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| The seal of the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague. |
Chinese Poems
Classical Chinese poems from the Tang Dynasty ( 唐朝 AD 618 - 907 ) and later had always been an important form of Chinese literature that had been studied by scholars and read by the masses over the ages. They were elegantly scripted and had to conform to different styles of composition depending on the era. For example, the Five-Character Quatrain ( 五言绝句 wuyanjueju ) in which the poet had to convey all he had to say in four short verses of five characters each, simple, short, sharp and to the point, but packed with thought provoking meanings deep down.
The poems are frequently narrative or descriptive, expressing the joys and sorrows of life experienced by the poet. They can sometimes be inspirational, spurring the reader on to higher levels of achievement ( see image below ). They can be patriotic, with the aim of rallying the people to a worthy cause. But they can also be satirical, subtly and covertly expressing the frustration or anger of the poet against an inept regime or tyrannical ruler which cannot be otherwise publicly voiced.
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| An inspirational Tang Dynasty Five-Character Quatrain poem by Wang Zhihuan ( A.D. 688 - 742 ) entitled " Climbing Guanque Tower "( 登鹳雀楼 ) |
A Poem For Troubled Waters?
You bet! In the light of the ever escalating South China Sea maritime disputes, a contemporary poem has been written in Chinese with the corresponding English translation by the side. As you could have guessed from the title, it is all about the recent illegal maritime claims and illegal activities of China in the South China Sea. The just concluded arbitration case between claimants Philippines and China by the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague unequivocally ruled that just about everything China had done in the South Seas in recent years were illegal and illegitimate.
It is written in Chinese partly with the hope that any Chinese citizen who stumble on to this article would come to realize just how bad their country's reputation had become and how their leadership had mislead the whole country against its neighbors and the rest of the World, well minus Russia and the DPRK. Don't be brain-washed. Get your grey matter back! You can feed them to the zombies later if you didn't quite like what you've got.
All we need now is to have a score to go along with the words.
南海协奏曲 South Seas Concerto
中共似盗匪 蛮横不论理 The Chinese communist are akin to barbaric and unreasonable bandits
强势欺寡弱 为所而欲为 Bullying the weak and the meek with impunity
勃勃野心存 无孔不入矣 With an insatiable ambition and an omnipresence
先称霸東亞 后讨伐世界 First to dominate East Asia, then to conquer the World
仅凭九段线 南海全收伏 Seizing the entire Southern Seas, based on just nine dashes
地图出纸墨 虚线任君画 Maps are but paper and ink, dashes arbitrarily drawn
横跨千万浬 岂可当庭证 Stretching over thousands of miles, inadmissible as evidence
诸国领海权 尽抛云霄外 Sovereign rights of nations, all duly ignored
滔滔汪洋浪 独吞为内海 Turning the vast ocean into an inland sea
浩浩长空晴 任封识别区 Denying access of the skies through identification zones
蔑视海洋法 暗礁变岛屿 Mocking the Law of the Sea, reefs had become islands
独特礁生态 瞬间永灭绝 Unique ecological systems, instantly lost forever
曾契立协议 岛礁不占领 Agreements were made not to occupy the reefs
还说海域内 太平不驻军 As were promises of non-militarization
而今毁承诺 调兵又遣将 All were mere empty words with today's built up
如此无礼仪 声名亦狼藉 Such dishonorable behavior makes for poor reputation
常设仲裁院 南海仲裁案 The South Seas arbitration at the Hague
最后裁决言 九段不合法 Invalidated the legality of the Nine Dash Line
南沙岛非岛 缺资水皆石 The Spratlys are not islands but rocks lacking water / resources
美济归菲国 水域属公海 Mischief Reef to the Philippines, the oceans open to all
还我航行权 保我珊瑚礁 Give us the right of navigation, return the coral reefs
共匪解放军 远离南海域 Communist Bandits and the PLA, get out of the South Seas
滚回海贼穴 苟且可偷生 Scramble back to your pirate dens, that your miserable lives be spared
疆土何其大 还需夺烂礁? Why steal a blasted rock, when one already possess the rolling hills?
Greed, self-servitude and barbarism, that's why. SHAME on you China. If there were ever a need for a 240 word summary of the events in the South China Sea, this is it!
Glossary
南海 ( Nanhai ) : South Seas / South China Sea
协奏曲 ( Xiezouqu ) : Concerto
中共 ( Zhonggong ) : Communist China / Chinese Communist Party
盗匪 ( Daofei ) : Bandit / Robber
为所欲为 ( Weisuoyuwei ) : To act with impunity
東亞 ( Dongya ) : East Asia
九段线 ( Jiuduanxian ) : Nine-Dash Line
虚线 ( Xuxian ) : Dash line / Dotted line
地图 ( Ditu ) : Map
领海权 ( Linghaiquan ) : Maritime territorial rights
识别区 ( Shibiequ ) : ( Air Defense ) Identification Zone
蔑视 ( Mieshi ) : To mock / Make a mockery of
暗礁 ( Anjiao ) : Submerged reef
岛屿 ( Daoyu ) : Island
生态 ( Shengtai ) : Ecosystem
灭绝 ( Miejue ) : Exterminate / Extinct
协议 ( Xieyi ) : Formal agreement / Memorandum of Understanding
占领 ( Zhanling ) : Occupy / Occupation
驻军 ( Zhujun ) : Militarization
承诺 ( Chengnuo ) : Promise / Guarantee
调兵遣将 ( Diaobingqianjiang ) : Troop deployment / Movements
声名狼藉 ( Shengminglangji ) : Poor Reputation
常设仲裁法院 ( Changshezhongcaiyuan ) : The Permanent Court of Arbitration
仲裁案 ( Zhongcaian ) : Arbitration case
最后裁决 ( Zuihoucaijue ) : Final verdict
南沙岛 ( Nanshadao ) : Chinese name for Spratly Islands
石 ( Shi ) : Rock
美济 ( Meiji ) : Chinese name for Mischief Reef
菲国 ( Feiguo ) : The Philippines abbreviated
公海 ( Gonghai ) : High Seas / International Waters
航行权 ( Hangxingquan ) : Navigational rights
珊瑚礁 ( Shanhujiao ) : Coral reef
共匪 ( Gongfei ) : Commie Bandit
解放军 ( Jiefangjun ) : The People's Liberation Army, Navy and Air Force
滚 ( Gun ) : Literally to roll / Derogatory word meaning to F.O. ( ****-Off )
海贼 ( Haizei ) : Pirate of the high seas
穴 ( Xue ) : Hole / Cave / Den
苟且偷生 ( Gouqietousheng ) : A miserable existence of bare sustenance
疆土 ( Jiangtu ) : Sovereign territory
烂礁 ( Lanjiao ) : Literally a rotten reef / A broken or poorly formed reef
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