China’s rise stirs Vietnam’s anxiety
By Anh Le Tran
Asia Times Jun 12, 2009
If there was a need to identify a consensus among Vietnamese across the spectrum from domestic to overseas, it must be the uneasy feeling towards China. The Vietnamese mentality regarding national security from time immemorial has been that of vigilance on China.
Although Vietnamese pride for fighting off foreign invasions always runs high, the country’s history of 1,000-year Chinese domination is painful enough to be a relentless reminder. And three current developments seem to reinforce it to a significant extent.
First, over the past few months, the Vietnamese public outcry against Chinese involvement in Vietnam’s bauxite mining plan in the Central Highlands has been dramatic. The list of accused Chinese elusive intentions is long, ranging from exporting environmental degradation to compromising Vietnam’s national security. This phenomenon is unprecedented and shows an increasing contrast between the Vietnamese populace and government towards Chinese investments.
A quick look at the way Chinese companies carry out their bigger projects in Vietnam may provide a reasonable explanation for this sentiment. When constructing huge electric, cement, chemical and mining plants in Vietnam, instead of hiring locally, Chinese companies usually brought their own workers with them.
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