I am writing in response to Huang Tien-lin's (
We must not forget that Taiwan was once on the receiving end of the protectionist propaganda that Huang is now venting toward China.
US politicians once vehemently blamed Asian production for America's problems, but their words actually did nothing to prevent jobs from leaving the US. In the 1960s the US told Taiwan: "It's okay, we're glad to have you manufacture GI Joes and Barbie dolls. We definitely like saving money."
The US took the savings and invested it in other industries. This helped its economy to prosper. The Taiwanese worked very hard and also made money. But one day they said, "Man, I'm tired of making plastic toys. This is boring. Isn't there something else we can make?"
The 1980s arrived and the Taiwanese were very smart. They studied hard and started making new products: bicycles, radios and even high-tech automotive parts. The rest of the world was reluctant to let Taiwan take so many jobs, but the price was right, they made quality products and the people were very friendly. As a result, the low-tech plastic toy jobs shifted over to China.
Within the last 15 years, the Taiwanese became economically mature and even more ambitious. They said: "We've proved that we have the brains, determination and willpower to accomplish great things. It's time we learned about computers."
Once again their hard work prevailed and the Taiwanese showed how resilient they truly are: they successfully avoided the Asian economic crisis and the country became a global leader in a highly technical industry. Taiwan's semiconductor engineering and research skills are unmatched in the world today.
I only hope to remind Huang of Taiwan's own past. This country once took jobs from other hardworking people. Every economy goes through certain gaps in development, but success is determined by how these situations are handled.
Protectionism will not prevent jobs from going to China. It will only delay a market force that is bigger than the government or legislation.
As a policy adviser, Huang should encourage the president to focus on resourceful ways to restructure the workforce once jobs are gone (it's okay to lose manufacturing jobs -- it shows that you have developed a knowledge-based economy).
Taiwan has repeatedly shown that it can overcome great challenges, but it will take a new approach to tackle this one.
Taiwan's leaders must foster creativity and innovation to keep the country competitive in today's global marketplace.
Unfortunately, a protectionist attitude will choke the life out of any fresh ideas that may come to pass. Surely this will not help the country move forward, and I don't think anyone wants to go back to making GI Joes or Barbie dolls.
Spencer Czarnecki
Taipei
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