Whipping Up Anti China Hysteria

I noticed that ever since the new clowns walked into the circus there has been an increase in the anti-China hysteria that is being fanned (di kipas) by the Americans and the British. 

Today I read a guest editorial published by Murray Hunter. The editorial is written by some unknown think tank fellows. I will reproduce just some of it here with some comments.

Guest Editorial: Public-funded think tanks must step up to defend national interests

Maligned foreign influence in domestic affairs is a problem many countries have to deal with, and Asean members are increasingly finding themselves in the crosshairs as great powers vie for influence in the region.

While the intentions of Western powers are debatable, their main rival, China, has clearly demonstrated what its aims are. While promoting itself as a beacon for multilateralism and international trade, it has unveiled maps which will clearly deprive Asean states of their rightful access to the South China Sea and the resources contained within.

It is interesting to note that while being publicly funded, think tanks such as the Institute of Strategic & International Studies (Isis) and the Malaysian Institute of Economic Research (MIER) have been lacklustre in forming policies and providing expert advice to educate the public and advise the government on how it should navigate around these complex and potentially dangerous issues.

Following the unveiling of the 2023 China Standard Map, neither Isis nor MIER issued any public statement on how Malaysia should prepare itself and respond. While Malaysia is a small country in comparison to the superpowers, it is an exporter of valuable and indeed critical items including rare earth minerals and microchips. Surely our voice counts for something.

We have to ask if these publicly funded think tanks have somehow forgotten the vital role they are meant to play, leading them to stay mum despite the existential challenges facing Malaysia as the loss of its exclusive economic zone (EEZ) will prove to be catastrophic.

While little known in Malaysia, the activities of groups such as the United Front Work Department (UFWD) are well known overseas, with India, Canada, Taiwan and Australia among others having uncovered covert influence operations on their soil aimed at manipulating public opinion and even national elections.

This organisation is responsible for coordinating domestic and foreign influence operations through propaganda and manipulation of susceptible audiences and individuals, and is taken as a serious threat to the aforementioned countries with instances of the group having infiltrated academic, the media and other influence mechanisms.

My Comments:

Well I am no great fan of either ISIS or the MIER. The ISIS have taken my name off their mailing list, I used to attend their seminars before. They used to invite plenty western speakers who clearly brought with them a pro-Western bias. 

But n'theless it is not the job of ISIS (and especially not the MIER which is an economic think tank) to make pronouncements on China's territorial claims. That would be a job for the Foreign Ministry, the PMO, the Mindef etc. ISIS and MIER are  quasi-Civil Servants.

But obviously the "fear" is of China. 

But what about the CIA? We just read about the CIA running covert ops with our own Research boys. It looks like the CIA already has a foothold in our affairs. Actually they have been here for a long time. Shouldnt someone be saying something about that?

At one time (not too long ago) the US Embassy in KL had more staff than the US Embassy in Saigon during the height of the Vietnam War. Why do the Americans need so many staff in the US Embassy here? What are they up to? Arent we just another Third World nation? A posting to Malaysia should be considered a hardship posting, usually reserved for poor performers in the US State Department.  Indeed some of the American ambassadors sent here have been of quite low calibre.

The other nasties are of course the Brits who do poke their noses everywhere. The MI6 is everywhere as well. They are quite invisible. The Brits are way ahead of the Americans. They have been in the game for much longer than their American colony. 

So while we want to whip up the anti China hysteria do keep an eye on the regular nasties and gangsters who do prowl the neighborhood ok?

And what about Malaysia handing over Ambalat to the Indonesians? That is a real loss of our territory. Todate the gomen DOES NOT WANT TO publish the new map of Malaysia MINUS Ambalat. Shouldnt someone in gomen be kicking up a fuss about the loss of territory?

And what about rumours of IMF, World Bank and other western influenced institutions taking up permanent office space in Putrajaya?  

We dont want any and all types of foreign interference in our affairs be it American, British, Chinese or the Muslim Brotherhood. We have to keep an eye on all of them.

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.