On Monday, Taiwan celebrated Double Ten National Day. As Taiwanese increasingly identify with Taiwan and become a single community, more voices are calling for the national day to be called “Taiwan National Day.”
Members of several pro-China, pro-unification groups are against the idea, and although they would stop short of negating the name “Taiwan” outright, they say that the name of our country remains the “Republic of China” (ROC), using this rationale to challenge the legitimacy of having a “Taiwan National Day.” Former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) agrees with them.
Ma has said that “Taiwan National Day” should not be the English name for Double Ten National Day, and demanded that President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) clarify the relationship between Taiwan and China.
Ma does not believe that Taiwan and China are separate countries: He believes that the Taiwan-China relationship should be one of “mutual non-recognition of sovereignty” and “mutual non-denial of authority to govern.”
Although people here increasingly identify as Taiwanese over Chinese, the backlash from the pro-China pro-unification groups cannot be ignored.
As the nation returns to normal after the COVID-19 pandemic, it is focused, in the near-term, on the reopening of the border. Taiwan aims to be reconnected with the world, embracing a new order in the post-pandemic era.
During the past three years, the pandemic has been a disaster, but it has also been an opportunity for introspection. The major breakthrough has been Taiwan’s demonstration of its value to the world, especially in the areas of disease prevention, economy and diplomacy.
While most countries were struggling to cope with the pandemic, Taiwan’s meticulous control and monitoring succeeded in keeping the public safe. For months, without imposing an official lockdown, Taiwan reported no new COVID-19 cases. When the coronavirus gradually became endemic, the government swiftly adjusted its strategy to coexistence with the virus and a return to normal.
The pandemic response has kept pace with the world and kept Taiwanese relatively shielded from the worst of its consequences.
Taiwan also avoided the worst of the economic impact of the pandemic, and for this it received plaudits from around the world.
Last year, Taiwan’s economic growth surpassed that of China for the first time in the past 30 years. This year, the IMF estimates Taiwan’s GDP per capita will be US$36,000, higher than that of South Korea.
Taiwan has also demonstrated its industrial perseverance in the face of global supply chain disruptions, and the nation’s semiconductor industry has contributed to relieving global chip shortages.
Because of this achievement, the US invited Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co to invest and build a new plant there. Taiwan is one of the important members of the Chip 4 alliance, a significant partner to the global value chain.
Countries that aspire to revive or set up their own semiconductor industries, such as Germany, Japan and India, have made every effort to improve their relationships with Taiwan.
The international situation remains perilous, exacerbated by geopolitical crises caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
This can be seen most explicitly in the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the unprecedented level of threats and intimidation aimed at Taiwan from China. The latter manifested in military exercises appearing to simulate a blockade of Taiwan, inflicting untold damage on world peace and threatening the eruption of a third world war.
As the world emerges from the pandemic, Taiwan finds itself exposed to intimidation from China at a level of intensity that can only increase. The challenges Taiwan faces are becoming increasingly severe, and might end in an existential battle to protect the nation.
Previously, the international community regarded the tensions between Taiwan and China as an extension of the civil war between the Chinese Communist Party and the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), while China continued to view the annexation of Taiwan as a “core interest” and an “internal issue,” rejecting any interference from outside. As a result, Taiwan was marginalized internationally.
China did not become more open and democratic after it became more powerful. In fact, it regressed to an even more authoritarian system. Indoctrinated by communist propaganda, Chinese have become intoxicated by the idea of the “China dream” and the “great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation,” an attempt to restore the glory of the Chinese empire.
The desire for national rejuvenation and a return to imperial power can be seen permeating the narratives of authoritarian China and Russia; not only have the two come together to form an unholy alliance, but Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is an attempt to make this dream a reality.
China is simultaneously increasing its military encroachments against Taiwan and into the South China Sea and Northeast Asia. It is also trying to spread its brand of digital authoritarianism across the globe.
It is only with this that Western countries have come to understand the pressing and very real threat that Russia and China pose. It has become apparent to them that a crisis breaking out in the Taiwan Strait would not be another chapter in the Chinese Civil War, it would be a conflict between the two sovereign nations of China and Taiwan, and a clash between democracy and authoritarianism. In this scenario, Taiwan would be cast as a soldier on the front line, defending the free world.
Taiwan is not a “core interest” of China, nor is it China’s “internal issue.” It is a core issue for the free world, as a defender of universal values.
The US government has recently said that it does not take a stance on the question of Taiwan’s sovereignty. US President Joe Biden has not only said on several occasions that the US would send troops to defend Taiwan if it were attacked, he has also said that the issue of Taiwan’s independence is for Taiwanese to decide.
In addition, the intent of the US’ draft Taiwan policy act is based on the idea of Taiwan as a sovereign nation, and seeks to strengthen the relations between the two countries.
From this it is clear that Western countries, with the US at the helm, are successively abandoning their long-held prejudices against Taiwan and are finally beginning to regard it as a sovereign nation. They are now offering assistance in the face of Chinese intimidation, aware of the need to maintain peace and security in the Taiwan Strait.
However, in Taiwan, Ma continues to maintain a view on sovereignty still tethered to the mentality of a civil war between the Chinese communists and the KMT. He has falsely claimed that both sides of the Strait belong to “one China,” ignoring historical developments and remaining locked in the past, ignoring Taiwan’s collective progress over the past few decades.
Ma’s comments led United Microelectronics Corp founder Robert Tsao (曹興誠) to retort that the name “Taiwan” must replace that of the “ROC” if Taiwanese are to divest themselves of the legacy of the civil war.
This year’s Taiwan National Day is a turning point for the nation, marking its emergence from the pandemic and its embrace of the light ahead. The nation has worked for Taiwan’s glory, and Taiwan’s glory belongs to the whole nation. As such, the looming threat of China must be faced and overcome by the nation as a whole.
This is the vision that can forge a population that is Taiwanese through-and-through, and can welcome a national day that truly belongs to Taiwanese.
Translated by Lin Yi-hung and Paul Cooper
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