China: Evolution not Revolution

Panellists: Dr Geoff Raby, Former Ambassador to China; Mei Yan, Businesswoman and former CNN presenter; Ma Tianjie, Program Director, Greenpeace East Asia; and Guo Jian, Chinese Australian artist. -- Dr Geoff Raby Dr Geoff Raby is Chairman and CEO of Geoff Raby & Associates, a Beijing-based business advisory firm. In addition to his roles at Geoff Raby & Associates, Geoff is Chairman of ASX-listed SmartTrans Ltd, as well as an independent director on the boards of Fortescue Mining Group, OceanaGold and Yancoal Australia. He is also co-chair of Corrs Chambers Westgarth’s China Business Practice, senior adviser to Kreab Gavin Anderson, and vice chairman of Macquarie Group China. Additionally, Geoff is a Vice Chancellor’s Professorial Fellow at Monash University and a member of the Advance Global Advisory Board. In recognition of his contributions to advancing the relations between Australia and China, Geoff is honoured with the title of Friendship Ambassador to Shandong Province and has been made an honorary citizen of Chengdu City. Geoff was the Australian Ambassador to China from February 2007 to August 2011 and Deputy Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) from November 2002 to November 2006. He has held a number of senior positions in DFAT, including First Assistant Secretary, International Organisations and Legal Division (2001-02), Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the World Trade Organisation, Geneva (1998-2001) and First Assistant Secretary, Trade Negotiations Division (1995-98). He was Australia’s APEC Ambassador from November 2002 to December 2004. Between 1993 and 1995, Geoff was head of the Trade Policy Issues Division of the OECD, Paris. In 1991, Geoff established in DFAT the Northeast Asia Analytical Unit which subsequently became the East Asia Analytical Unit. He was head of the unit from 1991 to 1993. Between 1986 and 1991 he served in Beijing twice as head of the Embassy's Economic Section. He has also held positions as trade policy adviser to the Minister for Trade (1993) and in the Office of National Assessments (1984 -86). Geoff was born in Melbourne in September 1953. Before joining the Commonwealth Public Service he was senior tutor in economics at La Trobe University. He has BEc (Hons), MEc and PhD degrees from La Trobe. In 2007 Geoff was a recipient of the La Trobe University Distinguished Alumni Award and in 2010 he was made a guest Professor of Nankai University, Tianjin PRC. Geoff is a Member of the Order of Bernard O’Higgins, Chile, for services to international trade, especially for promoting agricultural trade liberalisation. -- Mei Yan After a distinguished career serving major international media companies for more than twenty years, Mei Yan joined Brunswick Group in 2013. As Senior Partner, she oversees Brunswick’s China business and acts as a counselor to senior executives. Mei joined Brunswick from Viacom International Media Networks, where she was Managing Director of MTV Networks Greater China and Chief Representative of Viacom Asia. Previously, Mei held a series of senior positions at Turner International Asia Pacific, News Corp. and its STAR Group. Mei advises major global corporations with a particular focus on public affairs, government engagement, mergers & acquisitions, corporate reputation management, as well as crisis and issues management. She provides counsel to senior management of foreign companies as they position their organizations in China and leaders of Chinese companies going global. Mei worked as a journalist for ITN and CNN for more than a decade, winning three Emmy Awards in that time. Today, she is a regular speaker at preeminent events, most recently at the Horasis Global China Business Meeting. She is a Vice-Chair of the board of The Golden Bridges Foundation and a member of the 2005 Committee, the China Women’s Club and the Western Returned Scholars association. Born in Beijing, Mei holds two master’s degrees in International Relations and Political Science from Columbia University, U.S.A., and a master in Advanced Russian Area Studies from Hunter College at the City University of New York. -- Ma Tianjie Ma Tianjie oversees the five campaign areas that Greenpeace works on in mainland China, including Climate & Energy, Toxics, Food & Agriculture, Forest and Oceans Protection. He joined Greenpeace in 2004 and since then has taken on responsibilities ranging from organizing consumers, liaising with multinational corporations, lobbying Chinese policy makers and representing Greenpeace in front of the media and at United Nations negotiations. He holds a master’s degree in environmental policy from American University, Washington D.C. -- Guo Jian Guo Jian is a Chinese Australian contemporary artist whose work is highly regarded around the world. He was born in Guizhou Province, south-west China, in 1962, and grew up during Mao’s cultural revolution (1966-76). This period, referred to as China’s lost decade, had a profound impact on Guo Jian and his contemporaries. The Chinese people were subjected to intense