08-04-2013, 12:22 AM
This is a long term issue largely due to the Cultural Revolution in China. The never ending cheats within the whole spectrum of Chinese society is worrying as it is facing massive and widespread pollution problems now on top of deep rooted corruption. The entire country will have to tough it out and it may take generations of suffering to overhaul China and its core values.
Lack of trust ailing China
HK media chief, Buddhist monk weigh in on culture of suspicion in discussion at Boao Forum for Asia
Published on Apr 07, 2013
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Venerable Hsing Yun, a Buddhist monk from Taiwan, and Mr Liu Changle, chairman of Phoenix Satellite TV, at a discussion on honesty and integrity hosted by Ms Lu Chen yesterday at the Boao Forum for Asia. Seated behind the monk is a disciple. -- PHOTO: CHINA NEWS SERVICE
By Ho Ai Li China Correspondent In Boao, Hainan
China is facing such a serious graft problem that its football referees have been left out of the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, lamented a media chief at the Boao Forum for Asia in Hainan.
And the lack of trust in society is not limited to football.
"We're talking about honesty today, because this has become a problem," said Mr Liu Changle, chairman of Hong Kong's Phoenix Satellite TV, in a discussion on honesty and integrity with prominent Buddhist monk, Venerable Hsing Yun, from Taiwan.
While China is not a football giant, it used to have one of the best-regarded referees in the world in Lu Jun, who blew the whistle at the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea, he added.
But last year, Lu was given a jail term of 51/2 years for accepting bribes to fix matches, in yet another football scandal in China.
"At first it was soccer coaches, now it's referees. That not even one Chinese referee got into this (the 2014 World Cup) is something very tragic," said Mr Liu at the annual forum in Hainan, which opens officially today with a keynote speech by Chinese President Xi Jinping.
The crisis of trust can be seen from tensions between the government and the people, as well as between consumers and businesses, and in society at large, noted Mr Liu.
Surveys show that even professions traditionally held in high regard, like legal workers, civil servants, teachers and doctors, are now viewed with suspicion, he noted.
In China, it is common to give red packets to figures of authority like teachers and doctors to ensure that students or patients are taken care of.
Venerable Hsing Yun also weighed in on the trust deficit plaguing China, comparing it to an illness.
"If you are dishonest, you are putting the well-being of others in society in jeopardy," he said.
He was also asked about the 2006 Peng Yu case, involving a Nanjing man who was accused of hurting an elderly woman when he gave her a hand after she had fallen off a bus. This had made many people hesitate to lend a hand to strangers.
"The young man was unfairly treated, but didn't netizens support him in the end? In the end, he will receive justice," said Venerable Hsing Yun.
Mr Liu said he agreed with Mr Xi that corruption is a life-and-death problem, and should not be dismissed simply as an inevitable product of development. "While we can't say that it's a new problem, we have to say it's a very serious problem that has to be tackled urgently," he added.
Singapore's Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong, who is taking part in the Boao event, met New Zealand Prime Minister John Key yesterday and is due to meet Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev today.
hoaili@sph.com.sg
Lack of trust ailing China
HK media chief, Buddhist monk weigh in on culture of suspicion in discussion at Boao Forum for Asia
Published on Apr 07, 2013
Purchase this article for republication
Buy SPH photos
Venerable Hsing Yun, a Buddhist monk from Taiwan, and Mr Liu Changle, chairman of Phoenix Satellite TV, at a discussion on honesty and integrity hosted by Ms Lu Chen yesterday at the Boao Forum for Asia. Seated behind the monk is a disciple. -- PHOTO: CHINA NEWS SERVICE
By Ho Ai Li China Correspondent In Boao, Hainan
China is facing such a serious graft problem that its football referees have been left out of the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, lamented a media chief at the Boao Forum for Asia in Hainan.
And the lack of trust in society is not limited to football.
"We're talking about honesty today, because this has become a problem," said Mr Liu Changle, chairman of Hong Kong's Phoenix Satellite TV, in a discussion on honesty and integrity with prominent Buddhist monk, Venerable Hsing Yun, from Taiwan.
While China is not a football giant, it used to have one of the best-regarded referees in the world in Lu Jun, who blew the whistle at the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea, he added.
But last year, Lu was given a jail term of 51/2 years for accepting bribes to fix matches, in yet another football scandal in China.
"At first it was soccer coaches, now it's referees. That not even one Chinese referee got into this (the 2014 World Cup) is something very tragic," said Mr Liu at the annual forum in Hainan, which opens officially today with a keynote speech by Chinese President Xi Jinping.
The crisis of trust can be seen from tensions between the government and the people, as well as between consumers and businesses, and in society at large, noted Mr Liu.
Surveys show that even professions traditionally held in high regard, like legal workers, civil servants, teachers and doctors, are now viewed with suspicion, he noted.
In China, it is common to give red packets to figures of authority like teachers and doctors to ensure that students or patients are taken care of.
Venerable Hsing Yun also weighed in on the trust deficit plaguing China, comparing it to an illness.
"If you are dishonest, you are putting the well-being of others in society in jeopardy," he said.
He was also asked about the 2006 Peng Yu case, involving a Nanjing man who was accused of hurting an elderly woman when he gave her a hand after she had fallen off a bus. This had made many people hesitate to lend a hand to strangers.
"The young man was unfairly treated, but didn't netizens support him in the end? In the end, he will receive justice," said Venerable Hsing Yun.
Mr Liu said he agreed with Mr Xi that corruption is a life-and-death problem, and should not be dismissed simply as an inevitable product of development. "While we can't say that it's a new problem, we have to say it's a very serious problem that has to be tackled urgently," he added.
Singapore's Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong, who is taking part in the Boao event, met New Zealand Prime Minister John Key yesterday and is due to meet Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev today.
hoaili@sph.com.sg