Several participants in the white-paper protests have been visited by police officers in recent days. Some have been identified from video footage. But posts on social media also point the way to the protesters. The Internet forgets nothing. Their digital footprints could now pose a threat to the mainly young protesters.
But this young generation has also learned that it can make a difference. How will the demonstrations affect the Chinese people’s understanding of politics? Marcel Grzanna spoke about this with Chinese exile Wang Longmeng, who experienced the crackdown on the democracy movement in Tiananmen Square in 1989 as a student. Wang is certain: “We see new hope on the horizon of an autocratic China.” Even interrogations and arrests cannot stop this process, Wang said.
Meanwhile, work is underway in Brussels to breathe more life into Global Gateway. The infrastructure initiative, which is supposed to rival the BRI, runs the risk of being a complete failure. A large part of the announcements were previously planned development projects. A real task force is needed to drive Global Gateway forward, explains Romana Vlahutin. The EU official was in charge of connectivity at the European External Action Service. She feels: More is possible.
China’s government gave in to pressure from the street. True, it was only about one issue, zero-Covid. But the success of the white paper protests means more than the end of citywide lockdowns. The young generation has learned a remarkable lesson in recent days: It can influence the policies of authoritarian state power.
Is this a generation that will raise its voice in the future to express political dissent? Will it even become a threat to the Communist Party’s grip on power? “What we are observing is the awakening and maturation of a generation. We see new hope on the horizon of an autocratic China,” says Chinese exile Wang Longmeng, who witnessed the suppression of the Tiananmen Square democracy movement as a student in 1989 and later fled to France.
Wang is certain that the arrests of participants in the protests are merely delaying a development, that ultimately cannot be stopped. “The waves of democracy are like the waves of oceans. When one recedes, an even bigger one rushes in,” Wang said. He draws another comparison: “China under Communist Party rule is already on the brink of a crater and can fall into it at any time.”
To prevent just that, however, security forces have already identified and arrested numerous protest leaders in recent days. Police and state security are taking advantage of technological opportunities of public surveillance and facial recognition. They search cell phones for photos or messages to prove subversive intentions.
Those who called not only for the end of zero-Covid but also for the end of the rule of Xi Jinping and the CP have already felt the consequences. Several participants in the protests have received visits from the police at home or had to go to the police station for questioning in recent days. According to media reports, there is no trace of a student from Nanjing who was the first to photograph herself with a white sheet of paper as a symbol.
Hong Kong activist Ray Wong expects harsh sentences for those arrested. Ray Wong, like Wang Longmeng, has experienced the Chinese government’s merciless crackdown on opposition figures first-hand. He played a leading role in the 2014 umbrella protests in his home country and only escaped a prison sentence by fleeing to Germany. That is why Wong believes that intimidation by the authorities will quickly overshadow the sense of achievement among young protesters.
However, Wong hopes for a long-term impact. “Young Chinese around the world have protested against the government at universities or at least noticed the protests. Many of them will eventually return to China and hopefully import newfound liberal ideas into the country,” Wong says.
At the same time, successful protests in the People’s Republic are nothing unusual. However, they have always been limited to local disputes. When local authorities relented, Beijing usually even sided with the protesters to preserve its own integrity at the expense of local power structures. Last week, however, the concentrated anger was directed specifically against the central state and the party. That is what makes it so dangerous for the regime.
On the one hand, it seems highly unlikely that the concessions by the state will impact Xi Jinping’s grip on power in the short term. On the other hand, the protests carry the seeds of change, believes sinologist and former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd. Not in the form of regime change, but in the form of a correction of Xi’s ideologization of politics and economics. “It means moving, perhaps back to a more pragmatic middle course in the medium- to long-term future, probably in the post-Xi period,” Rudd predicts in an interview with Nikkei Asia.
Artist Ai Weiwei is skeptical. The protests are remarkable, Ai admitted to the AP news agency. However, Ai warned against overstating the protests. Still, he considers them encouraging signs. It is clear to the new generation what form of government prevails in the country, he said. It may well get to the point of demanding political change. “But that would take a long time,” believes Ai.
One year after the announcement of Global Gateway, Brussels wants to inject more momentum into what has been a rather lackluster EU infrastructure initiative. On Sunday evening, a panel chaired by EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen convened for the first time to take stock of the implementation of the Global Gateway strategy. The EU wants to use Global Gateway to offer an alternative to China’s multi-billion Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and to present itself as a global geopolitical player. The review is urgently needed – because Global Gateway still lacks the necessary political weight.
