Anti-Chinese sentiment

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
(Redirected from
Sinophobe
)
Demonstrators demand that the Chinese go back to China immediately.

Chinezenmoord, a 1740 pogrom against Chinese in Batavia

Anti-Chinese sentiment is a fear or dislike of China, Chinese people and/or Chinese culture, it is also referred to as Sinophobia.[1][2][3][4] It is frequently directed at Chinese minorities which live outside China and it involves immigration, the development of national identities in neighbouring countries, political ideologies, disparity of wealth, the past tributary system of Imperial China, majority-minority relations, imperial legacies, and racism.[5][6][7][note 1]

A variety of

Sinophilia
.

Statistics and background

Results of 2022 Morning Consult poll[12] "Do you have a favorable or unfavorable view of China?" (default-sorted by increasing negativity of each country)
Country polled Positive Negative Neutral Difference
 Pakistan
82%
13%
5%
+69
 Russia
74%
9%
17%
+65
 Nigeria
74%
16%
10%
+58
 Bangladesh
62%
14%
24%
+48
 Peru
58%
23%
19%
+35
 Colombia
57%
23%
20%
+34
 Thailand
54%
20%
26%
+34
 Saudi Arabia
57%
26%
17%
+31
 Mexico
49%
20%
31%
+29
 Indonesia
46%
18%
36%
+28
 South Africa
54%
28%
18%
+26
 United Arab Emirates
55%
31%
14%
+24
 Chile
48%
34%
18%
+14
 Brazil
43%
31%
26%
+12
 Argentina
44%
33%
23%
+11
 Malaysia
45%
40%
15%
+5
 Singapore
41%
41%
18%
0
 Romania
38%
39%
23%
-1
 Turkey
38%
45%
17%
-7
 Philippines
37%
45%
18%
-8
 Spain
31%
47%
22%
-16
 Israel
32%
52%
16%
-20
 Italy
27%
53%
20%
-26
 Vietnam
28%
58%
14%
-30
 Czech Republic
23%
56%
21%
-33
 Poland
22%
55%
23%
-33
 India
24%
59%
17%
-35
 Belgium
18%
56%
26%
-38
 France
15%
57%
28%
-42
 Ireland
18%
62%
20%
-44
 United States
16%
62%
22%
-46
 Netherlands
15%
62%
23%
-47
 Canada
14%
62%
24%
-48
 United Kingdom
14%
62%
24%
-48
  Switzerland
19%
69%
12%
-50
 Norway
16%
70%
14%
-54
 Austria
14%
70%
16%
-56
 Australia
13%
69%
18%
-56
 Germany
13%
69%
18%
-56
 Sweden
12%
73%
15%
-61
 Japan
7%
78%
15%
-71
 South Korea
5%
88%
7%
-83

In 2013, Pew Research Center from the United States conducted a survey on sinophobia, finding that China was viewed favorably in half (19 of 38) of the nations surveyed, excluding China itself. The highest levels of support came from Asia in Malaysia (81%) and Pakistan (81%); African nations of Kenya (78%), Senegal (77%) and Nigeria (76%); as well as Latin America, particularly in countries heavily engaging with the Chinese market, such as Venezuela (71%), Brazil (65%) and Chile (62%).[13] However, anti-China sentiment has remained permanent in the West and other Asian countries: only 28% of Germans and Italians and 37% of Americans viewed China favorably while in Japan, just 5% of respondents had a favorable opinion of the country. 11 of the 38 nations viewed China unfavorably by over 50%. Japan was polled to have the most anti-China sentiment, where 93% saw the People's Republic in a negative light. There were also majorities in Germany (64%), Italy (62%), and Israel (60%) who held negative views of China. Germany saw a large increase of anti-China sentiment, from 33% disfavor in 2006 to 64% in the 2013 survey, with such views existing despite Germany's success in exporting to China.[13]

Global polling in 2020 amidst the COVID-19 pandemic reported a decrease in favourable views of China, with an Ipsos poll done in November finding those in Russia (81%), Mexico (72%), Malaysia (68%), Peru (67%) and Saudi Arabia (65%) were most likely to believe China's future influence would be positive, while those in Great Britain (19%), Canada (21%), Germany (24%), Australia (24%), Japan (24%), the United States (24%) and France (24%) were least likely.[14] A YouGov poll on August found that those in Nigeria (70%), Thailand (64%), Mexico (61%), and Egypt (55%) had more positive views of China regarding world affairs while those in Japan (7%), Denmark (13%), Britain (13%), Sweden (14%), and other Western countries had the least positive views.[15]

Respondents in the

GLOBSEC poll on October found that the highest percentage of those who saw China as a threat were in the Czech Republic (51%), Poland (34%), and Hungary (24%), while it was seen as least threatening in Balkan countries such as Bulgaria (3%), Serbia (13%), and North Macedonia (14%). Reasons for threat perception were generally linked to the country's economic influence.[17]

