China is putting pressure on president-elect Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) two months before her inauguration on May 20. Beijing does not want to give up, although the pro-China policies promoted by President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) have been rejected by Taiwanese. It continues to define the so-called “1992 consensus” as the bottom line in bilateral relations and tries to force the incoming government to accept the “one China” principle.
On Friday last week, China’s Taiwan Affairs Office Minister Zhang Zhijun (張志軍) said at the Boao Forum for Asia that the touchstone for bilateral relations is how people treat the “1992 consensus” and define cross-strait ties.
Zhang said that “the ball is in the other court [Taiwan],” requesting an answer from Tsai.
Beijing continues to play the same old tune, which proves yet again that you cannot teach an old dog new tricks.
China is not only displeased with, but also worried over, Tsai’s refusal to accept the “1992 consensus.”
Ever since Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) said, more than a year ago, that “if the foundation [the ‘1992 consensus’] is not solid, the earth will move and the mountains will shake,” Beijing has been trying to force Tsai and her Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) to accept the “1992 consensus.”
Apart from issuing verbal threats, Beijing has used Taiwanese pro-China media outlets and the like-minded Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) to threaten Taiwanese voters with disastrous consequences if they do not accept the so-called consensus.
China has met its Waterloo, just as the KMT suffered a major defeat in the Jan. 16 elections, because Taiwanese are used to hearing China’s verbal attacks: The threat of using military force to influence the outcome of elections lost its efficacy a long time ago. The outdated trick can no longer fool post-Sunflower movement Taiwan.
Also, despite its acceptance of the “1992 consensus,” the KMT has not dared to make its own interpretation of the so-called “one China” principle. Since the party has not only hurt national dignity, but also disappointed the public, voters showed their discontent through their votes.
Even pan-blue talk show host Jaw Shaw-kong (趙少康) criticized the party for leaning toward China, saying: “Did the KMT say a word about the arrest of five staff members of Causeway Bay Books in Hong Kong or about the territory’s fight for democracy?”
Taiwan and China did hold talks in 1992, but they failed to reach a consensus on “one China.” Beijing refused to admit the existence of a consensus and then-Mainland Affairs Council minister Su Chi (蘇起) invented the term in 2000. Repeating a lie does not make it the truth, but surprisingly, both the KMT and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) treat the phrase as a foundation for steering the “one China” idea.
It is difficult for Taiwanese to accept the situation, which only serves to highlight the lack of progress in the two parties.
Since voters made their opinion clear in the presidential and legislative elections, China should face Taiwanese in a pragmatic way to help cross-strait relations develop smoothly.
However, Beijing has failed to do so. Instead, it keeps intimidating Taiwan and takes unfriendly actions, using Tsai’s inaugural speech as a pressure point in an attempt to force Taiwan to accept the “one China” condition.
China’s recent maneuvering on the diplomatic front is a good example of this: Resuming diplomatic ties with the Gambia and opposing US support for Taiwan’s bid to enter Interpol. The actions show that the “one China” doctrine is so rigid that Beijing would stand against Taiwanese public opinion at any cost. They have also exposed the emptiness of Ma’s “flexible diplomacy,” which is a ploy aimed at deceiving both the government itself and everyone else.
This would not send Taiwanese into a panic over a potential wave of severed diplomatic relations, but it would deepen their dislike for China, as well as bringing about a pragmatic evaluation of the nation’s diplomatic allies and a move toward closer relations with democracies such as the US and Japan.
China is turning its back on Taiwanese public opinion because of the CCP’s nature and because its way of doing things as a united front is running into problems. The party’s authoritarian and dictatorial qualities cause it regard democracy and dissent as enemies, and this fills it with hostility and covetous ambition toward democratic Taiwan. It has organized united fronts against Taiwan through its political and business representatives in the nation, but the public is irritated by the fact that all the profits are going into the representatives’ pockets.
In addition, China has opposed Taiwanese public opinion through smear campaigns directed by pro-Chinese media outlets and it has hurt Taiwanese’s feelings by oppressing the nation in the international community.
As a result, the public’s dislike for China has grown, as it has been growing in Hong Kong. Perhaps China should reflect over its own actions and ask itself why neighboring nations are taking a dislike to it during its rise to become a major power.
A Chinese saying goes: “Keep those close to you happy and those who are distant will soon join you.”
However, China is doing the opposite. Despite its status as a major global power, it is unable to make a favorable impression on other nations.
Since Tsai was elected in a landslide victory, she would be able to speak on behalf of the nation in her inaugural address, highlighting Taiwan’s status as a sovereign state.
Even if the US is concerned with the content of her speech, it is unlikely that Washington would intervene publicly.
However, China repeatedly intervened in her upcoming speech by commenting on what she should and should not say, setting preconditions, drawing “red lines” and making irresponsible remarks both directly and indirectly, which is causing irritation among Taiwanese.
It would be impossible for Tsai to please all sides with her inaugural address, so she should prioritize her responsibility toward Taiwanese. More importantly, Taiwanese have no claims over the territories of neighboring nations, including China, nor do they force others to be Taiwanese.
At a time when a new president is about to take office and a new political situation is about to begin, Taiwan should declare to the international community that although it is facing difficulties, it deserves a higher level of recognition. It would benefit peace and prosperity not only in East Asia, but in the entire world.
In terms of cross-strait relations between Taiwan and China, the threat of conflict never comes from Taiwan and obstacles to the relationship are not caused by it. In other words, the ball is, in fact, in China’s court.
Translated by Eddy Chang
World leaders are preparing themselves for a second Donald Trump presidency. Some leaders know more or less where he stands: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy knows that a difficult negotiation process is about to be forced on his country, and the leaders of NATO countries would be well aware of being complacent about US military support with Trump in power. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would likely be feeling relief as the constraints placed on him by the US President Joe Biden administration would finally be released. However, for President William Lai (賴清德) the calculation is not simple. Trump has surrounded himself
US president-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday named US Representative Mike Waltz, a vocal supporter of arms sales to Taiwan who has called China an “existential threat,” as his national security advisor, and on Thursday named US Senator Marco Rubio, founding member of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China — a global, cross-party alliance to address the challenges that China poses to the rules-based order — as his secretary of state. Trump’s appointments, including US Representative Elise Stefanik as US ambassador to the UN, who has been a strong supporter of Taiwan in the US Congress, and Robert Lighthizer as US trade
Following the BRICS summit held in Kazan, Russia, last month, media outlets circulated familiar narratives about Russia and China’s plans to dethrone the US dollar and build a BRICS-led global order. Each summit brings renewed buzz about a BRICS cross-border payment system designed to replace the SWIFT payment system, allowing members to trade without using US dollars. Articles often highlight the appeal of this concept to BRICS members — bypassing sanctions, reducing US dollar dependence and escaping US influence. They say that, if widely adopted, the US dollar could lose its global currency status. However, none of these articles provide
On Friday last week, tens of thousands of young Chinese took part in a bike ride overnight from Henan Province’s Zhengzhou (鄭州) to the historical city of Kaifeng in search of breakfast. The night ride became a viral craze after four female university students in June chronicled their ride on social media from Zhengzhou in search of soup dumplings in Kaifeng. Propelled by the slogan “youth is priceless,” the number of nocturnal riders surged to about 100,000 on Friday last week. The main road connecting the two cities was crammed with cyclists as police tried to maintain order. That sparked
RSS