Thanks to Laura Bicker , China Correspondent and BBC Online News.
I was fascinated to learn that the Chinese Government , using a Government Structure which allows them to pass a Law making it compulsory for all school children to learn Mandarin. It was passed without any opposition through the National People’s Congress in Beijing which was inevitable as this structure is basically a rubber stamp.
To be honest all Governments work this way, if they have a Policy that they want to implement , it will go through in a way that means it will be passed. We all know that even in our Government, Bills have been pushed through, stopped and even Budgets allocated through Fast Track Systems which later seemed erroneous.
However, this particular Law , is to force everyone to learn and use Mandarin which is the language used by the dominant “Han” culture in China. “Han” Chinese make up more than 90% of the 1.4 billion of the population of China. Surprisingly, my experience is that they can try and make people learn something but there is no guarantee they will be able to and also if as they say knowing Mandarin( much like knowing English over here )will help them interact more in a Society dominated by “Han” Chinese what indeed is the problem? Well the problem might be Mandarin itself. Not an easy language to master I would think.
The UK’s crazy reform loving ” send them back where they came from” brigade believe that not speaking English is tantamount to not wanting to integrate. Those who have no interest in speaking English and wish to maintain their cultural heritage whatever it is” can go back home” . So I really see a double standard here.
The Chinese are saying that Mandarin is compulsory because it is necessary in a Country where 90% of the population speak and write it. Language and Culture can be maintained and survive where the will is there. Irish Gaelic has thrived , yet it is spoken alongside English and the same applies to the Welsh and there are probably many examples throughout the World of peoples keeping their languages and dialects alive through usage.
In our increasingly digital world and our need to predict people’s behaviour which has become part and parcel of the Silicon Valley Dream World; is it so strange that China would seek to achieve a 100% Mandarin fluent population , to make sure every Citizen can operate fully in their Country.
Will they really use heavy handed techniques to force high grades of achievement on the children who are struggling, will they blame their parents? Reality says I think that is highly unlikely, but there will be clever children who realise that learning a language does not stop them from knowing their culture or indeed knowing many languages. So in essence I don’t find this a scary, autocratic option , but actually quite rational. I wish them success .
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Namaste and Thank You for Reading.🙏
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