According to Arab Barometer polls, views of China in the Arab world have been relatively positive, with data from March to April 2021 showing that most respondents in Algeria (65%), Morocco (62%), Libya (60%), Tunisia (59%), and Iraq (56%) held favourable views of the country while views were less favourable in Lebanon (38%) and Jordan (34%).[18]

History

Historical records document the existence of anti-Chinese sentiment throughout China's imperial wars.[19]

Chinese culture "uncivilized", and his negative views on China played a significant role in his decision to issue a declaration of war.[20] This disdain became increasingly common throughout the Second Opium War (1856-1860), when repeated attacks against foreign traders in China inflamed anti-Chinese sentiment abroad.[citation needed] Following the defeat of China in the Second Opium War, Lord Elgin, upon his arrival in Peking in 1860, ordered the sacking and burning of China's imperial Summer Palace
in vengeance.

In the United States, the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 was passed in response to growing sinophobia. It prohibited all immigration of Chinese laborers and turned those already in the country into second-class persons.[21] The 1882 Act was the first U.S. immigration law to target a specific ethnicity or nationality.[22]: 25  Meanwhile, during the mid-19th century in Peru, Chinese were used as slave laborers and they were not allowed to hold any positions in Peruvian society.[23]

Japanese illustration depicting the beheading of Chinese captives. First Sino-Japanese War.

Anti-Chinese sentiment was also prevalent in East Asia, most notably in the rising Empire of Japan. The so-called Nagasaki incident of 1886 caused by sailors of the Imperial Chinese Navy in the eponymous Japanese port and the Qing dynasty's refusal to apologize for the violence further fueled anti-Chinese sentiment in Japan.

Chinese workers had been a fixture on London's docks since the mid-eighteenth century, when they arrived as sailors who were employed by the

lodging houses for other sailors or selling exotic Asian produce. By the 1880s, a small but recognizable Chinese community had developed in the Limehouse area, increasing Sinophobic sentiments among other Londoners, who feared the Chinese workers might take over their traditional jobs due to their willingness to work for much lower wages and longer hours than other workers in the same industries. The entire Chinese population of London was only in the low hundreds—in a city whose entire population was roughly estimated to be seven million—but nativist feelings ran high, as was evidenced by the Aliens Act of 1905, a bundle of legislation which sought to restrict the entry of poor and low-skilled foreign workers.[24] Chinese Londoners also became involved with illegal criminal organisations, further spurring Sinophobic sentiments.[24][25]

During the

South Korean army in the Korean War (1950-1953). To this day, many Koreans believe that China perpetrated the division of Korea into two countries.[26]

In the

Alexander Solzhenitsyn, prompted expressions of anti-Chinese sentiment in the conservative Russian samizdat movement.[27]

Regional antipathy

East Asia

Japan

After the end of the Second Sino-Japanese War and World War II in 1945, the relationship between China and Japan gradually improved. However, since 2000, Japan has seen a gradual resurgence of anti-Chinese sentiment. Many Japanese people believe that China is using the issue of the country's checkered history, such as the Japanese history textbook controversies, many war crimes which were committed by Japan's military, and official visits to the Yasukuni Shrine (in which a number of war criminals are enshrined), as both a diplomatic card and a tool to make Japan a scapegoat in domestic Chinese politics.[28] The Anti-Japanese Riots in the Spring of 2005 were another source of more anger towards China among the Japanese public. Anti-Chinese sentiments have been on a sharp rise in Japan since 2002. According to the Pew Global Attitude Project (2008), 84% of Japanese people held an unfavorable view of China and 73% of Japanese people held an unfavorable view of Chinese people, which was a higher percentage than all the other countries surveyed.[29]

A survey in 2017 suggested that 51% of Chinese respondents had experienced tenancy discrimination.[30] Another report in the same year noted a significant bias against Chinese visitors from the media and some of the Japanese locals.[31]

Korea

Anti-Chinese sentiment in Korea was created in the 21st century by cultural and historical claims of China and a sense of security crisis caused by China's economic growth.[32]

chaoxianzu, which have all angered South Koreans.[40]

Anti-Chinese sentiments in South Korea have been on a steady rise since 2002. According to Pew opinion polls, favorable views of China steadily declined from 66% in 2002 to 48% in 2008, while unfavorable views rose from 31% in 2002 to 49% in 2008.[13] According to surveys by the East Asia Institute, positive views of China's influence declined from 48.6% in 2005 to 38% in 2009, while negative views of it rose from 46.7% in 2005 to 50% in 2008.[41] A 2012 BBC World Service poll had 64% of South Koreans expressing negative views of China's influence, which was the highest percentage out of 21 countries surveyed including Japan at 50%.[42]

Relations further strained with the deployment of

THAAD in South Korea in 2017, in which China started its boycott against Korea, making Koreans develop anti-Chinese sentiment in South Korea over reports of economic retaliation by Beijing.[43] According to a poll from the Institute for Peace and Unification Studies at Seoul National University in 2018, 46% of South Koreans found China as the most threatening country to inter-Korean peace (compared to 33% for North Korea), marking the first time China was seen as a bigger threat than North Korea since the survey began in 2007.[44] A 2022 poll from the Central European Institute of Asian Studies had 81% of South Koreans expressing a negative view of China, which was the highest out of 56 countries surveyed.[45]