Besides von der Leyen, EU Foreign Affairs Commissioner Josep Borrell, Enlargement Commissioner Olivér Várhelyi and Commissioner for International Partnerships Jutta Urpilainen were also present at the meeting. And especially important: all EU foreign ministers. Because the implementation of Global Gateway relies on cooperation between Brussels and the EU capitals. So far, however, there has been little sign of cooperation.
Making the cooperation between the EU Commission and the German government more visible is now also a demand of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group in the German Parliament. Berlin must “contribute funding for concrete projects to this initiative as soon as possible” and inform the German Parliament about them in a timely manner, according to a motion by the parliamentary group, which is available to Table.Media and is scheduled to be voted on in the plenary session this Friday. The parliamentary group also demands that Global Gateway should drive new trade agreements. The initiative must be seen more as a strategic investment than development aid, is the demand.
This is an important point. After all, almost everything the EU Commission has promised under the new label since the announcement of Global Gateway in December 2021 were previously planned development projects. Most recently, The Global Gala in the Metaverse was the subject of much ridicule, after only six guests attended. According to media reports, the Brussels authority had spent 387,000 euros on the event. Strategic investments look different.
The German government could now quickly comply with the request anyway: The German governing coalition is preparing a list of 20 lighthouse projects for Global Gateway, the German business newspaper Handelsblatt reported in its Monday edition.
Money is definitely available. “The problem is not lack of funding,” EU Ambassador Romana Vlahutin told Table Media. As special envoy, she was responsible for “connectivity” at the European External Action Service (EEAS) from early 2019 until September of this year. This involved improving connections with trading partners in other parts of the world. She says it should be understood that the projects are intended to strengthen the competitiveness of both the EU and the partner countries in the long term.
There will be no replacement for her position, as EEAS confirmed. Her responsibilities have been fully absorbed into Global Gateway. The Directorate General for International Partnerships (INTPA) is now responsible for connectivity and consequently for Global Gateway.
Even after the reorganization, Vlahutin criticizes the lack of bundled expertise to get the initiative rolling. “I have always stressed that we need a proper task force that also reflects the strategic nature of the initiative and includes different types of expertise.” Involving the private sector, she said, has been key to creating the necessary financial scale. Now, it would be a matter of using that leverage skillfully: “Strategic investments follow a different logic than development aid and require a different methodology.”
Aside from insufficient staff, Global Gateway is also struggling with dialogue with potential partner countries. “We need a strategic discussion with our partners together with our industry to find a way to combine interests.” The clock is ticking. Because things will not get easier for Global Gateway in the future, Vlahutin is certain. Inflation and market volatility currently complicate large investments in developing countries.
Nadine Godehardt, a researcher with the Asia Research Group at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP), has also observed that Global Gateway lost momentum since its announcement. On the infrastructure initiative’s first birthday, Godehardt draws a sobering picture: “This project simply has not yet made much progress.”
But potential is definitely there, believes Godehardt. “Combining everything under one label is a good idea in itself.” But communicating it to individual EU capitals has worked poorly so far. “Beyond general documentation, there is very little information on the initiative,” Godehardt says. In her opinion, a kind of central “Global Gateway Research Hub” would be helpful for this. The initiative does have a website. However, it only lists general information. “The rest is all lost in the jungle of the EU website,” complains the SWP scientist.
Robin Mallick is still very new to Beijing but has already found his running route: “I’m very pleasantly surprised by how green Beijing is. And I’m thrilled with Chaoyang Park, where I go for a jog every morning.” He keeps discovering new corners there. “And every now and then I get lost because it’s so vast and diverse.”
Having been to Shanghai only once before, not only is Beijing a new territory for Mallick, but also China as a whole. “Everyday life is much simpler and less complicated in many ways than, for example, Germany – if you know the rules of the game and if you have the equipment, i.e. phone, apps, and all kinds of data,” he notes.
Mallick is used to settling into new contexts and dealing with the procedures and customs of another country: Since signing the contract with the Goethe-Institut in 2009, he spent several years in New Delhi and then Rio. Before that, he had completed the interdisciplinary course in Language, Economics, and Cultural Area Studies in Passau and was then responsible for the Filmfest Dresden for eleven years
To get to know Beijing, he spends every free minute exploring the city by bicycle. It takes him just under an hour to cover the 20 kilometers between the two branches of the Goethe-Institut: The language school, where classes are offered and exams are taken, is located on the 3rd Ring Road. The second building is located in 798 Art Zone, which used to be an industrial district – and now mainly hosts cultural events. “I think both as a unit actually make up what a cultural institute can do.”
