China: Is our aid to the Philippines too meager?
China donated $100,000 to the Philippines after Typhoon Haiyan, but later increased the amount to $1.6 million.
No good deed goes unpunished, said the China Daily (Beijing) in an editorial. As the Philippines struggles to dig out from the devastation wrought by Typhoon Haiyan, “a storm of China bashing has been gathering.” Foreign media are “pointing an accusing finger” at China’s donation of $100,000 in aid, calling it meager in comparison to those of countries like the U.S., which pledged $20 million to disaster recovery, and even the Swedish furniture company Ikea, which gave $2.7 million. Our critics “have wrongly assumed China’s skirmishes with the Philippines over islands in the South China Sea” are to blame for what they consider a stingy donation. “Those China bashers must harbor ill intentions, aimed at either tarnishing China’s image in the world arena or sowing further seeds of discord between China and the Philippines.”
Beijing has since increased its aid to $1.6 million, but its first offer was more than adequate, said the Legal Daily(Beijing). “Any donation should be in line with public sentiment in the donor country as well as its capacity [to donate], and the $100,000 to the Philippines [was] a reflection of both.” Chinese social media are awash in anger that we are giving any money at all to a country “that has tried to provoke China,” said Wang Wenwen in the Global Times(Beijing). It’s only prudent that Beijing should consider negative public opinion, as well as China’s ongoing maritime dispute with Manila, when determining how much to give its neighbor.
Filipinos should be grateful for China’s generosity, said the Southern Daily (Guangdong). “The Chinese government and people have never begrudged our ‘love’ to the Philippines,” sending $80,000 just last month to help Filipino earthquake victims. Yet the country only asks for more. And why criticize China? said the Ta Kung Pao (Hong Kong). The corrupt government of Philippine President Benigno Aquino deserves the outrage for its “weak” disaster response. “The people of Hong Kong had a taste of Aquino’s despicable working style” in 2010, when his government refused to apologize for the mishandling of a hostage crisis that year in Manila, in which eight Hong Kong tourists were killed. Now Aquino’s own people are the victims of his recklessness.
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As a responsible power, China should help a disaster-stricken neighbor “no matter whether it’s friendly or not,” said the Global Times (Beijing). Our international image is vital to our interests, and the world is watching how we respond to this crisis. “If it snubs Manila this time, China will suffer great losses.” Just as the “big tree invites the wind,” China’s rising-power status leaves it increasingly open to suspicion and criticism, said Chen Xulong in the China Daily. We should not respond to these challenges by “keeping a low profile.” Our continued development depends on maintaining good relations with our neighbors. Beijing should seize this opportunity to earn the good will not just of the Philippines but of the whole region.
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