China: Netizens defend Zimbabwe arms sales

As the post-election crisis looms in Zimbabwe and Mugabe clings to power, the fate of the vessel holding the latest arms shipment from China remains unclear. Sightings of armed uniformed Chinese soldiers in the country have for some raised the question: how long have they been there and what exactly is their role?

Official statements made by Beijing defend the weapons as merely part of an old contractual agreement, saying the sales don't violate any UN mandates or international laws. Many Chinese netizens are rejecting criticism by accusing America of being an even larger weapons dealer. Reports in recent days have made little mention of Chinese military presence in Zimbabwe, instead focusing heavily on the issue of Chinese arms sales itself; here are the top reader comments on the related news stories from several Chinese BBSes and news portal websites:

anti-CNN.com:

霍去病粉丝
这是一个好的开端,不能只准州官放火,不许百姓点灯!!!

This is a good start; you can't let those in charge go around burning down houses while common people can't even light lamps!!!

jonathanho
美帝国主义是真正操控dl流寇的恐怖集团!!中国要奋起!!!

American imperialism is really what's in control of the dalai bandit terrorist groups!! China needs to rise up!!!

maozanchao
就算真有巡逻又怎么样?
准你美国佬、英国佬、德国佬在伊拉克巡逻,在阿富汗巡逻,在朝鲜巡逻,在日本巡逻,在全世界巡逻,就不准中国军人在津巴布韦巡逻?真他妈的混帐逻辑!

Even if [Chinese soldiers] are on patrol, so what?
You Yanks, Limeys and Krauts can go patrol Iraq, Afghanistan, Korea, Japan and the whole world, but Chinese soldiers can't go patrol Zimbabwe? That's really bloody screwy logic!

IronBlood BBS:

zslzzll
像中国和津巴布韦的这船武器买卖完全是合法交易,中国没有做错什么。

China selling ships full of weapons to Zimbabwe is a completely legal exchange, China hasn't done anything wrong.

费舍
强盗逻辑。。。也怪我们做的不够秘密

Hoodlum logic…and then they blame us for not being secretive enough about it?

DanielDiao
卖武器又怎么了,美国大批大批的武器进入台湾也没有人出一声

What's wrong with selling weapons? Heaps and heaps of American weapons go to Taiwan and no one makes a sound

德国国防军士兵
西方媒体就是喜欢给我们国家扣屎盆子
为什么我们国家的对外宣传这么无力?

Western media just like to dump shit on our country
Why is our country's external propaganda so powerless?

kenyuan111
我相信政府会妥善解决了,毕竟我们在非洲的影响力是那些西方国家没办法比的!

I believe the government will resolve this properly; after all, Western countries’ influence in Africa doesn't compare closely with ours!

cbhelp
我们只会讲”我们没错”吗?
什么时候中国能够不以弱者的姿态来回答问题
那就是我们出头的日子了

Is ‘we didn't do anything wrong’ all that we can say?
The day China no longer has to respond as the weaker side
Those will be the days when we stand out

笑你
现在是强者合法的世界,只有在中国打倒了美国后,中国才会有合法的地位,不然的话,在西方政客和煤体中中国永远没有合法过。

Legitimacy comes with power in this world; only when China takes America down will we then have legitimate status. Otherwise, China will never have legitimacy in the eyes of Western politicians and media.

GXLS武警老兵
运一点小东西人家就指手画脚,哎,忒没面子啦。没卖给拉登哥和伊拉克反抗组织就不错啦。

We just send a bit of that stuff and people get all worked up. Sigh. We really have no face now. Selling them to bin Laden or Iraqi opposition groups might not be such a bad idea.

GXLS武警老兵
管他呢,他说他的,我卖我的。

Just ignore them, they say what they want, and we sell what we want.

网屋大哥
没有做错什么

We haven't done anything wrong

AKC_113
对!去联合国拍桌子:老子就是要卖军火!能把老子咋的?

Right! Take this to the UN and smack the table and tell them: ‘we'll sell arms if we want to. What you gonna do about it?’

Sohu:

中国和津巴布韦的武器买卖完全是合法交易,但是在敏感时期还是多注意些,不要授以人话柄。

The arms trade between China and Zimbabwe is completely legal, though we should be more careful during this sensitive time, so as not to give anyone the upper hand.

