folk, just like we do in the west.

May 28, 2012 10:04 Report Abuse

anon

How is this not an example of "losing face"?

Chinese people hate it when others "lose their cool" in public and do and say irrational things.... hmm it seems that Yang Rei indeed spoke out of turn. Anger is not a justification for saying whatever you want...

That being said.. China has a right to protect it's country and sure, they can kick out the illegals but it seems the ones who made the offenses in the first place had proper documentation to be in China...
How is a raid on illegal residents a result of recent events?... A little redundant but thus it's what a child does when they are hurt and don't know how to react.. they take it out on something else without thinking logically first to determine the real issue and solve it with dignity and class...

May 27, 2012 16:39 Report Abuse

DaqingDevil

Don't worry about China closing it's doors, it's the closed Chinese mind I lament!!

May 27, 2012 14:06 Report Abuse