South Korea's snub of President Chen Shui-bian's (
National Security Council (NSC) Secretary-General Mark Chen (陳唐山) and Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) were turned away from the ceremony at the last minute after China threatened to withdraw its envoy and boycott the inauguration.
Reports have said that leaks from Taiwan about the "secret deal" regarding the duo's attendance enabled Beijing to pressure Seoul, while Mark Chen's sensitive position was also said to have been behind the rejection. The NSC chief's background as a prominent member of the independence movement would certainly not have helped matters.
More interesting was China's rejection of Wang, a Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) figure. The fact that China was prepared to so publicly disrespect a member of the KMT -- which has, we must remember, a shady cooperation pact with the Chinese Communist Party -- speaks volumes about Beijing's intolerance of anything Taiwanese on the diplomatic front, and would seemingly discredit KMT presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou's (馬英九) plans, should he be elected president next month, to strike a "modus vivendi" to solve the cross-strait impasse and expand Taiwan's international space.
With everything that has happened in the past eight years, it would be easy to forget that Chen Shui-bian struck an equally conciliatory note with Beijing prior to and following his election in 2000.
Indeed, in his 2001 New Year speech, Chen offered to "seek permanent peace and build a new mechanism for political assimilation between the two sides" through "cross-strait trade, economic and cultural integration."
Back then, the president even said the "one China" concept would not present a problem as "the ROC [Republic of China] Constitution already delineated the nature of `one China.'" His only caveats were that Beijing respect the "ROC's survival space and its international dignity, and publicly renounce the use of force."
It would seem that Ma's novel cross-strait solution, now that he has promised not to talk about unification, is like old wine in a new bottle. Ma's Democratic Progressive Party rival Frank Hsieh (
The reaction here to China's latest act of suppression was also interesting, as it once again demonstrated the split personality of the KMT, with presentable figurehead Ma seemingly at odds with the party's pro-China core.
On the one hand, Ma, as he has done on several occasions, slammed China for marginalizing Taiwan, while on the other KMT Legislator Lin Yu-fang (
Not a word of criticism for Beijing from the patriotic Lin, but what should we expect when all Lin and his cronies have done in reaction to every diplomatic setback over the last eight years is snipe from the galleries?
Lin's gloating should serve as a timely reminder to all of the dangerous, pro-China baggage that will accompany Ma should he win the presidency, while China's behavior proves that, contrary to what it says on his campaign posters, a Ma victory next month would not -- diplomatically and internationally at least -- result in any substantive breakthrough.
China has not been a top-tier issue for much of the second Trump administration. Instead, Trump has focused considerable energy on Ukraine, Israel, Iran, and defending America’s borders. At home, Trump has been busy passing an overhaul to America’s tax system, deporting unlawful immigrants, and targeting his political enemies. More recently, he has been consumed by the fallout of a political scandal involving his past relationship with a disgraced sex offender. When the administration has focused on China, there has not been a consistent throughline in its approach or its public statements. This lack of overarching narrative likely reflects a combination
Behind the gloating, the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) must be letting out a big sigh of relief. Its powerful party machine saved the day, but it took that much effort just to survive a challenge mounted by a humble group of active citizens, and in areas where the KMT is historically strong. On the other hand, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) must now realize how toxic a brand it has become to many voters. The campaigners’ amateurism is what made them feel valid and authentic, but when the DPP belatedly inserted itself into the campaign, it did more harm than good. The
For nearly eight decades, Taiwan has provided a home for, and shielded and nurtured, the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT). After losing the Chinese Civil War in 1949, the KMT fled to Taiwan, bringing with it hundreds of thousands of soldiers, along with people who would go on to become public servants and educators. The party settled and prospered in Taiwan, and it developed and governed the nation. Taiwan gave the party a second chance. It was Taiwanese who rebuilt order from the ruins of war, through their own sweat and tears. It was Taiwanese who joined forces with democratic activists
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) held a news conference to celebrate his party’s success in surviving Saturday’s mass recall vote, shortly after the final results were confirmed. While the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) would have much preferred a different result, it was not a defeat for the DPP in the same sense that it was a victory for the KMT: Only KMT legislators were facing recalls. That alone should have given Chu cause to reflect, acknowledge any fault, or perhaps even consider apologizing to his party and the nation. However, based on his speech, Chu showed
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