President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) attitude toward the most powerless segment of society, the Aborigines, gives an interesting insight into his view of the world.
In an attitude similar to the way white supremacists treat black Americans, during a Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Central Standing Committee meeting last week, Ma said that Aborigines were not ready for autonomy, but added that they should be praised for their skills in the fields of sports and music.
Aboriginal activists rightfully protested Ma’s statement, as it not only broke a campaign promise to them, but also demonstrated that he thinks of Aborigines as children who must be guided and applauded for minor achievements, but never set free to reach their full potential. His attitude toward Taiwan’s original inhabitants smacks of the “white man’s burden” used during the colonial era to justify Western dominance of non-Western peoples. Indeed, it could be called the “Han Chinese burden.”
This prejudicial attitude Ma holds toward Aborigines is extended to foreigners, who he accuses of ignorance when it comes to Taiwan, even those who have a proven expertise on Taiwanese society. When former American Institute in Taiwan chairman Nat Bellocchi and others put their names to an open letter criticizing the Ma administration for referring the alleged mishandling of state papers by former Democratic Progressive Party officials to the Control Yuan, Ma’s spokesman implied that they were ignorant foreigners who didn’t know enough about Taiwan to comment. That misrepresentation of the open letter came despite the fact that most of the signatories are well-known experts on Taiwanese affairs. His comments seem to indicate that Ma thinks one has to be Han Chinese to be considered qualified to comment on Taiwanese society.
Another prejudice the president holds is his deference toward China, assuming that anything Chinese is good and that Beijing does not deserve rebuke as it cracks down on its own citizens because it is a necessity when governing the world’s most populous country.
This everything-Chinese-is-good attitude goes so far that Ma’s government has pushed Taiwan to the brink of absorption by a tyrannical neighbor. Under Ma, Taiwan’s schools have acquired a pro-China slant, the economy has all but been “unified” with that of China and most of the rest of the world has dropped any pretense of support for Taiwan’s autonomy.
Ma is guided by a narrow view of the world that prevents him from seeing reality. Instead of recognizing the achievements Aborigines have made — in many fields — Ma sees misguided inferiors who need the beneficial hand of a “Han” leader to guide their way. Instead of heeding the advice of foreign academics who base their constructive criticism of the government on solid research and experience, Ma sees ignorant outsiders that should keep their mouths shut. Instead of panning a repressive one-party government in Beijing that should be condemned for jailing and torturing its citizens and blocking the free flow of information, Ma cozies up to what he sees as a big brother who should be looked up to and emulated.
Like any prejudice, Ma’s view of the world prevents him from thinking about it critically and causes him to make serious mistakes when formulating policies. Those erroneous policies have also allowed, if not encouraged, the rest of the world to slowly abandon Taiwan, while China opens its arms to receive them in a bear hug of death.
“Taiwan, province of China” is a fiction that is fast becoming reality, sped up by Ma’s misguided Han-chauvinistic policies.
Concerns that the US might abandon Taiwan are often overstated. While US President Donald Trump’s handling of Ukraine raised unease in Taiwan, it is crucial to recognize that Taiwan is not Ukraine. Under Trump, the US views Ukraine largely as a European problem, whereas the Indo-Pacific region remains its primary geopolitical focus. Taipei holds immense strategic value for Washington and is unlikely to be treated as a bargaining chip in US-China relations. Trump’s vision of “making America great again” would be directly undermined by any move to abandon Taiwan. Despite the rhetoric of “America First,” the Trump administration understands the necessity of
In an article published on this page on Tuesday, Kaohsiung-based journalist Julien Oeuillet wrote that “legions of people worldwide would care if a disaster occurred in South Korea or Japan, but the same people would not bat an eyelid if Taiwan disappeared.” That is quite a statement. We are constantly reading about the importance of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), hailed in Taiwan as the nation’s “silicon shield” protecting it from hostile foreign forces such as the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), and so crucial to the global supply chain for semiconductors that its loss would cost the global economy US$1
US President Donald Trump’s challenge to domestic American economic-political priorities, and abroad to the global balance of power, are not a threat to the security of Taiwan. Trump’s success can go far to contain the real threat — the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) surge to hegemony — while offering expanded defensive opportunities for Taiwan. In a stunning affirmation of the CCP policy of “forceful reunification,” an obscene euphemism for the invasion of Taiwan and the destruction of its democracy, on March 13, 2024, the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) used Chinese social media platforms to show the first-time linkage of three new
Sasha B. Chhabra’s column (“Michelle Yeoh should no longer be welcome,” March 26, page 8) lamented an Instagram post by renowned actress Michelle Yeoh (楊紫瓊) about her recent visit to “Taipei, China.” It is Chhabra’s opinion that, in response to parroting Beijing’s propaganda about the status of Taiwan, Yeoh should be banned from entering this nation and her films cut off from funding by government-backed agencies, as well as disqualified from competing in the Golden Horse Awards. She and other celebrities, he wrote, must be made to understand “that there are consequences for their actions if they become political pawns of