Chi Mei Optoelectronics Corp and other companies associated with pro-independence businessmen aren't welcome in China, the Communist Party mouthpiece People's Daily said, signaling China may use its economic clout to try to snuff out "separatist sentiment."
"The mainland very much welcomes the majority of Taiwanese business people who love the motherland," the paper said, adding that their businesses would get preferential treatment.
But China doesn't want investment from Chi Mei Chairman Hsu Wen-long (
`ANTI-CHINESE BIGOT'
The front-page editorial attacked Hsu, founder of Chi Mei Corp, as a "shameless" anti-Chinese bigot.
The editorial implied that Hsu was using profits from his petrochemical and optoelectronics businesses in China to fund pro-independence politicians -- including President Chen Shui-bian (
Hsu, a known supporter of the Democratic Progressive Party, has frequently criticized China's claims over Taiwan.
Shares in Chi Mei, which is planning its first plant in China, plunged by 6.9 percent -- just below the stock exchange's daily limit -- to NT$67.
Hsu, 76, the sixth-richest man in Taiwan according to Forbes magazine, has been a policy adviser to President Chen Shui-bian .
The People's Daily commentary didn't say what action China would take toward businesspeople perceived to favor independence.
"China is trying to send a message that it has many options: business sanctions, international isolation and military force," said Andrew Yang (
"They are squeezing the Taiwan economy to increase the pressure on Chen Shui-bian. Chen hasn't done anything to reassure them that he won't take steps in favor of independence," he said.
Chi Mei Optoelectronics last year approved plans to spend more than US$30 million on its first factory in China, finance manager Eddie Chen (
The newspaper didn't say whether China was considering direct retaliation against Chi Mei's businesses in China.
It runs a massive petrochemical complex in the southern city of Zhenjiang.
"We haven't received any official notice from China," Eddie Chen said, referring to the newspaper's criticism.
Hsu founded the Chi Mei Group in 1953 with a plastics factory and later expanded into petrochemicals, electronics, frozen foods and healthcare.
MAJOR INVESTMENTS
The conglomerate employs more than 10,000 people and had sales of more than US$3 billion in 2002, the year Chi Mei Optoelectronics became the first of the group to go public.
Three petrochemical plants and a shipping unit operate in China, the company Web site said.
The People's Daily editorial comes a week after a Chinese government spokesman said businesses supporting Taiwan's independence would "not be welcome to come make money in the mainland."
That was China's most explicit indication so far that it's monitoring Taiwanese investors' political views, and may use them to evaluate their fitness for doing business in China.
Despite a lack of official contact or direct transport links, Taiwanese have invested about US$100 billion in China since 1987. The companies sent US$55.7 billion from China back to Taiwan from 1993 to 2002.
China has avoided overt threats in the past, partly due to a need for Taiwanese investment, but also because Beijing believes Taiwan's growing economic reliance will help speed unification.
The People's Daily also accused Hsu of preferring to use Hoklo, commonly referred to as Taiwanese, or Japanese over the Mandarin dialect widely spoken in China.
It also criticized his friendship with Taiwan's former president, Lee Teng-hui, whom China vilifies for supporting Taiwanese independence.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College