China’s Softpower in Southeast Asia
China is promoting its influence in Southeast Asia through softpower tools like culture, investment, trade, education, tourism and foreign aid. But this paper is limited to the Chinese softpower in Southeast Asia in the fields of culture, Chinese diaspora, tourism, Chinese media, Confucius Institutes and Buddhism and how China has utilised these to its advantage. This will have implications for India if China propagates its narrative on Buddhism in Southeast Asian countries and attempts to influence the Southeast Asian population on issues sensitive to India through its media outlets in Southeast Asia. India needs to take necessary measures to further enhance the level of ties through increased cultural connectivity, utilisation of Indian diaspora and by asserting its pre-eminence in the Buddhist countries of Southeast Asia.
1. Promotion of Chinese culture through "Softpower"
The Chinese government allows its people to spread their culture to the outside world through cultural events, outbound tourism, business tours, and expansion of broadcasting, youth’s international volunteer program and Confucius Institutes.The China-Southeast Asia High-level People to People Dialogue Conference was convened in Nanning in June’ 2013 with a theme to encourage more communication and cooperation between people in China and Southeast Asian countries.
US sinologist David Shambaugh of George Washington University says that China spends approximately USD 10 billion a year on promoting its soft power. China stands out on 27th position in the “2018 Softpower 30” index published by UK-based strategic communications consultancy firm Portland.
2. The Chinese Diaspora
Ethnic Chinese are minorities in Southeast Asian countries, yet they are dominating local markets. In Malaysia, Chinese owned businesses account for 70% of the country’s market capitalisation. In Indonesia, the Chinese hold a large share of the private economy, constituting just 3% of the population. In Philippines, they constitute 1% of the population and control 60% of the private economy.
China promotes Chinese culture through approximately 3 million Chinese population residing in CLMV sub-region: Cambodia constituting 4%, Laos 0.8%, Myanmar 0.4% and Vietnam 2% of the population.The growing power of the Chinese diaspora can be gauged from the spread of Chinese New Year celebration in Southeast Asian countries.
3. Tourism
By 2017, more than 7.9 million Chinese visited Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam. The international airports of Thailand now incorporate more Chinese signs and offer services in Chinese to accommodate Chinese tourists. The Indonesian government's policy to grant visa-free visits to Chinese citizens has contributed greatly to increasing the number of Chinese tourists visiting Indonesia. It is estimated that the total number of Chinese tourists who visited Southeast Asian countries was 8 million in 2015, 18.6 million in 2016, more than 10 million in 2017 and 43.7 million in 2018.
4. Chinese Media
China leverages its media to boost for national branding. According to the World Post, the Chinese government so far has spent about USD 7 billion on broadcasting efforts internationally, specifically expanding CCTV’s and Xinhua’s international broadcasting to cover news in various languages except for Southeast Asian countries. CCTV became China Global Television Network (CGTN) in 2016 expanding its broadcasts in more than seventy countries. In Cambodia, “China Radio International (CRI)” started its broadcasts in July 2008 under the cooperation of National Radio of Cambodia. The CRI broadcasts are also covered in other languages including Burmese, Fillipino, Indonesian, Malaysian and Vietnamese. The CRI Vientiane 93 FM station was launched in Laos in Nov 2006.
The Chinese government has heavily invested in numerous media outlets and launched the CCP-funded newspaper, the Thai edition of Xinhua news Facebook page and the Thai-language China Radio International in Thailand.
5. Confucius Institutes
The Confucius Institutes were launched to disseminate Chinese culture through language training and other cultural- related activities. According to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, 28 Confucius Institutes and 14 Confucius Classrooms all over Southeast Asia have been granted permission by the government to serve the public. Since 2004, China has dispatched more than 2000 volunteers and teachers in 35 countries to work on Chinese education abroad, inclusive of ASEAN states such as Indonesia, Laos, Philippines, Singapore Thailand and Vietnam.
6. Buddhism
Beijing is promoting the country as a Buddhism hub. Buddhism is popular in China and hence, the Chinese diaspora in Southeast Asia has always portrayed a Buddhist friendly image towards the locals of the region. The World Buddhist Forum was initiated in the Chinese mainland, Taiwan, Hongkong & Macao in 2005. China held its 5th WBF in Putian, in Fujian province from 28-30th Oct’ 2018 as it seeks to reinforce links with Buddhist countries. China had dispatched a Buddha's tooth relic to Myanmar during the protests over the Myitsone Dam project in 2011. Celebration of Vesak, a Buddhist festival in Indonesia and Singapore sees participation from Chinese Buddhists.
7. Education
China also promotes its softpower through education in Southeast Asia. ASEAN-China Center Secretary General Yang Xiuping, says that the number of students from Southeast Asia who studied in China till 2016 was 68,000. In 2016, according to MoE, around 80,000 Southeast Asian students came to China and Chinese Government allocated 50,400 scholarships (USD 3.6 billion) to Southeast Asian students. According to Institute of International Education report, Beijing became third top destination for foreign students in 2017. Thai universities are offering more affordable overseas study with lower tuition fees and friendlier visa rules for Chinese students. The first ever large-scale international branch of a Chinese university (XMU, Malaysia) with an investment of USD 300 million was built by Chinese government-owned institution in Kuala Lumpur.
According to Pew Research Center, almost 63% of Indonesian, 54% Philippines and 78% of Malaysian public view Chinese engagement in their region as positive. China has used softpower in Myanmar through sponsorship for exposure trips, short-term capacity building trainings, study tours and friendship visits in China for different stakeholders from Myanmar. For strengthening China's cultural ties with Indonesia, the first China -Indonesia Cultural Forum was established between the Chinese consulate in Bali, Peking University and Universitas Udayana in January’ 2019. Many Thai cabinet ministers and powerful businesses have significant investments in China. Thailand's Charoen Pokphand, one of Southeast Asia's largest companies, has been doing business with China since 1949.
(The views expressed in the article are of the author and do not reflect official views.)
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