Discriminatory views of Chinese people have been reported,

ethnic-Chinese Koreans have faced prejudices including what is said , to be a widespread criminal stigma.[48][49][50] Increased anti-Chinese sentiments had reportedly led to online comments calling the Nanjing Massacre the "Nanjing Grand Festival" or others such as "Good Chinese are only dead Chinese" and "I want to kill Korean Chinese".[51][49]

Taiwan

Anti-Chinese sentiment in Taiwan comes from the fact that many Taiwanese, especially young people, choose to identify solely as "Taiwanese"[52] and are against having closer ties with China, like those in the Sunflower Student Movement.[53] According to a 2023 survey from Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council, 76% of Taiwanese believe that China is a threat and unfriendly to Taiwan.[54]

Hong Kong

Hong Kong marches on 1 July, 2014. The sign reads, "We stand united against China".

Although

Hong Kong youth identified as Chinese.[56]

The number of mainland Chinese visitors to the region has surged since the handover (reaching 28 million in 2011) and is perceived by many locals to be the cause of their housing and job difficulties. In addition to resentment due to political oppression, negative perceptions have grown through circulating online posts of mainlander misbehaviour,

University of Hong Kong suggested that 32 to 35.6 per cent of locals had "negative" feelings for mainland Chinese people.[60] However, a 2019 survey of Hong Kong residents has suggested that there are also some who attribute positive stereotypes to visitors from the mainland.[61]

In a 2015 study, mainland students in Hong Kong who initially had a more positive view of the city than of their own mainland hometowns reported that their attempts at connecting with the locals were difficult due to experiences of hostility.[62]

In 2012, a group of Hong Kong residents published a newspaper advertisement depicting mainland visitors and immigrants as locusts.[63] In February 2014, about 100 Hong Kongers harassed mainland tourists and shoppers during what they styled an "anti-locust" protest in Kowloon. In response, the Equal Opportunities Commission of Hong Kong proposed an extension of the territory's race-hate laws to cover mainlanders.[64] Strong anti-mainland xenophobia has also been documented amidst the 2019 protests,[65] with reported instances of protesters attacking Mandarin-speakers and mainland-linked businesses.[66][67][68]

Central Asia

Kazakhstan

In 2018, massive land reform protests were held in Kazakhstan. The protesters demonstrated against the leasing of land to Chinese companies and the perceived economic dominance of Chinese companies and traders.[69][70] Another issue which is leading to the rise of sinophobia in Kazakhstan is the Xinjiang conflict and Kazakhstan is responding to it by hosting a significant number of Uyghur separatists.[citation needed]

Kyrgyzstan

While discussing Chinese investments in the country, a Kyrgyz farmer said, "We always run the risk of being colonized by the Chinese".[71]

Survey data cited by the Kennan Institute from 2017 to 2019 had on average 35% of Kyrgyz respondents expressing an unfavourable view of China compared to 52% expressing a favourable view; the disapproval rating was higher than that of respondents from 3 other Central Asian countries.[72]

Mongolia

Mongolian nationalist and Neo-Nazi groups are reported to be hostile to China,

Republic of China has claimed Mongolia as part of its territory, see Outer Mongolia). Fear and hatred of erliiz (Mongolian: эрлийз, [ˈɛrɮiːt͡sə], literally, double seeds), a derogatory term for people of mixed Han Chinese and Mongol ethnicity,[75] is a common phenomena in Mongolian politics. Erliiz are seen as a Chinese plot of "genetic pollution" to chip away at Mongolian sovereignty, and allegations of Chinese ancestry are used as a political weapon in election campaigns. Several small Neo-Nazi groups opposing Chinese influence and mixed Chinese couples are present within Mongolia, such as Tsagaan Khas.[73]

Tajikistan

Resentment against China and Chinese people has also increased in Tajikistan in recent years due to accusations that China has grabbed land from Tajikistan.[76] In 2013, the Popular Tajik Social-Democrat Party leader, Rakhmatillo Zoirov, claimed that Chinese troops were violating a land-ceding arrangement by moving deeper into Tajikistan than they were supposed to.[77]

Within mainland China

Xinjiang

After the

re-education camps for purported counter-terrorism efforts, which have fuelled resentment in the region.[86]

Tibet

Tibetans
in India in 2008

Tibet has complicated relations with the rest of China. Both Tibetan and Chinese are part of the

Seventeen Point Agreement for the Peaceful Liberation of Tibet, but China was accused of not honoring the treaty[88] and led to the 1959 Tibetan uprising which was successfully suppressed by China,[89] resulting in the Dalai Lama escaping to India.[90]

Tibetans again rioted against other Chinese rule twice, in the

Han and Hui Chinese.[92] Both were suppressed by China and China has increased their military presence in the region, despite periodic self-immolations.[93]