这就是帝国主义歧视和攻击我们的证据

This is just proof of American imperialistic discrimination and attack toward us

不干涉他国内政是中国提出来的,但好像也只有中国一个国家遵守 。世界是干涉的世界。中国的理论很难联系实际,与世界脱轨了。中国应该全球范围内扶植亲中政权和势力,广结盟友。朋友多,路才宽。中国的不干涉他国内政是另种形式的闭关锁国。把自己隔绝世界之外。
17日,南非广播公司、各广播电台、《星报》、《公民报》等各大媒体,均大篇幅报道了“中国军火”抵达南非并准备运往津巴布韦的消息。

Non-interference in other countries’ domestic affairs is something China proposed, but it seems like China is the only country which abides by it. The world interferes with the world. It's hard for China to apply its theories to practice, they're so far out from the rest of the world. China ought to prop up the pro-China regimes and forces around the world, and consolidate its allies. The more friends China has, the wider the roads on which to move. China's policy of non-intervention is another form of closed-door policy, cutting itself off from the outside world.
On the 17th, the SABC, all radio stations, The Star and The Citizen newspapers and other media all splashed the news that “Chinese Arms” had arrived in South Africa and weren't being allowed to be shipped on to Zimbabwe.

“保利”公司又犯傻了!

The “Poly” Corp has made another stupid mistake!

南非也开始欺负中国了!!!!!!!!!!!!1

Now South Africa's bullying China too!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

不该卖武器给这些烂人。

We shouldn't be selling weapons to these rotten people.

中国军火是合法交易!好无疑问,谁阻碍,谁将受到中国的制裁!如果西方国家从中截获,中国也必将以牙还牙!

Chinese arms are traded legally! Without question, anyone who obstructs them will be subject to sanctions from China! If Western countries intercepts them, China will see to equivalent retaliation!

我们不应该为了这些蝇头小利去损害自己的名声. 出口这些武器的公司实际损害了中国的远大利益.

We shouldn't be damaging our reputation for such petty profit. The company exporting these weapons is doing effective damaging China's long-term prospects.

交易当然合法,就是不太道德,不过话说回来,美国还曾经卖给萨达姆武器呢。
别人的不道德行为是不是可以成为你不道德行为的依据呢?这个问题请同胞们慢慢思考。

Of course this trade is legal, it's just not very moral. Although, America did in the past sell weapons to Saddam.
Is other people's immoral behavior justification for you to do the same? I'd hope our compatriots would consider this carefully.

这就是西方的媒体,在转移视线。

That's Western media for you, diverting attention.

政府不知道怎么做的,今年老出现重大差错!!?!!抓住把柄了!!!郁闷 !!!

The government doesn't know what it's doing, all these huge bumbles this year!!?!! Let's take advantage of that!!! It's depressing!!!

中国政府一定要保证此批军火顺利到达津巴布韦,否则,以后的正常军火交易将受到沉重打击。

The Chinese government must ensure that these arms arrive in Zimbabwe safely, or else from now on regular arms trade shipments will be subject to heavy attack.

西方反华的贼心不死

The anti-China West is hell-bent on hurting us

西方真恶劣,中国从美国订购两艘航空母舰。

Despicable West, China should order two aircraft carriers from America

靠,好象美国没卖过军火似的

Damn, you'd think America'd never sold arms before

中国人卖军品就是非法的,而他们卖军品就是合法的,这什么禽兽逻辑?
支持的顶一下!

It's illegal when the Chinese sell weapons, but legal when they do it, what kind of backwards logic is this?

美国是世界上最大的军火出口国。

America is the largest arms exporter in the world

强烈支持击沉美国运台湾的军火船只!!!!

Strongly suggest we sink American arms freighters to Taiwan!!!!

简直是污蔑!贩卖军火伤天害理的事情怎么是我们中国政府做的呢?只有美国才做这种事情!!!

Pure slander! Would our Chinese government do something as impudent and outrageous as peddle munitions? Only America does things like that!!!

反华者无孔不入.

Anti-China types are everywhere.

中国出售军火是正常的事情。

China sells munitions all the time.

