Hong Kong's two Communist dailies last week breathlessly recounted the exploits of one Cheng Ho, a eunuch employed by the third Ming Emperor, whose fleet of junks explored the East African coast 80 years before the Portuguese got there in 1498. Both front page stories, purporting to prove that China and Africa had a long history of "friendly intercourse," celebrated the departure for post-colonial Africa of Communist China's Premier Chou Enlai, who is the grandest panjandrum from Peking ever to visit that continent.
The tour, lasting six weeks or more, will take...
To continue reading:
or
Log-In
