Last week one of my colleagues decided to quit and move to the US. Everybody in the office felt envious yet they threw a farewell party for her. Earlier this month one of my junior-school classmates got married and invited me to the wedding. He left Taiwan when he was 15 and the wedding was also a ceremony to celebrate his becoming a permanent US resident.
I am always wondering why the Taiwanese admire the US so much? Is it because we are economically poor, or afraid of a possible war between Taiwan and China? Is the lack of a sense of security embedded in our culture?
"Come to NTU, then go to the US," was a popular saying about National Taiwan University during the 1960s. At that time, young people studied with the purpose of earning a chance to get into the US. Most students wouldn't return home even after they got their US doctorates.
In those early years, Taiwan was not a very good place to live. It was not only that the standard of living that was bad, but also the limitations put on self-expression. Most students who went abroad and accepted the idea of democracy couldn't stand the ruling KMT, so they voted with their feet -- by staying in the US. And for those who were left in Taiwan, the US remained a holy country with giant power and wealth.
Today, people in Taiwan are richer than before and have freedom of speech, but the US is still a dream land in most people's minds. Some worry that the worsening cross-strait relationship may lead to war. These people want to move for the sake of security. Some want to leave because of disappointment with the government, especially after Chen Shui-bian (
Those who emigrate to other countries do so freely. However, I wonder how much of this idea that the US is like heaven is fact and how much of it is just a part of Taiwanese mythology. Some scholars believe it is part of a complex that is rooted in our cultural background.
Many of our ancestors came from China 300 years ago. But they were ruled by a succession of invaders. This Dutch ruled Formosa until the famous Ming Dynasty general Cheng Cheng-kung (
This means that, over the past 300 years, the rulers of this island never saw Taiwan as their destination, but only as a temporary home. These people had planned to leave the moment their boat came in. That might be the reason for the lack of identity and confidence that Taiwanese suffer from -- everybody tends to dream of a wonderful heaven which may be somewhere out there, but that heaven could certainly not be their own country.
Now the question arises -- will US citizenship bring immigrants the absolute confidence they need? The answer is surely negative. They will be part of a minority group for the rest of their lives. None of the US' "greatness" will have anything to do with their contribution.
I am not a follower of narrow-minded nationalism, but I would never emigrate. Yes, Taiwan's government officials are awful and the whole system is a mess. However, this can only be changed through my participation. History can't determine our future.
I hope all Taiwanese can get rid of the "emigration curse" and realize that Taiwan is truly home. In the end, I went to neither the farewell party nor the wedding. I certainly bless the wedding, but I cannot congratulate an emigrant. There is no reason to celebrate when our friends leave.
Wang Sumei is a journalist based in Taipei.
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