China’s the troublemaker
Your article on cross-strait relations on Tuesday (“The Aggression in China’s Goodwill,” Dec. 1, page 8) was extremely insightful.
However, there was one sentence that bothered me quite a lot: “In other words, for China to pursue unification by force is outdated and childish.” This was in reference to China starting a war with Taiwan in such difficult economic times. As true as this statement is, it still fails to go further, and answer the ultimate “troublemaker” question.
Who is the “troublemaker” in the Taiwan Strait? Is it the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁)? Or is it the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)?
Many in the media pick out the former administration as the culprit or Chen himself.
However, the answer lies in that simple statement above. Outdated and childish. Look no further than the latest movie festivals in Australia and Taiwan to see how the CCP is, has been, and will always be the troublemaker. (To be sure though, they have learned their lesson, and have cut down on it, to avoid giving further attention to contentious issues.)
Although it seems that China has been showing Taiwan goodwill, it has not. It has only reverted to economic pressure, rather than military pressure, because China realizes that to start a war now would be frowned upon.
Yet China still gets upset all the time, acts childish and says the Chinese people’s feelings have been hurt. If you’re going to speak on the behalf of over a billion people, please ask them first. Don’t preach.
The CCP must learn that no matter what, the Taiwanese people ... not their president, nor the premier, nor legislators … are masters of their own land.
To top it off, after reading Wednesday’s headline “Climate NGOs listed as Chinese,” (Dec. 2, page 1) it is clear for all to see that there is no goodwill from China.
Taiwan’s non-governmental organizations can’t even go to the Copenhagen climate conference without China trying to belittle Taiwan. China has attempted at every turn to undermine Taiwan’s international space, and in many if not most cases, it has had its way. By letting China do this repeatedly, the Ma government is only rewarding bad behavior.
The other troublemaker in all this is the US, but that is another article on its own. I really hope the CCP will wake up and see that “outdated” mindsets and “childish” international behavior only serve to undermine its goal of unification.
HARRY ADAMOPOULOS
Taipei
Use the right name
The Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) has filed a protest with the organizer of the climate conference in Copenhagen after it was listed as being from “China” (“Climate NGOs listed as Chinese,” Dec 2, page 1). This Taiwanese organization, like many other organizations and individuals, is protesting to the wrong person.
In its original application to the UN Climate Conference, ITRI gave its address as “Hsinchu, R.O.C. (Taiwan).” But the government in Taiwan prefers the name “Republic of China” or “Chinese Taipei.” What a pity. Taiwan cannot simply use its own name.
The three names mentioned above for Taiwan are all tagged with “China” or “Chinese.” No wonder ITRI has been mistakenly listed as an organization from “Hsinchu, China.”
Such a mistake is widespread and often intentional. “Taiwan, China” or “Chinese Taipei” is often used by foreign government agencies, business organizations and at international sports events. Because of these misleading names, many foreigners think Taiwan is a part of China, like Hong Kong, and has a communist government. The name “Taiwan” has been eroded and is misunderstood globally day after day.
The US government is considering whether to give Taiwanese visa-free status. If this becomes reality and you carry a “Republic of China” passport, the US immigration officer might think you are from China and refuse to let you enter the US without a visa.
If Taiwanese do not like their country being misidentified as part of China, they should hold a referendum to take off the unfit, heavy, obsolete ROC coat.
Taiwan is Taiwan — It doesn’t need any adjective before or after this great name.
CHARLES HONG
Columbus, Ohio
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