On the last working day of last month, the Chinese General Administration of Customs suddenly announced that the import of pineapples from Taiwan would be suspended from Monday last week. This is obvious political pressure on Taiwan and an economic sanction in disguise — it is a similar tactic to China’s ban on lobster imports from Australia. Beijing chose the timing of this move for a reason, but judging from how the situation is developing, it could well be another Chinese decision that backfires.
No matter the grudge Beijing holds against Taipei, there is another aspect to its decision to act at this particular time: Taiwan has just reorganized its national security team, and at the start of a cross-strait policy review, the pineapple ban serves as a warning to the new team, conveying the message that if Taipei keeps ignoring Beijing’s demands, there would be other, bigger, moves to come.
The ban is a statement to the outside world, but, more importantly, it serves a domestic need. Prior to the annual plenary sessions of the National People’s Congress and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, which opened on Thursday and Friday last week respectively, the regime of Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) wanted to “teach Taiwan a lesson.”
It is a common trick that dictators use to establish their authority, and serves the dual purposes of announcement and intimidation.
It is not enough to just figure out the reason behind China’s decision. The question is what other effects it will have. Xi’s domestic rule is China’s own business. What is more concerning and more interesting to outsiders is the possible impact it could have on Taiwan.
First, China’s retaliation against Taiwan cannot be compared with its punishments against other countries such as Australia, because Beijing’s goal is to annex Taiwan. Unless China wants unification by force, it cannot ignore Taiwanese public opinion.
In the post-COVID-19 era, China will be desperate to restore its image among the international community, but at this sensitive time, it targets Taiwanese pineapple farmers, which only worsens its image and further deteriorates cross-strait relations.
Second, although China is the main export market for Taiwanese pineapples, pineapple exports to China only account for about 10 percent of total exports of the fruit. The swift reaction of the government and Taiwanese have largely saved the crisis from further damaging the industry. Perhaps China has another move ready, but given the inextricable links between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait, Taiwan can develop countermeasures, as long as they are thoroughly thought through.
On the contrary, the ban on pineapple imports is the best proof Xi could have given the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) of the uncertainty and high risk of China’s hegemony, and it further legitimizes the government’s policy of remaining cautious as far as China is concerned.
Given this situation, the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) pro-China rhetoric further loses its appeal, and it will inevitably limit the KMT’s chances of expanding its base, which means that the DPP will have more space to grow.
The political aftermath will be far more long-lasting than any economic and trade effects.
The Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) actions work against unification efforts and help promote Taiwanese independence, which is the opposite to what China wants.
This is the CCP regime: stuck in a dead end.
Tzou Jiing-wen is the editor-in-chief of the Liberty Times (the sister newspaper of the Taipei Times).
Translated by Lin Lee-kai
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