Southeast Asia

Singapore

To counteract the city state's low birthrate, Singapore's government has been offering financial incentives and a liberal visa policy to attract an influx of migrants. Chinese immigrants to the nation grew from 150,447 in 1990 to 448,566 in 2015 to make up 18% of the foreign-born population, next to Malaysian immigrants at 44%.

country bumpkins and blamed for stealing desirable jobs and driving up housing prices.[97] There have also been reports of housing discrimination against mainland Chinese tenants,[98] and a 2019 YouGov poll has suggested Singapore to have the highest percentage of locals prejudiced against Chinese travellers out of the many countries surveyed.[99][100]

A 2016 study found that out of 20 Chinese Singaporeans, 45% agreed that PRC migrants were rude, although only 15% expressed negative attitudes towards mainland Chinese in general.[101] Another 2016 study of Singaporean locals and (mostly mainland) Chinese students found that most respondents in both groups said they had positive experiences with each other, with only 11% of Singaporeans saying they did not.[102]

Malaysia

Due to race-based politics and

13 May Incident was perhaps the deadliest race riot to have occurred in Malaysia with an official combined death toll of 196[106] (143 Chinese, 25 Malays, 13 Indians, and 15 others of undetermined ethnicity),[107] but with higher estimates by other observers reaching around 600-800+ total deaths.[108][109][110]

Malaysia's ethnic quota system has been regarded as discriminatory towards the ethnic Chinese (and Indian) community, in favor of ethnic Malay Muslims,[111][112] which has reportedly created a brain drain in the country. In 2015, supporters of Najib Razak's party reportedly marched in the thousands through Chinatown to support him, and assert Malay political power with threats to burn down shops, which drew criticism from China's ambassador to Malaysia.[113]

It was reported in 2019 that relations between ethnic Chinese Malaysians and Malays were "at their lowest ebb", and fake news posted online of mainland Chinese indiscriminately receiving citizenship in the country had been stoking racial tensions. The primarily Chinese-based Democratic Action Party in Malaysia has also reportedly faced an onslaught of fake news depicting it as unpatriotic, anti-Malay, and anti-Muslim.[114] Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, there have been social media posts claiming the initial outbreak is "divine retribution" for China's treatment of its Muslim Uyghur population.[115]

Cambodia

The speed of Chinese resident arrivals in Sihanoukville city has led to an increase in fear and hostility towards the new influx of Chinese residents among the local population. As of 2018, the Chinese community in the city makes up almost 20% of the town's population.[116]

Philippines

The Spanish introduced the first anti-Chinese laws in the Philippine archipelago. The Spanish massacred or expelled the Chinese several times from Manila, and the Chinese responded by fleeing either to

Sulu Sultanate, which they in turn supported in their wars against the Spanish authorities.[117] The Chinese refugees not only ensured that the Sūg people were supplied with the requisite arms but also joined their new compatriots in combat operations against the Spaniards during the centuries of Spanish–Moro conflict.[118]

Furthermore, racial classification from the Spanish and American administrations has labeled ethnic Chinese as alien. This association between 'Chinese' and 'foreigner' have facilitated discrimination against the ethnic Chinese population in the Philippines; many ethnic Chinese were denied citizenship or viewed as antithetical to a Filipino nation-state.[119] In addition to this, Chinese people have been associated with wealth in the background of great economic disparity among the local population. This perception has only contributed to ethnic tensions in the Philippines, with the ethnic Chinese population being portrayed as being a major party in controlling the economy.[119]

The standoff in Spratly Islands and Scarborough Shoal between China and the Philippines contributes to anti-China sentiment among Filipinos. Campaigns to boycott Chinese products began in 2012. People protested in front of the Chinese Embassy and it led the embassy to issue a travel warning for its citizens to the Philippines for a year.[120]

Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, scholar Jonathan Corpuz Ong has lamented that there is a great deal of hateful and racist speech on Philippine social media which "many academics and even journalists in the country have actually justified as a form of political resistance" to the Chinese government.[121]

Indonesia

Anti-Chinese sentiment reached its peak in May 1998, when major riots swept over Jakarta.

The Dutch introduced anti-Chinese laws in the

Java War (1741–43) followed shortly thereafter.[122][123][124][125][126]

The asymmetrical economic position between ethnic

PKI closer to China.[128][5] In the May 1998 riots of Indonesia following the fall of President Suharto, many ethnic Chinese were targeted by other Indonesian rioters, resulting in extensive looting. However, when Chinese-owned supermarkets were targeted for looting most of the dead were not ethnic Chinese, but the looters themselves, who were burnt to death by the hundreds when a fire broke out.[129][130]

In recent years,[

disputes in the South China Sea led to the renewal of tensions. At first, the conflict was contained between China and Vietnam, the Philippines and Malaysia, with Indonesia staying neutral. However, accusations about Indonesia's lack of activities to protect its fishermen from China's fishing vessels in the Natuna Sea[131] and disinformation about Chinese foreign workers have contributed to the deterioration of China's image in Indonesia.[132][133]