The Goethe-Institut China in Beijing was founded in 1988 and grew out of an agreement between former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl and China’s then-top politician Deng Xiaoping. From here, it works with partners throughout China, such as language learning centers, libraries, and other cultural institutions. In the past, Chinese artists were often able to work more freely at Goethe events than at other public exhibition venues in China.
However, the effects of the pandemic also had an impact on the foreign language and culture sector: The number of people wanting to learn German to study or spend a year in Germany declined noticeably for a while.
More and more cultural events have to switch to online and hybrid formats, as currently no cultural professionals from Germany can be invited. In language classes, classes exist alongside online courses as well as blended learning units.
“It is enormously important that the Goethe-Institut continues to have protected spaces for the free exchange of opinions among cultural workers and with civil society, as well as for censorship-free programs,” Mallick says, adding, “This is also evident in the discussions about the, sometimes excessive, pandemic restrictions and the actions of protesters, whose courage moves me greatly.”
But there are also positive effects of the pandemic, he says: Thanks to the online format, the institute has a much wider reach than before. As a result, language and culture enthusiasts from all over China, including the remote provinces, could now make use of the institution’s offerings. Nonetheless, Robin Mallick is naturally hoping, especially in Beijing, for an early relaxation of the strict measures in dealing with the pandemic. Juliane Scholübbers
Clothes not only make the man, but also the dog! This is at least true if you look around on the sidewalks of Beijing and other major Chinese cities. Whether in the backyards of the red clinker brick buildings of the western district, the narrow Hutong alleys between the Drum Tower and the Lama Temple or between the licked high-rise towers of the Guomao business district – everywhere it is true: bare fur was yesterday, especially on frosty winter days. Those who want to impress wrap their four-legged friends in trendy clothes.
In China, style and taste are by no means limited to pet owners. In winter and summer, the four-legged friends transform the capital’s sidewalks into their very own catwalk. Clever businessmen have, of course, long since recognized the trend and opened numerous dog boutiques, for example near Beijing’s popular tourist food and souvenir street Nanluoguxiang. The range includes costumes for every weather and life situation, from the dwarf Pincher variant in XS to the husky coat in XL.
Those who want to get an even better overview of the product range should take a look at the virtual displays on the Chinese online shopping paradise Taobao. If you type in the search term 狗狗 (gǒugou) – an affectionate name for your four-legged companion – the first selection option that pops up is “dog clothing” (狗狗服装 gǒugou fúzhuāng).
The most common styles include vests (背心 bèixīn), skirts (半身裙 bànshēnqún) and dresses (连身裙 liánshēnqún), but also trendy ponchos (斗篷 dǒupeng) and one-piece suits with slits for all four paws (四脚衣 sìjiǎoyī). For cold winter days, there are sweaters (毛衣 máoyī) and lined jackets (棉衣 miányī), and for nasty weather, sturdy overalls (背带裤 bēidàikù), as well as windproof and waterproof raincoats (雨衣 yǔyī). For special occasions, there are also traditional qipao dresses (旗袍 qípáo) and kimonos (和服héfú), and even wedding dresses (婚纱礼服 hūnshā lǐfú) to choose from. Even a German national soccer jersey can be bought for just a few yuan. And as a very special highlight, some shops offer partner look sets (情侣装 qínglǚzhuāng), which allow dogs and their owners to visually express their deep bond.
The most popular styles are casual dog wear (休闲 xiūxián) and sports clothing (运动 yùndòng), plaid shirts (条纹衫 tiáowénshān) and fashionable denim looks (牛仔装 niúzǎizhuāng), theme dresses for princesses (公主群 gōngzhǔqún), racers (赛车服 sàichēfú), superheroes (超人装 chāorénzhuāng) and Disney fans (迪斯尼 dísīní). If you want, you can put the icing on the dog look with hats and caps (狗狗帽子 gǒugou màozi), sports shoes (运动鞋 yùndòngxié) or sandals (凉鞋liángxié).
What Fido and Xiaobai personally think about this fashion frenzy remains a mystery. In any case, their owners are happy to let their four-legged friends pose proudly for snapshots.
This text also appeared in the German edition of the magazine “Konfuzius Institut.”
Verena Menzel runs the online language school New Chinese in Beijing.
