Singapore Street Interviews | What Foreigners think about China

新加坡街头采访，外国人对中国的看法

We went out on the streets of Singapore to ask random people what their views of China were. We talked to people from Singapore but also Luxembourg, Japan and Portugal to get their candid responses, and were quite surprised at what we found.

我们走上新加坡街头，随机询问人们对中国的看法。我们与来自新加坡、卢森堡、日本和葡萄牙的人进行了交谈，获得他们的坦率回答，我们对自己的发现感到非常惊讶。

以下是Youtube网友的评论：

Willie Ngchi Nguan

Unfortunately my young nephews & nieces in Singapore are viewing China very negatively. Most of them got their views & opinions from the mainstream media. My challenge to them is go visit China first before forming your opinion. I've travelled the world & to me, China is one of the greatest civilisation.

不幸的是，我在新加坡的侄子和侄女对中国的看法非常负面。他们大多数人的观点都来自主流媒体。我对他们说，在形成自己的观点之前，先去中国看看。我周游世界，在我看来，中国是最伟大的文明之一。

sebob squarepants

It's interesting that when Western countries run for office, instead of comparing who will make a better life for their people, they compare who is tougher on China. Would being tough on China make their people' lives better?

有趣的是，当西方国家竞选公职时，他们不是比较谁会给他们的人民带来更好的生活，而是比较谁对中国更强硬。对中国采取强硬态度会让他们的人民生活得更好吗？

SS Lim

As a Singaporean I have a very positive view of China.  3 words that come to my mind :

1) beautiful landscapes

2) poverty alleviation

3) high speed rail

作为一个新加坡人，我对中国的看法相当正面。

1) 风景美丽

2) 扶贫

3) 高铁

KiatLeong Len

1) My first 3 words: Efficient, fast and competent.

2) Positive opinion of China.

3) Got the opinion working with Chinese friends/colleagues and saw the progresses myself there.

4) SG media are mostly neutral and factual about China but some articles which are borrowed from western MSM like Reuters, AFP, AP, Bloomberg and etc. are mostly negative.

1) 我的前三个词：高效、快速和能干。

2) 对中国的看法积极

3 看法源自和中国朋友/同事共事，自己也看到了他们的进步。

4) 新加坡媒体对中国的报道大多是中立、真实的，但一些文章借鉴西方的文章，如路透社、法新社、美联社、彭博社等，大多是负面的。

Bobby N

I know it is not easy when there is a lot of people who haven't been there but are heavily influence by media who are biased about China. I am a local Singaporean and first went to China in the early 90's, and had been there quite frequently since, for business and leisure. I am retired now, and in the early days, I don't really have a good impression of the country. To a large extend, this is influenced by western media, the historical attempts by C st to extend their influence in the region.

However, after visiting different parts of China, interacting with the locals, understanding their views and opinions, and see for my own eyes the progresses that they made; my view of China is largely positive now. Whatever people may say, it is undeniable that they have achieve much, especially for their own citizens. The last thing that they need is external political interference by others who think that they know how to govern China better, especially, when they have made a mess of their own and other nations.

有很多人没有去过中国，但受到了对中国有偏见的媒体的严重影响。

我是新加坡本地人，第一次去中国是在上世纪90年代初，从那以后就经常去中国出差和度假。

我现在退休了，刚开始的时候，我对这个国家的印象并不是很好。

在很大程度上是受西方媒体的影响，受中国在该地区扩大影响力的历史影响。

然而，在访问了中国不同的地方，与当地人交流，了解他们的观点和意见，亲眼看到他们所取得的进步后，我现在对中国的看法基本上是积极的。

无论人们怎么说，不可否认的是，他们取得了很大的成就，特别是为他们自己的公民。

他们最不需要的就是那些外部政治干预。

reallyreally

Hi Lee, Welcome to Singapore!

I'm Singaporean, for me three things that pop into my mind when mentioning China are

Friendly people

Modern, efficient transportation and infrastructure

Great, ancient civilization

Of course there are many many more superlatives like great food, diverse and inclusive culture, high technology, deep history, sustainable agriculture, safe streets etc etc ..and the list goes on.... and on.......

我是新加坡人，对我来说，一提到中国我就会想到三件事

友好的人民

现代化、高效的交通和基础设施

伟大而古老的文明

当然还有很多很多，比如美食、多元包容的文化、高科技、悠久的历史、可持续的农业、安全的街道等等。

longcimb

From the analysis of the somewhat narrow based interviews, we can deduce Sporeans are more neutral as the media is also neutral. For non Anglo speaking countries, you tend to obtain a neutral views cos their media are not so focus on demonizing China. Japan has historical baggage and Korea has identity preservation issue so you tend to hear from them.

Luxembourg is anti China. I remember who are clearly friends and enemies of the Chinese people from the voting trend in UN.

