After President William Lai (賴清德) in his inaugural address said China and Taiwan are not subordinate to one another, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) used the opportunity to carry out military exercises around Taiwan.
However, the phrase “not subordinate to one another” does not in any way carry a particular risk of elevating conflict between the two sides, nor friction between Taiwan’s governing and opposition parties, as the phrase is relatively toned down. Former presidents Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) have made similar statements.
The issue is that international trends are shifting. Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) has ambitions of world hegemony and is trying to find a vantage point through a trifecta with the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) to cause disarray in Taiwan. The parties have started an all-out blood feud within Taiwan’s political ecosystem.
Taiwanese in the 1950s faced false imprisonment and a dictatorial regime under the KMT’s authoritarian party-state. Those who resisted “disappeared” in the middle of the night to black site prisons where they were tortured and, in many cases, were executed by firing squad. Even after 70 years of such treatment, in a free and democratic Taiwan, people are still having to fight against two odious Chinas — pro-China proponents and China. Only after the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) broke the party-state system did Taiwan progress — via positions supporting Taiwan’s independence, to the DPP’s Resolution on Taiwan’s Future (台灣前途決議文) — to become the “Republic of China, Taiwan.”
The “Taiwanese spirit” of groups resisting the KMT has gradually been broken down, sold off, ripped up or drowned out. Groups that had ardently supported the DPP began forming schisms from new ideas and political thought. The DPP administration should not forget those who paved the way. They should solidify Taiwanese consciousness and shatter the KMT’s and TPP’s ambitions and subterfuge.
On May 17, the Bluebird movement was formed, expressing opposition to the KMT and TPP’s efforts to abide by the CCP’s whims in expanding legislative powers and proposing laws beneficial to China. The movement is a display of civic group strength. When Hong Kongers rallied against an extradition bill that would send suspects directly to China, hundreds of thousands of people voiced their response. However, the CCP intervened with a heavy hand and dirty tactics, and the region’s dreams were shattered.
The DPP government has attempted to get along with the KMT to unite the country. Under transitional justice, remnants of the authoritarian party-state faded and the KMT’s ill-gotten assets were pursued. However, this pushed the KMT further into the arms of the CCP, who are only too willing to use the it to tear down the DPP. The KMT exchanged sincere governance for ruthlessness.
Taiwanese who have long supported the DPP are reluctant to abandon it and have no regrets when the party’s tent expands. The Taiwanese spirit within elderly people is alive and well, and this is something everyone should respect and admire. The Bluebird movement — composed mostly of younger Taiwanese — is ready to take hold of the baton, coalescing into one group of old, middle and younger generations that stands up for Taiwan.
If the DPP’s techniques and strategies to fight and resist the KMT fall short, then Taiwanese should sincerely appeal for the DPP to consolidate, awaken the Taiwanese spirit and make democratic allies overseas. By doing so, Taiwanese could adequately resist the insidious KMT-TPP-CCP authoritarian trifecta plaguing Taiwan.
Chen Ching-kuen is an assistant professor.
Translated by Tim Smith
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