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Beware misplaced pride
Chia HanKeong
我报
Wednesday, 12 November 2008
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I should be so proud. A world-renowned Singaporean is living in my housing estate.
Yes, Gong Li - star of movie classics like Raise The Red Lantern and To Live - has decided to become a Singaporean and live in Ang Mo Kio.
It should have been good news. Instead, I was bombarded with news that her reputation has been besmirched by vile abuse, and that she has been called a "fake", a "traitor" and even a "slut".
You see, she hails from China - that illustrious country with a rich, long history that is eager to re-establish itself as a world superpower.
Its rapid economic progress and success have made its citizens mightily proud of the nation, and rightly so.
But come on. Renouncing her original nationality doesn't make her a traitor, much less a slut, as some Chinese netizens have labelled Gong Li.
Firstly, being an actress, she isn't likely to divulge Chinese state secrets to Singapore.
Secondly, she has a Singaporean husband. Surely she cannot be called a slut if she decides to devote more time to her husband?
Thirdly, her past achievements will not be attributed to Singapore. Red Sorghum will still be recognised as a Chinese film classic starring Chinese actors.
Why the insecurity?
When I was covering the Olympics in Beijing, I could feel the immense nationalistic pride flowing through the Chinese citizens.
It was invigorating to see their beaming faces as they witnessed their great success in hosting the Games. Yet, some of them may have taken this pride a little too far.
For example, hurdler Liu Xiang's unfortunate withdrawal from his Olympic event due to injury drew insults from netizens, with some calling him "the shame of China".
In a more extreme instance, an innocuous American cartoon flick like Kung Fu Panda was deemed to have "robbed China of its cultural identity", just because the lead character is a panda who loves gongfu.
It seems like everything must fit into these critics' narrow view of what constitutes a "true-blue Chinese" identity. Any association with a foreign country is deemed traitorous.
What they should realise is that, in this cosmopolitan world, such old-fashioned fanning of nationalistic flames serves to highlight only their immaturity.
Thankfully, many other Chinese netizens saw through these critics' foolishness, and have taken them to task over their incendiary comments.
Yes, Gong Li is Singaporean, but only on her pink IC.
Her acting achievements remain, undeniably, a product of Chinese cinema.
The sooner those knee-jerk critics can come to terms with that, the better they can fit into the global society that China will inevitably find itself in as its economy progresses.
Grow up, and fit in.
