Beijing constantly threatens that Taiwan’s independence is absolutely unacceptable, but many Chinese intellectuals hold the opposite view: it is Taiwan, which legally represents the Republic of China (ROC), that has the authority to reclaim mainland China or allow mainland China to become independent from the ROC if the Chinese people truly want it.
Following the victory of Taiwan’s newly elected president, William Lai Ching-Te, in January’s general election, Taiwan’s unification or separation was again an international hot topic.
In August 2023, Bloomberg TV released an interview in Chinese with Mr. Lai, then vice president of Taiwan. When asked whether he would pursue formal independence for Taiwan, Lai said that “Taiwan is already a sovereign, independent country called the Republic of China (ROC)” and that “there is no need to declare independence.”
The China-Taiwan Dispute
After the end of World War II, unlike other countries that were busy rebuilding, China suffered more years of civil war.Japan accepted the terms of surrender in August 1945. Yet in 1946, a fragile truce between the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the Kuomintang (KMT) in China was shattered when a full-scale civil war broke out. In the end, Soviet-backed Chinese communist forces defeated the KMT, forcing the KMT government and its army to retreat to Taiwan.
Despite having fought the CCP on the battlefield for many years, the KMT now strongly emphasizes Chinese nationalism and the unity of the Chinese nation.
In contrast, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), Mr. Lai’s party and the KMT’s political rival on the island, advocates Taiwan as a de facto sovereign nation. The DPP believes Taiwan should strengthen its defenses against China’s threats and deepen relations with the United States and other democracies.
Legitimacy of the Republic of China
Guo Jun, the Epoch Times’ Hong Kong edition editor-in-chief, stated on the “Pinnacle View” program that Chinese intellectuals generally agree with Mr. Lai’s statement that ROC has always been an independent country.Ms. Guo further explained that of the two major political parties in Taiwan, the KMT recognizes that there is only one China, the Republic of China (ROC), and the mainland is also part of the ROC.
“I know that the old generation of KMT members truly believed so, but I am afraid the present KMT are merely repeating this statement while not taking it sincerely. Perhaps they regard this as a political expedient to obtain the endorsement of the CCP so that they can continue to be in power in Taiwan,” she said.
In her view, the DPP usually sticks to a platform of Taiwan independence, which means that mainland China is China and Taiwan is Taiwan, and it is better to call Taiwan the country of Taiwan or the Republic of Taiwan instead of the Republic of China. But again, for practical reasons, the DPP can’t do that because it would offend the CCP, and the United States won’t agree, so the DPP can only maintain the status quo.
“ROC has its own army, sovereignty, administration, and judiciary. It is fair to say that the ROC has always been an independent country and that the territory of the ROC includes the whole of China, but the CCP took over the mainland and established a country called the People’s Republic of China, which became independent of the ROC.”
“Therefore, Taiwan’s leaders have the right to say, ‘In the past, we did not recognize it, but now I accept the reality and recognize that the People’s Republic of China can become independent. Then it becomes an explicit message that it is not Taiwan but mainland China, not the DPP but the CCP, that wants to claim independence,” Ms. Guo said.
She further pointed out that it is important to note that the People’s Republic of China (PRC), led by the CCP, has never governed Taiwan, yet the ROC governed the mainland.
The concept of a truly modern state in Chinese culture began with the Qing Dynasty. This is because the Qing Dynasty had fixed territories and national boundaries and settled its international relations with other countries, becoming the first sovereign state in Chinese history.
“After the abdication of the last Qing Emperor, its successor was the Republic of China, which makes the Republic of China more legitimate in terms of legal succession than the People’s Republic of China,” Ms. Guo said.
She made a point of discussing the relationship between Hong Kong and the PRC to illustrate this concept.
“For instance, if the sovereignty of Hong Kong were to be returned to China, based on the principles of traditional legal succession, it should be returned to the Qing Dynasty, because the treaties were originally signed by Britain with the Qing Dynasty. However, since the Qing Dynasty no longer existed, it should be returned to the Republic of China instead of the PRC.”
This can be compared to the analogy that if you owe money to a man and when he dies, you should return the money to his son instead of giving it to the robber who robbed his family’s property, Ms. Guo said.
On the other hand, she acknowledges that international politics is much more realistic than civil law. No matter how a regime is established in a certain country, it is generally recognized by the international community after a few decades.
Intellectuals Appreciate ROC’s Political Principles
Shi Shan, an expert on China issues and senior editor at The Epoch Times said on “Pinnacle View” that many Chinese intellectuals recognize and appreciate the old-time KMT and its governance principles.“In the past, the ROC government had all along considered the CCP a rebel group and the agent of a foreign power during the war period and denied the so-called People’s Republic of China after retreating to Taiwan.
“There is evidence to support its claim because many Chinese know that when the CCP held its first party congress in Nanhu, the person who presided over the meeting was not a Chinese but a Russian,” he said.
According to Mr. Shi, the political ideals of the KMT or the ROC—the “Three Principles of the People” and a legislative and governmental structure based on the separation of powers into five branches, are very appealing to intellectuals in today’s China, and it seems that they have a stronger and stronger recognition of the ROC.
“In fact, the ROC had a very good period of development in the 1920s and 1930s. I have read some books written by foreign missionaries to China, and they thought that the best time for the Chinese people was from the fall of the Qing Dynasty to the Sino-Japanese War. China developed very well during this period, especially in the coastal provinces of Jiangsu and Zhejiang areas,” Mr. Shi added.
Independent TV producer Li Jun also agreed that the ROC has a popular mainland China base.
“Chinese historian Xin Haonian published a book, ‘Which is the New China: Distinguishing between Right and Wrong in Modern Chinese History.' In it, he argues that the Chinese communist regime is not a new China but an authoritarian restoration and that the real new China is the ROC. Many people have read his book and echo his views,” Mr. Li said.
He also alluded that the KMT is being too naive in the face of the CCP’s United Front efforts.
“In fact, the CCP needs to befriend the KMT for its United Front agenda. However, if the CCP really does take over Taiwan one day, the first thing it will have to do is wipe out the KMT, because the KMT, not the DPP, is the threat to the CCP.
People of China and Taiwan Shall Determine Their Future
Ms. Guo said she believes that the Chinese communist regime will not be able to sustain itself, not because of Taiwan, the KMT, or the DPP, but because the CCP has done too much evil to the Chinese people.“Some people say that the CCP is too powerful to fall. In my view, there’s no need for such pessimism. Throughout history, the rulers of past dynasties were all very powerful, with governments and armies, but each dynasty waxed and waned,” she said.
As for the future of China and Taiwan, Ms. Guo said that the characteristic of a democratic system is that it is bottom-up, with the people themselves deciding the fate of their nation.
“When the autocratic regime collapses, I believe the people of Mainland China and Taiwan will come up with their own methods,” she predicted.
