Here is my story if you want to know how China’s geopolitical strategy is to send and protect its citizens by selling ‘made in China’ products worldwide.
On 18 December 2018, I was invited to the Janadriyah Festival in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. There is nothing special in this Arab cultural event. However, for ten days, I had the opportunity to visit Medina and Mecca to perform Umrah. In short, on this trip, I saw that goods from China had besieged the country of Saudi Arabia. Almost all the souvenirs peddled by traders are Chinese products. The Ihram cloth that I use is also a product from China. The pattern of China besieging Arabs through the concept of “made in China” is in contrast to the rumors about the death of Jamal Kashoggi, where the United States is very active in responding to this problem.
Chinese goods, it is as if they do not care about the political situation anywhere. It is conceivable that pilgrims from Indonesia performing their worship at Haramayn brought home almost all of them, which were made in China. The names of hotels around the Grand Mosque are business syndicates from the West. I imagine China has surrounded the Arab countries with various goods that the local population needs.
This condition requires further explanation of the expansion of the Chinese economy, which has spread to all corners of the world. In 2008, a Chinese woman suddenly came to our office when I was working at a donor agency in Aceh. Without further ado, she immediately offered the goods in a plastic basket. With her not-so-fluent Indonesian, she opened his bag and showed her wares. When I asked the woman for permission to work, she immediately replied, “My husband is from Medan.” Repeatedly, she said this while putting her wares into plastic baskets. She kept saying, “My husband is from Medan.” After that, she immediately ran away when I insisted on the visa she was carrying.
However, when I read 
China’s Silent Army, I understood that the same pattern exists in the Middle East. They were Chinese women who came to the doors of Arab homes to ask if they needed anything. They are known as Shanta (Chinese people with bags). Just like the woman who walked into my office in Banda Aceh. In Egypt, this group is known as Shanta Sini, which is “This army of migrants from the poorest areas of China, many living in the country illegally on expired visas, have managed to conquer Egypt’s retail textile market with nothing but their go-getting attitude and determination to escape from poverty.” Three things show how Chinese people with bags are. Namely, they depart from poor areas and compete in their destination countries to escape poverty. Then they control several business activities in various countries. These Chinese business warriors started with much recklessness in dealing with consumers in the country they are visiting.
China’s Silent Army, I understood that the same pattern exists in the Middle East. They were Chinese women who came to the doors of Arab homes to ask if they needed anything. They are known as Shanta (Chinese people with bags). Just like the woman who walked into my office in Banda Aceh. In Egypt, this group is known as Shanta Sini, which is “This army of migrants from the poorest areas of China, many living in the country illegally on expired visas, have managed to conquer Egypt’s retail textile market with nothing but their go-getting attitude and determination to escape from poverty.” Three things show how Chinese people with bags are. Namely, they depart from poor areas and compete in their destination countries to escape poverty. Then they control several business activities in various countries. These Chinese business warriors started with much recklessness in dealing with consumers in the country they are visiting.In one of the TED Talk sessions, one of the speakers, Leslie T. Chang, talked about the persistence of Chinese women who work in factories with reasonably low salaries. Because of the demands of life, they are forced to save their month’s salary to buy a smartphone or a branded bag. Such is the tenacity of Chinese workers in their lives. The change from poverty to prosperity also causes them to earn a living in several countries. The philosophy of Shanta here is a portrait of the Chinese who peddle anything to consumers to survive, not to mention the Chinese male workers who sometimes work under relatively low salaries and in extreme situations. They are willing to leave their relatives in China.
Suppose that is the spirit of changing the lives of the lower classes. In that case, China’s economic expansion, as demonstrated by its elites, is inevitably no less enthusiastic. They will enter into various systems to further their financial interests. Most importantly, “made in China” can be sold widely worldwide. In this context, Chinese products always wait patiently in the shop windows wherever I go in several countries. Therefore, looking at the current symptoms, it is necessary to explore why China’s behavior differs from others worldwide. Also, the wealthiest people in China are not, in principle, from the government. Even in Indonesia, the most affluent people are still dominated by Chinese rather than natives.
Not a few years later, scholars wanted to explore how the Chinese carried out the economic concept. John G. Gurley explores this Chinese strategy by comparing the capitalist and Maoist systems. Adam Smith has more influence on the capitalist system. However, the Chinese system is more influenced by Mao’s thinking. Here, the role of the state is very central. The state must provide economic space for each individual to actualize their creative power.
Meanwhile, individuals are allowed to improve their respective lives according to their work achievements. Therefore, all must advance in the Maoist economic system, with no one left behind. Consequently, it is not surprising that later, the Chinese took advantage of public spaces to show their creativity in running businesses. Here, their efforts to do business are put forward through the strength of family ties or cooperation, known as the kongsi concept.
As a result, when looking at the network of Chinese business people, they learn more about their history from their respective families or partnerships. The strength of this family then formed a network of almost five generations in Chinese society. In Chinese culture, it is described as “The ideal family consists of some five generations living together as one unit, sharing one common purse and one common stove, and under one family head. The Chinese called this the ‘five-generation family’ or ‘five generations co-residing.” The Chinese could build a successful business empire through a family kinship network. Therefore, they can do business through trust, and mutual protection is also applied in the joint venture system.
Therefore, it is unsurprising that families and trusted people mainly manage the development of Chinese businesses. Yao Souchou’s research found various business activities at the most minor level. It depicts the Chinese making shops as homes and homes as their place of business. Husband and wife joined the shop. This picture implies how vital the nuclear family is in building a business empire.
Meanwhile, their children can play in the shop they guard together. This depiction of Chinese life can also be found in shops owned by Chinese people. For example, some Chinese shops in Banda Aceh show a husband and wife working, plus their workers and children. Wives often sit at the cash register or give orders to their subordinates. Meanwhile, husbands usually carry out the supervision process or are directly involved. Here, the business activities carried out by Chinese people in their daily lives, according to Souchou, are described as the concept of ‘socialization of business.’
About The Author
