The Belt and Road Initiative will help China’s intelligentsia to develop a more rational view of globalization and a deeper understanding of its complexity, said Pang Zhongying, senior researcher with Beijing-based independent think tank
PanGoal.
Chinese attitudes towards globalization have undergone a notable change in the past two decades, Pang said. Previous suspicion and worry have now been replaced by a firm belief in the benefits of globalization. This is a reasonable change in values as China has benefited from globalization, Pang argued.
But while looking to the future of globalization, Pang warned, Chinese people should be prepared to see many challenges coming.
While perceiving globalization as idyllic, Pang said, many Chinese will find themselves unprepared for the uncertainty and fear when they head into the world. The reason that racism has been a critical issue in the US is to a large extent because it’s a nation of immigrants, Pang said. Chinese people may not face such problems right now, he said, but as they go further and more often they will find themselves frustrated by such issues as well.
In the next two decades, Pang warned, many things that people find uncomfortable will become part of life. For example, Europeans are now filled with fear about immigrants. When we have to deal with a similar situation in the future, he said, we would probably have similar feelings.
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