In a failed attempt to please its citizens, China on June 22 attempted to pacify the aggrieved families of the Chinese soldiers killed in clashes with Indian troops along the disputed Line of Actual Control (LAC), without any official recognition from Beijing.
Hu Xijin, editor of Global Times, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) regime’s mouthpiece, wrote that “the dead have been treated with the highest respect in the military, and that information will eventually be reported to society at the right time, so that heroes can be honored and remembered as they deserve”.
The editorial came two days after a video emerged from China showing that the families of People’s Liberation Army (PLA) personnel were outraged by the fact that unlike Indian soldiers, their martyrs had received no honour and no acknowledgment. Though Global Times admitted that “less than 20” PLA soldiers were killed, the government has remained tight-lipped on the issue.
Paying “high tribute to the PLA officers and soldiers”, Hu wrote, “China’s security and the tranquility of China’s borders depend upon them. Thus far, the Chinese military has not released any information about the deceased. As both a former soldier and current media professional, I understand that this is an expedient move with the aim of not irritating public opinion in the two countries, especially in India. This is Beijing’s goodwill.”
Lamenting that the Indian media claimed that at least 40 Chinese soldiers were killed, and India has handed over the bodies of 16 Chinese soldiers, he said these were “unchallenged rumors”.
Bragging about the violent face-off in Ladakh, he wrote, “The PLA has taught a lesson to the Indian side, which has always misjudged Chinese people’s determination and advantages. The PLA has demonstrated its strength and determination to use force when necessary, which is a strong deterrent to the Indian side, especially their frontline troops.”
Some in India, he said, preach that the PLA, which has not fought a war for more than 30 years now, is an army that does not know how to fight. “Their arrogance is frivolous. It is now clear who is the egg and who is the rock,” he wrote.
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