Commentary
Australia’s Foreign Minister Penny Wong said playing the colonial guilt card might work for left-wing audiences, but waving such a finger on the international stage could be a diplomatic failure. I discovered that there is a
It is unclear why Wong thought it was diplomatically sound to openly denounce Britain over its colonialism in London. Unsurprisingly, however, her call for Britain to share stories of its former Pacific colonies and “uncomfortable” past was not well received.
In her speech, Wong described her family as victims of colonialism, and her Chinese grandmother was a British colonialist servant in Borneo.
However, the UK’s foreign secretary quickly reacted, pointing out that he is of African descent and that the UK’s prime minister and home secretary are both of Asian descent.
It is noteworthy that, at a parallel meeting in Paris, Wong did not attack France over colonialism. would have thought it would work better.
The way she speaks provides insight into how she has personally internalized many progressive ideologies around decolonization, victimhood and guilt.
After all, she hails from the left wing of the Australian Labor Party and incorporates many of these beliefs, including the simple villain-victim narrative.
Vladimir Lenin actually said that convincing people that they were victims was an effective way to offend them.
Activists and politicians can promise to save these (angry) victims by fighting the “villains.”
Successful use of normally violent revolution can be claimed to have ended people’s victims and achieved “social justice”.
Today, saving victims has become an industry in its own right, with taxpayers paying the bills.
And today, colonization (indigenous peoples) or patriarchy (women), racists (minorities), or earth-shattering greedy capitalists (all of the above and more).
With so many groups claiming to be victims, it’s no surprise to see frequent “bidding wars” over government coffers.
What do today’s activists want?
Activists today are concerned with “decolonizing” the West itself.
They want to decolonize Australia, Canada, the United States, New Zealand and the United Kingdom and “liberate” our minds from the influence of imperialism, colonialism and racism.
We are reeducated and made to “think right.” We should be taught to feel “guilty” so that we can recognize the need to reward the victims of colonialism.
This includes treaties, recognition of indigenous sovereignty, and possible compensation for imperialism and slavery.
Perhaps Wong will also authorize a large amount of foreign aid to Pacific island nations to mobilize victim cards.
It’s time to stop living in the past
Wong’s victim story is based on how British colonialists brought Chinese workers to Malaya, resulting in her grandfather working in a British mine and her grandmother as a servant. was
On a personal note, my victim story is a little more intense.
My ancestors were involved in the Boer War, where farms were burned and 26,000 Afrikaner women and children died in concentration camps built by the British Empire.
What I mean is that we can choose to live in the past and claim to be victims of events that happened 100 years ago. Alternatively, we can recognize that history cannot be changed and that the good came from the British Empire.
Indeed, while Britain developed many societies and economies, millions of people like me and Wong existed for colonialism because of the way it changed local demographics. It’s just there.
Like it or not, we are the product of an empire.
Eric Louw’s new book, Decolonization and white-Africans. provide consideration.
Views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of The Epoch Times.