On Oct. 16, the Army Missile Com-mand announced that Lieutenant Wang Yi-hung (王宜宏) -- who had traveled to Thailand without permission last month -- had fled to China with his family. On Oct. 14, Tang Yuanjun (唐元雋), a Chinese man claiming to be a political dissident, jumped off a boat and swam to Tatan Island to "seek freedom." The two incidents appear unrelated but actually reflect common errors in terms of context, knowledge of one's enemy and regional security.
It is inconceivable that Wang could not have known the con-sequences of defecting to China. As an army political officer he must certainly have known that he would never be able to return to Taiwan. So we must consider what it was about his environment that prompted him to decide to defect.
As for Tang, why didn't he choose to go to the US or somewhere else where he might be granted political asylum? Why did he choose to "seek freedom" in this outdated manner?
But decision makers on either side of the Taiwan Strait can't ignore these cases because times have changed.
The Cold War ended 10 years ago; Taiwan lifted martial law 15 years ago. Taiwan and China have long been used to considerable ethnic and military tension. Wang and Tang both went to the wrong place at the wrong time. This was their first mistake.
Second, in terms of Wang's "defection," what must be considered is what kind of environment would force a young officer to give up his career and risk danger. China's rapid development in recent years has attracted a lot of Taiwanese wealth. Now that the line between the enemy and ourselves has blurred somewhat, there is all the more reason to convince members of the armed forces to abide by their duty to protect this land. But we should also ensure that these young minds do not view military duties as a shackle that they may wish to cast off when under pressure.
When Wang and his family fled, he chose to risk his life and defect to a country with a strange political system and social environment. The military, the government and the public must seriously address the issue of why this happened.
Third, many controversial regional issues that might previously have triggered a military conflict may be ignored by the world's leading powers. Thus, in the Asia-Pacific region, the war against terror has affected the political and economic order, rendering issues unimportant unless they are relevant to the interests of the leading powers.
The government should learn from Wang's and Tang's ridiculous mistakes, and come up with rules for survival for Taiwan in the international and regional context. It can enhance its usefulness by helping those on either side of the Taiwan Strait who might repeat such mistakes to think twice before they act.
Chris Liao is a doctoral student of the Graduate Institute of National Development at National Taiwan University.
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