Chinese lessons in turning ethnicity into an asset

Kenyans and Africa as a whole know only too well the pitfalls of ethnicity. Indeed, tribal differences in the 20th century have been the bane of many countries in the continent, with millions of lives lost in numerous ethnically motivated ethnic wars both in-country and between States.  

According to a report by the African Development Bank Group released in February 2014 titled Estimating the Economic Cost of Fragility in Africa, these conflicts have “exacted heavy toll on Africa in terms of human suffering and lost development opportunities with devastating impact on political, social and economic development.”

Further, the paper estimated that fragile states lose an opportunity to double their initial Gross Domestic Product per capita after a period of 20 years.

Broadly, ethnicity is a sense of peoplehood, when people feel close because of sharing similarities as listed below by the Australian Government’s Department of Home Affairs:

• Physical characteristics such as skin colour or bloodline
• Linguistic characteristics such as language or dialect
• Behavioural or cultural characteristics such as religion or customs or
• Environmental characteristics such as living in the same area or sharing the same place of origin.

But while we condemn ethnicity in many parts of the world for its adverse effects in society, China has managed to harness this power and turned it around for the benefit of the citizens.

China’s case study on harnessing ethnicity was presented in a recent global seminar of experts on Chinese affairs organised by the Belt and Road Initiative.

In a paper tilted Development of Ethnic Groups in China by Dr Deng Yanting of the China-Africa Institute, China’s history has been jointly written by all the 56 ethnic groups in the country. Yanting  noted that all ethnic groups are accorded equal treatment through mutual respect and acceptance. 

The national policy on ethnicity encompasses the following strategies:

• Guarantee of ethnic equality at national legislative body of the governing Communist Party of China (CPC);
• Equal engagement in the country’s governance of all ethnic groups;
• Protection of cultural diversity of different ethnic groups;
• Shared benefits of all ethnic groups.

Indeed, the diverse ethnic groups have played a critical role in the fight against abject poverty in the country. For instance, cyberstars of the minority ethnic group in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region has helped to increase online sales of apricot in the area through WeChat and TikTok social media apps.

The tea industry has flourished under the guidance of minority ethnic cadre in Guizhou Province.

The CPC has also given ethnic groups some leeway in their regional governance. For instance, primary school education is undertaken in Mongolian language in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. The CPC also runs a cadre school for minority ethnic groups in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

The languages of Han and Yi are used in Shilin Yi Autonomous County, Yunnan Province while newspapers are published in Uygur language in Xinjiang’s Autonomous Region.

The foregoing shows a country at peace with its ethnic diversity and uses it to ensure that every member of society feels part of the whole. China’s basic policies on ethnic groups includes representation at the National People’s Congress, and permitting the use of ethnic languages in some of the Province People’s Congresses.

This is in sharp contrast to some countries who purport to have democratic ideals where everyone has equal rights. For instance, in recent years ethnicity, otherwise known here as racism, has reared its ugly in the United States of America.

While African Americans have been the target of systemic racism executed mainly by the police, the recent killing of Asian Americans has shown that all non-Whites are not safe.

China’s effective ethnic balancing shows the hidden benefits of enhancing positive ethnicity.  According to a study by social scientists at The University of Manchester published in May 2013, ethnic diversity is not only good for people’s health, saying that UK’s most ethnically diverse neighbourhoods are also the healthiest.

“Ethnic diversity is beneficial” they scientists argued “because it is associated with less racism and discrimination, more social cohesion, and stronger social support networks,” says the report.