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篡改“殖民主义”概念用心险恶

2019-09-19 17:19:29 来源: 非洲时报 阅读 (14995次)
9月12日,驻南非大使林松添在南主流媒体《星报》、《比陀新闻报》刊发署名文章《篡改“殖民主义”概念用心险恶》,对当地有人企图美化殖民主义概念并抹黑攻击中国对非投资合作等错误论调予以有力批驳。全文(中英文)如下:
                                
  8月26日,国际刑事法院顾问迈克尔·道能(Michael Donen)律师在《比陀新闻报》撰文,妄称外国直接投资(FDI)是殖民主义在当今时代新的表现形式,并以此攻击中国对非投资合作。中非人民都是西方殖民主义的受害者,深知什么是殖民主义。
  众所周知,殖民主义的本质是用武力征服其他国家,迫使其他国家政府和人民在主权上作出妥协,改变别国政治、文化、宗教信仰、法律和经济体制,并通过强买强卖,掠夺他国自然资源。
  道能先生这么有专业素养的律师如此用心偷换概念,要么真的是对FDI和商业贷款新知识的无知,要么就是图谋美化西方殖民主义历史。这是对历史的无知,对曾遭受殖民主义荼毒的广大亚非拉国家人民的背叛,不可接受!
  直接投资和商业贷款都是美西方发达国家创造的当代公共金融产品和工具,无论发达还是发展中国家发展都需要,给东道国带来资金、技术、先进管理经验、知识等,对促进东道国经济增长具有重要作用,与殖民者修建从矿山到港口的铁路有本质区别。
  中国快速发展就是得益于FDI和外国商业贷款。改革开放40多年来,中国累计使用FDI超过2万亿美元。如今,中国每年仍吸引FDI超过1300多亿美元。为吸引更多FDI,中国不断出台优惠便利措施、完善法律法规、提高政府效能,开放市场,让外国投资者感到安心,办事舒心,赚钱开心。正是大量外国投资者涌向中国,并带来巨额资金投入、技术和管理经验,中国才能用40多年的时间发展成为全球第二大经济体、第一大制造业国、第一大货物贸易国、第一大外汇储备国。我们不仅让在华外国投资者赚了很多钱,且由衷感谢他们。
  联合国贸发会议报告显示,尽管2018年全球外国直接投资连续第三年下滑,但中国吸引外资总量逆势上涨,继续成为全球第二大外资流入国。中国不断扩大开放,改善投资环境,为的是吸引更多FDI,以确保可持续发展和就业。
  为支持非洲国家实现自主可持续发展,近年来,中国根据非方需要,提供了大量优惠、无息和商业贷款,鼓励中国企业增加对非直接投资,目的是支持非洲国家破解基础设施滞后、人才不足、资金短缺“三大发展瓶颈”。
  有经济基本常识的人都知道,基础设施建设是任何国家经济实现可持续发展的前提,但需要大量资金。根据世界银行和非洲开发银行预估,非洲基础设施建设每年需1700亿美元资金投入,缺口巨大。谁能给非洲提供资金支持,助力非洲破解“三大瓶颈”,实现自主可持续发展,谁就是非洲真正朋友和可靠合作伙伴。
  中国始终致力于同非洲国家实现合作共赢、共同发展。中国对非洲各类投资从2000年不到10亿美元已增加到2018年的1100多亿美元。截至目前,中国已使用投融资帮助非洲建设了1万多公里公路,6000多公里铁路,150多座体育场馆、会议中心、议会大厦,200多所学校,80多座发电厂,80%的通讯基础设施以及诸多机场、港口,惠及所有非洲国家。
  我们很高兴地看到,在中国强劲支持下,非洲大陆正在整体崛起,2018年17个非洲国家GDP增速超过5%,其中,埃塞俄比亚、肯尼亚等东非国家GDP增速超过6%。
  遗憾的是,2014年以来,美国、欧盟、日本等主要发达国家对非FDI、贷款和贸易持续下降。美西方自己不愿帮助非洲,却害怕中非合作快速发展,编造了所谓的“新殖民主义”、“债务陷阱”等谎言抹黑中国和中非合作,目的是吓阻非洲,破坏中非合作,阻止非洲实现自主可持续发展,进而摆脱美西方国家的控制。
  中华民族历来崇尚和平,致力于合作共赢、共同发展,从未有过发动对外侵略战争或殖民任何国家的记录和基因,中国也绝不会走西方殖民老路。
  所谓的中国“债务陷阱”论,从理论和实践上都站不住脚。中国向非洲国家提供的优惠或商业贷款主要用于支持非洲建设铁路、公路、港口、电力、通讯等大型基础设施,助力非洲实现自主可持续发展,而非用于消费或发工资。中国提供的贷款坚持以项目经济社会效益为导向,经过严格的可行性论证,确保项目有利于当地发展并创造就业,确保借债国的偿债能力。
  目前,美国债务总规模超过22.5万亿美元,超过其2018年全年的GDP。特朗普总统正在呼吁全世界到美国直接投资。如果FDI和贷款是殖民主义,美国正在被殖民。
  殖民者就是殖民者,绝不会因为什么人的篡改或美化就会改变人们对殖民主义的记忆,也蒙蔽不了深受殖民者迫害的中非人民,更抹杀不了中国真心实意助力非洲实现自主可持续发展的坚定意志和累累硕果。
 
