As a second-generation Mainlander, I was taught by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) to be patriotic and proud of the fact I was Chinese. However, as a result of the democratization of Taiwan and my experience of studying overseas, I now have a totally different view of China.
Throughout the course of many conversations with Chinese friends I have come to realize that many members of China's intellectual elite do not favor democracy and even despise it. Some of them are rather pessimistic about Taiwan's democratization.
Some of these Chinese intellectuals apparently believe that Taiwan is a laughing stock in the eyes of the world, as its democracy is so chaotic.
I was once shocked when a Chinese friend told me that "the Chinese are too slavish too adapt to a democratic system." What stunned me was not his view on the Chinese people, but the fact that he no longer believed that I -- being from Taiwan -- was "Chinese." His sentiments underline the absurdity of China's ongoing attempts to marginalize Taiwan.
Whether Taiwan is perceived by the rest of the world to be a laughing stock is not for Beijing to decide.
In Germany, the Bertelsmann Foundation recently released next year's Bertelsmann Transformation Index (BTI), which deals with the quality of political leadership.
In terms of transformation progress, the 2006 BTI results indicate that Taiwan ranked first in Asia, and ranked fourth in the world, rising from eighth in 2003. In the government competence category, the nation ranked first in Asia, and ranked fifth internationally, up from 11th in 2003. Due to Taiwan's excellent performance in every category, it is widely regarded as a success story among nations in transition.
Meanwhile, China was placed in 85th position this year, down from 77th last year in terms of its transformation progress. In government competence, it plunged to 70th this year from 55th last year.
According to the World Economic Forum's Global Competitiveness Report 2005-2006, Taiwan ranked first in Asia in the growth competitiveness index. Compared with the rest of the world, Taiwan ranked fifth in this index. Meanwhile, China dropped to 49th from 46th.
Additionally, the World Competitiveness Yearbook, issued by the International Institute for Management Development of Switzerland, moved Taiwan up one place to 11th position while China dropped to 31st position from 24th.
Taiwan also ranked 32nd among 159 countries surveyed in Transparency International's 2005 Corruption Perception Index, up three notches from last year while China dropped to 78th from 71st.
According to Reporters Without Borders' 2005 Worldwide Press Freedom Index, Taiwan occupies 51st spot, up nine notches from last year's survey while China ranked 159th among a total of 167 nations.
Although I agree that Taiwan's democratic development is far from mature and there is still a lot of room for improvement. It seems that the latest statistics released by international organizations all see Taiwan, the so-called "laughing stock" of the Chinese, from a different perspective.
Some believe that it was the KMT that gave the nation a solid foundation. If that is the case, how do we interpret the nation's improved performance in every aspect over the last few years when Taiwan's democratic system has allegedly been in chaos?
I can tolerate those "Chinese" who refuse to acknowledge Taiwan's democratic achievements, but the international community does not see eye-to-eye with them. They still seem to have found the nation progressive in almost every aspect.
Su Ching-lun is the director of the University of Rhode Island Taiwan Student Association.
TRANSLATED BY DANIEL CHENG
The conflict in the Middle East has been disrupting financial markets, raising concerns about rising inflationary pressures and global economic growth. One market that some investors are particularly worried about has not been heavily covered in the news: the private credit market. Even before the joint US-Israeli attacks on Iran on Feb. 28, global capital markets had faced growing structural pressure — the deteriorating funding conditions in the private credit market. The private credit market is where companies borrow funds directly from nonbank financial institutions such as asset management companies, insurance companies and private lending platforms. Its popularity has risen since
The Donald Trump administration’s approach to China broadly, and to cross-Strait relations in particular, remains a conundrum. The 2025 US National Security Strategy prioritized the defense of Taiwan in a way that surprised some observers of the Trump administration: “Deterring a conflict over Taiwan, ideally by preserving military overmatch, is a priority.” Two months later, Taiwan went entirely unmentioned in the US National Defense Strategy, as did military overmatch vis-a-vis China, giving renewed cause for concern. How to interpret these varying statements remains an open question. In both documents, the Indo-Pacific is listed as a second priority behind homeland defense and
In an op-ed published in Foreign Affairs on Tuesday, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) said that Taiwan should not have to choose between aligning with Beijing or Washington, and advocated for cooperation with Beijing under the so-called “1992 consensus” as a form of “strategic ambiguity.” However, Cheng has either misunderstood the geopolitical reality and chosen appeasement, or is trying to fool an international audience with her doublespeak; nonetheless, it risks sending the wrong message to Taiwan’s democratic allies and partners. Cheng stressed that “Taiwan does not have to choose,” as while Beijing and Washington compete, Taiwan is strongest when
US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng (何立峰) are expected to meet this month in Paris to prepare for a meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平). According to media reports, the two sides would discuss issues such as the potential purchase of Boeing aircraft by China, increasing imports of US soybeans and the latest impacts of Trump’s reciprocal tariffs. However, recent US military action against Iran has added uncertainty to the Trump-Xi summit. Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi (王毅) called the joint US-Israeli airstrikes and the
RSS