美国以后不要卖给台湾武器!

America, no more selling weapons to Taiwan from now on!

不要总是在外国人对我们采取行动的时候
我们只是口头申辩!!!!
要维护我们自己的利益!
行动起来!
我们需要行动!

We have to stop making excuses
When foreigners take actions against us!!!!
We have to defend our own interests!
Spring to action!
We have to act!

美国是世界上最大的军火商.

America is the largest arms dealer in the world.

中国可以对美国的售台武器进行扣留

China can start seizing weapons America sells to Taiwan

中国!我们应强硬!应有行动.

China! We must be strong! We must act.

没航母真是不行了啊

That we have no aircraft carriers is unacceptable

错在,中国没有航母。

The mistake is that China has no aircraft carriers

中国是主权国家,中国没有做错什么。

China is a sovereign state, China hasn't done anything wrong.

不要把整个自由世界都树作敌人。

We don't need to make the entire free world our enemy.

象南非这样的三流国家都敢对中国说不那还得了
中国应当向俄罗斯的普京学习。强硬一些。
别人才不敢小瞧咱。

A third-class country like South Africa dares say no to China?
China ought to learn from Putin, and be more tough.
People won't dare messing with us then.

From China.com:

又是CNN

There goes CNN again

最好能卖点给基地组织,好让他们对付美国和北约.

We should start selling some to Al Qaeda, let them take on the US and NATO.

我看奇怪了。什么事情一到中国人头上,无论对错,全是中国人错了。谁在操弄着世界舆论?谁在折腾中国?!!

This seems strange to me. China gets blamed for everything, whether it's right or not, and it's all Chinese people's fault. Who's manipulating world public opinion? Who's tormenting China?!!

只要是支持中国的国家,就多卖武器给他们

Any country as long as they support China, we should start selling them more weapons

世界军火交易市场,美国、英、法各占百分之几?中国才占百分之几?我们既然是世界工厂,现在的比例是完全不正常的,将来应该超越美国才正常嘛!

How much of the world market for munitions trade is taken up by America? England? France? And how much of it is taken up by China? Being as we are the factory of the world, the current ratio is completely normal. Just as it's normal that we stand to overtake America!

“中国没有做错什么“ 这句话以后最好不要说了

”China hasn't done anything wrong” Can we stop saying this so much from now on?

我倒觉得不该卖给非洲那些动乱或者可能动乱的国家这些武器。难道非洲各种族间打的还不够热闹吗?

I just feel that we ought not to be selling weapons to African countries in turmoil, or near to turmoil. Aren't the different ethnicities in Africa fighting intensely enough as it is?

QQ:

不是热爱和平吗?卖杀人武器总是不好的。

Don't we strongly love peace? Selling weapons to killers is always wrong.

你们可以卖,我们就不能卖?你们可以自由卖,我们就应该有限制的卖?这是什么强盗逻辑!你若惹得爷性起,老子明天就扛颗原子弹出去卖,就卖给古巴!我看你咋的!

You can sell them, but we can't? You can sell them freely, but we can only sell under restrictions? What bandit's logic is this! Just try savagely provoking us, and tomorrow we'll haul out the atom bombs to sell—to Cuba! We'll see how you handle that!

中国现在卖这种小的军火。以后要卖大的。卖先进的。支持支持支持““““`
强大的中国

China's selling small arms now. Soon they'll be bigger, more advanced. Support, support, support………
Strong China

我估计要是他们卖给津巴布韦武器,中国肯定没得说,那又为什么呢?鬼佬最清楚

I bet it if was them selling weapons to Zimbabwe, China wouldn't say a word. And why not? Those gwailos know exactly why

应该给他们一个教训,看他们还嚣张!

We ought to teach them a lesson, see how arrogant they are then!

卖武器赚钱天经地义

Selling weapons for profit is just the natural thing to do

有卖原子弹 的吗?我要买 3个;

Are we selling atom bombs? I'll take 3!

