Which brings us back to the "Asian" way of doing things, a way that was ridiculed throughout the Western hemisphere as the Asian crisis began unfolding two and a half years ago. It goes like this: Trust is built among business partners by communication and demonstrated commitment; contracts, on the other hand, are an excuse for a high-profile signing ceremony.
But you've all read about the this too often, so I won't go into further detail. Let' s move on to the impact the switch will have on Taiwan's international reputation from a business perspective.
The Europeans are livid, as they should be. But will European firms stop coming here? Doubtful. The International Constructors Group was a dwindling bunch a year ago, but the promise of contracts on the High-Speed Railway has swelled its ranks again. And among its numbers are firms who don't seem to be too perturbed by the way France's Matra was ripped off five years ago by the Taipei City Government in building its multi-billion-dollar MRT. The reason? Taiwan has the third-biggest economy in Asia and is more open -- yes, it's true -- than Japan and China. You don't see the rest of Southeast Asia building such things as bullet trains yet, do you?
Tarnished reputation
The Americans, who are the only other Westerners that matter -- sorry, but again, it's true -- will frown for a while and then go back to their plans for world domination via the Internet. They don't build bullet trains, so why should it bother them? They don't need Taiwan's courts to resolve disputes for them, either. That's why they have Special 301 and the US Trade representative.
On the other side of the globe, meanwhile, the Japanese are over the moon. This is the first time they have tried to export their beloved Shinkansen system, and they'll likely reward Taiwan by letting President Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) visit there after he's left office. Considering the way the US has been cozying up to China recently, this can only be a welcome development as far as Taiwan is concerned.
That said, there's no doubt that the dispute will tarnish Taiwan's reputation in the Western business community. It might even prompt multinationals that have been sniffing around Taiwan to go instead to Malaysia -- which, despite the absence of a raucous democracy and the existence of similarly restrictive capital controls, has a far more accommodating and trustworthy legal system.
But that's okay. Taiwan's next president might well drop the ban on direct links with China. Now wouldn't that be a drawcard for Western companies who deplore -- absolutely deplore, I tell you -- China 's lack of respect for human rights but who want a secure base from which to sell something to 1.3 billion people?
Anthony Lawrance is the managing editor of the Taipei Times
RSS