As the Russian invasion of Ukraine drags on, and with Hamas and Israel still engaged in a serious conflict, the world has been thrown into disarray. Even though there is no telling where the next ambitious leader would start a new war, online media company Insider would not have called Southeast Asia the most dangerous region on Earth without reason. As Taiwan is constantly harassed by a warmongering neighbor, January’s presidential election is to be conducted on the brink of war.
China’s lack of action is not because it lacks ambition, as its ambition is felt throughout the global community, prompting the US, the UK, Japan and others to warn it that they oppose any unilateral changes to the “status quo.”
Facing pushback, Beijing is merely biding its time for the right moment to strike.
The presidential election is an opportunity for China to sow discord, deceive, and send in its proxies and puppets, actions that have far more potential to bring about its goals than bullets and guns.
With signs that China’s proxies were pulling the strings in the “blue-white alliance” debacle, US President Joe Biden told Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) at a meeting in San Francisco that Beijing must not interfere in the election.
China feigned innocence in the face of Washington’s concern.
It seems that Jan. 13 is another front in the US-China rivalry, as well as when Taiwanese decide the route the nation would take.
The difference between democracy and communism is that they bring out the best and the worst in humanity respectively. The rivalry leads inevitably to conflict.
With pro-US or pro-China presidential candidates, the outcome of the vote would be interpreted as Taiwan siding with democracy or communism.
With the threat of a Chinese invasion hanging over the nation, the election would decide whether Taiwan would bolster its combat readiness or wave the white flag and beg for mercy.
Taiwanese face a decision over what kind of political regime they want: a state leader directly elected by more than 10 million people or one chosen by a rubber-stamp government of fewer than 3,000 representatives in Beijing’s Great Hall of the People.
Rich people face a decision about having complete control over their wealth, or relinquishing control of their assets to promote common prosperity.
The military, civil servants and teachers should also think twice, as they must choose between holding on to democracy and freedom or being “re-educated” to love the Chinese Communist Party to keep their job.
Do those who struggle to make ends meet want the freedom to live in a vibrant, modern urban environment where they have a change to get ahead, or would they rather be ignored and forgotten by their government?
I hope Taiwanese are ready to make the right choice.
Chang Kuo-tsai is a retired associate professor at National Hsinchu University of Education.
Translated by Rita Wang
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