On February 21, Xinhua posted an article titled “Western Enemy Forces Who Are Pressuring Beijing Olympics Will Be The Losers”. The article was originally published on February 19 by Lian He Zaobao, the highest circulating Chinese daily in Singapore and the region, titled “What can the West Gain From Politicizing The Olympics” written by Zheng Yongnian.
Zheng claimed that “the West forces that are politicizing the Olympics will not gain any political values and the reforms in China will not follow the expectations set by the western world.” The article criticized the western democracy system and said “the democratic system is often accompanied by social turmoil and slower economic development or even endless racial conflicts in many countries.” Zheng wrote: “Holding the Olympics will help China to strengthen its soft power in the world.”
Zheng Yongnian, Columnist for Zaobao since 2004, is a professor at China Policy Institute of Nottingham. He graduated from Beijing University in the 1980’s and went to Princeton University for his graduate program in 1995.
Source: Xinhua, February 21, 2008
http://news.xinhuanet.com/world/2008-02/21/content_7641296.htm