SHANGHAI, Sept. 30 (Xinhua) — Teppei Okuno applauded with his colleagues in the office when the Shenzhou-7 crew capsule landed on the Inner Mongolia steppe on Sunday afternoon.
”The Shenzhou-7 mission is really exciting news to lighten the National Holiday.”
”In 2008, the eyes of the world are on China. We fought against natural disasters, we hosted the Olympics, and we even walked in space. WOW, I have to say, we are cool,” Teppei said.
Teppei has a Japanese father. After graduation from Tokyo University, he and his mother, who is Chinese, moved to Shanghai in 1997 and he applied for Chinese nationality.
”I am so proud of my country and my compatriots and happy that I am here with other people going through all the joys and pains for China in 2008,” Teppei said.
OLYMPICS PUSH CHINA TO CENTER STAGE
Teppei watched the opening gala at home with his mother. He said both of them were astonished by the show that was masterminded by Chinese filmmaker Zhang Yimou.
On Aug. 8, the start of the Olympic Games was hailed by TIME magazine (Asia edition) in its “Beijing 8/8/08″ cover story published on Aug. 18 as an event that “heralded the return of China to the center of the world’s stage.”
Peter M. Herford, the former producer of the U.S. show “60 Minutes” who is now a guest professor teaching journalism at Shantou University in south China’s Guangdong Province, said “the opening was the single event that impressed the outside world more than others. So many aspects of China came together.”
”And more that, the use of state-of-the-art tools to produce the spectacle underlined China’s modern infrastructure in a way no other event could have accomplished,” Herford said.
Herford added that the year 2008 was certainly the “Year of China” and “other events of 2008 cannot take away from the joy of the Olympics.”
Earlier this March, the riot in Tibet’s capital Lhasa led to the deaths of at least 18 civilians and one policeman. During the overseas legs of the Olympic flame relay, particularly in France, Tibetan separatists and their supporters, protested for an “independent Tibet” and grappled with torchbearers.
All these unexpected disturbances, not to mention the May 12 earthquake which has been the worst natural disaster for China in the past 30 years, shadowed the nation’s preparation for the Olympics, but China’s resolution to host a successful Olympics wasnot disturbed.
”I am proud that China made it a sporting and spectacle success. Whatever attitudes other countries may have towards China, they are watching the Olympics and caring about China.” Teppei said.
During the Olympic season, Teppei watched events like weight-lifting, basketball, the Chinese diving queen Guo Jingjing, American swimmer Michael Phelps and Jamaican athlete Usain Bolt. Keeping close watch on the Games became as regular as having meals every day.
”It’s all about Olympics, wherever you are. People I met on the streets, both foreigners and Chinese, were either watching or talking about the Olympic Games.”
BRAVE NATION STANDS UP TO NATURAL DISASTERS
Teppei donated 50 yuan (7 U.S. dollars) to the Red Cross via China Mobile services on the night of the disastrous Sichuan Earthquake that killed more than 69,000 people in the country.
”I know the money is only a drop in the ocean, but millions of people like me are doing the same thing, and together we are making a difference,” Teppei said.
”We use ‘unity is strength’ as our slogan to get over the disaster, and we did it.”
The 8.0-magnitude quake erupted without any warning on May 12. Professor Herford said the government was impressive in its organization of relief efforts and China showed the world how people could come together to help those in need.
”The volunteers were a phenomenon that impressed many with the Chinese commitment to help their fellow citizens,” Herford said.
Teppei experienced several earthquakes when he was in Japan, but the one in China was beyond his experience.
”People all over the country became so connected after the quake happened. The government was quick to act, money was collected in short time, and makeshift houses were built soon. The army, doctors and volunteers were quick too,” he said.
Teppei pressed his car’s horn for three minutes at 2:28 p.m. on May 19, exactly a week after the quake, when all sirens and horns wailed and people stood for three minutes in silence to mourn tens of thousands who died in the quake.
Emotional support and financial aid came from both home and abroad. Domestic and foreign donations exceeded 59 billion yuan (8.6 billion U.S. dollars) in cash and goods. Some overseas Chinese even rushed back from abroad to help with relief work in quake-hit areas.
”I was, for the first time, overwhelmed by the nation’s indomitableness and fortitude to unite and fight. Somehow, I feel lucky I am going through whatever happens in China,” said Teppei.
30TH ANNIVERSARY, NEW START
Teppei’s childhood memory of Shanghai was tiny toilets made of wood and streets teeming with bicycles, he said, “but now everything has changed. China has a new face.”
While having scored tremendous achievements in the past decades, China has also been going through many trials, especially in 2008.
Take the recently-revealed toxic milk scandal for example. It challenges the reputation of “made-in-China” products. Premier Wen Jiabao admitted last Saturday at the World Economic Forum that the country was weak in the production supervision process, but “we will try to ensure that all China-made products are safe for consumers.”
Confucius said 2,500 years ago that a man should be independent at the age of thirty. Teppei, at the age of “independence”, is starting to set up his own comic and animation company, which is very important to him.
He was born in 1978, the year when China opened its door to the outside. The year 2008 also celebrates the 30th anniversary of China’s reform and opening-up.
”Problems always exist, both for the country and individuals, but we are brave enough to move forward. This year we cry together, we laugh together, and we are all inspired,” Teppei said.