NetEase:

又是CNN, TM的还在造谣祸众

There goes CNN again, spreading more hurtful fracking rumors

我靠,大陆现在和台湾是交战状态,谁的船进出台湾,中国也可以要求登船检查。特别是日本鬼子和美国鬼子的。是中国人就顶。

Damn, the mainland is in a state of war with Taiwan right now, so if anyone's boats move in to Taiwan, China can demand to search them. Especially those Japanese or American devils’. If you're Chinese, click this comment up.

中国急需几个大航母战斗群。

China urgently needs several large aircraft carriers and a pack of fighter jets.

对这种事,更应该强硬。
为什么?因为既然不敢和美英法等发达国家耍横,如果再被此等小国欺负,那尊严就更没有了。
必要时,可以打。

We need to be even harder on incidents like this.
Why? Because since we don't dare stand up to any developed countries like the US, France or England, if any countries of equal or smaller size pick anything with us, we'll lose all respect.

中国需要航母保护自己的利益!

China needs aircraft carriers to protect its own interests!

怎么连南非也欺负我们中国啊!我想我们确实需要一场战争来树立大国的威严!!!!

How is it that even South Africa is bullying China now? I think we definitely need a battle to earn our respect as a major nation!!!!

100 comments

  • subjectivelistener

    What is your point to post all the netizans’ comment without feeling bored?

    Do you know which country sells the most weapons and which country sells the 2nd and 3rd?

    Why do you post some meaningful and indepth subject such as ….

    “Democracy is a tool or a goal?”
    “Does China have to go west to get developed?”
    “Does Netizans need to be cautious about their message on the post for the sake of the country?”
    “Why most of westerners believe in higher moral ground as far as Tibet and China are concerned’
    “How fanatic the western netizans?”
    “Why nobody takes actions again Saudi Arabia, India?”
    “Why more people dies everyday in Iraq than before?”
    “Why Chinese love their government so much while nobody else does?”

    Go deeper, please.

  • Bill

    These are true faces of China. The world must wake up.

  • America

    Its time for America to get out of China And shut the cinese econamey down now ,,The Arms attempt in Africa Shows the world the people of China have no controal over there Government They are still pupets in a comunistic Controled world with no Human rights !! There Idealisum is to take overe or trade Resources in Africa Because there Resources are running DRY ,,

  • America

    It is only time ,,China will piss off some terrorest buying arms ,and they will get ther wakeup call ,But dont count on America The Unitrd Kingdom Or Japan to bail your week assses our Maybe North Korea oh i forgot they are related to the terrorest HuMMMMMMMMMMMMM good luck as they say in China 88 86

  • Tinashe

    我想,那些捍卫了中国的行动,在津巴布韦知道什么我们所要面对的就每一天都在这里!地狱,我们甚至不希望他们在这里。 !他们是不如英国和我们的痛苦,因为他们到这里来,并采取了最什么,我们已在我们的govs看看中东的政策。
    我想我可以写在他们的语言,也许我会在一个位置,要真正给他们一块我的主意。津巴布韦,我们不喜欢他们的任何优于英国。我们现在更糟的痛苦下,他们的枷锁。 !

  • The disturbing thing about all these messages is their virtual unanimity- 90% of these people are saying the same thing- and some using very aggressive language.

    It is giving Chinese people a very bad image.

  • @subjectivelistener
    GVO only aggregates what people are saying online, including translations. I agree this is not an ideal basis for any sort of dialogue. I actually spent a full day scouring the internet for more Chinese-language perspective on China’s involvement in Zimbabwe (that has been published within the past week). If you or anyone knows where the “deeper” is, definitely please send me the link and I’ll get translating.

  • starlight

    So what if China is trading weapons! U.S. trades weapons with many parts of the world. What is America doing patroling Iraq and Afghanistan? FYI -U.S. also wants to pressure China to allow U.S. to trade advance weapons with Taiwan!

  • Wei

    @ tree…

    I wonder if you have seen what American netcitzen do on unmoderated sites.

    @JK…

    Here we go again…This is the hard numbers for global arm trade:

    In Billions of dollars:

    United States 123.543 39%
    Russia 54.316 17%
    France 26.915 8%
    United Kingdom 17.628 6%
    Germany 16.073 5%
    China 10.860 3%
    Italy 6.506 2%
    Other European 40.649 13%
    Others 20.274 6%

    Somehow I don’t think US/Europe can complain much

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