Coconuts Media reported in April 2022 of online groups in the country targeting Chinese-Indonesian women for racialised sexual abuse.[134] On the other hand, a 2022 online poll done by Palacký University Olomouc had little more than 20% of Indonesian respondents viewing China negatively while over 70% held a positive view.[135][136]

Myanmar

The ongoing

ethnic insurgency in Myanmar and the 1967 riots in Burma against the Chinese community displeased the PRC, which led to the arming of ethnic and political rebels by China against Burma.[137] Resentment towards Chinese investments[138][139] and their perceived exploitation of natural resources have also hampered the Sino-Burmese relationship.[140] Chinese people in Myanmar have also been subject to discriminatory laws and rhetoric in Burmese media and popular culture.[141]

In November 2023, pro junta supporters held protests in Naypyidaw and Yangon accusing China of supporting Operation 1027 rebels,[142][143] with some Yangon protesters threatening to attack China for its support.[144]

Thailand

Historically, Thailand (called Siam before 1939) has been seen as a China-friendly country, owing to close Chinese-Siamese relations, a large proportion of the Thai population being of Chinese descent and Chinese having been assimilated into mainstream society over the years. However, in the 20th century, Plaek Phibunsongkhram launched a massive Thaification, the main purpose of which was Central Thai supremacy, including the oppression of Thailand's Chinese population and restricting Thai Chinese culture by banning the teaching of the Chinese language and forcing Thai Chinese to adopt Thai names.[145] Plaek's obsession with creating a pan-Thai nationalist agenda caused resentment among general officers (most of Thai general officers at the time were of Teochew background) until he was removed from office in 1944.[146] Since that, mainstream culture of the nation from the Central Thai people was replaced by Thai Chinese, and Central Thai face discrimination instead, although the Cold War may have inflamed hostility towards the Mainland Chinese.[citation needed]

Hostility towards the mainland Chinese increased with the increase of visitors from China in 2013.[147][148] It has also been worsened by Thai news reports and social media postings on misbehaviour from a portion of the tourists.[149][150] In spite of this, two reports have suggested that there are still some Thais who have positive impressions of Chinese tourists.[151][152]

Vietnam

Shortly after the Vietnamese War ended in 1975, the Vietnamese government aggressively persecuted the Chinese community by confiscating property and businesses owned by overseas Chinese in Vietnam and expelling the ethnic Chinese minority into southern Chinese provinces.[153]

There are strong anti-Chinese sentiments among the Vietnamese population, stemming in part from

Đổi mới reforms in Vietnam.[citation needed] The two countries' shared history includes territorial disputes, with conflict over the Paracel and Spratly Islands reaching a peak between 1979 and 1991.[156][157][158]

Anti-Chinese sentiments had spiked in 2007 after China formed

China moving an oil platform into disputed waters escalated into riots in which many Chinese factories and workers were targeted. In 2018, thousands of people nationwide protested against a proposed law regarding Special Economic Zones that would give foreign investors 99-year leases on Vietnamese land, fearing that it would be dominated by Chinese investors.[165]

According to journalist Daniel Gross, anti-Chinese sentiment is omnipresent in modern Vietnam, where "from school kids to government officials, China-bashing is very much in vogue." He reports that a majority of Vietnamese resent the import and usage of Chinese products, considering them of distinctly low status.[166] A 2013 book on varying host perceptions in global tourism has also referenced negativity from Vietnamese hosts towards Chinese tourists, where the latter were seen as "making a lot more requests, complaints and troubles than other tourists"; the views differed from the much more positive perceptions of young Tibetan hosts at Lhasa towards mainland Chinese visitors in 2011.[167]

In 2019, Chinese media was accused by the local press of appropriating or claiming Áo Dài, which angered many Vietnamese.[168][169]

South Asia

Afghanistan

According to The Diplomat in 2014, the Xinjiang conflict had increased anti-China sentiment in Afghanistan.[170] A 2020 Gallup International poll of 44 countries found that 46% of Afghans viewed China's foreign policy as destabilizing to the world, compared to 48% who viewed it as stabilizing.[171][172]

Nepal

Chinese outlet

Mount Qomolangma in the Tibetan language and saying it was located in China's Tibet Autonomous Region, which caused displeasure from Nepalese and Indian Twitter users, who tweeted that China is trying to claim the mount from Nepal.[173] CGTN then corrected the tweet to say it was located on the China-Nepal border.[174]

Bhutan

The relationship between Bhutan and China has historically been tense and past events have led to anti-Chinese sentiment within the country. Notably, the Chinese government's destruction of Tibetan Buddhist institutions in Tibet in 1959 led to a wave of anti-Chinese sentiment in the country.[175] In 1960, the PRC published a map in A Brief History of China, depicting a sizable portion of Bhutan as "a pre-historical realm of China" and released a statement claiming the Bhutanese "form a united family in Tibet" and "they must once again be united and taught the communist doctrine". Bhutan responded by closing off its border, trade, and all diplomatic contacts with China. Bhutan and China have not established diplomatic relations.[176] Recent efforts between the two countries to improve relations have been hampered by India's strong influence on Bhutan.[177][178]

