WHEN the Great Proletarian Revolution burst over Communist China, Peking recalled all but one of its 42 ambassadors. The lone exception was Huang Hua, then Peking's man in Cairo. His dedication to Communism and his diplomatic acumen in directing China's relations with all of Africa and the Middle East had obviously earned the confidence and respect of China's leaders, even in a period when they were not inclined to trust many people.
Thus it was natural that when Peking began dismantling the wall of isolation erected during the Cultural Revolution, Huang Hua (Yellow Flower) was named to head one of China's most...