ANDREA DAI

10/10/2018 - Taiwan (Republic of China, ROC) celebrated its 107th birthday on Wednesday, October 10, but this might be the toughest and the loneliest birthday it has ever been. 

 

To avoid confusion, let start with a short Chinese history. In 1911, a group of revolutionaries managed to overthrow the last imperial dynasty Qing, and established the first democratic republic in Asia, which was officially called Republic of China.

 

Republic of China had ruled mainland China for years, but things had changed dramatically after the second world war. In 1946, a civil war between the Republic of China government and communists led by Mao Ze-dong broke out. The Communists emerged victorious, and the Republic of China government retreated to Taiwan, leading to a two-Chinas situation: People’s Republic of China (PRC) in mainland China, and Republic of China in Taiwan.

 

Since then, China has never got easy on Taiwan, even though both of them have been self-ruling for decades. It drove Taiwan into an orphan in the world—having no official name, no friends, and no dignity. 

 

“There is only one China in this world.”

 

On April 25, the Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) of China sent a letter to 44 foreign airlines, pressuring them to change their references to Taiwan into “Taiwan, China,” instead of listing Taiwan as an independent nation. Dozens of airlines around the world have complied by the deadline on July 25, as no one wants to mess with the soon-to-be largest air-travel market.

 

Some airlines obscured their position by using currency or city names to refer to Taiwan. Such flexible approach stirred up China's rage, though.

 

"I just want to emphasize that there is only one China in the world, and Taiwan is a part of China," said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Hua Chun-ying(華春瑩) on August 30. "Any foreign company operating in China should comply to this."

 

Apparently, she was not just bluffing. 

 

China has been heavily breathing down on the neck of many international companies, and its stance of one-china-policy has become unprecedentedly harsh.

 

Earlier this year, a man posted a customer survey of Marriott International asking, "Which country do you live in?" on Weibo. Among provided options, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau and Tibet were listed separately from China. He furiously accused Marriott of disrespecting Chinese sovereignty. It soon drew Beijing's attention, and the people even called for a boycott. Having a major market in China, Marriott quickly apologized and immediately changed the name.

 

Before long, China became more aggressively, witch hunting every corporation that recognized Taiwan as a country. Fashion brand Zara and medical device maker Medtronic apologized to China because they listed Taiwan as a nation on drop-down menus. Clothing retailer GAP was involved in similar issues after launching a T-shirt showing a map of China without including Taiwan. 

 

It even racked over the ashes with Costco, whose Senior Vice President, Patrick Callans, clarified his attitude towards Taiwan sovereignty two years ago. Outraging Chinese netizens demanded an apology, accusing Costco of "being shameless and arrogant", according to People's Daily Overseas. 

 

The tech giant Apple was the latest company that was lashed out by China, because it did not refer Taiwan as Chinese territory during its annual press conference on September 13.

 

“Apple, what do you mean by this?”, asked the Chinese state-run tabloid Global Times.

 

But actually, the question that Taiwan wants to ask is: China, what do you mean by all these?

 

Next step: Isolation

 

Changing the references is not enough. The greedy neighbor wants Taiwan to be isolated from the world, living without official recognition. 

 

Since President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) along her the independence-leaning Democratic Party took office in 2016, Taiwan has lost five diplomatic allies, including Sao Tome and Principe in 2016 and Panama in 2017. The rest of the stories happened this year. 

 

Dominican Republic was the first one to drop ties with Taiwan, saying the switch would be “extraordinary positive for the future of our country.” Burkina Faso followed in the same footsteps in less than a month, which left Taiwan only one last ally—the Kingdom of Swaziland—in Africa.

 

“We sincerely hope that this country will join the family of China-Africa friendship at an early date,” said China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi (王毅) in the signing ceremony establishing the diplomatic relations with Burkina Faso.

 

Three months later, Taiwan lose another diplomatic friend as El Salvador severed the ties with Taiwan and placed the bets on China. According to the presidential spokesman Roberto Lorenzana, economy was the main factor that contributed to the decision. “El Salvador can’t turn its back on international reality,” he said.

 

The reality is, as Beijing offers economic sweeteners to Taiwan’s allies, who are mostly small, developing countries, it is hard to say no to the second largest economy. 

 

Until now, there are only 17 countries that recognize Taiwan as a sovereign nation.

 

The last straw: Taiwan to stand up 

 

The last straw that broke the camel’s back, nonetheless, was not about references, nor about the allies, but the loss of the hosting right for a sporting event.

 

The East Asian Youth Games were to be held in August 2019 in Taichung, who won the hosting rights in October 2014 and had already made the relating investment. It would have been an invaluable opportunity for Taiwan to participate in a global event, but the hope was suffocated by China. 

 

Reportedly, the cancellation of the right rooted from a public campaign in Taiwan to hold a referendum on whether Taiwan should participate in the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games as "Taiwan" rather than its standard Olympic name of "Chinese Taipei,” even though it had yet to become an official decision.

 

However, the interference has actually helped to spur more people to support the petition. The referendum ended up receiving nearly a half millions signatures in support—far more than the minimum 281,745 that were required—and will be held on November 24 simultaneously with the local election.

 

This time, China really crossed the line, and Taiwan is ready to stand up for itself. 

 

While it might seem ridiculous for a tiny island to fight against a giant, never will it give up. Taiwan is a country of democracy and freedom, and it will continue to make the country become better. As President Tsai said in her National Day address, “Our democracy may look noisy and argumentative, but we always rally around Taiwan, and we always find strength in unity.” 

 

“And now, let us wish the Republic of China, a Happy Birthday.”