Why I Love Taiwan
And why you should too!
This piece is all about why I love Taiwan and why you should, too! I have a personal connection to Taiwan. During my freshman summer, I had the privilege of studying abroad in Taipei for one month. The food, sights, people, culture, everything was beautiful. It was one of the most eye-opening I have ever had. To give a brief history of Taiwan, I want to break it down into three periods. This will not be an extensive detailed explanation; if you want that, I won’t be able to provide that for you in this column.
Japanese Rule: 1895 - 1945
After being defeated in the First Sino-Japanese War, the Qing Dynasty signed over the island (at the time Formosa) in the Treaty of Shimonoseki. Unlike under the Qing Dynasty, life was moderately better under Japanese rule as economic conditions improved due to Taiwan serving as a gateway to the rest of Asia. The residents, especially those born during this period, underwent a period of “Japanization” due to imperial Japan's suppression of local popular identity/cultural movements and incentives provided by the Japanese government to Taiwanese to adopt Japanese customs and religion. Massive industrialization occurred under Japanese rule as Japan was ahead of the rest of Asia. The cultural destruction and Japan’s debated use of comfort women in the region stained this period in Taiwanese history. This period came to an end with the defeat of Japan during WWII.
Republic of China & Martial Law: 1945-1991
Taiwan was handed over to the ROC at the end of WWII. Citizens were not thrilled with their new rulers as they now had even less political independence. Political dissent culminated in the 228 incident, a massacre carried out by the Chinese Nationalist Party, the Kuomintang, at the behest of leader Chiang-Kai-Shek; roughly three to four thousand people died. In 1948, Chiang-Kai-Shek and the KMT were on the losing end of a civil war in mainland China and retreated along with over a million people to the island of Taiwan. From 1949 until 1987, Taiwan had the most prolonged period of martial law in history, a period marked by “white terror.” The KMT worried about internal dissent wrongfully detained and killed numerous citizens of Taiwan. Think of a more severe version of our red scare in America, but enacted by an authoritarian government that had just lost a civil war. For some time, the Republic of China (Taiwan) was the internationally recognized China and had a seat on the UN Security Council. This ended in 1971 with UN Resolution 2758, which recognized the PRC as the one true China, admitting them to the UN but removing the ROC (Taiwan) altogether.
Following the resolution, America’s triangular relationship with China and Taiwan was defined by the Three Communiqués, formal opening, and normalization of relations between China and America, but continued yet unofficial ties between Taiwan and America. Highlights include acknowledging only one China between the strait, the desire to open up economic partnership between the US and China, the fact that arms sales would continue to Taiwan from the US, and the fact that only a peaceful resolution to the “Taiwan issue” was acceptable.
This period was also marked by numerous democratic movements that culminated with the formation of the Democratic Progressive Party in the 80s and the Wild Lily Movement, a student-powered one that protested the election of President Lee Tung-Hui, as they desired direct elections for all legislative positions.
Birth of Democracy in Taiwan: 1991-Present
Lee Tung-Hui would go on to be the father of democracy in Taiwan and was the first directly elected president on the island in 1996. The Democratic Progressive Party gained political power and became the leading voice in maintaining the independence of the island through Taiwanese Nationalism and social progressivism, becoming the first country in Asia to legalize gay marriage. The first female president in the nation’s history, Tsai Ing-Wen, a DPP politician, was sworn into office in 2016. President Tsai’s administration focused on many efforts, but two key ones were increased defense spending and indigenous rights efforts. Lastly, I would be remiss if I did not mention the Sunflower Student Movement, which opposed the Cross-Strait Service Trade Agreement, a pact that they perceived would lower Taiwanese independence and identity. The students succeeded, continuing majorly impactful youth movements in Taiwan.
Why you should love Taiwan!
Taiwan is a miracle of Democracy. Having at one point the longest period of martial law, then through a period of protest and student movements turned into a liberal Democracy, ranked as one of the freest nations in all of Asia, let alone the world. The island is worth protecting by virtue of their right to self-determination, but such virtue is enhanced by their success in creating a fantastic society. Taiwan (ROC) has never been governed by the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The PRC arose in the wake of winning a civil war and has never held control over Taiwan. That they assert sovereignty over the island is a manifest of pure fiction, only serving their expansionist desires. Why should the PRC get to do whatever it wants and subvert its will upon Taiwan? It should not! If the United States truly stands as a beacon of freedom and justice worldwide, it is in our ideological interest to defend Taiwan. President Biden (to the dismay of his intelligence agencies) has outwardly said we would protect the island with US forces in the case of a Chinese invasion. Trump will be much worse for the island (a topic I will cover in a later article), but the best bulwark against that is domestic support for Taiwan now!
Standing with them is the right thing to do, and I implore you to read up even more. If the above history and ask are not enough to convince you of the greatness of Taiwan, I would like to give you a personal anecdote I had while abroad in 2019.
I was by myself and on my way back to my international dormitory from the Shilin Night Market. With my basic Mandarin at the time, I had a great time at the market and successfully got myself through two metro stops, which led me to my final bus stop, which would drop me off at my dorm. Unfortunately, my knowledge failed me at this point, and I could not figure out which bus to get on based on the bus routes on the map. It was at this point that I asked two Taiwanese college students who were also standing at the stop for help.
Not only did they quickly figure out which bus I needed to get on, but they waited with me for it to arrive. While we stood there, they cheerfully asked me why I was in Taiwan, where I was from, and what my background was. They helped flag down the bus and waited for me to get on. I have no idea if the bus they needed to get on came before or after mine, but the attention and help they gave a foreigner was very kind. I will never forget my time at that bus stop for as long as I have lived.
The people I met there, including the college student assistants at National Chengchi University, were some of the most vibrant and curious people I have ever met. It was my desire to return to Taiwan more in my college years, but the pandemic threw a wrench into those plans.
So please, when the time comes for you to use your voice to support Taiwan against its pariah fate and China’s imperialist goals, do not waiver in your commitment to liberal democracy and the self-determination of the Taiwanese people.
Happy Holidays, everyone!
-Lex
