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| Daimler Executive Is Removed After Accusations of Insulting Chinese | Daimler Executive Is Removed After Accusations of Insulting Chinese |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| BEIJING — A single spark can start a prairie fire, Mao Zedong said. And being accused of a bigoted outburst can start a wildfire on the internet in China, as a manager for Daimler, the German automaker, has learned to his regret. | |
| Daimler Greater China said it had removed a manager after a “regrettable matter.” The emailed statement from the company, a unit of Daimler, which makes Mercedes-Benz cars and other prestigious vehicles, did not identify the manager or say exactly what he had done. | Daimler Greater China said it had removed a manager after a “regrettable matter.” The emailed statement from the company, a unit of Daimler, which makes Mercedes-Benz cars and other prestigious vehicles, did not identify the manager or say exactly what he had done. |
| But the Chinese news media and internet users have been much blunter. They accused Rainer Gärtner, the president and chief executive officer of Daimler Trucks and Buses (China), of insulting the Chinese people on Sunday during a squabble with a driver over a parking spot on the outskirts of Beijing. | But the Chinese news media and internet users have been much blunter. They accused Rainer Gärtner, the president and chief executive officer of Daimler Trucks and Buses (China), of insulting the Chinese people on Sunday during a squabble with a driver over a parking spot on the outskirts of Beijing. |
| The controversy took off this week after a user of Weibo, a popular Chinese microblog service, accused Mr. Gärtner of insulting Chinese people after a standoff over the parking spot in Shunyi, a district in northeast Beijing where many middle-class foreigners and Chinese live in townhouse communities that rub shoulders with poorer residents who used to be farmers. | The controversy took off this week after a user of Weibo, a popular Chinese microblog service, accused Mr. Gärtner of insulting Chinese people after a standoff over the parking spot in Shunyi, a district in northeast Beijing where many middle-class foreigners and Chinese live in townhouse communities that rub shoulders with poorer residents who used to be farmers. |
| “I am in China one year already,” Mr. Gärtner told the Chinese motorist in English, according to the account, which The Beijing News said came from a friend of the motorist. It said Mr. Gärtner went on to say, “The first thing I learned here is’’ and then used a crude insult to describe “all you Chinese.” | “I am in China one year already,” Mr. Gärtner told the Chinese motorist in English, according to the account, which The Beijing News said came from a friend of the motorist. It said Mr. Gärtner went on to say, “The first thing I learned here is’’ and then used a crude insult to describe “all you Chinese.” |
| The account also said Mr. Gärtner used pepper spray against members of the gathering crowd, including one man whose eyes were hurt by the spray. | The account also said Mr. Gärtner used pepper spray against members of the gathering crowd, including one man whose eyes were hurt by the spray. |
| Mr. Gärtner has not commented publicly on the quarrel and did not respond to messages, and neither Daimler nor the police in Beijing have shared details, so it was impossible to know whether he agreed with that description of events. | Mr. Gärtner has not commented publicly on the quarrel and did not respond to messages, and neither Daimler nor the police in Beijing have shared details, so it was impossible to know whether he agreed with that description of events. |
| Even so, the Chinese news media and many internet users seized on Mr. Gärtner as an example of arrogant Western bigotry and demanded that he and Daimler apologize. He became the latest example of the power of the Chinese internet to humble governments, companies and people accused of wounding national pride. | Even so, the Chinese news media and many internet users seized on Mr. Gärtner as an example of arrogant Western bigotry and demanded that he and Daimler apologize. He became the latest example of the power of the Chinese internet to humble governments, companies and people accused of wounding national pride. |
| “Some people think this was making a mountain out of a molehill,” said an editorial on Tuesday in Southern Daily, an official newspaper for the southern province of Guangdong. | “Some people think this was making a mountain out of a molehill,” said an editorial on Tuesday in Southern Daily, an official newspaper for the southern province of Guangdong. |
| But, it continued, some foreign companies “often use racially prejudiced words and actions about Chinese consumers, even Chinese employees.” Foreign executives “easily become arrogant about the Chinese market,” it said. | But, it continued, some foreign companies “often use racially prejudiced words and actions about Chinese consumers, even Chinese employees.” Foreign executives “easily become arrogant about the Chinese market,” it said. |
| Mr. Gärtner, a German, had worked at the Chinese truck and bus unit since July 2015, after a six-year stint in South Korea, according to his profile on LinkedIn. | Mr. Gärtner, a German, had worked at the Chinese truck and bus unit since July 2015, after a six-year stint in South Korea, according to his profile on LinkedIn. |
| The controversy over Mr. Gärtner has come hard on the heels of another volatile episode, when Günther H. Oettinger, a European Union commissioner from Germany, apologized after making crudely disparaging comments about Chinese people. | The controversy over Mr. Gärtner has come hard on the heels of another volatile episode, when Günther H. Oettinger, a European Union commissioner from Germany, apologized after making crudely disparaging comments about Chinese people. |
| Initially, Daimler Greater China said on Monday that it was “deeply sorry” about the dispute and stressed that such comments by employees “do not represent Daimler,” according to Chinese news reports. | Initially, Daimler Greater China said on Monday that it was “deeply sorry” about the dispute and stressed that such comments by employees “do not represent Daimler,” according to Chinese news reports. |
| But as the public anger in China grew on Monday, the company acted and announced Mr. Gärtner’s departure from his job. | But as the public anger in China grew on Monday, the company acted and announced Mr. Gärtner’s departure from his job. |
| In making the announcement, Daimler Greater China said the dispute, while a private issue, was “detrimental to the standing of our company, unbecoming of a manager of our brand and prejudicial to our good name.” | In making the announcement, Daimler Greater China said the dispute, while a private issue, was “detrimental to the standing of our company, unbecoming of a manager of our brand and prejudicial to our good name.” |
| Chinese news reports celebrated the decision as a victory for good sense, and many appeared to assume that Mr. Gärtner had been fired from Daimler. | Chinese news reports celebrated the decision as a victory for good sense, and many appeared to assume that Mr. Gärtner had been fired from Daimler. |
| But the corporate communications office for Daimler Greater China did not answer questions about whether Mr. Gärtner had been dismissed by the company or moved on, perhaps pending a new assignment elsewhere in the company. | But the corporate communications office for Daimler Greater China did not answer questions about whether Mr. Gärtner had been dismissed by the company or moved on, perhaps pending a new assignment elsewhere in the company. |
| Global Times, a popular Chinese newspaper, said it was understandable that frustrated drivers in Beijing, a painfully congested city, would exchange sharp words over parking spots. | Global Times, a popular Chinese newspaper, said it was understandable that frustrated drivers in Beijing, a painfully congested city, would exchange sharp words over parking spots. |
| “But no matter how filthy the words, hearts should not be filthy,” it said. “There’s no explaining away an argument that escalates to using ‘You Chinese. ...’ ” | “But no matter how filthy the words, hearts should not be filthy,” it said. “There’s no explaining away an argument that escalates to using ‘You Chinese. ...’ ” |