Tampering With the Concept of "Colonialism"
IIll-Intentioned
——By H.E. Chinese Ambassador Lin Songtian to South Africa 
On August 26, Michael Donen, a counsel of the International Criminal Court, published an article on the Star, claiming that foreign direct investment (FDI) is one of colonialism's modern faces to smear China's investment cooperation with Africa. Both Chinese and African people are victims of Western colonialism and we know very well what colonialism is.
As we all know, the essence of colonialism is to conquer other countries by force, compel other countries' governments and people to compromise on sovereignty, change other countries' politics, cultures, religious beliefs, and legal and economic systems, and plunder other countries' natural resources by imposed trade.
It is either an ignorance of the new knowledge of FDI and commercial loans, or a attempt to beautify the colonial history of the West for a professional lawyer like Mr. Donen to play tricks with the concept. This is an ignorance of history and a betrayal to the people in Asia, Africa and Latin America who suffered from colonialism. It is by no means acceptable.
The FDI and commercial loans are public financial products and tools created by the United States and other developed Western countries. Both developed and developing countries need loans for their development. Loans can bring capital, expertise, advanced managerial experience and knowledge to the recipient country, thus playing an important role in driving its economic growth. They are essentially different from the railways built by the colonialists to link the mines and ports.  
China owes its rapid development to FDI and foreign commercial loans. Over the past 40-plus years since the inception of reform and opening up, China has utilized over $2 trillion worth of FDI. Now China still attracts more than $130 billion worth of FDI annually. In order to attract more FDI, China is committed to rolling out more preferential policies and measures, improving laws and regulations, enhancing government's efficiency, and opening up the market to make foreign investors feel secure, comfortable and happy to make money. It is because a large number of foreign investors have flocked to China and brought with them a huge amount of capital, expertise and managerial experience that China could be developed into the world's second largest economy, largest manufacturer, the largest trader in goods, and the largest holder of foreign exchange reserves in the world over the past 40-plus years. We do appreciate foreign investors who have made a lot of money for all what they brought to us.   
According to a report by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), despite the decline in global FDI in 2018 for the third consecutive year, the FDI in China surged against the odds, making China the second largest recipient of FDI in the world. China is committed to opening up and improving its investment environment so as to attract more FDI and ensure China's sustainable development and employment.
In order to support African countries' self-sustainable development, in recent years, China has provided a large number of preferential, interest-free and commercial loans in light of African countries' needs, and encouraged Chinese enterprises to increase their direct investment in Africa so as to help African countries break through the three development bottlenecks, namely, backward infrastructure, lack of professional and skilled persons, and short of capital sources 
Anyone with basic economic knowledge knows that infrastructure construction is the prerequisite for any country's sustainable economic development, and needs a large amount of money. As estimated by the  World Bank and the African Development Bank, Africa needs $170 billion for infrastructure construction every year, which is a huge shortfall. Whoever can provide financial support to Africa to help it break through the three bottlenecks and achieve self-sustainable development is Africa's true friend and partner.
China is committed to striving for win-win cooperation and common development with African countries. China's investment in Africa has increased from less than $1 billion in 2000 to more than $110 billion in 2018. So far, through investment and financing, China has helped Africa build over 10,000 kilometers of highway, more than 6,000 kilometers of railway, over 150 stadiums, conference centers and parliament buildings, more than 200 schools, 80-plus power plants, 80% of telecommunication infrastructure and a lot of airports and ports, benefiting all African countries.
We are glad to see that with China's strong commitment and support, the African continent as a whole is rising. In 2018, 17 African countries registered a GDP growth rate of over 5%, among which Ethiopia, Kenya and other east African countries registered a GDP growth rate of over 6%.
Unfortunately, since 2014, the FDI and loans from the US, the EU, Japan and other major Western countries and their trade with Africa have been declining. The United States and other Western countries are not only unwilling to help Africa, but also fearful of the rapid development of China-Africa cooperation. Therefore, they have fabricated the so-called "new colonialism" and "debt trap" fallacy to smear and slander China and China-Africa cooperation so as to deter Africa, undermine China-Africa cooperation and prevent Africa from achieving self-sustainable development and getting rid of their control.  
The Chinese people cherish peace. China is committed to win-win cooperation for common development and does not have any track record or DNA of invading or colonizing any country. China will never pursue the old path of colonization like the West.
As for the so-called "debt trap" fallacy, it does not hold water either theoretically or practically. China's preferential or commercial loans to African countries are mainly used to support Africa's construction of large-scale infrastructure such as railways, roads and ports, and help Africa achieve self-sustainable development, instead of consumption or wage payment. The loans provided by China, which aim to make the relevant projects deliver economic and social benefits to the recipient countries, have all gone through strict feasibility studies so as to ensure that the relevant projects could fuel local development and help create jobs, and ensure the solvency of the partner countries.
The US' total debt is now over $22.5 trillion, more than its total GDP in 2018. President Trump is calling on the whole world to pour more FDI in the United States. If FDI and loans are colonialism, the the US is being colonized.
Colonialist is colonialist. Falsifying or beautifying colonialism can by no means change people's memory of it, nor can it blind the Chinese and African people who suffered a lot from colonization, let alone erase China's firm will to help Africa and the fruitful outcomes achieved by Africa in self-sustainable development with China's whole-hearted support.