http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/7339468.stm



By Finlo Rohrer
BBC News Magazine

In the run-up to the Olympics some opponents of China's regime are boycotting not just the games but all Chinese products. There have been many boycotts before, but with its dominance in manufacturing, those vowing not to buy Chinese face an especially tough challenge.

Sitting on the bus wending your way to work and wherever you are, you probably have a bit of China with you.

Listening to your iPod. Made in China. Fiddling with your key ring. Made in China. Label on the inside of your underpants irritating you a little bit. It more than likely says "Made in China". If you walk down the high street and every garment's made in China, what do you do? Do you go naked?

When there was a boycott of South African products during the Apartheid era or of France by irritated Americans in the run-up to the Iraq war, those were political statements that might have meant a little privation for those involved. But they weren't on the same scale as China.

Opponents of China talk of its treatment of Tibet, its appalling record on human rights, jailing of dissidents, and even its attitude towards animal welfare when calling for a boycott. The Friends of Tibet group has called for such action, but it's impossible to know how many people are engaged in boycotting.

China's defenders suggest it is becoming more open and receptive to basic rights. And there are plenty of people who, while criticising China, regard the idea of a boycott as counter-productive. There are those who feel boycotts are too crude a device, affecting the lowest-paid labourers rather than just the regime. There is also a view that, particularly when it comes to China, constructive engagement is a better option than a boycott.

Cheap shops
Those who do choose to boycott can be a resolute bunch. Tricia Hall spends a lot of time in charity shops. A trip to the High Street means a slew of questions and baffled stares from shop assistants. "Where was it made?" "Dunno, doesn't it say?"

"When they are labelled it is easy enough," says Mrs Hall. "We are very careful. But they have a very large grip on the market.
China is enjoying massive success in some sectors

"We do avoid the High Street. You can't trust them any more. I certainly don't go to the cheap shops."

Mrs Hall and her husband have boycotted Chinese products for a decade because of human and animal rights issues. Life has been easier for them as they are not big consumers.

But for those who with an electronic bent, for instance, things are more difficult.

Extra cost

John Yelland is struggling to print things out. He decided to start a boycott after seeing a video of dogs being mistreated in China. Now he can't find a new printer because they all seem to be made in China, or from Chinese components.

"I would rather pay a few quid more for the same product. You have got to be extremely careful. A lot of products don't specify where they were made. They might say made in Bedfordshire when the product is shipped in from China."
Chinese factories are making cars based on British designs

It's the "component problem". Let's say you buy a television from a big name brand in Korea or Japan. It may be assembled in the home nation, it may even have been assembled in Europe.

But it's hard to imagine that of the dozens of different components inside it, some haven't come from China. Whether it's chips, LEDs or humble wires, there's a lot of stuff that could potentially not be from the place it was assembled.

"It's very difficult to go down to every single transistor or circuit board in every device," says Stuff magazine editor Fraser Macdonald.

Outsourcing wave

A boycott of Chinese products really meets its match in the field of consumer electronics.

There is some production still in Europe, particularly of expensive equipment, says Rob Follis, a public relations consultant for consumer electronics firms, but it is dwindling in the face of outsourcing to China.
Avoiding Chinese toys is difficult for boycotters

Follis has clients like hi-fi maker Arcam which manufactures mainly in Britain, and headphones firm Sennheiser, which manufactures in the Republic of Ireland and Europe, but they are no longer the rule.

Clothes don't have the same hidden mix of components as electronics, but China is coming to dominate the market in a way that makes life hard for the boycotters. Dalha Tsering of the Tibetan Community in Britain group doesn't always find it easy.

"I avoid buying anything made in China, from children's toys to shoes to all sorts of electronic equipment. Sometimes it is very, very difficult because the price is very, very different. I usually buy Italian for shoes."

Child's birthday

Alternative retailers like Ethical Threads or People Tree don't have any dealings with China. And for anyone spending a bit of money there's clothes made in Britain, and in Italy, as well as slightly cheaper options from the likes of Portugal and Eastern Europe.

Tim Spencer, from Wimborne in Dorset, has only been boycotting for a little over a week, since watching a TV documentary about China. But he can already see problems on the horizon. What happens when he needs to go clothes shopping?
Televisions are often made in Korea or Japan

"If you walk down the High Street and every garment's made in China, what do you do? Do you go naked?"

And when the next child's birthday rolls round in November there could really be problems. Because one area of manufacturing where China dominates the world market like a colossus is toys.

There are big brands like Playmobil and Lego, whose production bases are in Europe. But they are the exception rather than the rule.

Alan Milne, of Equitoy, the Association for Toy Importers, says it is impossible to put a precise figure on the level of Chinese toys imported, with EU trade rules complicating the matter. But it was estimated last year that of all the toys sold in the UK, 85% are made in China.

Recent years have seen a steady stream of big names taking their production to China. British firm Hornby and the Swedish wooden train set maker Brio are among the recent departures.

Avoiding China is hard in the globalised world trade system. Something of Shanghai or Shenzen is in so much of what we own. Even the most hardened boycotter may inadvertently be buying the "wrong" thing.