Several participants in the white-paper protests have been visited by police officers in recent days. Some have been identified from video footage. But posts on social media also point the way to the protesters. The Internet forgets nothing. Their digital footprints could now pose a threat to the mainly young protesters.
But this young generation has also learned that it can make a difference. How will the demonstrations affect the Chinese people’s understanding of politics? Marcel Grzanna spoke about this with Chinese exile Wang Longmeng, who experienced the crackdown on the democracy movement in Tiananmen Square in 1989 as a student. Wang is certain: “We see new hope on the horizon of an autocratic China.” Even interrogations and arrests cannot stop this process, Wang said.
Meanwhile, work is underway in Brussels to breathe more life into Global Gateway. The infrastructure initiative, which is supposed to rival the BRI, runs the risk of being a complete failure. A large part of the announcements were previously planned development projects. A real task force is needed to drive Global Gateway forward, explains Romana Vlahutin. The EU official was in charge of connectivity at the European External Action Service. She feels: More is possible.
China’s government gave in to pressure from the street. True, it was only about one issue, zero-Covid. But the success of the white paper protests means more than the end of citywide lockdowns. The young generation has learned a remarkable lesson in recent days: It can influence the policies of authoritarian state power.
Is this a generation that will raise its voice in the future to express political dissent? Will it even become a threat to the Communist Party’s grip on power? “What we are observing is the awakening and maturation of a generation. We see new hope on the horizon of an autocratic China,” says Chinese exile Wang Longmeng, who witnessed the suppression of the Tiananmen Square democracy movement as a student in 1989 and later fled to France.
Wang is certain that the arrests of participants in the protests are merely delaying a development, that ultimately cannot be stopped. “The waves of democracy are like the waves of oceans. When one recedes, an even bigger one rushes in,” Wang said. He draws another comparison: “China under Communist Party rule is already on the brink of a crater and can fall into it at any time.”
To prevent just that, however, security forces have already identified and arrested numerous protest leaders in recent days. Police and state security are taking advantage of technological opportunities of public surveillance and facial recognition. They search cell phones for photos or messages to prove subversive intentions.
Those who called not only for the end of zero-Covid but also for the end of the rule of Xi Jinping and the CP have already felt the consequences. Several participants in the protests have received visits from the police at home or had to go to the police station for questioning in recent days. According to media reports, there is no trace of a student from Nanjing who was the first to photograph herself with a white sheet of paper as a symbol.
Hong Kong activist Ray Wong expects harsh sentences for those arrested. Ray Wong, like Wang Longmeng, has experienced the Chinese government’s merciless crackdown on opposition figures first-hand. He played a leading role in the 2014 umbrella protests in his home country and only escaped a prison sentence by fleeing to Germany. That is why Wong believes that intimidation by the authorities will quickly overshadow the sense of achievement among young protesters.
However, Wong hopes for a long-term impact. “Young Chinese around the world have protested against the government at universities or at least noticed the protests. Many of them will eventually return to China and hopefully import newfound liberal ideas into the country,” Wong says.
At the same time, successful protests in the People’s Republic are nothing unusual. However, they have always been limited to local disputes. When local authorities relented, Beijing usually even sided with the protesters to preserve its own integrity at the expense of local power structures. Last week, however, the concentrated anger was directed specifically against the central state and the party. That is what makes it so dangerous for the regime.
On the one hand, it seems highly unlikely that the concessions by the state will impact Xi Jinping’s grip on power in the short term. On the other hand, the protests carry the seeds of change, believes sinologist and former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd. Not in the form of regime change, but in the form of a correction of Xi’s ideologization of politics and economics. “It means moving, perhaps back to a more pragmatic middle course in the medium- to long-term future, probably in the post-Xi period,” Rudd predicts in an interview with Nikkei Asia.
Artist Ai Weiwei is skeptical. The protests are remarkable, Ai admitted to the AP news agency. However, Ai warned against overstating the protests. Still, he considers them encouraging signs. It is clear to the new generation what form of government prevails in the country, he said. It may well get to the point of demanding political change. “But that would take a long time,” believes Ai.
One year after the announcement of Global Gateway, Brussels wants to inject more momentum into what has been a rather lackluster EU infrastructure initiative. On Sunday evening, a panel chaired by EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen convened for the first time to take stock of the implementation of the Global Gateway strategy. The EU wants to use Global Gateway to offer an alternative to China’s multi-billion Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and to present itself as a global geopolitical player. The review is urgently needed – because Global Gateway still lacks the necessary political weight.
