China’s rise and its efforts to expand its diplomatic and economic reach have been the subject of torrents of analysis over the past two decades, with much praise coming from domestic pundits and a lot of handwringing from those in other nations, especially Western ones. The one thing the two camps appear to agree upon has been that China’s rise is seemingly inexorable.
Lost, or all too often dismissed, in all the hubbub, however, has been the accompanying rise in antipathy to Beijing’s rule and tactics, especially by those along China’s periphery or closest to the edge. This is why, given Beijing’s divide-and-conquer tactics, it is so important for those on the edges to find common ground and provide common support.
The findings of the latest poll by Hong Kong University’s Public Opinion Programme show that 35 percent of the territory’s residents support Taiwanese independence, the highest level of support in 21 years, although a majority of respondents continue to disapprove of the idea. Compare those results with the group’s poll taken just before Taiwan’s presidential election in 2004, when 71 percent of respondents opposed independence and just 12 percent supported the idea, although 44 percent were not confident in cross-strait unification, while 35 percent were.
The idea that “one country, two systems” was applicable to Taiwan was also down to 33 percent of the respondents in the latest survey, while those who said “one country, two systems” was not applicable amounted to 52 percent in the latest survey.
The pollsters said that support for Taiwanese independence was divided along generational lines: The younger the respondent, the greater the likelihood that they would support independence and the less confidence they have in cross-strait unification.
One cannot help but think that Beijing’s increasing disregard for the promises it made prior to the territory’s handover in 1997 and its interference in Hong Kong’s affairs have played a part in the shift in opinion. It is no wonder that scores of Hong Kong residents visited Taiwan ahead of the Jan. 16 presidential and legislative elections to watch this nation’s democracy at work, or why Ten Years, a film about the territory in 2025 when Cantonese can no longer be used, a character imprisoned for supporting Hong Kong independence dies after a hunger strike and another character self-immolates, packed theaters for two months until it was abruptly pulled.
It just seems as if Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and the current crop of Beijing leaders have not learned anything from the failure of their predecessors to “handle” Tibetans and Uighurs. Beijing has “ruled” Tibet for 66 years and yet it has conniptions at the very mention of the Dalai Lama’s name, as shown by its efforts this week to stop diplomats and UN officials from attending an event yesterday at the Geneva Graduate Institute in Switzerland, where the Buddhist leader was on a panel of Nobel laureates. Of course, Thursday was the 57th anniversary of the start of Tibetans’ peaceful uprising against the Chinese invasion and occupation.
However, one does not have to be the Dalai Lama to upset Beijing. Tashi Wangchuk, a 30-year-old advocate for bilingual education in Tibetan regions, has been detained since Jan. 27, even though, as the New York Times noted, he has praised Xi for having “promoted a democratic and law-abiding nation these last few years.”
Meanwhile, unrest in Xinjiang simmers, not because of Muslim extremists, but because of Beijing’s efforts to eliminate the Uighurs’ cultural and religious identify, including their language.
The history, status and identity of Hong Kong and Taiwan are very different, but Hong Kongers and Taiwanese can see that what has happened in Tibet and Xinjiang could be in their future, which is why it is so important to speak out against Beijing’s efforts to bribe or terrorize its opponents into submission.
Saudi Arabian largesse is flooding Egypt’s cultural scene, but the reception is mixed. Some welcome new “cooperation” between two regional powerhouses, while others fear a hostile takeover by Riyadh. In Cairo, historically the cultural capital of the Arab world, Egyptian Minister of Culture Nevine al-Kilany recently hosted Saudi Arabian General Entertainment Authority chairman Turki al-Sheikh. The deep-pocketed al-Sheikh has emerged as a Medici-like patron for Egypt’s cultural elite, courted by Cairo’s top talent to produce a slew of forthcoming films. A new three-way agreement between al-Sheikh, Kilany and United Media Services — a multi-media conglomerate linked to state intelligence that owns much of
The US and other countries should take concrete steps to confront the threats from Beijing to avoid war, US Representative Mario Diaz-Balart said in an interview with Voice of America on March 13. The US should use “every diplomatic economic tool at our disposal to treat China as what it is... to avoid war,” Diaz-Balart said. Giving an example of what the US could do, he said that it has to be more aggressive in its military sales to Taiwan. Actions by cross-party US lawmakers in the past few years such as meeting with Taiwanese officials in Washington and Taipei, and
Denmark’s “one China” policy more and more resembles Beijing’s “one China” principle. At least, this is how things appear. In recent interactions with the Danish state, such as applying for residency permits, a Taiwanese’s nationality would be listed as “China.” That designation occurs for a Taiwanese student coming to Denmark or a Danish citizen arriving in Denmark with, for example, their Taiwanese partner. Details of this were published on Sunday in an article in the Danish daily Berlingske written by Alexander Sjoberg and Tobias Reinwald. The pretext for this new practice is that Denmark does not recognize Taiwan as a state under
The Republic of China (ROC) on Taiwan has no official diplomatic allies in the EU. With the exception of the Vatican, it has no official allies in Europe at all. This does not prevent the ROC — Taiwan — from having close relations with EU member states and other European countries. The exact nature of the relationship does bear revisiting, if only to clarify what is a very complicated and sensitive idea, the details of which leave considerable room for misunderstanding, misrepresentation and disagreement. Only this week, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) received members of the European Parliament’s Delegation for Relations