www.chinaview.cn 2009-03-05 20:56:11

BEIJING, March 5 -- His "act of patriotism" has stopped a Christie's auction which ignited indignation among Chinese people. But it is not a wise move to take at the loss of both his reputation and China's image abroad. That said, many Chinese believe that Christie's move went far beyond international norm and ethics against auctioning looted relics.

The mysterious buyer who successfully bid for two looted Chinese relics has been revealed. As many anticipated, he is a Chinese. This bidder, Cai Mingchao is a consultant of National Treasure Funds of China (NTFC), a non-governmental organization. The bid for two Qing Dynasty bronzes at a Christie's auction on February 25 amounted to 31.49 million Euro.

Bidder Cai, however, did not reveal that he was the bidder and that he won't pay for the items until a March 2nd press conference, at which he declared his bid was an act of patriotism. The reason for not paying, as he cited later, was an order issued by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage (SACH) the day after the auction, which clearly requires detailed documentation proving all artefacts the Christie's shipped into and out of China are from legal sources.

Cai argued that since the two items had been officially deemed to have been illegally looted, the Christie's would not be able to deliver them to him even if he paid.

It sounds like good news to some. But Cai's bid and refusal to pay still shocked many others who believe his act was in some way not only a recognition of Christie's auction of looted items, but also a damage to his own credibility and China's long-standing image of being a nation of 5000 years of civilization.

Critics added that using such an extraordinary method in this situation was not a wise solution. "Won't pay", although seen by some as an act of patriotism, is on the other hand an unlawful act, one without honesty, too.

Ever since the Christie's announced its plan to auction the bronze rat and rabbit heads, Chinese people have paid close attention to the fate of the two cultural relics.

In 1860, the Anglo-French forces sacked the Old Summer Palace in Beijing and took the two bronzes away during the Second Opium War. For this reason, the Chinese see the artefacts as evidence of their crime committed during the invasion, and to them the two bronzes have special historical value, although some antique specialists may not think the relics are as valuable.

As Chinese, we should stand up and voice our anger at that moment, said Cai Mingchao when explaining why he placed the bid at March 2nd press conference.

Yes, many Chinese have stood up and expressed their opposition. A group of Chinese lawyers lodged a motion in a French court, trying to block Christie's auction. Unfortunately, their appeal was rejected. China's State Administration of Cultural Heritage voiced its strong opposition to the Christie's and demanded that the auction be cancelled.

All these efforts did not stop Christie's, which held its auction as scheduled.

Some people still hail Cai's behavior as a witty move in a fine how-d'ye-do because he successfully stopped the auction and fulfilled millions of Chinese' wish. In their opinions, Chinese need not to restrain themselves with credibility or law at all when retaliating against the Christie's move that has badly hurt the feelings of Chinese people.

But we are living in the modern civilized society. As is known to all, the lack of law-abiding and honest citizens will lead to chaos and disorder. We have to always play the game especially in the international exchange so as to help build up China's new image. In today's world, business is business. You have the right not to buy things, but you have to pay if you bid or get an item.

---Based on an article from The Beijing News . (Source: CRI.cn ）