Sri Lanka

There were protests against allowing China to build a port and industrial zone, which will require the eviction of thousands of villagers around Hambantota.[179] Projects on the Hambantota port have led to fears among the local protestors that the area will become a "Chinese colony".[180] Armed government supporters clashed with protestors from the opposition that were led by Buddhist monks.[180]

India

During the Sino-Indian War, the Chinese faced hostile sentiment all over India. Chinese businesses were investigated for links to the Chinese government and many Chinese were interned in prisons in North India.[181] The Indian government passed the Defence of India Act in December 1962,[182] permitting the "apprehension and detention in custody of any person hostile to the country." The broad language of the act allowed for the arrest of any person simply for having a Chinese surname or a Chinese spouse.[183] The Indian government incarcerated thousands of Chinese-Indians in an internment camp in Deoli, Rajasthan, where they were held for years without trial. The last internees were not released until 1967. Thousands more Chinese-Indians were forcibly deported or coerced to leave India. Nearly all internees had their properties sold off or looted.[182] Even after their release, the Chinese Indians faced many restrictions on their freedom. They could not travel freely until the mid-1990s.[182]

On 2014, India in conjunction with the Tibetan government-in-exile have called for a campaign to boycott Chinese goods due in part to the contested border disputes India has with China.[184][185]

The

2020 China–India skirmishes resulted in the deaths 20 Indian soldiers and an undisclosed number of Chinese soldiers, in hand-to-hand combat using improvised weapons.[186]

Following the skirmishes, a company from

Google Play Store, gaining 5 million downloads in less than two weeks. It discouraged software dependence on China and promoted apps developed in India. Afterwards, people began uninstalling Chinese apps like SHAREit and CamScanner.[187]

Oceania

Australia

The White Australia policy arose from the growth of anti-Chinese sentiments that peaked in the late 19th and early 20th century. Pictured: The Melbourne Punch (c. May 1888)

The Chinese population was active in political and social life in Australia. Community leaders protested against discriminatory legislation and attitudes, and despite the passing of the Immigration Restriction Act in 1901, Chinese communities around Australia participated in parades and celebrations of Australia's Federation and the visit of the Duke and Duchess of York.

Although the Chinese communities in Australia were generally peaceful and industrious, resentment flared up against them because of their different customs and traditions. In the mid-19th century, terms such as "dirty, disease-ridden, [and] insect-like" were used in Australia and New Zealand to describe the Chinese.[188]

A poll tax was passed in Victoria in 1855 to restrict Chinese immigration. New South Wales, Queensland, and Western Australia followed suit. Such legislation did not distinguish between naturalised, British citizens, Australian-born, and Chinese-born individuals. The tax in Victoria and New South Wales was repealed in the 1860s.

In the 1870s and 1880s, the Growing trade union movement began a series of protests against foreign labour. Their arguments were that Asians and Chinese took jobs away from white men, worked for "substandard" wages, lowered working conditions, and refused unionisation.[189] Objections to these arguments came largely from wealthy land owners in rural areas.[189] It was argued that without Asiatics to work in the tropical areas of the Northern Territory and Queensland, the area would have to be abandoned.[190] Despite these objections to restricting immigration, between 1875 and 1888 all Australian colonies enacted legislation that excluded all further Chinese immigration.[190]

In 1888, following protests and strike actions, an inter-colonial conference agreed to reinstate and increase the severity of restrictions on Chinese immigration. This provided the basis for the 1901 Immigration Restriction Act and the seed for the

White Australia Policy
, which although relaxed over time, was not fully abandoned until the early 1970s.

The

leasehold in order to effect "the elimination of undesirable elements which Darwin has suffered from far too much in the past" and stated that he hoped to "entirely prevent the Chinese quarter forming again". He further observed that "if land is acquired from the former Chinese residents there is really no need for them to return as they have no other assets". The territory's civilian population had mostly been evacuated during the war and the former Chinatown residents returned to find their homes and businesses reduced to rubble.[191]

A number of cases have been reported, related to sinophobia in the country.[192] Recently, in February 2013, a Chinese football team had reported about the abuses and racism they suffered on Australia Day.[6]

There have been a spate of racist anti-Chinese graffiti and posters in universities across Melbourne and Sydney which host a large number of Chinese students. In July and August 2017, hate-filled posters were plastered around Monash University and University of Melbourne which said, in Mandarin, that Chinese students were not allowed to enter the premises, or else they would face deportation, while a "kill Chinese" graffiti, decorated with swastikas was found at University of Sydney.[193][194] The Antipodean Resistance, a white supremacist group that identifies itself as pro-Nazi, claimed responsibility for the posters on Twitter. The group's website contains anti-Chinese slurs and Nazi imagery.[195]

