Ethical concerns (or how China might banish me also)

I had this great entry that I was writing being all critical of China... but I guess I need to pay in advance to use the internet here so after an hour it cut me off and my entry vanished.

I'm sure you all know about China, the repression of political dissent, the lack of a fair judicial system, the valuing of economic output over the environment, the three river gorge dam, etc. Maybe I'll try to write it again but this time I will watch the time.

I was reading my travel guide last night (I went into a little spiel on Lonely Planet but despite everyone using them and thereby making it practically tour like in some aspects they are useful). It was talking about the Uighurs in the far west of China. They really have very little to do with Chinese culture and are much more similar to Central Asians in virtually every respect but government. So anyways, in 1997, the Uighurs had a large protest that turned violent (by whom?) and 200 people were killed according to the Chinese media (reliable?). Then some rioters(?) who weren't killed were arrested and then executed the same day as their trial. Then after September 11th, China was able to term many of them Islamic Extremist and was able to exert more power and this time with US support. It really made me wonder whether I wanted to be in China.

I thought about going to see the titanic dam that they are building that will flood an unknown amount of land, bury national treasures, dislocate people. It will also probably slow the river allowing for increased accumulation of chemical waste. Then I realized, why would I want to go see something that I am opposed to. It didn't make sense. So I've been thinking about what responsible tourism is. If I come to China, does that mean that I am condoning its actions. Am I a supporter of the government of China? I don't know. If I were in the US it wouldn't mean that I was supporting the invasion of Iraq but it seems different here (in my whole 12 hours of experience) just because no one is able to speak out against the government. I'm even a slight bit paranoid about writing this. What if the government reads this and comes after me?

I just don't know. I was thinking about it in the context of other authoritarian governments as well. Maybe I shouldn't go to Uzbekistan who recently violently suppressed a protest (700-800 killed, I think). Really though, the government has so little to do with the people. It doesn't really represent the interests of the people. Does the average Han Chinese (dominant group) care about what happens to their Muslim countrymen. Probably not? Does it mean they support the actions of the government? Probably not. Maybe, that's what bothers me about China. The fact that everyone is either complacent about what is going on in their own country or doesn't realize. I think in Uzbekistan, it's probably different. More people are probably against the government than in support of it. I'm sure they might be complacent too but I guess they are used to the government not doing much for them. Here it seems, perhaps falsely, that everyone supports the government so long as it improves their lives. I guess the Chinese don't see why the people of Tibet or the Uighurs resent them since they built them all these roads, schools, and hospitals. At the same time though, they create all these government positions and give them to Chinese and encourage migration to areas where Han Chinese are minorities. I guess the Uighurs went from being about 90% of the population of their province to about 40% today. It just seems like the average Chinese is consenting to the action of the government. i realize that not all are but that's just the impression I get when I see people walking merrily down the street.

That's where my little debate is at the moment. Is it the people or the government? Am I supporting the way that China is governed or administered? Or am I here to see the people and discover how things are for myself? Anyways, after reading about and remembering all these things that China has done, I don't know how much time I want to spend in typical China. I thought about going to Tibet but it seems so far and might not be easy to get to. It seems easier to reach from Nepal which I would like to go to one day. I haven't made up my mind about Tibet we'll say.

I have on the other hand decided to visit Shanghai. It's a bit out of the way but I don't know if I'd go any other time. I thought maybe when I went to Hong Kong (whenever that might be) but it was further than I thought and I'm maybe only 1/3 closer to Beijing than Shanghai at the moment. I wish my guide gave better information about travel time. So right now, it looks like Shanghai, Beijing, Xian, and then leaving typical China for Kashgar and Urumqi, possibly Tibet.

My little responsible tourism has led me to question my visit to Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan was always a bit questionable due mostly to visas. Should I go there and 'support' the government through visa fees and taxes? Or by going there would it improve the lives of average citizens (not that I would bring a lot of foreign investment or whatever)? I'll have to work out these little ethical problems within the next few days.