Beijing: ‘Taiwan is China’s Taiwan’

Paresh Jadhav

9 months ago

Beijing has much riding on its election results; its leaders have depicted it as a choice between war and peace.

DPP candidate Lai, who ran against Beijing interference and threats, won the presidency with ease. Now comes the difficult challenge of winning majority support for DPP in the Legislative Yuan – something which may prove more challenging than expected.

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China’s reaction to Taiwan’s election

Millions of Taiwanese lined up at polling stations Saturday to elect their new president, which could alter Taiwan’s standoff with China, which views its self-ruled territory as part of its territory and has threatened force to bring it under Beijing’s authority.

Lai Ching-te is expected to win and has pledged his allegiance to Tsai Ing-wen’s policies of keeping Beijing at arm’s length and strengthening ties with democratic nations such as the US.

But Mr Tsai also promised to strengthen their’s military with high-profile drills and an indigenous submarine, while developing stronger relations with countries that still recognise Taiwan, leading to fears that he would ratchet up pressure on China and lead to military confrontation. According to China’s Taiwan Affairs Office spokesman, however, “this election result will not alter the basic landscape and development trend of cross-strait relations,” and said that they firmly oppose separatist activities seeking independence for Taiwan.

China’s reaction to Lai’s victory

Lai won Taiwan’s presidency with overwhelming support from voters despite warnings from Beijing. His success illustrates that Taiwanese appreciate their country’s de facto independence and freedom while seeking ways to reduce tensions with China.

Lai’s election will likely not significantly alter cross-strait relations; both Taiwan’s DPP and KMT parties – who traditionally oppose one another – are expected to maintain pro-China policies.

China’s Taiwan Affairs Office stated in its announcement of the vote results that they did not reflect mainstream public opinion in Taiwan and reunification with China was still “inevitable.” Analysts believe Beijing may increase economic and military pressure over time or save its strongest response for May when Lai takes office if DPP and Hsiao cannot gain enough support from other parties that could weaken their administration; furthermore this would allow China to step up interference through misinformation campaigns to try and undermine any new administration formed on Taiwan.

China’s reaction to Hsiao’s victory

China’s Taiwan affairs office responded to Hsiao’s victory by declaring, “it will not halt the general trend that eventually and inexorably unifies Taiwan”. Additionally, spokesperson Chen Binhua claimed these results showed the DPP did not represent mainstream public sentiment.

Experts warn that the election results could also trigger tension between Beijing and Taipei over Taipei’s sovereignty status, particularly as Hsiao has long criticized China’s territorial claims while advocating peaceful coexistence between Taipei and mainland China.

China had hoped the elections would give it the leverage it needs to pressure a pro-independence president into changing her stance, but with DPP failing to win a majority in parliament even when controlling the presidency it may still struggle to push through major legislation or negotiate difficult issues without encountering deadlock. Furthermore, voters seem more interested in economic matters than China policy according to experts.

China’s reaction to Tsai’s victory

After an election campaign that was marred by allegations of electoral fraud and intimidation by Beijing officials, Taiwanese voters elected Tsai Ing-wen of the Democratic Progressive Party for another term as President, continuing her policies of strengthening economic ties with fellow democracies to counter China’s threats while avoiding confrontation over claims to sovereignty from Beijing.

The election result marks a rejection of the KMT, which favors warmer relations with Beijing, and sends a clear signal that Taiwanese are no longer keen on unification with mainland China, something Chinese President Xi Jinping has described as being inevitable in history.

China has since denounced Tsai and her DPP for using “cheating and repression to manipulate Taiwanese voters,” along with warning her not to take actions which damage cross-strait relations. Experts, however, anticipate that should Lai win, he will likely adopt Tsai’s approach on issues like rising housing costs and stagnant wages without raising his voice too forcefully against China.

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