0 sats \ 4 replies \ @DeezSats 2 Aug 2022 \ on: Hi, from Taiwan... bitcoin
What is the depth of communist infestation into Taiwan leadership and politics? Are there CCP-aligned interests and agents in high places there, like we see in Hong Kong and the US?
I further clarified this question with my father-in-law this morning. Starting about 35 years ago, during Taiwan's economic boom, the majority of Taiwanese fortunes were invested in mainland china, mostly in manufacturing (like the rest of the world). This peaked around 2000. By that time three things happened;
1). Chinese companies had "learned" (aka stolen) enough processes and technology from Taiwanese firms that Taiwanese firms were no longer competitive and most families left China and retired.
2). Local authorities essentially pushed Taiwanese owners out and or took over their businesses, often when it was something more complicated that they couldn't steal fast enough.
3). Those Taiwanese that are still invested in China essentially became Chinese and renounced Taiwan all together.
Now-a-days the majority of Taiwanese investment is in Southeast Asia, as I said, mostly Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia. However, there is a significant more amount of investment of Taiwanese money in Japan.
Japan and Taiwan are extremely friendly with one another. Taiwanese generally love Japan, especially those under 40 or so (the older generations have a more guarded view of Japan due to the occupation during WW2). Many Taiwanese speak Japanese and doing business with Japan is generally very easy for Taiwanese (i.e. both countries have the same dependence on paperwork and bureaucracy, plus the banking system work in similar was/rules). Plus, due to the economy, Japan is really cheap right now to invest in.
Lastly, I confirmed that Mainland Chinese are forbidden to own businesses in Taiwan. This has been the case essentially from 1949 onward, with a few exceptions. Mainland Chinese can own residential property here, but it is very difficult from a Visa standpoint (PRC citizens need very special Visa to leave China and additionally enter Taiwan, both China and Taiwan need to issue them, they are two distinct separate counties after all) as well as the repercussions a Chinese citizen would face in mainland China if hey owned Taiwanese property.
There are a few political parties in Taiwan, which has double digit political parties, that are pro China, pro-unification and pro-PRC, but they get smaller and small every election cycle, mostly due to their insane rhetoric and their members dying (average age for this parties id 75+).
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There are a handful of PRC sympathizers in politics, the party they are generally part of is increasingly becoming irrelevant. The average age of these people will be 70s, if not older, with some younger children in their 50s now.
The currently relevant political parties are all much younger and with for “status quo” or independence.
Prior to the crackdown in HK many wanted to just maintain the “status quo” here. Since the crack down in HK those supporting independence are much more.
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It's really odd to me that the generation who remembers the split is the one that wants to reunite... If I understood my Chinese history correctly the rift between the commie Mao and the democratic Kai-shek was extremely hateful and filled with spite... So much so that the two refused to stop fighting each other as Japan invaded China's mainland, which is why little old Japan kicked China's ass at the start of WWII. -And then when we nuked Japan & they fell back to their own island, Mao and Kai-shek resumed fighting each other again immediately.
Why such a change of heart by these folks?
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Legacy… many older folk idealize a past that (likely) never existed. Same with Trump voters in the States. What was feels safer than the future, which is scary.
Also the older generations tend to hold on to more of the old traditions, many of which have been lost in China, so they also want to bring that back together and continue the “culture”.
No one is still thinking Taiwan will “take back” the mainland and reestablish the ROC on the mainland. That dream died in the 50s.
Politically the KMT, the party of CKS, officially claims a “status quo” platform now, but many of the older members of the part would be totally fine with unification.
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