The word is out that Chi Mei Group's (奇美) petrochemical plants in China are being shut down by China's government, because of some quotes from the group's president, Shi Wen-lung (許文龍), in the Japanese comic book On Taiwan (台灣論). Hopefully, this latest event will open the eyes of the herds of Taiwanese businessmen rushing across the Taiwan Strait. If Beijing keeps up the good work, soon it will be able to accomplish a "peaceful unification" by holding all the Taiwanese businessmen in China hostage.
For those who continue to harbor hope that China may change, we can only pity them. Too many examples speak for themselves. The chairman of Acer Inc, Stan Shih (施振榮), was openly criticized in China for serving as a policy adviser to President Chen Shui-bian (
The most pathetic aspect is China's ploy works. Today, Acer keeps a low profile in China, while its president, Shih, keeps a distance from the Chen administration. A-mei's lucrative contract with Coca-Cola was cancelled, her CD removed from music stores in China and her songs vanished from radio broadcasts. A-mei's case should shatter any hopes for those who believe joint ventures with major foreign companies are safe from Beijing's claws. Not even Coca-Cola, a world-renowned US conglomerate, dared to stand up to Beijing.
How does China do it? First, Beijing often harasses businesses deemed as "eyesores" by conducting frequent tax audits and investigating for labor abuses, environmental pollution and violations of fire safety regulations, among other supposed misconduct. The slightest breach of existing laws or regulations brings hefty penalties. These are the gimmicks that Beijing used to drive out Jimmy Lai's retail chain.
Of course, how can we forget Beijing's favorite trick -- rumors. Perhaps Beijing has finally learned a valuable lesson from the 1996 and 2000 presidential elections in Taiwan. After all, even monkeys learn from trial and error, although that may not be the case with Taiwanese businessmen who continue to harbor hopes for Beijing. On both occasions, official criticism from high-ranking China officials helped the presidential candidates they loathed -- namely, Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) and Chen Shui-bian -- to win the election. Since then, China has discovered the wonders of starting "rumors" instead of giving official statements.
Why have high-ranking government officials issue official statements, when they invite international criticism? Why officially ban any businesses, when it jeopardizes China's bids to enter the WTO and host the Olympics, not to mention cools the enthusiasm of foreign and Taiwanese investors? Spreading rumors of possible government sanctions will do, without incurring any of the aforementioned downsides.
As in the case of A-mei, rumor-mongering is exactly the tactic that Beijing is using against Shi Wen-lung. In both instances, no government official has confirmed the imposition of any sanctions. In fact, an official from the Taiwan Affairs Office of China's government has denied any pending sanctions. However, rumors have been sufficient to turn away A-mei's Coca-Cola contract and Chi Mei's business contracts.
Many argue they are safe because they are staying away from "politics." The problem is, no one can ever be certain about what, when or who may irritate Beijing. Those who insist on investing in China will just have to live with these risks.
Because much of what former US president Donald Trump says is unhinged and histrionic, it is tempting to dismiss all of it as bunk. Yet the potential future president has a populist knack for sounding alarums that resonate with the zeitgeist — for example, with growing anxiety about World War III and nuclear Armageddon. “We’re a failing nation,” Trump ranted during his US presidential debate against US Vice President Kamala Harris in one particularly meandering answer (the one that also recycled urban myths about immigrants eating cats). “And what, what’s going on here, you’re going to end up in World War
Earlier this month in Newsweek, President William Lai (賴清德) challenged the People’s Republic of China (PRC) to retake the territories lost to Russia in the 19th century rather than invade Taiwan. He stated: “If it is for the sake of territorial integrity, why doesn’t [the PRC] take back the lands occupied by Russia that were signed over in the treaty of Aigun?” This was a brilliant political move to finally state openly what many Chinese in both China and Taiwan have long been thinking about the lost territories in the Russian far east: The Russian far east should be “theirs.” Granted, Lai issued
On Tuesday, President William Lai (賴清德) met with a delegation from the Hoover Institution, a think tank based at Stanford University in California, to discuss strengthening US-Taiwan relations and enhancing peace and stability in the region. The delegation was led by James Ellis Jr, co-chair of the institution’s Taiwan in the Indo-Pacific Region project and former commander of the US Strategic Command. It also included former Australian minister for foreign affairs Marise Payne, influential US academics and other former policymakers. Think tank diplomacy is an important component of Taiwan’s efforts to maintain high-level dialogue with other nations with which it does
On Sept. 2, Elbridge Colby, former deputy assistant secretary of defense for strategy and force development, wrote an article for the Wall Street Journal called “The US and Taiwan Must Change Course” that defends his position that the US and Taiwan are not doing enough to deter the People’s Republic of China (PRC) from taking Taiwan. Colby is correct, of course: the US and Taiwan need to do a lot more or the PRC will invade Taiwan like Russia did against Ukraine. The US and Taiwan have failed to prepare properly to deter war. The blame must fall on politicians and policymakers
RSS