从访谈分析，我们可以推断新加坡人更中立，因为新加坡媒体也是中立的。

从非英语国家，你往往会得到一个中立的观点，因为他们的媒体不那么专注于妖魔化中国。

日本有历史包袱，韩国有身份保护问题，所以你倾向于听到他们的声音。

卢森堡是反华的。从联合国的投票趋势中，看得出谁是中国人民的朋友，谁是敌人。

Bei Cai

It should be interesting to ask people their opinions of America and China together

询问人们对美国和中国的看法，应该很有趣

Axel Kok

Let me share my thoughts as s Singaporean.

1) Technology, population, economic superhouse

2) Generally positive opinions of China

3) Singapore media is generally neutral since both China and the US are major trading partners of us. Hence, the local media tends to be more careful about being too extreme in its opinions

作为新加坡人，我分享一下我的看法：

1) 技术、人口、经济超级大国

2) 对中国的总体评价是正面的

3) 新加坡媒体普遍保持中立，因为中国和美国都是我们的主要贸易伙伴。

因此，当地媒体倾向于更加小心地避免在观点上过于极端

Benjamin Chew

Welcome to Singapore Mr Barrett Hope you enjoyed your stay hereI had been following your channels and as an Asian, we are really thankful to you for trying hard in bridging the gap between the West and the East. Thank you for being a mediator. Blessed are the peace makers and may God bless you richly. We Singaporeans will try our best to promote peace and stability for Asia. It really saddens me to see Anti-Asian sentiments in the West. Hope to see more rational Westerners like you. I mean, it would be wonderful to see US and China coming together in doing things that will benefit all mankind. War is something we must do our ultmost to prevent.

巴雷特先生，欢迎来到新加坡，希望您在这里过得愉快我一直关注着您的频道，作为一个亚洲人，我们非常感谢您为弥合东西方之间的差距所做的努力。

谢谢你的斡旋。制造和平的人有福，愿上帝多多保佑你。

新加坡人将为亚洲的和平与稳定尽最大努力。

看到西方的反亚洲情绪，我真的很难过。

希望看到更多像你这样理性的西方人。

我的意思是，看到美国和中国一起做有益于全人类的事情将是很美好的。

战争是我们必须尽最大努力防止的事情。

Alex G

I'm Chinese and I've stuided in the UK and worked for many big corporations. I feel sad that people only get to learn things about my country from what the mainstream media reports in the western countries. Especially Singapore and Korea youth that are well educated bilingually but can only read news in English from the UK or America about China.

我是中国人，在英国学习，为很多大公司工作过。我很难过，人们只能从西方国家主流媒体的报道中了解我的国家。

尤其是新加坡和韩国的年轻人，他们受过良好的双语教育，但只看来自英国或美国的关于中国的英语新闻。

Salleh

Hi Barrett, if you want to get the opinion of the citizens of that country, in this case you should interview the Singaporean only. That would give a more accurate results.

嗨，巴雷特，如果你想了解那个国家公民的意见，你应该只采访新加坡人，这样会得到更准确的结果。

Cui Bin

Great interview, totally fair and objective.

采访很棒，完全公正客观。

Haggai Simon

China: Enormous success in economic development, Fertility control for Han people, Education boom. My attitude towards China is positive, based on many interactions with people and also based on economic data. The western media is negatively biased. It is always easier and safer to point out problems in other places than in their own.

中国：在经济发展上取得了巨大的成功，控制生育，发展教育。

我对中国的看法是正面的，这是基于我与很多人的互动，也基于经济数据。

西方媒体有负面偏见。指出别人的问题总是比指出自己的更容易

John 259

I find these street interview videos very interesting and I'm impressed by how Lee makes every effort to stay neutral and just ask the questions.

我发现这些街头采访视频非常有趣，尽一切努力保持中立，只问问题，这让我印象深刻。

master lee

The Luxembourg guy claimed he is a sinologist and therefore knows a lot about its culture and civilization. He should know that to govern China successfully, the center must be strong. Throughout its 5000 years history, if the Emperor is weak, there would be chaos and upheavals. Therefore, the Mandate of Heaven would change. Also, the Chinese value peace and stability in order to have a comfortable life. Therefore, the good of the community is placed above individual interests. And in the Chinese tradition, action speaks louder than words. Therefore you don't see Chinese taking part in political activities in the west, unlike the Indians because they are very good at talking.

