Why it's always the Chinese who get hurt ?
---Why Chinese businesses and tradesmen always the target of foreign assault ?
---Blending in vital for Chinese business abroad
"Where there is sea, there are Chinese. Where there are Chinese, there is business." The increasing population of overseas Chinese across nearly 150 countries and regions exceeds 35 million, and there is a surge in Chinese investment abroad.
Yet tough challenges remain before the Chinese abroad can ride the wave of global business opportunities.
What happened to Chinese businesspeople in Romania should serve as an eye-opener.
Recently, under government orders, about 300 Chinese-owned stores in Bucharest's Nile Market were forced to shut down. The remaining 3,000 Chinese shop owners in the market, mostly from Zhejiang Province, are in a difficult situation where electricity and water supply may be cut off any time. Even tear gas was used Wednesday to end the clash between policemen and Chinese shop owners, which has stirred outrage among Chinese across the world.
This is not the only such clash. Of late, there has been a rash of incidents in some other countries with a sizable Chinese population.
In Tokyo, on September 26, more than 30 Japanese attacked a Chinese-owned store, waving Japan's flag and shouting, "Get out of here!" In the Philippines, on August 18, over a dozen Chinese were arrested during an immigration raid. Just weeks earlier, in July, about 150 Chinese businesspeople were picked up during a high-profile crackdown on Russia's Cherkizovsky Market.
Gone are the days when the Chinese abroad suffered from the harsh discriminatory measures such as the Chinese Exclusion Act of the US between 1882 and 1943. But rivalries, prejudices, and even hostility toward Chinese businesspeople abroad is still very much there, and often in subtle forms, as these incidents show.
Protecting the legal interests of Chinese businesspeople abroad falls to the Chinese government. Consular protection, prioritized by Chinese government in recent years, has proved effective in coordinating with local authorities for an amicable resolution of such conflicts. And a more active role should be played by Chinese diplomatic missions, and chambers of commerce abroad in reaching out to shield Chinese businesspeople.
Doubtless, a durable solution lies with the Chinese businesspeople, who should blend in with the local community.
In the case of the Chinese in Romania, lack of assimilation is the biggest problem threatening their survival as well as prosperity. In the mid-1990s, Romania had a Chinese population of 20,000. Nearly 60 percent have since moved out, and the bulk of those who remain are small business owners.
Speaking no Romanian and with little knowledge of local laws and culture, the Chinese businesspeople are hardly seen interacting with the host country's mainstream. Most Chinese businesspeople rely heavily on their Romanian bodyguards and interpreters. That leaves them isolated with minimal protection from local authorities.
In contrast to the series of such recent incidents, numerous success stories can be cited of Chinese businesses abroad that developed by taking root in the local community. (Global Times)
Do you agree on the following points extracted from an interview by Global Times with an expert on World Chinese Company Research----
"Chinese business hasn't fully adapted to a free market and doesn't always abide by the rules of the market economy.
Chinese products are low-priced and of high quality. Chinese businessmen work diligently, even during the weekends and at night. These two factors are the advantages of Chinese businesses. So they can have a large impact on local markets in a short period of time.
The lack of corporate civil consciousness in Chinese businesses abroad and the dearth of social responsibility in Chinese businesspeople are often reasons why foreign countries have negative attitudes toward them. This is closely linked to the bad practices of domestic enterprises in China."
