Interesting history lesson, and moral judgement on moral judgement and or its lack?
I mean, ordinary Chinese are about the most caring and inherently decent and hospitable people in the world!

Just look at their universal response to those earthquakes, and the way mere men and women became giants working their fingers to the bone around the clock, in a superhuman effort, trying to save those who could be saved;, or just liberating already dead bodies, so hopelessly grieving relatives could have at least, the very small comfort of saying goodbye!

Even while officialdom were denying some human rights inside their borders, and the real reason for their seeming reluctance to interfere with any other sovereign nation?

I mean, what would be the outcome if the UN could automatically and righteously interfere inside ANY national border, where human rights were being quite massively trashed or violated? WW111?

Even so, look at the way the Chinese have lifted millions out of enduring generational poverty!
And absolutely the most moral thing any nation could do!

"Insomuch as you do to the least among you, you also do unto me"!

Would that we would do as little or as much for/inside our own enduring generational poverty/post code poverty traps!
[Look, some are still seriously resisting the roll-out of inherently fair Gonski or the NDIS!]

And having rolled out inherent fair treatment here: then grant ourselves the privilege of being the moral arbiters of the rest of the world!

We could and should only ever lead by moral, rather than finger pointing example!
Rhrosty.

While I agree with much of the previous comments about the meaningful efforts of the 'ordinary Chinese' to rescue those unfortunate there is also, a reluctance in the Party do lose control of what it decides are the most important issues. In the Sichuan earthquake toll, those parents who questioned officials as to why the schools collapsed and other govt building remained standing were effectively told 'shut up or else you too may be flattened by the Party for voicing anti-govt sentiments, disruption of society, etc.
Having worked in various universities and schools within China over a five year period I know that Chinse 'justice' is a very limited unless you have powerful friends in high places - [the Party]. . . Above all else the reputation of the Party must be unsullied regardless of whether local officials turned blind eyes to sub-standard building of schools in the aim of gaining 'kick backs' or being 'friends' with the pervasive 'guangxi connection' with the builders responsible.

We can only hope that inexorably a legal, just moral base is slowly seen as a pre-requisite for any civilised nation - even one with a 5,000 year history of civilisation that hasn't quite managed it yet.

I gave up after the third exclamation point.

Perhaps China recognises that these "humanitarian interventions" are thinly-disguised imperialism. Why, after all, are these "interventions" always accomplished by the military?

Or maybe the yellow man just isn't interested in shouldering white man's burden.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_White_Man's_Burden#The_Poem

I actually haven't read the poem before. "The savage wars of peace" - nice. Poe's Law strikes again - can't quite work out if Kipling is trolling or not.