Chinese living opposite Taiwan defend military maneuvers after Pelosi’s “provocation”
We Chinese believe America is leading the West to provoke us, we are very angry with Pelosi.” A man who insists on identifying himself as ‘a normal Chinese citizen’ sums up what many think of the country led by Xi Jinping Sail on one of the boats that sail the waters of the Strait of Formosa. Ahead, the coast of Dandan, the first of the Kinmen Islands, appears, the area under Taiwanese control closest to the mainland: barely ten kilometers where a estuary intervenes. In recent decades, the differences between China and Taiwan have taken on a military expression here. This is happening again now as the regime carries out unprecedented maneuvers in response to the official visit of Nancy Pelosi, which turned a conflict into a precarious balance and pending a solution.
“We believe that these military exercises are a very necessary measure, an obligation, and we fully support the government,” he said. With his eyes on the islet, he finds a positive reading of what happened. “Pelosi’s visit will undoubtedly accelerate reunification,” he says. “Taiwan has been part of the Chinese territory since ancient times. Many of those who live there are even from here,” he emphasizes.
The Civil War ended in 1949, although in a sense it is not over yet. The victorious communists of Mao Zedong founded the new People’s Republic of China, with its capital Beijing. Chiang Kai-shek’s defeated nationalists escaped from the mainland to the island where they transferred the Republic of China, with a new capital in Taipei. The latter continued to represent China in international forums until the US entered into diplomatic relations with the regime in the 1970s to corner the Soviet Union. The integration of the Asian giant into the world community contributed to the ending of the Cold War and at the same time laid the foundation for its reissue.
Since then, China has viewed Taiwan as a rogue state that has never given up on subjecting it by force, the culmination of a political narrative that leads from humiliation by foreign powers to looming global primacy. The conflict seems irreparable. Also predictable. To take the island, there is no other option than to launch an amphibious assault, the largest in history, supported by a blockade such as the troops of the People’s Liberation Army are practicing today.
Taiwan has optimized its defenses according to such a scenario. Dandan greets the continent behind a militarized line, the outer wall of which calls for “A China united under the three principles” of the Republican creed. In a curious dialogue, what China offers is written on some huge posters lined up in front, along a sandbar to which they give their name: “One Country Two Systems Beach”.
This political model was devised by Deng Xiaoping to ensure the protection of Hong Kong’s rights and freedoms after the return of sovereignty. Its collapse in recent years has wiped out all credibility in the Strait, where more and more young Taiwanese are proud of being a democratic nation and therefore alien to every link.
The ship turns and returns to port. Amid the hustle and bustle of the traditional market in Xiamen City stands Zhusu Church, one of the oldest in China. “I don’t like Pelosi, it’s like encouraging a child to abandon their parents,” the caregiver says. He stretches the equation to defend the maneuvers as “a good thing.” “If a child does something bad, his parents should punish him. Just to scare him, they can’t really hit him because that would break their hearts.”
Two banners hang on the facade of the temple. One says ‘Jesus loves you’; another, which could be interpreted as a political proclamation: ‘We wish you peace’. In the eyes of the watchman there is no contradiction. “The reactions to Pelosi’s visit make people value peace more. Everything was fine until she came and messed up everything. Who tempts a child to do things wrong? Someone dishonest!
At parting, he finally introduces himself as Mr. Xi, although he laughs to deny any relationship. “Well, actually he is: he’s Papa Xi,” he adds with a laugh, using one of the most popular nicknames to refer to the leader. “He is a good man, look what a beautiful place we have, prosperous and stable.” Xi, who is from Xiamen, bids farewell at the door of the church where, as in the rest of China, the banners are sometimes misleading and the most important things are invisible like a line in the water.
Source: La Verdad
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