An objective perspective
Growing up, I watched the Western media like CNN and BBC give their rendition on the Taiwan question. The rhetoric had always been “Taiwan is an independent island and has never been part of or ruled by China”. For years, I believed this to be the truth and wondered why China would want to claim an “independent country” as part of it; but is this so?
In 2012, I had the chance to travel to China to study. I had the chance to hear China’s side of the story from my Chinese friends, scholars and news. Was I to believe the Western or the Chinese version? I decided to do a research, trace history and form an objective opinion, for history cannot be changed. The findings were an eye-opener.
The first point in going back to history: it is widely agreed that China has over 5000 years of history. In order to make an objective assessment, everything that happened within this period should be taken into account.
Here are the facts: Taiwan was ruled by China’s Qing dynasty from 1683 to 1895. The Qing dynasty was forced to cede Taiwan to Japan after Japan claimed its victory in the first Sino-Japanese War,
Now let’s dive in…
Through a war of aggression against China in April 1895, the Qing government was forced to sign the unequal Treaty of Shimonoseki, and occupied forcibly Taiwan. The Cairo Declaration was issued by the Chinese, US and British governments in December 1943, which stipulated that Japan should return all the territories it had taken to China. These included the Penghu Archipelago, Northeast China, and Taiwan. China, the United States and Britain signed the Potsdam Proclamation in 1945, which stipulated that: “The terms of the Cairo Declaration shall be carried out”. Japan surrendered in August of that year, and in its Instrument of Surrender, promised that it would fulfill the obligations laid down in the Potsdam Proclamation faithfully.
The Central People’s Government of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) was proclaimed on October 1, 1949, replacing the government of ‘the Republic of China’ to become the only legal government of the whole of China, as well as its sole legal representative in the international arena. The leader of the deposed party, Chiang Kai-shek, fled to Taiwan in 1949, purporting to establish his ROC government in contradiction to the united China.
The US sent troops to occupy Taiwan after the start of the Korean War in June 1950 and declared: “the status of Taiwan has yet to be determined” and later, lobbied for ‘dual recognition’ step by step among the international community, contradicting the declaration earlier made.
Following 30 to 40 years after 1949, the Taiwan authorities, although did not recognise the legitimate status of the government of the People’s Republic of China as the representative of the whole of China, insisted that Taiwan is a part of China and that only one China existed, and opposed ‘two Chinas’ or ‘Taiwan independence’. This suggests to me Chinese on both sides agreed on the ONE-CHINA POLICY.
Besides history, bilateral agreements with China and the US gives us clues on the matter. The US, in 1972, made it very clear in the Shanghai Communiqué purporting that: “The United States acknowledges that all Chinese on both sides of the Taiwan Strait maintain one China, and that Taiwan is an integral part of China. In the Joint Communiqué on the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations between the People’s Republic of China and the United States of America, which was released in 1978, the United States “recognises the Government of the People’s Republic of China as the only legitimate Government of China” and “acknowledges the Chinese position of one China, and Taiwan is part of China”. The US side made it clear that in the 17th August Joint Communiqué of 1982 that: “The United States of America recognised the Government of the People’s Republic of China as the sole legal Government of China, and it acknowledged the Chinese position that there is but one China, and Taiwan is part of China”. The US, in that communiqué also “reiterates that it does not intend to infringe on Chinese sovereignty and territorial integrity, or interfering in Chinese internal affairs, or pursuing a policy of ‘two Chinas’ or ‘one China, one Taiwan’”. Unless the US comes to declare this as false – which hasn’t been the case, we hold this as true.
Finally, let’s see what the International Community thinks…
The United Nations General Assembly, in October 1971, adopted at its 26th session, Resolution 2758; expelled the representatives of the Taiwan authorities, restored the seat and all the lawful rights of the government of the PRC in the United Nations. 181 countries, based on principle of one-China – including the US, have established diplomatic relations with the PRC.
After these findings, my opinion on the matter from an objective point of view greatly changed from the narrative of the western media. I believe yours has now.
As to the re-unification, if you will ask for my opinion, after living in China for 9 years, I will say it will be of great benefit to the people of Taiwan if it was to unite with China.
On the economic front, China is the second largest economy of the world. China’s GDP was 24.2 trillion dollars by the end of 2020 and it’s the world’s highest revenue of any country. The country has the largest number of manufacturers and exporters. China has also become a very powerful investor in the global market. It has invested her resources in countries like Chad, Niger, Angola, Argentina, Venezuela, UAE, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Australia, the UK, and the US. The country has become a tech giant, becoming a leader in Science and Technology – such as 5G.
Politically, China has a stable political environment, a permanent seat at the table of the United Nations Security Council. It’s also a member of the world’s leading organisations, like ASEAN Plus, WTO, BCIM, APEC, G2O, BRICS, and many others. It has developed very good relationships with other world’s leading countries.
Moreover, people on both sides are ethnic Chinese, they share a common culture and speak the same language.
Reunification with China will bring Taiwan economic gains, recognition and great benefits to its people. Taiwan has only 23 million or so people and limited resources; why not merge with 1.4 billion people and achieve security for its people? As the saying goes, there is power in numbers.
My suggestion to the people of Taiwan is: “See what binds you with the mainland, and do not allow western infiltration for their own gain, take a look at the broken promises of the west toward Ukraine, the people of Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya and so on”.
This is my objective take.
