2. British Prime Minister David Cameron refused to remove his commemorative poppy during a visit to China, despite it possessing a significantly different meaning for his hosts
For those unfamiliar with the custom, November 11, the date of the end of hostilities after World War I, each year is known as Remembrance Day among Commonwealth countries: a memorial day observed to commemorate those fallen in battle. Since 1921, originating from the American Legion and subsequently adopted by the British Empire, a commemorative poppy is worn by large portions of the population as a sign of respect and recognition to the sacrifices of these soldiers. With this time of year coinciding with a trip by Prime Minister David Cameron to China in 2010, naturally, the British head of government wore a poppy on his lapel. In spite of his offensive gesture to his hosts, the Prime Minister made it clear neither he nor his delegation would not remove his commemorative poppy when requested to by the Chinese government prior to the official welcome at Beijing’s Great Hall. A spokesperson for Downing Street later clarified that “the Chinese told us it would be inappropriate to wear poppies because of the Opium Wars. We informed them they meant a great deal to us and we would be wearing them all the same.”
Despite the peaceful symbolic meaning to the British, the poppy encompasses a significantly different message to the Chinese: a symbol of British colonialism, and, in particular, the violent Opium Wars of the 19th century. During the 1830s, in an attempt to reject encroaching European interference in the introspective nation, the Qing Emperor reimposed an early ban on the production of opium in China. In 1938, the year of the ban, the East India Company was responsible for the exportation of 1,400 tons of opium from China. Responding by seizing a small island, Hong Kong, and blockading the Yangzi River, the British invaded China. Unable to respond to the superior military might of the British Empire, the Chinese were compelled to sue for peace. As part of this agreement, the British acquired Hong Kong, cheaper opium, compensation, and other perks. The same process was repeated in 1956-58, with the ever-increasing subjugation of the Chinese people to imperialism and a cost in lives reaching into the hundreds of thousands.