In an
effort to eliminate “confusion” the Coquitlam Confucius Institute is now rebranding
after dropping the name of China’s most famous philosopher.[1]
Meanwhile, in another shell game, it is
no longer affiliated with Hanban, a branch of the Chinese Ministry of Education
but will be headquartered in Guangzhou at the South China Normal University in
a so-called sister-to-sister relationship with School District 43.
This is all
sleight-of-hand. Consider the front page headlines from the Globe and Mail which raise specific concerns, as SD43 applies
white-wash. [2]
Children celebrating the 10th anniversary of the Confucius Institute in
Coquitlam can be found in a YouTube video all synchronized and pumping their
fists in the air while reciting “I am proud. I am Chinese”, lines from a
patriotic poem which also praises the “five-star red flag” as well as the spirit
of the Communist revolution.
SD43
Superintendent Patricia Gartland has also long claimed that Confucius Institute
teachers are sourced within Canada and have undergraduate degrees or more. But upon investigating LinkedIn accounts the Globe and Mail determined that “at least
two instructors worked as teachers in mainland China shortly before beginning
work for the Coquitlam Institute, which says it only uses local staff.”
On top of
this there have been problems with educational materials in the
form of textbooks from China which depicted Taiwan as a province and Tiananmen
Square as sanitized. Clearly SD43 has
been less than truthful about the China’s influence,
and Gartland and our Trustees should be held accountable.
But what is
the true cost of doing business with Beijing? SD43 sees it as a boon with about
10 percent of its budget paid for by fees from overseas Chinese students, on
average twice the rate of other school districts in the province. Lest we forget, however, about the over 5,000
British Columbians who have died from overdoses of illicit fentanyl which
derives from China. In today’s postcolonial world, it’s likely considered payback
for that country’s national humiliation following the Opium Wars in the
nineteenth century.
If we look
at the controversy surrounding Huawei, Global
News has reported on the link between that company’s sudden rise and the
bankruptcy of Nortel, Canada’s telecommunications gem.[3] Too interested in profit margins, Nortel
failed to protect its own research and development as China-based military hackers
downloaded and stole from executive accounts.
The Globe and Mail has also
reported that listening devices were found in the former Nortel building walls. Perhaps SD43 would consider this sort of information as beyond its purview.
Myopia prevails at SD43. Speech is not free in China. It’s a police state with internet firewalls,
censorship in overdrive, intrusive facial recognition technology, and a
pervasive social credit system to regulate its people. There is no “public” in mainland China, a
concept which suggests “openness” – something President Xi sees as a political
enemy. It also has an aggressive
international agenda which should be clear to all. In other words, the Coquitlam Confucius
Institute is just a pretext for Chinese Communist Party “good will”.
Confused? Beijing certainly is not – though it appears
SD43 is muddled about which side of the Pacific Ocean it is meant to serve: China
and its despotism, or Canada and its democracy? I know which I prefer.
[1] “China has no influence on schools, say trustees, as they double down on Confucius Institute”, Tri-City
News online, Wednesday October 14, 2020.
[2] “Beijing uses B.C. schools to push
agenda”, The Globe and Mail, Thursday
October 15, 2020.
[3] “Inside the Chinese military attack
on Nortel”, Global News online August
25, 2020.
