A woman from Timor-Leste, a small island country in Southeast Asia, is studying chemistry in eastern China on a government-sponsored scholarship.
After she sang China’s praises in an interview for giving her enough money to not only study in China but also support her family back home, many Chinese saw it as a reflection of deep social injustices caused by the communist authorities.
In a video interview spread on Chinese social media, the young woman said the scholarship she received from the Chinese government is generous enough to pay all her bills and also remit some back to Timor-Leste to feed her family. According to official statistics, the Chinese government gives each qualified international student 59,200 to 99,800 yuan ($8,540–$14,400) each year to cover tuition, living expenses, and medical insurance.
The woman said she’s realizing her father’s dream. In Timor-Leste, her father suffered due to poverty and couldn’t go to school. Now, even as a full-time student, she can still support her father. The woman says she plans to go back home to be a teacher after graduating from the university in the city of Nanjing, capital of Jiangsu province.
“China is a developed country ... the speed of development in China is faster than any other country,” the Timorese woman said. “Our country gained independence in 2002. The highest building in our country is only seven stories.”
However, many Chinese netizens had a different take. Millions of young Chinese can’t afford tuition and are forced into the workforce immediately after finishing public school. The interview with the woman from Timor-Leste sparked widespread criticism of Chinese authorities for doling out scholarships to foreigners, while failing to secure the welfare of Chinese.
In May 2013, the All-China Women’s Federation said that there were more than 61 million children in China whose parents had left them in rural areas, in order to find urban employment. Most of these “left-behind” children, as they are known, are unable to receive a proper education.
An English speaker interviewed 12 students from two universities, half of whom were international students, and the other half Chinese. The interviewer found that Chinese students lived in a shared, crowded and shabby room with limited hot water, limited electricity, and have curfews, while international students were given modern and comfortable rooms with unlimited Wi-Fi, hot water, electricity, and other services.