Opinion Asia - East Asia

Ma's Taiwan: Shaky start on Foreign Policy

Mon, 16 Jun 2008 11:13:18 +0800

For one thing, immediately after his electoral triumph on May 20, the president-elect made public his plan to visit certain key countries—the United States, Japan and Singapore—which he knew he would not be able to visit once he was sworn in as president. This was a mistake.

Back on track in Taiwan: An Opportunity beckons the US

Wed, 21 May 2008 17:37:30 +0800

However, while Ma’s victory certainly opens a new era for Beijing and Taipei, history has demonstrated that positive cross-strait relations cannot survive without the blessings of the US. The election outcome also provides a rare strategic opportunity for Washington to reshape the dynamics of cross-strait relations and Sino-American relations at the same time.

The Olympic torch and Chinese nationalism

Wed, 14 May 2008 15:26:51 +0800

Thus, when protesters or heavy security deny the torch relay of an approving, cheering public, they deny China of exactly the kind of global endorsement that is desired. The passing of the torch without the prestige conferred by an approving public is synonymous with the denial of honour, or the “loss of face”, a metaphor the Chinese are only too familiar with.

Spring Time in Sino-Japanese Relations?

Wed, 7 May 2008 15:36:46 +0800

President Hu termed his visit to Japan as a “warm spring” journey that would herald in a new era of bilateral relationship based on mutual trust and long-term strategic interests. This is a lofty goal that the two countries could and should accomplish in their mutual interests and to the benefit of East Asia and beyond. After the deep freeze of years past, spring may have finally arrived in Sino-Japanese relations.

China on Tibet: Han overlordship and territorial integrity

Sun, 27 Apr 2008 10:54:29 +0800

The spectre of Han domination often pokes through the idea of Chineseness. Most strikingly in the state's repeated broadcasts of Tibetans attacking Han in Lhasa and elsewhere. One interpretation is that these broadcasts were intended to project the idea that the Han were under threat and should therefore rally together and unite behind the party.

Freedom of Speech in China: New Rules, Different Problems

Mon, 14 Apr 2008 18:54:43 +0800

The Foreign Correspondents Club of China, in a press release in January, agreed that the new regulations had “improved overall reporting conditions for foreign journalists” but said that there had been more than 180 reports of journalists being obstructed in their work in the 12 months since the introduction of the new rules.

The North Korean Nuclear Impasse: A Long Road to Denuclearisation

Mon, 7 Apr 2008 10:01:25 +0800

If the past five years of the Six-Party Talks tell us anything, patience, diplomacy, and negotiation skills are needed on the long road to North Korea’s denuclearisation. This week’s North Korea-US talks in Singapore is unlikely to lead to any resolution, but remains one part of a jigsaw that is vital is any eventual settlement.

Ma Ying-jeou’s Landslide Victory: Better Days Ahead for Taiwan and the Region?

Wed, 26 Mar 2008 14:44:52 +0800

In concert, a majority of voters were not convinced by the DPP’s claims that Ma would sell out Taiwan to China including a proposed common market, that his loyalty was questionable for allegedly holding a green card since his student days in the US, and that Taiwan would end up oppressed and bloodied like Tibet if Ma were to win the election.

KMT Returns to Power in Taiwan

Mon, 24 Mar 2008 12:01:19 +0800

Underscoring the KMT win, Ma got more votes for president than anyone in Taiwan’s history of direct elections. Meanwhile two referendums on Taiwan rejoining the United Nations failed. This was also a DPP defeat as President Chen and the party had promoted its referendum strongly; the KMT had one but did not.

A Historical Treasure Trove: Rapprochement with Mao

Wed, 5 Mar 2008 18:51:00 +0800

Upon meeting Kissinger and his associate Winston Lord at 11:30 p.m. on February 17, 1973, Mao said he had received “an invitation from God,” his way of saying that he would die soon. Mao, the country’s “great leader, great teacher, great supreme commander and great helmsman,” feared no man but he evidently feared death.

Dissenters not needed. Cleaning up before the Olympics?

Wed, 6 Feb 2008 17:30:56 +0800

If China wants to burnish its image in the international community, it will have to do a lot more in the coming months. If it wants to show the world that it is serious about safeguarding its people’s human rights, Beijing should ratify the international covenant on civil and political rights, which it signed 10 years ago.

The Meltdown of the Power Nucleus in Japanese Politics

Mon, 28 Jan 2008 17:07:10 +0800

As extraterrestrial as it sounds, the current Japan’s political stasis awaits a big bang that will bring competent next-generation leaders into the power nucleus. This is unlikely to be expected from the existing parties, but possibly feasible either through a reformed LDP or an evolved DPJ, or even a new party born as the result of the two parties’ reorganisation along ideological lines.

Taiwan's Election a blowout for the KMT

Mon, 14 Jan 2008 14:20:32 +0800

For some, the results of the 12 January elections were predictable - not an easy claim to make in politics. Admittedly, the new electoral system, the KMT’s better organisation, and factionalism within the DPP contributed to a KMT victory. But let there be no mistake - it was the Chen administration’s poor performance in office that seriously cost the DPP votes.

East Asia in 2008: A silver lining amidst the dark clouds

Sun, 6 Jan 2008 19:57:28 +0800

East Asia will continue to benefit from the sustained economic rise of China and India. What remains unclear is whether East Asia in 2008 and beyond can offer anything useful and inspiring to the world in terms of ideas and values beyond manufacturing products to keep consumers satiated.

The Rape of Nanking: Deflating the political football

Thu, 3 Jan 2008 15:15:38 +0800

The rape of Nanking is for the whole world to remember. For Japan, the reasons are obvious: that they may acknowledge their past. For the Chinese, it is for not so obvious reasons: that they may learn to understand and forgive rather than hang on to its ghosts, under the cloud of realpolitik.