Have you forgotten?
They were our willing ally during WWI and II
Not our enemy!
Bravely supporting Australian prisoners of war on the Burma Railway
Keeping many from starvation & death.
What have the Chinese ever done to you Aussie?
That you hate them so much you want to see them destroyed
Have you forgotten?
Like us Aussies, they too, fought the Japanese.
But, for more than a decade longer!
From 1932 till ’47, all alone, battling that rapacious foe
Keeping millions of Japanese soldiers locked away from the Pacific front
Protecting many US and Aussie soldiers from a certain death
What have the Chinese ever done to you Aussie?
That you want to see them destroyed in yet another US war of aggression?
Have you forgotten?
For decades now, Chinese economic growth has made Australia’s economy strong.
It’s put food on our table, money in our wallets
That’s what the Chinese have done for you, Aussie!
It’s well past time, we buried that old fear bogey, the “Yellow Peril”.
An ancient racist devil based on assumed white superiority
It’s time to consign this demonic wraith to the dustbin of history
A war on China will certainly be our ruination, Aussie
Maybe, even, an extinction event for us all
Now wouldn’t that be a waste?
If humanity is to survive
Time now, to evolve away from war
Towards human understanding and forgiveness
Mutual prosperity and peace.
John Quelch, teacher, community development worker, secretary of IPAN Geelong, Victoria South West Group.
The writing first appeared in PEARLS & IRRITATIONS website:
https://johnmenadue.com/what-have-the-chinese-ever-done-to-you/
The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.