and relentless political indoctrination. There was a climate of mistrust, violence and betrayal, and the country was culturally remade as ancient traditions, society and beliefs were abandoned or destroyed. News was disseminated by loudspeakers and political posters. Guo Jian’s art belongs to the school of Cynical Realism, which began in the 1990s in Beijing. His art is heavily influenced by the last 50 years of upheaval and violence in China. Cynical Realism is essentially a response to propaganda-laden Socialist Realism, and uses the artistic style of propaganda posters (Guo Jian was a poster painter during his time in the People’s Liberation Army from 1979 to 1982) to question authority and totalitarianism. Following the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests, in which he participated, and the subsequent crackdown by the Chinese authorities, Guo Jian emigrated to Australia. He arrived in Sydney, working as a labourer by day and painting by night. His work was well received and his reputation grew. He returned to China in 2005 and now lives in an art colony near Beijing. His work is exhibited and collected internationally and is featured in the Art Gallery of NSW and the National Gallery in Canberra. -- In the #QandA audience in Shanghai: 54% Chinese citizens 46% Australians. AUSTRALIA: FRIEND OR FOE Joe Lau asked: Is Australia sending contradictory messages to China by pushing for trade with China on one hand yet aligning closely with the US in its ‘Pivot to Asia’ to contain China’s influence in the region? JAPAN’S “BEST FRIEND” Zelan Wang asked: This year is a critical moment for the negotiation of Free Trade Agreement between China and Australia. In the meantime, the world still remembers Prime Minster Tony Abbott's depiction of Japan as Australia's "best friend" in Asia. In this context, what is Australia's stand on the issue of East China Sea, Diaoyu Islands and Mr Abe's visit to the Yasukuni Shrine? How will Australia balance the relationship between China and between Japan? POLLUTION, JOBS & CARS Jenny Chen asked: My concern is about severe air pollution in China, and my question is for Mr Ma. People need jobs, so those factories cannot close down; people buy cars for individual convenience, so more and more cars will run on the road. What is your prediction about air pollution of big cities in five or ten years? And in your opinion what is the feasible measures in China to control the air pollution? RENEWABLES & COAL Huang Ling asked: Renewable industries in China produce just a tiny fraction of the country’s overall energy needs. Does Geoff Raby think China can kick the coal habit? What could it mean to Australia? CHINA ECONOMIC CHALLENGES Gavin Burton asked: China has some big economic challenges. Massive government capital expenditure on State Owned Enterprises and infrastructure has created overcapacity and low returns in many industries. The shadow banking sector and local Government debt which is somewhat opaque, and a property boom that has created a number of empty or ghost cities. Considering these issues what is the future for China? Will the reforms that the Government is planning be enough, or is China a huge Ponzi scheme and if so what will be the impact on Australia? BOOM OR BUST Peter Arkell, Chairman of the Australian Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai asked: Surveys of Australian businesses across China express overwhelmingly positive sentiment about their short and medium term business prospects. Yet analysts and commentators in Australia express nervousness about every China economic statistic. Why are there such starkly different views of China's economic outlook when the remarkable growth of 7.5% in China adds the equivalent of the total GDP of South Korea to the world's economy every year? CHINA QandA? Jack Yuan asked: My question to the panel is: how many years do you think it will be before China has its own TV show like Q&A, where ordinary people have an opportunity to directly question politicians and other public figures about the issues of the day? CENSORSHIP Xiao Chen asked: For all panellists. Have there been times where the fear of censorship has morally affected the way you go about your job? How do you balance the need for freedom of speech with censorship from the government? DEMOCRACY Frank Huang asked: Do you think China will become a democratic country? Is it true that the system of Checks and Balances, or the Three Branches of Government Power, is not suitable for China? STEREOTYPES – HOW DO WE MAKE IT BET Zhijie Zhang asked: It is a bit hard to say that Chinese and Australian people are knowing each other well even when we are dealing with substantial international business transactions. There are only 3 topics that Chinese people will discuss about Australia (kangaroos, Great Barrier Reef and environment). However, on the other side, Australian people are only knowing The Great Wall, Terra-cotta warriors and dumplings about China. This is a quite tricky issue. So how could we develop personal connections that change perceptions of two nations?