China A Singaporean hates the Communist Party of China (CCP)
A Singaporean hates the Communist Party of China (CCP) that run the country.

I asked him for his reason.

He said that he opposed the CCP out of respect for his mother. She was from a wealthy family in China. When the communist took over China, they confiscated her family's property and removed all the privileges of her wealth. After some time, she was able to migrate and live in Singapore. She harbored a hatred for the CCP since.

I do not wish to argue with my friend over his view. 

This is how I see the situation.

When the communist took over China, they faced huge challenges. They had to consolidate their control over the country and also to make economic reforms. 

In the process, they probably did commit injustice to many people. It could be necessitated by the circumstances of that time. I could also be done out of corruption and abuse of power.

The CCP today is different from the past. We should judge the CCP based on their current deeds, rather than what were done many decades earlier.

Let me take this matter outside of CCP.

Prior to 1945, Japan committed unspeakable atrocities in China. Several million people were killed during that period.

The people of Japan today are different from the Japanese that committed the atrocities in the past. Should the people of China judge Japan based on their deeds today, rather than their past actions?

Japan itself suffered atrociously from the atomic bombs that America dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki towards the end of the war.  America justified this action as the means to end the war. But, some historians said that the war was already ending and there was no need to drop the atomic bombs. 

Should the Japanese hate America for what they have done?

Should these hatreds be forgiven through the long passage of time? Should we judge people based on their current deeds, rather than the crimes committed by previous generations?

Tan Kin Lian



 

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