卢森堡来的那个家伙声称他是一个汉学家，对中国的文化和文明非常了解。

他应该知道，要成功治理中国，政府必须强大。

在中国5000年的历史中，如果皇帝弱，就会出现混乱和动荡。

因此，天命将会改变。

此外，中国人为了过上舒适的生活，重视和平与稳定。

因此，社会利益高于个人利益。

在中国的传统中，行动胜于空谈。

因此，你看不到中国人参与西方的政治活动，不像印度人，因为印度人非常善于夸夸其谈。

XY

My three words/phrases about China:

1) Kind, hard working and intelligent Chinese people

2) Five thousand years Chinese civilisation

3) Chinese miracle

3句概括:

1) 善良、勤奋、聪明的中国人

2) 五千年的中华文明

3) 中国奇迹

Ahyap Chow

FOR ME AS A SINGAPOREAN , OVERALL CHINA IS ONE OF THE GREATEST CIVILIZATION ON EARTH, ABLE TO PROVIDED THE LARGE COUNTRY OF POPULATION OF 1’3 BILLION, AND ABLE HELP AND ASSISTING FOREIGN NATION INTO THE FUTURE. “ CHIA YU CHINA “

作为一个新加坡人，在我看来，中国是地球上最伟大的文明之一，13亿人口的大国，能够帮助大家走向未来。“中国加油”

Nat N

Man, shame on that "sinologist." All governments deserve critique, but the chinese is one of the better ones on this planet.

那个“汉学家”真可耻。其他国家的政府都应该受到批评，但中国政 府是这个星球上最好的政府之一。

Goh Yong Hong Luke

As a Singaporean I already gave up America dream (not safe there) but I'm proud as a Chinese and Asian

作为一个新加坡人，我已经放弃了美国梦(美国不安全)，但作为一个华人和亚洲人，我感到骄傲

G Liu

As a Singaporean myself who have ready my country newspapers for more than 20 years, I will say if you read the news thoroughly you will find the English newspapers in Singapore carry some negatives on China and almost none negative on US because the news sources are from western media agencies such as AP, AFP, Reuters, Bloomberg, NYTIMES, etc. This is also the case for articles written by its own journalists. I have written to few the Straits Times journalists to be fair to China in their articles and get news reports from inghua news agency but to no avail.

作为一个读了20多年本国报纸的新加坡人，我想说的是，如果你仔细读新闻，你会发现新加坡的英文报纸有一些对中国的负面报道，而几乎没有对美国的负面报道，因为新闻来源来自西方媒体机构，如美联社、法新社、路透社、彭博社、纽约时报等。

自己的记者写的文章也是如此。我给《海峡时报》的一些记者写过信，希望他们在文章中公平对待中国，也从新华社获取新闻报道，但都无济于事。

A Jos

The guy from Luxemburg. My next question is, as a sinologist, do u speak Chinese? So many so called fly by night sinologist dont even speak a word of Chinese and yet called themselves Chinese expert.

那个来自卢森堡的家伙，我的下一个问题是，作为一个汉学家，你会说中文吗？许多不靠谱的汉学家甚至一句中文都不会说，却自称是中国专家。

Brain Storm

People are so different from their culture, knowledge, and education. We can't change their view,since their view changes every day. What  People think is  based on what they hear or watch but not analysing why and what.

人们的文化、知识和教育截然不同。我们不能改变他们的观点，因为他们的观点每天都在变。人们的想法是基于他们听到或看到的，而不是基于分析为什么和什么。

One Two Free

Regarding what the S. Korean guy said about Chinese folks claiming everything is from China has a story behind it. A  lot of Taiwanese and foreigners who speak and write chinese often post fake messages on the internet posing as mainland chinese to pit mainland chinese against s. koreans.

关于韩国人所说的中国人声称所有东西都来自中国，这背后有一个故事。很多说写中文的台湾省人和外国人经常在互联网上发布假消息，假装是大陆人，让大陆人和韩国人争锋相对。

Peter Lim

That Luxembourg guy who claimed that he was In China for 8 years should visit China now. He don't know what he's talking about.

那个声称在中国待了8年的卢森堡人现在应该去中国。他都不知道自己在说什么。

Tre

People make me laugh! It shows most don't know anything about China. Those answers are of the Western mindset. I found China  a much better place than any other Nation I lived in.

让我发笑！这表明大多数人对中国一无所知。这些答案都是西方思维定式的。我发现中国比我生活过的任何其他国家都要好得多。

LEONG Yet

Welcome to Singapore!

Finally you are here

I hope you have read up or watch  about our ex leader,Mr Lee Kuan Yew on China.

Hope you enjoy your trip here.

欢迎来到新加坡

你终于来了，我希望你读过或看过我们的前领导人李光耀先生对中国的看法。希望您在这里旅行愉快。

Cuckold Anglosaxon

Most of opinions came from Anglosaxon, and our medias took the most parts of it.

大多数观点来自盎格鲁-撒克逊人，我们的媒体吸收了其中的大部分。

Ignatius Chua

In Chinese culture, country is more important than family.

在中国文化中，国家比家庭更重要。有国才有家

wu mao

Wow! Shocking  Half of those interviewed are not even Singaporeans. Guess what my Singaporean friend said is true. " Throw a stone into a crowd and 50% of the time it would hit a foreign"

哇，惊呆了，一半的受访者甚至都不是新加坡人。我的新加坡朋友说的是真的，向人群中扔一块石头，50%的几率会击中一个外国人。”