government. Because all Chinese people technically remain citizens of the People’s Republic of China and their complaint is against what are technically foreigners, we were able to make the case that their complaint falls under Special Investigations rubric since it’s a crime by foreigners.” Lily whistled. Everyone looked at her. “And they bought that bullshit? Not to mention the crap about all Chinese technically being citizens of this country.” “They were anxious to get it off their desks, Lily,” Fong said, “but I agree with you that it stinks. At the present moment I don’t have time to go into it further. It’s a gift that came our way, so I’m taking it as such.”
“Don’t kick a horse’s gift in the mouth, huh?” Lily said in her unique varietal form of English.
Fong momentarily tried to decipher Lily’s meaning but he quickly gave up and said, “Right.” Then he turned to one of the young investigator. “Do these Canadian Chinese have a case?”
The other officer responded, “A great case. Not only were Chinese people brought to Canada to build their railroad under totally false pretenses but once they were there they were treated more like slaves than workers. They were never supplied with the proper clothing for the harsh winters. They made less than 30 percent of what Long Noses made doing the same work. They were forced to do most of the dangerous tasks. Hundreds, maybe thousands, died on the job. Then when it was finally done, they all but kicked them out of the country and then charged them a head tax to return. And they wouldn’t allow Chinese women in. Just men to do hard work.” The man sneered as he added, “They didn’t want us breeding in their pristine country.”
“Is there more?” Fong asked.
“Lots. Laws denying Chinese the right to work and live in various cities were enacted. Laws everywhere to make sure that they came as slaves and stayed slaves.”
“These laws are still in place?”
“No. But they were for years and years. In fact, from 1924 to 1947, Chinese were not allowed to enter Canada at all.” He took a moment, then added, “No Canadian government has made even a mention of reparations.”
Fong nodded. He knew the basics of the story. Every Chinese person did. “Seems legit to me,” said Fong. “And what do the Chinese Canadians want from the Canadian government after all this time?”
“An apology,” the younger investigator said.
“A formal apology,” the other investigator added.
“And what has our government done about this?” asked Lily.
“Very little,” said the younger investigator.
Fong stood, crossed to the nearest curtain and smoothed out the seam, “They’ll hold this sort of thing and only bring it forward when they have something to gain by doing so.”
“That may be soon,” said Kenneth in his stumbling Mandarin. He was much more comfortable speaking English or Cantonese. The highly idiomatic Shanghanese dialect was quickly becoming the bane of his move to Shanghai, which hadn’t exactly been a move of choice. When Hong Kong was handed back to China by the British, many businessmen – whose businesses were just on the wrong side of the law – were approached by the mainland authorities. The approach was none too subtle. It was an ultimatum. Jail or come work for the state. Fong was desperate for an advanced IT man and Kenneth admirably fit the bill. After thinking for twenty seconds about jail, Kenneth accepted the offer to work for Special Investigations, Shanghai District. Much to Kenneth’s surprise he liked his new work and very much liked his new colleagues. It was a unique experience for him to be on the good guy’s side of the law.
“Why is that, Kenneth?” asked Lily.
“China’s economy is booming but we have very few raw materials left in our country. To feed our factories we must either trade for or, preferably, control sources of those raw materials. The Canadians have raw materials –
“Don’t kick a horse’s gift in the mouth, huh?” Lily said in her unique varietal form of English.
Fong momentarily tried to decipher Lily’s meaning but he quickly gave up and said, “Right.” Then he turned to one of the young investigator. “Do these Canadian Chinese have a case?”
The other officer responded, “A great case. Not only were Chinese people brought to Canada to build their railroad under totally false pretenses but once they were there they were treated more like slaves than workers. They were never supplied with the proper clothing for the harsh winters. They made less than 30 percent of what Long Noses made doing the same work. They were forced to do most of the dangerous tasks. Hundreds, maybe thousands, died on the job. Then when it was finally done, they all but kicked them out of the country and then charged them a head tax to return. And they wouldn’t allow Chinese women in. Just men to do hard work.” The man sneered as he added, “They didn’t want us breeding in their pristine country.”
“Is there more?” Fong asked.
“Lots. Laws denying Chinese the right to work and live in various cities were enacted. Laws everywhere to make sure that they came as slaves and stayed slaves.”
“These laws are still in place?”
“No. But they were for years and years. In fact, from 1924 to 1947, Chinese were not allowed to enter Canada at all.” He took a moment, then added, “No Canadian government has made even a mention of reparations.”
Fong nodded. He knew the basics of the story. Every Chinese person did. “Seems legit to me,” said Fong. “And what do the Chinese Canadians want from the Canadian government after all this time?”
“An apology,” the younger investigator said.
“A formal apology,” the other investigator added.
“And what has our government done about this?” asked Lily.
“Very little,” said the younger investigator.
Fong stood, crossed to the nearest curtain and smoothed out the seam, “They’ll hold this sort of thing and only bring it forward when they have something to gain by doing so.”
“That may be soon,” said Kenneth in his stumbling Mandarin. He was much more comfortable speaking English or Cantonese. The highly idiomatic Shanghanese dialect was quickly becoming the bane of his move to Shanghai, which hadn’t exactly been a move of choice. When Hong Kong was handed back to China by the British, many businessmen – whose businesses were just on the wrong side of the law – were approached by the mainland authorities. The approach was none too subtle. It was an ultimatum. Jail or come work for the state. Fong was desperate for an advanced IT man and Kenneth admirably fit the bill. After thinking for twenty seconds about jail, Kenneth accepted the offer to work for Special Investigations, Shanghai District. Much to Kenneth’s surprise he liked his new work and very much liked his new colleagues. It was a unique experience for him to be on the good guy’s side of the law.
“Why is that, Kenneth?” asked Lily.
“China’s economy is booming but we have very few raw materials left in our country. To feed our factories we must either trade for or, preferably, control sources of those raw materials. The Canadians have raw materials –
Similar Books
The Christmas Mouse
Miss Read
All Creatures Great and Small
James Herriot
AMP Blitzkrieg
Stephen Arseneault
Night Over Water
Ken Follett
Deadline in Athens
Petros Márkaris
Inadvertent Disclosure
Melissa F Miller
The Secret 00.5 The Prelude of Ella and Micha
Jessica Sorensen
Masterpiece
Juliette Jones
Persuaded
Misty Dawn Pulsipher