Last week, in response to the first European Union sanctions against the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) since the June 4 incident over the human rights abuses of ethnic minorities in Xinjiang, Beijing launched a series of counter-attacks. First, it hit back immediately with punitive measures against the EU including European lawmakers, diplomats and institutes. Then, through the Communist Youth League and its mouthpieces, it stirred up a wave of patriotism on the internet calling for “I support Xinjiang cotton.” This cotton firestorm expanded rapidly from the official level to the general public. In addition to mainland celebrities, which include those from Xinjiang, following the mainstream movement and taking sides as usual, they were joined by artists from Hong Kong and Taiwan. This time, it is not simply a matter of retweeting a tweet or paying lip service, but rather the actual withdrawal of cooperation and endorsement from European and American clothing brands involved in the boycott of Xinjiang cotton. For a while, the nationalist sentiment to resolutely oppose the “stigmatization” of Xinjiang cotton by Europe and the U.S. escalated on the Chinese internet, echoing Yang Jiechi’s earlier remarks during his visit to the U.S., “Chinese people don’t eat this” and Hua Chunying’s “Today’s China is no longer what it was 120 years ago.” Now that the “Eight-Power Allied Forces,” “Empress Dowager Cixi,” and “Boxer Rebellion” are in place, some people cannot help but speculate whether the script from 120 years ago will be repeated in some form or another.

Of course, today’s China is not the Qing Dynasty of 120 years ago. The Qing government did not have nuclear bombs and aircraft carriers to threaten foreign enemies, and those in power lacked the same understanding of the world as the CCP does today. Nevertheless, the CCP is still very similar to the old conservatives of the late Qing Dynasty in terms of its autocratic and authoritarian attitude internally and arrogant attitude externally. Due to the differences in time and technology, the CCP is slightly stronger than the late-Qing conservatives. Unless the top leaderships were to completely lose their minds, the scene of sword-fighting with the Great Powers from 120 years ago will not happen for the time being. After all, if the CCP really had the conviction and determination to fight a foreign war, it could have taken action against India last year to reclaim its territory, instead of retreating after a brawl in the disputed region.

The risk of a hot war between China and the U.S. is relatively low, as the military strength of the CCP discourages Europe and the U.S. from taking the initiative to use force, and the CCP is not bold enough to do so either. The CCP is much more skillful than the Qing government in manipulating nationalist sentiment in China. Compared to the Qing court’s fluctuating attitude toward the development of the Boxer Rebellion, sometimes forbidding it, sometimes condoning it, and being passive and uncertain about its direction, the CCP has mastered the populist nationalism movement with ease. When officials are in need, the internet can suddenly be flooded with opinions, forcing everyone to take a stand and express their loyalty. When there is no such need, the incident can be cooled down and will not get out of control. And see the many who complain about foreign countries on the internet, but the moment they really go to those European and American stores to protest, the police immediately arrived at the scene to remove them, in short, “Everything is under control”. Since autocrats love to be in control and are most afraid of losing that control, derailment will not be tolerated. If the Boxer Rebellion was the result of the various interactions between the Qing government and the Boxer Gang, today’s nationalist fervor is merely a passive manipulation by the CCP. The Party can tear down churches, but civilians without authorization must never do so. Even when Hong Kong activists for the Baodiao Movement planted the Five-Starred Red Flag on the Diaoyu Islands, they were still not welcomed by the Party.

In the end, the script of “supporting Xinjiang cotton” is similar to that of “American Pneumonia” last year and “supporting the Hong Kong police” the year before. In recent years, the clashes between the CCP’s actions and universal values have become more and more acute. The anti-ELAB movement in Hong Kong two years ago, the cover-up of the epidemic in Wuhan last year, and the confrontation between China and foreign countries so far this year have all questioned the legitimacy of the CCP regime. In the U.S., some hawks have changed their attitude of avoiding talking about the issue for the past 40 years and have made it clear that they want to change the Chinese Communist regime, while Yang Jiechi has made it clear in Alaska that the Chinese Communist regime must remain unshaken. The crux of the matter lies in the group most capable of influencing the ruling power of the CCP - the Chinese people. For this reason, the CCP must have a firm grip on its internal voice in order to counteract external influences. Whenever there is a serious conflict between China and the outside world, a wave of “patriotic” populist nationalism against external universal values becomes the “vaccine” to protect the regime. Such populist fervor comes and goes in a flurry with a short shelf life, so it is necessary to be “vaccinated” regularly, just like the flu shot. Just this time it is Xinjiang cotton, who knows who or what will be the next target to support/object?

(Lam Hoi, journalist)

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