New Zealand

In the 1800s, Chinese citizens were encouraged to immigrate to New Zealand because they were needed to fulfill agricultural jobs during a time of white labor shortage. The arrival of foreign laborers was met with hostility and the formation of anti-Chinese immigrant groups, such as the Anti-Chinese League, the Anti-Asiatic League, the Anti-Chinese Association, and the White New Zealand League. Official discrimination began with the Chinese Immigrants Act of 1881, limiting Chinese emigration to New Zealand and excluding Chinese citizens from major jobs. Anti-Chinese sentiment had declined by the mid-20th century, however it has recently been inflamed by the perception that Chinese immigrants have driven up housing prices.[196] Today, anti-Chinese sentiment in New Zealand mainly concerns the issue of housing prices.[196] K. Emma Ng reported that "One in two New Zealanders feel the recent arrival of Asian migrants is changing the country in undesirable ways." There are considerable numbers of Asians who express anti-Chinese sentiment in New Zealand, which Ng attributes to internalized self hatred.[196]

Attitudes on Chinese in New Zealand are suggested to be fairly negative, with some Chinese still considered to be less respected people in the country.[197]

Papua New Guinea

In May 2009, during the Papua New Guinea riots, Chinese-owned businesses were looted by gangs in the capital city Port Moresby, amid simmering anti-Chinese sentiment reported in the country.[198] There are fears that these riots will force many Chinese business owners and entrepreneurs to leave the South Pacific country, which would invariably lead to further damage on an impoverished economy that had a 80% unemployment rate.[198] Thousands of people were reportedly involved in the riots.[199]

Tonga

In 2000, Tongan noble

Tu'ivakano of Nukunuku banned Chinese stores from his Nukunuku District in Tonga. This followed complaints from other shopkeepers regarding competition from local Chinese.[200] In 2001, Tonga's Chinese community (a population of about three or four thousand people) was hit by a wave of racist assaults.[citation needed] The Tongan government did not renew the work permits of more than 600 Chinese storekeepers, and has admitted the decision was in response to "widespread anger at the growing presence of the storekeepers".[201]

In 2006, rioters damaged shops owned by Chinese-Tongans in Nukuʻalofa.[202][203]

Solomon Islands

In 2006, Honiara's Chinatown suffered damage when it was looted and burned by rioters following a contested election. Ethnic Chinese businessmen were falsely blamed for bribing members of the Solomon Islands' Parliament. The government of Taiwan was the one that supported the then-current government of the Solomon Islands. The Chinese businessmen were mainly small traders from mainland China and had no interest in local politics.[202]

Western Asia

Israel

Israel and China have a stable relationship, and a 2018 survey suggested that a significant percentage of the Israeli population have a positive view of Chinese culture and people.[204] This is historically preceded by Chinese support for Jewish refugees fleeing from Europe amidst World War II.[205] Within China, Jews gained praise for their successful integration, with a number of Jewish refugees advising Mao's government and leading developments in revolutionary China's health service and infrastructure.[206][207][208]

However, these close relations between the early

administration of CCP general secretary Xi Jinping and rise of nationalist sentiment in China, with Jews monitored since 2016, an occurrence reported widely in Israeli media.[209][210] This has led to some Sinophobic sentiments in Israel, with Israeli nationalists viewing China a despotic and authoritarian regime, given the ongoing repression of Jews in China.[209][failed verification
]

Turkey

On July 4, 2015, a group of around 2,000 Turkish ultra-nationalists from the

tourists in Istanbul,[211][212] which led to China issuing a travel warning to its citizens traveling to Turkey.[213] Devlet Bahçeli, a leader from MHP, said that the attacks by MHP affiliated Turkish youth on South Korean tourists was "understandable", telling the Turkish newspaper Hurriyet that: "What feature differentiates a Korean from a Chinese? They see that they both have slanted eyes. How can they tell the difference?".[214]

A Uyghur employee at a Chinese restaurant was attacked in 2015 by the Turkish Grey Wolves-linked protesters.[215] Attacks on other Chinese nationals have been reported.[216]

According to a November 2018 INR poll, 46% of Turks view China favourably, up from less than 20% in 2015. A further 62% thought that it is important to have a strong trade relationship with China.[217]

Syria

Although anti-Chinese sentiment is not widely common in Syria, the Syrian opposition has accused China of supporting the Government of Bashar al-Assad as China has vetoed UN resolutions condemning Assad's alleged war crimes; Syrian and Lebanese nationalists have burnt the Chinese flag in response.[218]

Europe

Cover of the third edition of G. G. Rupert's The Yellow Peril, depicting Uncle Sam engaged in a sword fight with a stereotypical pigtailed Chinese warrior

China has figured in Western imagination in a number of different ways as being a very large civilization existing for many centuries with a very large population; however the rise of the

People's Republic of China after the Chinese Civil War has dramatically changed the perception of China from a relatively positive light to negative because of anti-communism
in the West, and reports of human rights abuses from China.

Anti-Chinese sentiment became more common as China was becoming a major source of immigrants for the west (including the

American West).[7] Numerous Chinese immigrants to North America were attracted by wages offered by large railway companies in the late 19th century as the companies built the transcontinental railroads
.

