A recall drive against Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators is a “waste of time and money,” a business association representative said on Monday at an event held by the Straits Exchange Foundation.
“Those who are in charge should not make waves, and the Taiwanese business community is against a massive recall of legislators, because it is a waste of people’s time and money,” Xiamen Taiwanese Business Association vice chairman Yeh Yung-sung (葉永松) said at the event, at which President William Lai (賴清德) spoke.
Yeh’s comment is problematic for several reasons. First, telling democratically elected Lai not to “make waves” is reminiscent of the type of rhetoric one would expect from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and its supporters. Of course, this is not surprising, as a business association — especially one that represents Taiwanese businesspeople — could not operate in China without the consent of the CCP.
It is a democratic right of Taiwanese to seek the removal from office of elected officials they deem harmful to the public interest. For the head of an influential business association to tell Taiwanese that a legitimate recall drive is “making waves” is arguably tantamount to interfering with a democratic process. Perhaps Yeh believes the interests of the Taiwanese business community supersede those of the general public. That might be the case in authoritarian China, but it is not the case in democratic Taiwan.
While the public wants Taiwanese companies to succeed, the situation concerning Taiwanese businesses in China is not clear-cut. Taiwan’s largest company by output is Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), for which the Chinese market represents only about 13 percent of its revenue. The company has also begun producing chips at fabs in the US, with plans to start making 4-nanometer chips there this year and 2-nanometer chips by the end of the decade.
MediaTek Inc and Hon Hai Precision Industry Co, also known as Foxconn Technology Group — Taiwan’s second and third-largest companies respectively — have also begun to diversify manufacturing and reduce dependency on the Chinese market. Part of the reason for that move is the US-China trade war, which does not seem likely to abate in the short term, given new US tariffs on Chinese goods.
Yeh seems to be accusing the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) of being behind the recall drive, which was initiated by a civil group. Even though DPP caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) has expressed support for the drive, the turnout at several protests against the legislature’s passage of controversial bills over the past year shows that the public is displeased with what has been perceived as an abuse by the KMT and the Taiwan People’s Party of their legislative majority.
Regardless of the Fujian-based association’s political stance, it is unable to protect Taiwanese businesspeople in China, who give up their personal agency in doing so. Mainland Affairs Council Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said that China’s Taiwan Affairs Office blocked Taiwanese businesspeople in Shanghai from returning to Taiwan to attend Monday’s event.
Beijing frequently reiterates its inflexible position on Taiwan’s sovereignty, and its plans for the unification of Taiwan and China — through force if necessary. It is inherently impossible for any business that relies on the Chinese market for the majority of its revenue to have the best interests of Taiwanese in mind. Therefore, it is exceedingly unlikely that the China-based association’s views on a recall drive in Taiwan align with those of Taiwanese.
The Lai administration should extend whatever assistance it can to Taiwanese businesspeople in China, but make clear the dangers of operating there and provide incentives for Taiwanese businesses to exit the Chinese market.
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