Published: Tuesday September 25, 2012 MYT 11:23:00 AM
Updated: Tuesday September 25, 2012 MYT 11:35:06 AM

World-renowned author to give talk on China's impact

PETALING JAYA: China continues to grab world headlines and dominate international news for many reasons.

The world's second-largest economy is now expected to be the biggest in only a few years, with many far-reaching implications to follow.

World-renowned author and academic Dr Martin Jacques will be presenting a fresh look at the new China in a public talk at Menara Star in Petaling Jaya on Thursday, Sept 27 at 2pm.

His talk, entitled “China As Global Superpower: What It Means For Asia and The World” is hosted by the Asian Center for Media Studies, based at Star Publications (M) Bhd.

Dr Jacques is the author of the global bestseller When China Rules the World: the End of the Western World and the Birth of a New Global Order, which has been translated into 11 languages, shortlisted for two major literary awards and described as the best book on China in many years.

To keep track of the rapid changes in China, Dr Jacques has just released the second edition of his book, incorporating the latest data and an extended analysis which includes a new section.

The result is a comprehensive, far-ranging and deeply penetrating study of modern China covering about 800 pages.

He contends that, among other things, China's global influence will be both economic and cultural, and in order to understand the world it will soon be necessary to first understand China.

However, he says China will not act like a Western colonising power, although a new version of the tributary system is likely to develop in East Asia.

He expects China to continue growing and developing, despite many internal problems, and to far outpace the US economy after overtaking it in a few years.

A leading expert on China today, Dr Jacques is a Senior Visiting Research Fellow at the London School of Economics (University of London), a Visiting Professor at Tsinghua University, Beijing, and a Fellow at the Transatlantic Academy, Washington D.C.

He was a Visiting Professor at Renmin University, the International Centre for Chinese Studies, Aichi University, Nagoya, and Ritsumeikan University, Kyoto, as well as a Senior Visiting Research Fellow at the National University of Singapore.

He was previously editor of the renowned London-based monthly Marxism Today, deputy editor of The Independent, a columnist for several newspapers, producer of many television programmes and a co-founder of the think tank Demos.

The discussant for the talk will be Dr Lee Poh Ping, a Senior Research Fellow in the Institute of China Studies at the University of Malaya.

Dr Lee has written and published extensively on East Asian affairs and presented university seminars on Dr Jacques' work.

The talk will be moderated by Star Publications Associate Editor Bunn Nagara.

The event at the Cybertorium in Menara Star is open to the public free of charge, with no registration required.

For enquiries, call The Star Corporate Communications Unit at 03-79671388.

News

Published: Tuesday September 25, 2012 MYT 11:23:00 AMUpdated: Tuesday September 25, 2012 MYT 11:35:06 AM

World-renowned author to give talk on China's impact

Published: Tuesday September 25, 2012 MYT 11:23:00 AM
Updated: Tuesday September 25, 2012 MYT 11:35:06 AM