Besides von der Leyen, EU Foreign Affairs Commissioner Josep Borrell, Enlargement Commissioner Olivér Várhelyi and Commissioner for International Partnerships Jutta Urpilainen were also present at the meeting. And especially important: all EU foreign ministers. Because the implementation of Global Gateway relies on cooperation between Brussels and the EU capitals. So far, however, there has been little sign of cooperation.
Making the cooperation between the EU Commission and the German government more visible is now also a demand of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group in the German Parliament. Berlin must “contribute funding for concrete projects to this initiative as soon as possible” and inform the German Parliament about them in a timely manner, according to a motion by the parliamentary group, which is available to Table.Media and is scheduled to be voted on in the plenary session this Friday. The parliamentary group also demands that Global Gateway should drive new trade agreements. The initiative must be seen more as a strategic investment than development aid, is the demand.
This is an important point. After all, almost everything the EU Commission has promised under the new label since the announcement of Global Gateway in December 2021 were previously planned development projects. Most recently, The Global Gala in the Metaverse was the subject of much ridicule, after only six guests attended. According to media reports, the Brussels authority had spent 387,000 euros on the event. Strategic investments look different.
The German government could now quickly comply with the request anyway: The German governing coalition is preparing a list of 20 lighthouse projects for Global Gateway, the German business newspaper Handelsblatt reported in its Monday edition.
Money is definitely available. “The problem is not lack of funding,” EU Ambassador Romana Vlahutin told Table Media. As special envoy, she was responsible for “connectivity” at the European External Action Service (EEAS) from early 2019 until September of this year. This involved improving connections with trading partners in other parts of the world. She says it should be understood that the projects are intended to strengthen the competitiveness of both the EU and the partner countries in the long term.
There will be no replacement for her position, as EEAS confirmed. Her responsibilities have been fully absorbed into Global Gateway. The Directorate General for International Partnerships (INTPA) is now responsible for connectivity and consequently for Global Gateway.
Even after the reorganization, Vlahutin criticizes the lack of bundled expertise to get the initiative rolling. “I have always stressed that we need a proper task force that also reflects the strategic nature of the initiative and includes different types of expertise.” Involving the private sector, she said, has been key to creating the necessary financial scale. Now, it would be a matter of using that leverage skillfully: “Strategic investments follow a different logic than development aid and require a different methodology.”
Aside from insufficient staff, Global Gateway is also struggling with dialogue with potential partner countries. “We need a strategic discussion with our partners together with our industry to find a way to combine interests.” The clock is ticking. Because things will not get easier for Global Gateway in the future, Vlahutin is certain. Inflation and market volatility currently complicate large investments in developing countries.
Nadine Godehardt, a researcher with the Asia Research Group at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP), has also observed that Global Gateway lost momentum since its announcement. On the infrastructure initiative’s first birthday, Godehardt draws a sobering picture: “This project simply has not yet made much progress.”
But potential is definitely there, believes Godehardt. “Combining everything under one label is a good idea in itself.” But communicating it to individual EU capitals has worked poorly so far. “Beyond general documentation, there is very little information on the initiative,” Godehardt says. In her opinion, a kind of central “Global Gateway Research Hub” would be helpful for this. The initiative does have a website. However, it only lists general information. “The rest is all lost in the jungle of the EU website,” complains the SWP scientist.
Robin Mallick is still very new to Beijing but has already found his running route: “I’m very pleasantly surprised by how green Beijing is. And I’m thrilled with Chaoyang Park, where I go for a jog every morning.” He keeps discovering new corners there. “And every now and then I get lost because it’s so vast and diverse.”
Having been to Shanghai only once before, not only is Beijing a new territory for Mallick, but also China as a whole. “Everyday life is much simpler and less complicated in many ways than, for example, Germany – if you know the rules of the game and if you have the equipment, i.e. phone, apps, and all kinds of data,” he notes.
Mallick is used to settling into new contexts and dealing with the procedures and customs of another country: Since signing the contract with the Goethe-Institut in 2009, he spent several years in New Delhi and then Rio. Before that, he had completed the interdisciplinary course in Language, Economics, and Cultural Area Studies in Passau and was then responsible for the Filmfest Dresden for eleven years
To get to know Beijing, he spends every free minute exploring the city by bicycle. It takes him just under an hour to cover the 20 kilometers between the two branches of the Goethe-Institut: The language school, where classes are offered and exams are taken, is located on the 3rd Ring Road. The second building is located in 798 Art Zone, which used to be an industrial district – and now mainly hosts cultural events. “I think both as a unit actually make up what a cultural institute can do.”
