It Is Not Up to Xi. And It Is Not Complicated.

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In 1996, ahead of Taiwan’s first direct presidential election, the People’s Republic of China launched missile tests and military exercises near Taiwan, attempting to signal its opposition to then-President Lee Teng-hui’s push for international recognition and Taiwan’s ongoing democratization. The show of force was meant to deter both Taiwan’s electorate and the international community from treating Taiwan as a sovereign political actor, which the PRC considered a violation of its “One…

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Who Gets to be Taiwanese?

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Contrary to many of my compatriots, I find Taiwan’s noisy democracy charming. After living in China for nearly a decade, where the apparatus for silencing is robust and ever-present, I revel in the cacophony of campaign trucks blaring pleads for votes and thousand-strong rallies with hawkers selling unlicensed campaign merch. I’m not even embarrassed by the lawmakers fist-fighting in parliament (legislative yuan) anymore.  I have been watching the recall votes in Taiwan with pride. The recall…

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