Madam, - The views of Piaras Mac Einri (August 12th) from his armchair in Cork on the Olympic ceremony are daft and unfounded. Having travelled around China for most of this year I have been able to experience at first hand the warmth, generosity and friendliness of the Chinese people - similar to that of the Irish before the Celtic Tiger.
Most of China's 1.3 billion people would have sacrificed limbs to be a part of the Olympic opening ceremony - and who forced the 90,000 spectators in the stadium to shout and dance before the show began? I watched it in a typical Chinese bar and have never seen anything like the pride and joy on display. I couldn't, however, see any of the Government officials Mr Mac Einri suggests were enforcing all of this.
The Chinese have been keenly anticipating these games for years and truly believe they mark their coming out to the world as a nation. China has been modernising itself at a remarkable rate in recent years, trying to meet standards set by the West, but Westerners ignorantly criticise the flaws in their attempts. China is still viewed in the same light as it was 30 years ago.
People must accept that changes cannot be made overnight. We should give the Chinese a fair chance to show the world who they really are. - Yours, etc,
RONAN KILGANNON,
Hangzhou,
China.
Madam, - I am saddened by the one dimensional reporting on all things Chinese. One is left with the impression of a country that is environmentally challenged and a population that is religiously and and politically suppressed. This is not the China we witnessed when we spent April and May this year travelling independently around this fascinating country with our three children.
We stayed in homes where framed prints of the Dalai Lama were prominently displayed over the stove in the kitchens. We saw Buddhists greet their Muslim friends as they emerged from the mosque after Friday prayers. We watched people of all religious denominations (and none) play cards together. We trekked in astonishingly beautiful countryside that was reminiscent of New Zealand in its pristine beauty and scarce inhabitants. We witnessed the huge reforestation programme in Western China and the valiant efforts to prevent erosion and landslides in remote areas. The Chinese people were kind, generous and extremely helpful to us.
We came with our own prejudices and found that we had to adjust them. China certainly has its problems but a little more balance in the media would be helpful in understanding this complex country. - Yours, etc,
MARIE NOONAN CROOKE,
Passage East,
Co Waterford.
Madam, - It is more than 10 years since a proposal was made at the Degree Conferring Committee of one of our universities that the university should honour Aung San Sui Kyi with an honorary degree in absentia.
It seems barely credible that not one athlete selected to participate in the Olympic Games in Beijing has withdrawn on grounds that China, one of the world's most powerful nations, has not only refused to place effective pressure on the Myanmar authorities to release Aung San Sui Kyi but has also failed to use its unique position to pressurise the Sudanese government regarding its failure to deal with the monstrous catastrophe which has unfolded in Darfur.
On top of such obfuscation of obligation by such a senior member of the Security Council of the United Nations, China has continued to deny freedom to the people of Tibet. Oh, that there was just one Eric Liddell. - Yours, etc,
JOHN ROBB,
Hopefield Avenue,
Portrush,
Co Antrim.
Madam, - With regard to his recent pontificating to China on its record on democracy and human rights Mr Bush should be told to put his own house in order.
When one recalls the inhuman US atom bombs at Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the US bombing of Afghanistan, the pulverising of Baghdad, the bogus war on terror, Guantanamo Bay, and so on, US lectures on human rights cut little ice.
China poses no military threat either to the US or to her neighbours. The only threat is her challenge to US economic supremacy. As China proudly hosts the Olympics, Bush should be told to mind his own business. - Yours, etc,
JOHN F. FALLON,
Boyle,
Co Roscommon.