他们也就逞逞口舌

我觉得也还好啊，真是反映了抵制中国货不太现实，其中有个在英国生活的藏毒才可笑，说他尽量抵制所有中国制造的东西，但是看看价格标签差别太大，除了买意大利产的鞋子，鬼知道是不是真的，我在想他怎么不说made in tibet呢，那个民族除了闹宗教和政治外，也没有其他能耐了。

逞口舌的后果是bbc将要付出严重的代价的！

这篇文章感觉不是攻击中国的，写得很客观。 适当地提醒了人们不要头脑过热。抵制中国货现在已经是不可能的了。

怎么感觉BBC是在帮我们说话呢。这两天丫的冷静一点了。 上次看到说Darfur的问题，也没有对中国肆意攻击。不容易啊。 但是丫的，以为语掉放缓，就可以平息上个星期的他们犯下的罪行，做梦。

恩,现在是全球化时代了,不要再有冷战思维是行不通的.

Say Boycott???well......

'If you walk down the high street and every garment's made in China, what do you do? Do you go naked? '

BBC 放这钟带'缓'的口气的贴, 就想引起更大的风波! 大家不要被他们的'糖衣炮弹'迷惑, 反正对他们很反感! 更痛恨交TV LICENCE.

国家和国家之间的利益和冲突永远存在，所以谁玩得太过都要纠正一下，这次BBC们是玩得有点过火，当然希望给他们一些压力，让他们听到中国人的声音，否则下次再有冲突的时候，他们会觉得中国人很好欺负，当然还是不要太过，两败俱伤对谁也没有好处，至少在英国还是有权利让我们的声音被听到，享有更多的言论自由的

让他们抵制，去年他老婆没有内衣穿的时候他怎么不发这个文章？还是这哥们本身就是个性工作者？强烈怀疑他的工作趋向。

真的吗？？ 你好厉害，那么八卦的内幕都知道，佩服佩服

应该问问他工作用具有没有中国产的，前一阵上海还举行什么性用具展览，应该免费邀请他去采购， 哈哈哈哈

对, 我就怀疑BBC 发贴的动机. 早不发, 晚不发, 都凑在一起发!

还看到BBC NEWS 24, 那个节目主持人采访'TORCH RELAY'的发言人吧,

那女的居然说'CHINA TOWN'现场直播无法发射, 说是信号不好,

我晕啊, 居然有这么无耻的借口. 那节目主持人也奄奄一息不死不活的说可以理解啥的, 全把咱们当木头人, 忽悠过去了.

你放心，这个不用问他都有答案，所有的他用来写东西的工具都是中国产的，英国现在还找不出一台不用made in china的电脑，也没有几支笔几张纸是他们英国产的。至于他晚上工作的工具吗，必须花点钱让他说，不过价格不贵，50欧，他就帮藏毒了出卖灵魂了，10欧收买他的肉体，我觉得都贵了。免费邀请他太抬举他了，就他这种文章，他想买中国货都必须市场价的300%卖给他还差不多。反正他出卖的东西本来就不值钱，来钱太容易了，咱也帮他消费消费。

这篇文章我早上看了。我的感觉是在新闻网站的题目（合实际文章的题目有些出入，估计是增加耸人听闻的效应）和所配图片很叫人反感。文章的写法和观点很暧昧。抵制贸易对双方谁都没有好处。英国人觉得一件服装如果不是中国产的，他们愿意多付一点，比如30%；但是中国的优势又何止便宜这么一点。理智的人都会做出自己的选择。不过英国不聪明的人大有人在 。所以bbc 的宣传效果也就达到了。

抵制MADE IN CHINA？不可能的事。我倒希望他们说到做到。

我也觉得，以前在youtube上看到好几个抵制中国产品的视频和帖子，就顺手回了几个，你去抵制好了，中国又不能强迫你买，如果你要说话算数才能算得上是人

抵制中国货？好笑！！有本事让Tesco,Asda,加入，让他们试一下一夜之间货架全空的情形！然后所有员工下岗，那样算他有种，哼！相比之下，国人抵制法国货来得更可行，没有奢侈品，不去巴黎旅游，日子没有太大分别。但是这边如果超市空架，特别是圣诞前来他一下，嘻嘻 好看！！

国货也是洋品牌啊, 是他们自己人去中国降低制造成本的. 有种就把工厂从中国搬回英国啊.

刚在BBC发的comment，看他们登不登。

Boycotting products from China would most likely hurt the UK economy itself. For every pound you pay for anything made-in-China, only a small fraction actually make its way to the "communist country". Most of the profit contributes towards the GDP of developed nations. That's how globalization works. China is only a culprit. The profit seeking nature of capitalism is the true cause of the 3rd world's suffering, and UK has played a large part in it.

到现在还没登。

This is my reply to the BBC:
Don’t forget that the Chinese can fight back. If they were to stop buying British aeroplanes, to stop sending their students to the U.K. (their number is now over 100,000), and not to invest in British companies as the chancellor is asking them to do, then would the BBC feel better? Don’t delude yourself of your power over the Chinese government. Boycott will be counterproductive at least, harmful to the British economy likely, and waste everyone’s time definitely.

我以前也COMMENT过, 但从没有见发表. 他们要挑对他们胃口的吧

It is a joke, can they?

All companies want to make money, offshore outsourcing is no way for them to stop.

On the contrary, British companies do worry Chinese would not buy their products.

Image, no Chinese airlines buy Rolls-Royce engines, will close the company.

Gordon Brown's plan - want more investment from China will not go anywhere.

他们只选那些对他们有利的帖子登出来吧，这叫言论自由吗？
自己打自己的嘴巴，无耻

一点都不可能, 只有在超市打工的人才知道, TESCO, ASDA, MAOREISEN...的货基本来自中国. 抵制就没这么便宜的货拉, 你抵制, 商人不抵制.

请大家把给BBC的comments集中到一起，这就是罪证。

详情请点我的签名。