Beijing tends to say that statements critical of China “hurt the feelings of Chinese.” It has also been openly claiming that it is trying to win the “hearts and minds” of Taiwanese.
However, after its recent moves aimed at forcing the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) administration to recognize the so-called “1992 consensus,” Beijing has not only hurt the feelings of Taiwanese and failed to win over their hearts, but also pushed Taiwanese further away from itself.
Beijing’s attempts to dominate Taiwan became more blatant after Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) of the DPP won the presidential election on Jan. 16. The ever-growing list of oppression includes an incident in April when a Taiwanese delegation was requested to leave an Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development conference in Brussels due to Chinese pressure; the belittlement of Taiwan at the WHO through an invitation to the World Health Assembly meeting in May referring to UN Resolution 2758 and the “one China” principle, with Beijing interpreting that as the People’s Republic of China encompassing Taiwan; the deportation of Taiwanese on suspicion of telecommunications fraud from Kenya to China; and Taiwanese officials participating in a meeting of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization’s Committee on Fisheries (COFI) in Italy in July being forced to leave the venue allegedly due to Chinese pressure.
There was also bullying by China at the Rio de Janeiro Paralympic Games this month, when members of Taiwan’s team had to change the badges on their uniforms, because China said the emblem with the 12-point sun in a circle is the emblem of the Republic of China.
And lastly, Beijing’s objection is believed to be why Taiwan was not invited to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) assembly this week in Canada.
While Beijing might give itself a pat on the back, thinking it has stepped up pressure on the Tsai administration, the outcome of its obstructionism might disappoint Chinese officials.
China’s openly hostile stance toward Taiwan and its efforts to push Taiwan out of the international community further upsets Taiwanese and causes them to view Beijing with more repulsion.
Each time Beijing behaves in a belligerent and unfriendly way toward Taiwan, it repels Taiwanese further.
Beijing’s scheming to prevent Taiwan attending the ICAO’s triennial assembly highlights what the former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) administration trumpeted as its diplomatic achievement three years ago, when Taiwan was invited as a special guest of then-ICAO council president Roberto Kobeh Gonzalez and took part in the 2013 ICAO assembly. It was more of a victory for Beijing, as Taiwan’s participation was arranged between the ICAO and China under the “one China” principle, with Taiwan being regarded as a province of China.
The way China has been treating Taiwan lately contradicts its “charm offensive” of the past eight years, aimed at winning the hearts and minds of Taiwanese.
Rather than finding the key to winning over the hearts of Taiwanese, Beijing — as a result of its incessant bullying and attempts to limit Taiwan’s international space — has worked to propel Taiwanese to stand in unity in their growing feeling of disgust with China.
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