Cultures Are Actually Different

The editors of the Washington Post wonder what the Chinese are trying hide?

WHAT IS China trying to conceal? That question arises from Beijing’s decision to prosecute Zhang Zhan, a 37-year-old citizen journalist who roamed Wuhan at the time of the coronavirus outbreak, posting brief but revealing videos about the spreading disease in the first stage of what became a global pandemic. She was detained, as were several other citizen journalists who attempted to report on the Wuhan outbreak. On Monday, Ms. Zhang was sentenced in Shanghai to four years in prison for “picking quarrels and provoking trouble,” the usual Chinese charge used to silence dissent.

and

China’s spin in recent months has been that President Xi Jinping led a heroic campaign to stop the virus. In fact, officials in Wuhan attempted to clamp down on information about the new disease in December 2019, and when eight doctors expressed concern about the sickness, they were reprimanded for spreading rumors. A second coverup took place in early January, as the local and the national government remained silent while the virus spread. China’s top officials, including Mr. Xi, knew of human transmission early in the month but said nothing in public until Jan. 20. China’s announced death toll appears to be a huge underestimate. More recently, Chinese officials have been suggesting the virus had origins outside its borders.

So, again: What is China trying to hide?

I honestly don’t think that China is trying to hide anything. At least not any more. I think the first example is about control while the second group of examples is about avoiding embarrassment. Cultures really are different about these things. It’s the same reason that in some countries people hide their disabled children at home. They see infirmity at shameful and they’re trying to avoid being publicly shamed.

For me the question is not “what are they trying to hide?” but why are we dealing with people whose values are so different from ours and who cannot be trusted?