Having been in Taiwan for a few years now I have often read about or heard people talk about the "fifth column."
This term refers to the thousands of supposedly undercover Chinese agents living in Taiwan that are busy undermining the strength of the nation's society and its ultimate ability to resist in the event of a Chinese invasion. For years when walking the streets I would look at people carefully to try to identify one of these Chinese spies.
But just recently it has dawned on me that these supposedly clandestine agents are nothing of the sort. In fact they are totally brazen and open about their work, and worst of all, the people of Taiwan, not China, support them and are paying their wages.
In the past five years they have gradually taken off their disguises and revealed themselves for everyone in Taiwan to see. The people I am referring to are of course pan-blue politicians. The very same politicians -- if that's what you can call them -- who are one minute kissing the ground to demonstrate their love for this nation, but the next minute are prepared to denigrate everything that Taiwan stands for by traveling to China.
I refer to the people who have caused Taiwan's governmental process to grind to a halt over the past five years by their childish obstructionism in the legislature. These people continue to blatantly undermine Taiwan's capability to defend itself by repeatedly refusing to debate the special arms budget proposal.
These are the same representatives who constantly go behind the ruling party's back in cross-strait negotiations on such issues as fruit exports and direct links. By doing this, these people make a mockery of the democracy they claim to be so proud of.
But you cannot blame the pan-blue camp for this, as their agenda is and always has been out in the open. They want Taiwan to be absorbed by China and are only doing what they and their supporters want.
Neither can you blame China, whose intentions are even more obvious. The Chinese don't even try to hide their schemes and ploys these days; fruit exports and student scholarships are two of the most obvious recent examples. Unbelievably, many Taiwanese are lapping them up.
You can, however, blame the people of Taiwan who actually vote for these traitors. These are the same people who profess to want to maintain the status quo in relations with China. Opinion polls back this assertion, as their results usually show that a vast majority feel this way.
If this is so, how can it be that the pan-blues managed to secure a majority in the legislature, enabling them to keep on sowing legislative discord, create social chaos and gradually erode this country's ability to resist the red devil across the Taiwan Strait?
This just doesn't tally. Do the people of Taiwan really wish to become another Hong Kong, where human rights are being slowly repealed, democracy is now non-existent, and where Beijing makes all the decisions?
I simply don't understand how these politicians can do this in full view of the public and get away with it. They, in tandem with China, are taking advantage of the people's growing indifference to politics and their desire for a peaceful, prosperous life.
The peace advancement bill is the latest example of this work. This traitorous piece of legislation cannot be allowed to pass, and if the Chinese agents doing their work in the legislature manage to force it through, then the Council of Grand Justices must throw it out immediately.
Beijing must be amazed at how easy it is to implement their unification masterplan. Who needs the fifth column and undercover agents when you have politicians lining up to do the devil's bidding?
It is time for Taiwan's public to decide if they want legislators who represent them or China, it is time for the government to get tough with the people who are gradually selling out Taiwan, and it is time for everyone who really loves this land to wake up and do something about this situation before it is too late.
Show these charlatans and traitors that they cannot carry on behaving like this.
The public should use the year-end elections to show these double agents what they think of them.
Henry Blackhand
Taipei
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