In an attempt to dispel the many conspiracy theories and clarify issues for the many detractors that constantly label China's meteoric development as a threat to the world, Kong Hanbing, professor of international relations at the Peking University, recently submitted an article to the Global Times, a Beijing-based publication, in which he said that the players in China's orchestra may not be always in tune. And that, he said, could be the cause for the uneasiness being felt in the international community. But if China can detect the source of such suspicion and correct its own problems, it will help not only dispel these suspicions, but also benefit its long-term development. Excerpts from the article follow:

As a direct result of its fast development over the past decades, China is becoming a focus of worldwide media attention. However, this should not be deemed unfavorable. If China can remain sober-minded enough to analyze and judge its current world status, its role in international affairs would be expanded.

Whether others feel annoyed or assured by China's overall modernization drive is their own choice. However, what China can do is to study the reasons behind the divided reactions. Why are some so anxious that they are keen to spread rumors of "China threat" to impede its development? At the same time, the country must look squarely at its own problems, which may be seen by others as the major cause of uneasiness.

China's development is characterized by imbalance, between different regions, urban and rural areas, both politically and economically. Chinese writer and critic, Lu Xun (1881-1936), known as one of the greatest figures of 20th century Chinese literature, once noted this imbalance, saying that the development of Chinese society was a combination of several centuries, and that comment is still pertinent nowadays. This is because the imbalance is still obvious between a massive gross domestic product (GDP) volume and comparatively low GDP per capita, between the luxury of metropolis life and desperate poverty in remote countryside, and between leaders of integrity and corruption.

From building a harmonious society at home to advocating the establishment of a harmonious world, the Chinese people are more integrated with the rest of the world through their philosophy of tradition against the backdrop of globalization. Yet despite this increasing openness, a fraction of people have ignored something very vital, that is business honesty and credibility. Some profit-oriented enterprises sell fabricated or substandard products. Chinese society also is long plagued by bureaucracy. Without a sense of social responsibility and corporate accountability from the rich, development for public welfare lags behind.

Compared with China's macro economy that has maintained a health momentum for consecutive years, these issues are perhaps subordinate and of less import. It is noticeable that, side effects of minor negatives could cause a chain reaction, and thus evolve into dominant obstacles for future development. China's emergence as a world power is of wide concern to the international community, while other countries are not due to their limited global influence. And the uneasiness felt is largely bred from various problems that emerged from Chinese society in the process of this rapid progress.

But for China, the concerns coming from without may be a reminder to face and rectify the problems coming from within.

The Chinese people are working on how to essentially relieve or eliminate the uneasiness felt internationally more effectively, because they know that mounting outside worries is not beneficial to both sides. The focus now will be on developing the national economy and self-introspection

China is a big nation with growing influence, but it is still vulnerable due to the imbalanced development in many fields. Therefore, it will be dedicated to persistent opening up and reform that has proved historically to have been the right thing to do, through which suspicions in the community can eventually be eased and worries resolved.

Over the past 30 years, China has spent unremitting efforts to reduce suspicions from outside its shores. Occasionally there have been negative events in China that have caused great concern in the international community, however, the Chinese people have continued to reassure the world of its peaceful intentions through stable governance.

As we know, the puzzle of an unevenly developed domestic economy cannot be eliminated over a short period of time. However, China is handling key problems that may worsen the current situation, such as the crackdown on corruption and closing the wealth gap. To make changes on how foreign viewers see China, what matters is how China deals with the emerging social problems by making the right decisions, and how effectively these decisions can be implemented.

Today's China witnesses smaller differences from developed countries in terms of total GDP volume, and the level of urbanization and modernization. But as far as specific matters are concerned, including the enforcement of traffic rules and preservation of tradition and social stability, which are closely tied to the entire image of a nation, China has a long way to go. It seems that China still has to take on quite a number of challenges, not only economically and politically, but also culturally.