Anti-Chinese policies persisted in the 20th century in the English-speaking world, including the

Czech Republic

Anti-Chinese sentiment has experienced a new growth due to closer ties between the Czech Republic and Taiwan and led to a deterioration of the Czech Republic's relations with China.[219][220] Czech politicians have demanded China to replace its ambassador and criticizing the Chinese government for its alleged threats against the Czech Republic, further worsening China's perception in the country.[221]

France

In France, there has been a long

Frederic Chau, want more support from the French government.[223] In September 2016, at least 15,000 Chinese participated in an anti-Asian racism protest in Paris.[222]

French farmers protested after a Chinese investor purchased 2,700 hectares of agricultural land in France.[224] A 2018 survey by Institut Montaigne has suggested that Chinese investments in France are viewed more negatively than Chinese tourism to the country, with 50% of respondents holding negative views of the former.[225] 43% of the French see China as an economic threat, an opinion that is common among older and right-wing people, and 40% of French people view China as a technological threat.[225]

It was reported in 2017 that there was some negativity among Parisians towards Chinese visitors,[226] but other surveys have suggested that they are not viewed worse than a number of other groups.[227][228][229]

Germany

In 2016,

European Commissioner for Digital Economy and Society, called Chinese people derogatory names, including "sly dogs", in a speech to executives in Hamburg and had refused to apologize for several days.[230] Two surveys have suggested that a percentage of Germans hold negative views towards Chinese travellers, although it is not as bad as a few other groups.[231][232][233]

Italy

Although historical relations between two were friendly and even Marco Polo paid a visit to China, during the Boxer Rebellion, Italy was part of Eight-Nation Alliance against the rebellion, thus this had stemmed anti-Chinese sentiment in Italy.[234] Italian troops looted, burnt, and stole a lot of Chinese goods to Italy, many are still being displayed in Italian museums.[235]

In 2010, in the Italian town of Prato, it was reported that many Chinese people were working in sweatshop-like conditions that broke European laws and that many Chinese-owned businesses don't pay taxes.[236] Textile products produced by Chinese-owned businesses in Italy are labeled as 'Made in Italy', but some of the businesses engaged in practices that reduce cost and increase output to the point where locally owned businesses can't compete with. As a result of these practices, the 2009 municipal elections led the local population to vote for the Lega Nord, a party known for its anti-immigrant stance.[236]

Portugal

In the 16th century, increasing sea trades between Europe to China had led Portuguese merchants to China, however Portuguese military ambitions for power and its fear of China's interventions and brutality had led to the growth of sinophobia in Portugal. Galiote Pereira, a Portuguese Jesuit missionary who was imprisoned by Chinese authorities, claimed China's juridical treatment known as bastinado was so horrible as it hit on human flesh, becoming the source of fundamental anti-Chinese sentiment later; as well as brutality, the cruelty of China and Chinese tyranny.[237] With the Ming dynasty's brutal reactions on Portuguese merchants following the conquest of Malacca,[238] sinophobia became widespread in Portugal, and widely practiced until the First Opium War, which the Qing dynasty was forced to cede Macao to Portugal.[239][note 2]

Russia

After the Sino-Soviet split the Soviet Union produced propaganda which depicted the PRC and the Chinese people as enemies. Soviet propaganda specifically framed the PRC as an enemy of Islam and all Turkic peoples. These phobias have been inherited by the post-Soviet states in Central Asia.[240]

Russia inherited a long-standing dispute over territory with China over Siberia and the Russian Far East with the breakup of the Soviet Union, these disputes were formerly resolved in 2004. Russia and China no longer have territorial disputes and China does not claim land in Russia; however, there has also been a perceived fear of a demographic takeover by Chinese immigrants in sparsely populated Russian areas.[241][242] Both nations have become increasingly friendlier however, in the aftermath of the 1999 US bombing of Serbia, which the Chinese embassy was struck with a bomb, and have become increasingly united in foreign policy regarding perceived western antipathy.[243][244]

A 2019 survey of online Russians has suggested that in terms of sincerity, trustfulness, and warmth, the Chinese are not viewed especially negatively or positively compared to the many other nationalities and ethnic groups in the study.[245][246] An October 2020 poll from the Central European Institute of Asian Studies[247] found that although China was perceived positively by 59.5% of Russian respondents (which was higher than for the other 11 regions asked), 57% of respondents regarded Chinese enterprises in the Russian far east to varying degrees as a threat to the local environment.[248]

Spain

Spain first issued anti-Chinese legislation when

Sulu Sultanate and supporting the Moro Muslims in their war against the Spanish. The Chinese supplied the Moros with weapons and joined them in directly fighting against the Spanish during the Spanish–Moro conflict. Spain also upheld a plan to conquer China, but it never materialized.[250]

A Central European Institute of Asian Studies poll in 2020[247] found that although Spaniards had worsening views of China amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, it did not apply to Chinese citizens where most respondents reported positive views of Chinese tourists, students, and the general community in Spain.[251]

Sweden