The Goethe-Institut China in Beijing was founded in 1988 and grew out of an agreement between former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl and China’s then-top politician Deng Xiaoping. From here, it works with partners throughout China, such as language learning centers, libraries, and other cultural institutions. In the past, Chinese artists were often able to work more freely at Goethe events than at other public exhibition venues in China.
However, the effects of the pandemic also had an impact on the foreign language and culture sector: The number of people wanting to learn German to study or spend a year in Germany declined noticeably for a while.
More and more cultural events have to switch to online and hybrid formats, as currently no cultural professionals from Germany can be invited. In language classes, classes exist alongside online courses as well as blended learning units.
“It is enormously important that the Goethe-Institut continues to have protected spaces for the free exchange of opinions among cultural workers and with civil society, as well as for censorship-free programs,” Mallick says, adding, “This is also evident in the discussions about the, sometimes excessive, pandemic restrictions and the actions of protesters, whose courage moves me greatly.”
But there are also positive effects of the pandemic, he says: Thanks to the online format, the institute has a much wider reach than before. As a result, language and culture enthusiasts from all over China, including the remote provinces, could now make use of the institution’s offerings. Nonetheless, Robin Mallick is naturally hoping, especially in Beijing, for an early relaxation of the strict measures in dealing with the pandemic. Juliane Scholübbers
Clothes not only make the man, but also the dog! This is at least true if you look around on the sidewalks of Beijing and other major Chinese cities. Whether in the backyards of the red clinker brick buildings of the western district, the narrow Hutong alleys between the Drum Tower and the Lama Temple or between the licked high-rise towers of the Guomao business district – everywhere it is true: bare fur was yesterday, especially on frosty winter days. Those who want to impress wrap their four-legged friends in trendy clothes.
In China, style and taste are by no means limited to pet owners. In winter and summer, the four-legged friends transform the capital’s sidewalks into their very own catwalk. Clever businessmen have, of course, long since recognized the trend and opened numerous dog boutiques, for example near Beijing’s popular tourist food and souvenir street Nanluoguxiang. The range includes costumes for every weather and life situation, from the dwarf Pincher variant in XS to the husky coat in XL.
Those who want to get an even better overview of the product range should take a look at the virtual displays on the Chinese online shopping paradise Taobao. If you type in the search term 狗狗 (gǒugou) – an affectionate name for your four-legged companion – the first selection option that pops up is “dog clothing” (狗狗服装 gǒugou fúzhuāng).
The most common styles include vests (背心 bèixīn), skirts (半身裙 bànshēnqún) and dresses (连身裙 liánshēnqún), but also trendy ponchos (斗篷 dǒupeng) and one-piece suits with slits for all four paws (四脚衣 sìjiǎoyī). For cold winter days, there are sweaters (毛衣 máoyī) and lined jackets (棉衣 miányī), and for nasty weather, sturdy overalls (背带裤 bēidàikù), as well as windproof and waterproof raincoats (雨衣 yǔyī). For special occasions, there are also traditional qipao dresses (旗袍 qípáo) and kimonos (和服héfú), and even wedding dresses (婚纱礼服 hūnshā lǐfú) to choose from. Even a German national soccer jersey can be bought for just a few yuan. And as a very special highlight, some shops offer partner look sets (情侣装 qínglǚzhuāng), which allow dogs and their owners to visually express their deep bond.
The most popular styles are casual dog wear (休闲 xiūxián) and sports clothing (运动 yùndòng), plaid shirts (条纹衫 tiáowénshān) and fashionable denim looks (牛仔装 niúzǎizhuāng), theme dresses for princesses (公主群 gōngzhǔqún), racers (赛车服 sàichēfú), superheroes (超人装 chāorénzhuāng) and Disney fans (迪斯尼 dísīní). If you want, you can put the icing on the dog look with hats and caps (狗狗帽子 gǒugou màozi), sports shoes (运动鞋 yùndòngxié) or sandals (凉鞋liángxié).
What Fido and Xiaobai personally think about this fashion frenzy remains a mystery. In any case, their owners are happy to let their four-legged friends pose proudly for snapshots.
This text also appeared in the German edition of the magazine “Konfuzius Institut.”
Verena Menzel runs the online language school New Chinese in Beijing.
