There is an issue between China and Taiwan: whether Taiwan is country or is a part of China. As a person who has been taught for 20 years that Taiwan is a part of China, I am not going to talk about the politics, because it is too big for me to talk about it.
However, Taiwan students have captured some media attention after they occupied Taiwan’s legislature in protest of a trade pact with China – and have been there since March 18. I am keeping an eye on this event, primarily because I am Chinese, and secondly, because this protest is confucing. According to The Wall Street Journal, “protesters said that the deal would be detrimental to small and medium-size enterprises in Taiwan.” I am not an expert in business, but there is one thing I know very well: globalization is everywhere. The protesters are trying to prevent Taiwan from stepping into the international market, but why? From what has been reported, some people fear the greater integration with Chinese economics will threaten Taiwan.
This is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard. First, how about China? Is there any possibility that the economic integration with Taiwan will harm China? I rarely hear any fear about this side of the conflict. Many Chinese people believe the integration with other countries will foster economic development. The trend of globalization is unavoidable. Moreover, some Taiwanese people have said they do not want Chinese businessmen to do business in Taiwan, despite the fact that there are many Taiwanese businessmen doing business in China.
Should I also go back China and occupy the Chinese legislature to ask Taiwanese businessmen to leave China?
Because of the conflict surrounding the pact, protestors have been occupying the legislature for about 20 days. According to some reports, they are not planning to leave until they get what they want. I believe there are plenty of ways to talk with the government, since Taiwan is democratic country – I don’t think I have a chance to do this in China. As a consequence, I don’t see the necessity to occupy the legislature.
If the protestors fear for the future of Taiwan economy and what this pact will mean for that, however we never know how something will turn out until we try.
If the protestors really want do something good for Taiwan’s economy, they should stop acting like children and more like adults.
