How many Chinese cities can you name?
Obviously, there’s Beijing and Shanghai. Nanjing (Nanking) and Guangzhou (Canton) might also come to mind – along with Shenzhen (Hong Kong’s near neighbour), Xi’an (home of the Terracota Army) and Chongqing (home to 30 million people). But what about Wuhan, Tianjin, Shenyang, Fuzhou, Hangzhou, Harbin and Chengdu – all of them comparable in size to London and much bigger than any other British city?
It is, when you think about it, extraordinary that so many vast cities can exist all but unknown to all but a tiny proportion of people outside China. Part of problem, according to an article by Isaac Stone Fish in Foreign Policy, is that most modern Chinese cities look the same – the opinion not of ignorant westerners, but of the Chinese themselves:
Moreover, this is not a uniformity of beauty:
But so what? Who needs beauty when you can have economic growth? That appears to be the attitude of those British commentators who argue for a relaxation of our planning laws and environmental protections. However, one only has to look at countries like America, Spain and Ireland to see where that kind of building boom gets you.
The Chinese boom, turbo-charged by huge internal migrations, a state-controlled banking system and an often shocking disregard for the rights of local people, has continued for longer than most. But China too will pay a heavy price. Indeed, it already is:
The competitive advantages that currently drive China’s economic growth will not last for ever. Chinese wage rates are going up – as is the price of the oil-based transport that moves Chinese exports around the world.
There will come a point at which Chinese cities – like our own cities – can only prosper if they offer an environment conducive to life in all its richness: