Letter to the editor

Miami Sun-Sentinel, South Florida, June 16, 2001

Don’t call China "non-aggressive"

I believe the Dalai Lama would take exception to Mr. Kingsley Guy’s attempt to portray China as "non-aggressive" ("Americans’ viewpoint tends to be narrow," June 1.) U.S. State Department reports on China’s actions in Tibet have documented violent suppression of any dissent in this land over which Chinese control has historically waxed and waned.

Many of China’s neighbors - India, Vietnam and Russia - all have a less-rosy historical view of China’s actions. The Vietnamese have an epic poem dedicated to the heroic Khiou Sisters and their struggle to drive the Chinese from their land. Russia and China, India and China also fought over the border areas in the past.

If China is committed to being non-aggressive, why did it have more than 300 short-range missiles directed at Taiwan? As Admiral Dennis Blair, U.S. commander-in-chief for the Pacific testified last month in Washington, these are weapons of "terror and destruction."

Don’t get fooled by China. As an American, I believe a more well-rounded and informed view of China by Americans, including the editor, would indeed be better.

PHILIP SU

Hollywood