Why Chinese media says US historians are giving ‘ammunition’ to separatists
China has stepped up its offensive against a US-born school of thought on China’s last imperial dynasty, accusing it of providing “theoretical ammunition” for attempts to divide the country. The denunciation comes as online debates over the Qing dynasty (1644-1911) continue to give rise to inflammatory rhetoric, and as Beijing’s ethnic policies and historical narratives are increasingly becoming…
Beijing has unleashed a fresh assault on a US-based academic movement interpreting China's Qing dynasty (1644-1911), accusing it of providing "theoretical ammunition" for separatist movements. State-run China Ethnic News published an article on Monday warning that New Qing History "seriously erodes the historical foundations of the community for the Chinese nation in the real world" and must be "forcefully refuted".
The piece is the latest in a two-year campaign by the outlet to discredit the loosely defined scholarly school, which emerged in the late 1980s. New Qing History, which draws on Manchu-language sources and anthropological perspectives, challenges the long-held view that "Sinicisation" was the sole explanation for the Qing's rule over China's Han majority and other ethnic groups.
The article contends that New Qing History's assertion that frontier regions like Mongolia and Xinjiang were distinct entities from China could fuel separatism amid the current complex international political climate. Scholars have long accused New Qing History of undermining the Qing's historical status as a "truly Chinese" dynasty and fracturing China's historical narrative.
Beijing has increasingly framed the ethnic policies and historical narratives surrounding the Qing dynasty as an arena for international political competition. The controversy surrounding the movement intensified as the Chinese government compiled an official history of the Qing, which remains unfinished due to political sensitivity.
Written by urgent.news from South China Morning Post's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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