Wen seeks to win Indians with Tagore, tai-chi, calligraphy

[SpArK]

Wen seeks to win Indians with Tagore, tai-chi, calligraphy​

In a bid to improve the public image of China that has taken a beating in recent months due to Beijing's diplomatic postures, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao will visit a school in the Indian capital when he comes here next week to project the country's soft power to the younger generation.

Wen will begin his three-day trip to India with a visit to the Tagore International School at Vasant Vihar Dec 15. He will informally interact with schoolchildren where he is expected to tell them about Chinese culture, tai-chi and calligraphy, informed sources told IANS.

He is also expected to announce at the school about China's decision to provide textual and audio-visual material to Indian schools to help teach Mandarin, a proposal floated by Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal when he visited China recently. He is also likely to declare that China was ready to send teachers to teach Mandarin to India if India wanted, said the sources.

The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has already announced plans to introduce Mandarin Chinese as a foreign language in its 11,000 affiliated schools from Class 6 onwards next year.

Tagore School has an ongoing exchange programme with a Chinese school whereby Indian teachers impart lessons to Chinese students in yoga through videoconferencing and Chinese teachers teach Indian students about calligraphy.

During Wen's visit, his second to the country, the two sides will focus on ironing out a host of irritants that has clouded bilateral ties like stapled visas for Indian citizens of Jammu and Kashmir and Beijing's massive investment in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir that New Delhi sees as an inimical move.

Tagore School has been chosen for the premier's visit due to the enduring Chinese fascination with Nobel laureate poet-philosopher Rabindranath Tagore. In a recent poll by Global Times, a Chinese daily, Tagore was voted as one of two Indians (that included Jawaharlal Nehru) who have influenced the Chinese the most.

During her visit to China in May, President Pratibha Patil unveiled a bust of Tagore in Shanghai. Another bust of Tagore can be seen at the Peking University in Beijing.

The Chinese were keen to include a visit to the school by the premier as the powers-that-be in Beijing thought this would be a good step to dispel the notion of rivalry and confrontation between India and China among impressionable schoolchildren.

The idea is to create a positive image of China in the new generation which will be leading India in the next 10-20 years, a source said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

When he last came to India in 2005, Wen had visited Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) where he spoke about youth exchanges to promote better understanding between the two countries.

Wen will amplify on the theme of India and China as a partners and not rivals in his address to the Indian Council for World Affairs Thursday.

The cultural diplomacy will also be in spotlight when Wen and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will participate in the closing ceremony of the Festival of China in India at the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium Thursday evening.

Says Srikanth Kondapalli, a China expert at Jawaharlal Nehru University' 'It's time to scale up youth exchanges as they are a good way to build better understanding, specially between India and China. There hasn't been much on this front so far.'




Wen seeks to win Indians with Tagore, tai-chi, calligraphy

 

[Paan Singh]

but we want unstapled visas and clear chinese policies towards india.

 

[SpArK]

Top issues in India, China ties: Factbox - Reuters -

 

[cybertron]

i truely hope we improve our relations with china.
i love china and the relations with china makes me very sad.
I hope this visit lays down some guidelines so that we not only peacefuly coexist but also take it to much higher level of friendship and brotherhood.
well i may be optimistic but wats life without optimism..ehh!!!

 

[JayAtl]

strange Chinese protocol: To get the laughing stock image away, they come up with ideas to try and in doctrine the Indian kids?


I've made no secret about my feelings about china. But allow me to explain in-depth why this upcoming visit is critical for India and why India should be suspicious and extremely cautious.

You folks know that India's trade deficit is almost twice that of China's imports from India. China exports 2x their products to the Indian market, while only allowing India to export close to 1/2 of that figure in exports to their market. Considering their market and purchasing power and given their almost 3 X GDP over India - this should be unacceptable and rectified .

However, Divya had asked a poignant question in the Chinese forums and I'd like to share the question and my thoughts about it.

Ok trolls aside what are your views on the chinese foreign policy about India? Whats your take on it and how you expect it to be taken?

From India's perspective- With utmost suspicion. Trust but verify at every stage and the article speaks to why. What this tawdry boycott tells us about China and its friends is that they think there's nothing they can't buy and bully their way out of: morality; international laws and treaties; universal acceptance (in theory, anyway) of the importance of human rights; the need in the age of global warming to work together with the rest of the world.

Take as recent as the staple issue, Tibet / Dalia lama, or china protesting our prime minister from visiting AP, or it's ongoing build up near the border. Asking a sovereign countries Prime minister that he should not visit one of his own states! ( that takes either balls or extreme arrogance or stupidity) These kind of actions, plus their past history of a military attack on us, should be alarming w/ red flags showing up for the Indians.

China's role in other countries is also a great indicator of their design. I have no problem with them pushing for their interest BUT look at the countries that it has in-depth trade investments and relationships with. They don't just arm twist, which the US does too, but are very aggressive and come up with alarming statements tantamount to threats- even up to sanctions .

All of China’s neighbors want China to know, as the sign says: “Don’t even think about parking here.” Don’t even think about using your growing economic and military clout to just impose your claims in border disputes and over oil-rich islands in the South China Sea. Because, if you do, all of China’s neighbors — including India — will be doomed to become America’s new best friends.

That’s why each one of China’s neighbors is eager to have a picture of their president standing with Clinton or Obama — with the unspoken caption that reads: “Honestly, China, we don’t want to throttle you. We don’t want an Asian Cold War. We just want to trade and be on good terms. But, please, stay between the white lines. Don’t even think about parking in my space because, if you do, I have this friend from Washington, and he’s really big. ... And he’s got his own tow truck.”

 

[Hindutvadi]

People to people relations with China are aways cordial...even the relation between both the neighbors are not bad considering the fact that we've been staying together from thousands of years..and yes welcome Mr. Wen

 

[Srinivas]

Wen is not appealing as Obama. Wen's visit was viewed by suspicion as the ground reality and China's intentions are completely different from that of what Wen was trying to convince India.

 

[DesiGuy]

but we want unstapled visas and clear chinese policies towards india.

issues like these come and go. it's all part of politics. it wouldn't affect much in the long term.