Published: 00:46, April 4, 2023 | Updated: 09:34, April 4, 2023
The world needs respect for others despite differences
By Ho Lok-sang

Last week Adrian Anantawan was in Hong Kong and held a concert at City Hall. I took my handicapped daughter to the concert.

I learned of Anantawan’s story some 10 years ago, and I have used his example to show my students how “Love, Insight, Fortitude, and Engagement (LIFE)” can help us find meaning and fulfillment in our lives. 

Anantawan’s achievements are of course most impressive. Apart from being a violin soloist having studied with world-class violinists including Itzhak Perlman and Anne-Sophie Mutter, Anantawan holds degrees from Yale University and the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

These achievements did not come fortuitously, and were possible only with the Love of his parents who understood priorities (Insight or wisdom) and supported his desire to explore his potential; the Love and wisdom of the team of technicians who designed the device called a spatula adaptation that allows him to control the bow for the violin; the Love of his violin teachers and others, his own passion for music and for living (Love for life), his diligence and perseverance (Fortitude), and above all, his active tireless Engagement to realize the potential that life had in store for him. What is even more remarkable is that he has a sense of vocation to help other handicapped people (Love) to learn music and, in particular, play the violin. This was what drove him to study for an education degree.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights tells the world that as human beings, we all deserve to be respected and should have the same political, social, and economic rights. Yet bullies are still around, among students, among people, among countries. Many of us still think that might is right

The challenges he has had to face in life have been huge. But in general, the greater the challenge, the greater will be the reward in the form of satisfaction that comes when eventually one overcomes the challenge. Anantawan’s example tells us that we must never underestimate what life has in store for handicapped people. The concert also featured Nicholas McCarthy, a pianist who has lost his right arm. He served both as an accompanist and as a performer. In the repertoire was a composition by Molly Joyce, The Myth of More. Joyce is also handicapped, having an impaired left hand after a car accident. On her bio, it is stated: “Her work is concerned with disability as a creative source.”

There is of course no presumption that every person who tries hard will have the same degree of world-recognized achievements as Anantawan has. We are born to be different from each other, and we are not born to shine to the same degree. But we should nevertheless treat everyone with the same respect. A handicapped person is as entitled to happiness as an able-bodied person is. Who are we to deprive someone who is physically or mentally less well-endowed than us of the opportunity to live a happy life?

The US Declaration of Independence says that “all men are created equal”. Unfortunately, this is not a fact. The equality depends on whether we give everybody the same respect as a human being. Unfortunately, we are also not born to respect people as equals. Some of us have acquired a sense of superiority over others; some of us, on the other hand, have acquired a sense of equality and respect for the equal rights of everybody irrespective of their race, religion, social background, and abilities. The world would certainly be a better place if we had more of those who treat one another as equals than those who bully the weaker ones, or those who are different.

Not too long ago the laws of the jungle ruled the world, and there was tacit agreement among the militarily strong nations that might is right. Whoever was stronger militarily took control and had the right to exploit and bully those who were weaker than them. If you could not protect yourself, you simply had to accept fate and assume subservient roles or even be abducted to become slaves to be bought and sold, or even be killed. When China was weak, it faced military defeat and had to pay reparations to the invaders and had its land taken over by other countries.

Today the laws of the jungle are gone in name. After World War II, the League of Nations became the United Nations, and a rules-based international order took the place of the laws of the jungle. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights tells the world that as human beings, we all deserve to be respected and should have the same political, social, and economic rights. Yet bullies are still around, among students, among people, among countries. Many of us still think that might is right. So the strong can bully the weak; the strong can choose to abide by the rules if those rules serve their interest and choose not to otherwise.

Adrian Anantawan and company showed us that a disabled person can create a better, richer life for themselves and for the world. Disabled people are often even better citizens of the world than able-bodied people. No one can say the happiness a handicapped person has created for himself and for others is inferior to that created by able-bodied people.

All men are not born equal. But with the right mentality, everybody can thrive. The world will be a better world. Isn’t that something we should strive for?

The author is the director of the Pan Sutong Shanghai-Hong Kong Economic Policy Research Institute, Lingnan University.

The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.