Ukraine-born Taiwanese entertainer Larisa Bakurova obtained her national ID card and became a “new Taiwanese resident” in 2019. After marrying a Taiwanese and founding the Rising Star Rhythmic Gymnastics Association in 2020, she has dedicated her time to tutoring local gymnasts.
In July, she led young gymnasts to participate in international competitions in Turkey and Spain, bagging 19 gold, 7 silver and 2 bronze medals.
Bakurova was reportedly being considered by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) for a legislator-at-large seat, but according to the Nationality Act (國籍法), new residents have to undergo the naturalization process for more than 10 years to be eligible for running for legislator.
As Bakurova received her Alien Permanent Resident Certificate in 2013, acquired Taiwanese citizenship at the end of 2016 and forfeited Ukrainian citizenship and obtained a national ID card in 2019, it is a pity that by next year, she would not be eligible to stand for legislator.
XU CHUNYING
Xu Chunying (徐春鶯), a Chinese national married to a Taiwanese, who Taiwan People’s Party Chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) claims he has never met, has reportedly been considered for the party’s list of legislator-at-large nominees.
She has resided in Taiwan since 1993, started a family here more than 30 years ago and has also assumed the chair of the Taiwan New Residents’ Development Association.
Yet Xu claims that since the two sides of the Taiwan Strait do not have a “state-to-state” relationship, she does not have to forfeit her Chinese citizenship. She even retorted with the remark that people should not assume that all Chinese spouses are communist spies.
It is hard to imagine how much more unruly she would become if elected legislator.
If the two sides of the Strait do not have a de facto state-to-state relationship, Xu need not be a legislator of the Republic of China (ROC). As Taiwan is having its presidential election next year, there would have been no need for it if Taiwan is not considered a “state.”
If a Chinese spouse truly identifies with Taiwan with her words and actions, then she would be a new Taiwanese citizen, and no one would think of her as a Chinese communist spy. Xu’s statement sounds a lot like Ko, who has a proclivity for political mudslinging.
‘STATE-TO-STATE’
In 1999, then-president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) defined the island’s relations with China as “special state-to-state relations.” In August, when discussing the cross-strait relationship, Ko said that “special” can be kept, but urged people to refrain from saying “state-to-state” relations.
Is Ko running for president of the Republic of China or special governor of Taiwan province?
TWO IDEOLOGIES
Forfeiting her Ukrainian citizenship to become a new Taiwanese resident, Bakurova has worked hard to develop Taiwan’s rhythmic gymnastics. Xu, in her haughtiness and unruliness, is a new Taiwanese resident who does not identify with Taiwan and has only been acting as a Chinese mouthpiece.
The DPP and TPP’s respective consideration of Bakurova and Xu as legislator-at-large candidates reveal the two parties’ contrasting ideologies and attitudes towards China. It is the perfect opportunity to see which party is the one truly defending Taiwan’s interests, and in this case, it is the DPP, without question.
Lin Han is a junior-high school teacher.
Translated by Rita Wang
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