Two ostensibly unrelated events occurred Tuesday on either side of the Taiwan Strait. These events illustrate the sharp contrast between the development paths that China and Taiwan have chosen to take.
On this side of the Strait, during a symposium promoting a human-rights law in Taiwan, Lin Chia-cheng (
The message was that Taiwanese society is not yet satisfied with its democratic achievements, and that under Chen's leadership the country will move toward new milestones in human rights protection.
On the other side of the Strait, however, Wang Daohan (
In a menacing voice, Wang said "Such behavior is a serious provocation to the fundamental interests of the Chinese people. [It] pushes cross-strait relations ... to the brink of danger."
So while Taiwan is moving along the path of constitutional reform and better human rights guarantees, Beijing holds on to the fictitious idea of a Chinese empire.
Dictators past and present have used similar methods to rule their empires -- they create fear among the people in order to achieve their goal of repression. The Zhongnanhai leaders are still trying to order the Taiwanese people around; but dictators can only have their way as long as people fear them.
A strongly worded statement by the Chinese authorities on Monday demonstrates their mindset. The statement criticized Chen's advocacy of referendums and a new constitution as an attempt to "unite the various, divided Taiwan independence forces under the pretext of public opinion, and wantonly engage in Taiwan independence and splittist activities."
History has shown that China's threats against Taiwan do not help the pro-unification camp, but instead create a backlash in public opinion. China's missile tests in 1996 led to a landslide victory for former president Lee Teng-hui (
Over the past year, China has tried hard to remain silent in the face of Chen's election strategies. But its recent vitriolic statements show that imperialist tendencies remain strong in China's leadership.
Taiwan is evolving toward being a country based on human rights, while China does not even hold credible elections. It's hard to imagine how these two countries can engage in dialogue. Forget about staid slogans such as "the descendents of Qin Shi Huang," and "blood is thicker than water." The more talk there is about "one China," the more ludicrous the idea becomes.
In the past month, two important developments are poised to equip Taiwan with expanded capabilities to play foreign policy offense in an age where Taiwan’s diplomatic space is seriously constricted by a hegemonic Beijing. Taiwan Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) led a delegation of Taiwan and US companies to the Philippines to promote trilateral economic cooperation between the three countries. Additionally, in the past two weeks, Taiwan has placed chip export controls on South Africa in an escalating standoff over the placing of its diplomatic mission in Pretoria, causing the South Africans to pause and ask for consultations to resolve
An altercation involving a 73-year-old woman and a younger person broke out on a Taipei MRT train last week, with videos of the incident going viral online, sparking wide discussions about the controversial priority seats and social norms. In the video, the elderly woman, surnamed Tseng (曾), approached a passenger in a priority seat and demanded that she get up, and after she refused, she swung her bag, hitting her on the knees and calves several times. In return, the commuter asked a nearby passenger to hold her bag, stood up and kicked Tseng, causing her to fall backward and
In December 1937, Japanese troops captured Nanjing and unleashed one of the darkest chapters of the 20th century. Over six weeks, hundreds of thousands were slaughtered and women were raped on a scale that still defies comprehension. Across Asia, the Japanese occupation left deep scars. Singapore, Malaya, the Philippines and much of China endured terror, forced labor and massacres. My own grandfather was tortured by the Japanese in Singapore. His wife, traumatized beyond recovery, lived the rest of her life in silence and breakdown. These stories are real, not abstract history. Here is the irony: Mao Zedong (毛澤東) himself once told visiting
When I reminded my 83-year-old mother on Wednesday that it was the 76th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China, she replied: “Yes, it was the day when my family was broken.” That answer captures the paradox of modern China. To most Chinese in mainland China, Oct. 1 is a day of pride — a celebration of national strength, prosperity and global stature. However, on a deeper level, it is also a reminder to many of the families shattered, the freedoms extinguished and the lives sacrificed on the road here. Seventy-six years ago, Chinese Communist leader Mao Zedong (毛澤東)
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