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Sept 30, 2003 The big event in East Asian news that went unreported by our illustrious "end of our nose is the end of our world" press was the recent demonstration of 50,000 demonstrators in Taipei, Taiwan. These demonstrators were there demanding the name of the nation be formally changed from Republic of China, Taiwan to just Taiwan. Taiwan is considered by the People's Republic of China to be a "rogue province" and thus an "internal issue" and thus the world should but out. Much of what the Communist government in Beijing does is considered "their business" and your not to form a judgment about it. We shouldn't pass judgment on the occupation of Tibet, the call for democracy in Tiananmen Square, the reeducation schools that are alive and well, the one child policy, the harvesting of prisoners' organs for the black market, the underhanded attempt to erode civil liberties in Hong Kong and the missiles aimed at the 23 million people of Taiwan. Yes, if I was Taiwanese I'd rush back to the "mainland" and pray that I could become part of all that. The truth is that Taiwan has never been part of the People's Republic of China (PRC), Taiwan was part of the Japanese empire from 1895 to 1945 then at the end of World War II Taiwan became part of the Republic of China which at the time was under the leadership of the Nationalist (Koumintang) party led by Chiang Kia-Shek. At the end of the civil war between the Nationalist and the Communists led by Mao Zedong, the Nationalist who lost fled to Taiwan and continued the existence of the Republic of China. Mao's communist party set up the People's Republic of China, and never recognized Taiwan as anything more then a rogue Chinese province that would one day "return" to the PRC either through "peaceful" means or by force. Chiang Kai-Shek led Taiwan in an authoritarian manner, but in no way was he responsible for the deaths of over 20 million people as Mao and his communist thugs were as they forced their dogma on the people of the PRC. The one thing that both Mao and Chiang could agree on is that there was one China although each thought that they were the one leading the real China. Taiwan is who the free world recognized as the real China until President Nixon's famous trip to Beijing in 1972 caused realignment in US and 1st world foreign policy. Relations between the USSR and the PRC had not only cooled they had frozen over thus the West took advantage of an opportunity to gain a new ally against the evil empire. Unfortunately this meant that Taiwan as the Republic of China was no longer recognized as China by much of the world. Thus China replaced Taiwan at the UN, yep throw away the nation on its way to democracy for yet another tyrant driven nation, yeah that sounds pretty much like the UN's, MO. So we find ourselves here, Taiwan became a full-fledged democracy in 1989 and the People's Republic of China is still the tyranny it always was but has found itself in need of foreign capital and thus has become the home to cheap labor in its special economic zones. These are areas that capitalism is allowed to exist in so that the government in Beijing can build up its military and keep the communist party on life support. So we arrive back at the present, a present where Taiwan sits off the shore of the Peoples Republic of China living under the constant threat of invasion by China if they proclaim themselves an independent sovereign nation. Though they also live under the threat of invasion if they wait too long to proclaim themselves a full-fledged nation. Right now Taiwan is at a military and economic advantage against the PRC, Taiwan practices capitalism and thus is a much richer nation then China also Taiwan has advanced military technology bought from Western nations including American F16's and French Mirage fighter planes as well as a strong navy. The coast of Taiwan is fortified against a Chinese sea invasion and Taiwan is itself under the protection of the USA and its nuclear umbrella. These factors have protected Taiwan from China and have allowed it to flourish while China under communism suffered famine and economic disaster. The fortunes of the PRC started to turn around under economic reform and an understanding that if China was to play a part in the world then it could not continue on it's isolationist course. This is one of the reasons that Taiwan is so feared by China and why it tries so hard to bully Taiwan into submission. Taiwan is threatening to the PRC because it disproves everything Beijing rants on about. Taiwan is a democratic free market success, with a rule of law, the PRC is a relic of the cold war desperately searching for new convictions to hold on to. "Today's event is a self-awakening movement of the people. "For a long period of time, we let the external forces determine how we should live. We can't let history block democracy and the development of the country any more," so says former Taiwanese President Lee Teng-Hui speaking to the 50,000 strong crowd that gathered in Taipei. If we truly believe in the right of self determination as we have shown and stated that we believe in this right for the Eastern Europeans, the Chinese, the Iraqis, the Tibetans, the black South Africans, and so many others then we must also hold this belief to be true for the Taiwanese. The idea that Western values are not applicable to Asian nations especially China is nothing more then racist twaddle exposed by the hopelessly elitist and the dim. There was a time when many people spoke of "Asian capitalism," and how it was different from Capitalism, that time was when the Asian markets where steaming ahead, when the Asian markets began to stall and slip the idea of Asian capitalism as separate and different from capitalism also went. The idea that straightforward democracy and capitalism cannot exist in Asia is a lie and nations like Taiwan, Japan, and South Korea prove it. When we create this idea of separate but equal or separate but superior we take away from the simple fact that all people wish to live freely and have a say in the way they live. We can choose to be fooled by people like Stalin, Mao, or Saddam, or we can choose what we know to be self-evident. The Chinese government has gained a taste for the dollar, pound, yen and euro and they like it. We must use this to our advantage. When they scream that our leaders should not meet with Chinese dissidents or Tibetans or Taiwanese businessmen and politicians we must remind them in the words of the last British Governor of Hong Kong, Christopher Pattan "we spin their wheels," they need us more then we need them. They need our capital flow, we can find other places to make our products. We must throw their human rights record in their face and remind them constantly of our values, we must never apologize for them. We must not allow those amongst us who put the dollar before their convictions to silence us. Those who see 1 billion people and see the potential for cash flowing back into their accounts. Lets get real, does anyone really believe that 1 billion Chinese most of whom will still be farmers for the foreseeable future will be able to afford our products? Even if a sizable middle class emerges sometime in the distant future if the PRC does not float its currency then it will be worth too little for the average person to have purchasing power parity with any of the 1st World nations. In our international dealing with PRC we must be tough and firm, for it is what they respect and it is what they respond to. Taiwan is the bird that flew away years ago, it is not an internal matter of the PRC anymore then South Korea is the internal matter of Japan. We must continue to aid Taiwan militarily, we must act not because of what we can do but because of who we are "the city upon the hill" whose light has shown the way for countless millions trapped behind iron curtains and great walls. We must remember although it may not be as fashionable to say it, that Tibet isn't the only one worth saving! Taiwan is free, democratic and independent and its rights and its sovereignty must be recognized and preserved by whatever means necessary. We must remember the PRC fears Taiwan and when evil fears something, as Martha Stewart would say, "it's a good thing." In the words of Confucius "not to act when justice commands, that is cowardice," we can never afford to forget this. ------------ About the author: Ian Reilly is a recent graduate of Marymount Manhattan College where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Humanities with a concentration in International Studies. He was born and raised in New York City, New York. Email Ian Reilly: McUKFrog@aol.com Comment on this column in the forum. Tell a friend about this site! ------------ |
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