Taiwanese have voted for change. Tsai Ing-wen of the main opposition party Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) sealed a historic landslide victory in the presidential election which is set to reset the state’s relationship with China. Her victory ends eight years of rule by the Kuomintang (KMT or Nationalist Party) president Ma Ying-jeou, during which there has been an unprecedented thaw in relations between the self-ruled island and China. The voters were unhappy with Ma Ying-jeou’s policy of leaning too close to China which they thought had failed to deliver significant economic gains and was seen as undermining the freedom of the island and Beijing. The economy too had weakened under Ma Ying-jeou, especially last year, provoking public anger. A postgraduate from the London School of Economics, Tsai is the first female president of Taiwan who had narrowly lost out on the presidency four years ago.
Beijing is clearly unhappy with Tsai’s victory as she is expected to reverse the improvement in ties between the two countries. The president-elect has already adopted a strident tone by issuing a warning to China in her first comments to the media, by saying that Chinese ‘suppression’ would damage ties with the mainland. “Our democratic system, national identity and international space must be respected. Any forms of suppression will harm the stability of cross-strait relations,” she said. Her tough words would satisfy the people who have voted for her. Beijing too reacted in anger. A foreign ministry spokesman warned that “the Chinese government is rock-firm and will never tolerate any secessionist activity of ‘Taiwan independence’”. And in a strongly-worded editorial, China’s official state news agency, Xinhua, said the DPP’s return to power “poses grave challenges to cross-Strait relations” and had “aroused concerns” about Taipei’s relationship with Beijing. Tsai also disappeared from China’s most popular social network following her victory, with censors working swiftly to block searches for “Tsai Ing-wen” and “Taiwan elections” on the Twitter-like Weibo network.
Now that she has been elected, Tsai will have to move cautiously in her relationship with the mainland. An open confrontation will be inimical to the island’s interests and will adversely impact the state’s economy and her attempts to revive it. She needs to focus on improving the economy and address the many problems the state is facing. Low salaries and high housing prices are major issues with voters. Taiwanese want a strong a leader and her efficiency and leadership skills will be put to fierce test in the coming months.
Taiwan is self-ruling after it split with China following a civil war in 1949, but it has never declared independence and Beijing still sees it as part of its territory and is awaiting reunification.
Taiwanese have voted for change. Tsai Ing-wen of the main opposition party Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) sealed a historic landslide victory in the presidential election which is set to reset the state’s relationship with China. Her victory ends eight years of rule by the Kuomintang (KMT or Nationalist Party) president Ma Ying-jeou, during which there has been an unprecedented thaw in relations between the self-ruled island and China. The voters were unhappy with Ma Ying-jeou’s policy of leaning too close to China which they thought had failed to deliver significant economic gains and was seen as undermining the freedom of the island and Beijing. The economy too had weakened under Ma Ying-jeou, especially last year, provoking public anger. A postgraduate from the London School of Economics, Tsai is the first female president of Taiwan who had narrowly lost out on the presidency four years ago.
Beijing is clearly unhappy with Tsai’s victory as she is expected to reverse the improvement in ties between the two countries. The president-elect has already adopted a strident tone by issuing a warning to China in her first comments to the media, by saying that Chinese ‘suppression’ would damage ties with the mainland. “Our democratic system, national identity and international space must be respected. Any forms of suppression will harm the stability of cross-strait relations,” she said. Her tough words would satisfy the people who have voted for her. Beijing too reacted in anger. A foreign ministry spokesman warned that “the Chinese government is rock-firm and will never tolerate any secessionist activity of ‘Taiwan independence’”. And in a strongly-worded editorial, China’s official state news agency, Xinhua, said the DPP’s return to power “poses grave challenges to cross-Strait relations” and had “aroused concerns” about Taipei’s relationship with Beijing. Tsai also disappeared from China’s most popular social network following her victory, with censors working swiftly to block searches for “Tsai Ing-wen” and “Taiwan elections” on the Twitter-like Weibo network.
Now that she has been elected, Tsai will have to move cautiously in her relationship with the mainland. An open confrontation will be inimical to the island’s interests and will adversely impact the state’s economy and her attempts to revive it. She needs to focus on improving the economy and address the many problems the state is facing. Low salaries and high housing prices are major issues with voters. Taiwanese want a strong a leader and her efficiency and leadership skills will be put to fierce test in the coming months.
Taiwan is self-ruling after it split with China following a civil war in 1949, but it has never declared independence and Beijing still sees it as part of its territory and is awaiting reunification.
