林保華

China’s reaction to US-Taiwan ties

    By Paul Lin 林保華
Taipei Times 2020.9.4

The visit of a 90-member delegation led by Czech Senate President Milos Vystrcil is another diplomatic breakthrough for Taiwan. During the third wave of democracy in the second half of the 20th century, the Czech Velvet Revolution and Taiwan’s quiet revolution were reflections of each other.

Taiwanese will always remember former Czech Senate president Jaroslav Kubera, who in January paid with his life for the Senate’s plan to visit Taiwan, according to his family.

Fri, Aug 14, 2020 page8

    Facing the nation’s enemy within
        By Paul Lin 林保華
Taipei Times

    Washington has gradually realized that the People’s Republic of China (PRC) seeks to challenge global democratic values and US supremacy. As a result, US officials have set to work to “clean the stables.”

A storm is brewing in the CCP politburo
Taipei Times  2020.7.26
    By Paul Lin 林保華

Most Chinese provinces and especially the Yangtze River basin have been hit by floods, and as a result, grain shortages are likely to occur in the country this year.

Despite this, Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), who wants to be personally in charge of everything, has disappeared from sight for quite a while.

Taiwan, HK are global concerns
Taipei Times  2020.6.4
    By Paul Lin 林保華

The inauguration of President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) to her second term on May 20 with Vice President William Lai (賴清德) gave Taiwan an unprecedented high-profile platform to showcase a positive image of democracy, disease control and the positive energy it can contribute to the post-COVID-19 global order.

On the next day, China’s National People’s Congress (NPC) announced a plan to introduce new national security legislation for Hong Kong. In doing so, the NPC has ruined Hong Kong’s “one country, two systems” formula.

China uses US to cover its role in pandemic
Taipei Times  2020.3.29
    By Paul Lin 林保華

I have said before that if the epidemic in China takes a turn for the better while it deteriorates here in Taiwan, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) would see that as proof that its dictatorship is better than democracy and encourage victims to overturn Taiwan’s government.

Unexpectedly, this is already happening, although aimed at the US and other Western democracies rather than Taiwan. China is not only extolling its response to the epidemic, it is also playing down the fact that it caused the pandemic and recasting itself as a benefactor, expecting other countries to be grateful. It even claims that the virus originated in the US.

Xi’s enemies grow bolder as missteps continue
Taipei Times  2020.3.23
    By Paul Lin 林保華

On March 6, China announced through Hong Kong’s Chinese-language Ming Pao that Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) would visit Wuhan “soon.”

On the same day, US-based Chinese-language IPK Media published an article by Chinese tycoon Ren Zhiqiang (任志強), with the headline: “An official call to arms against Xi: The clown who insists on wearing the emperor’s new clothes.”

Xi Jinping, pestilence and plague of locusts
Taipei Times  2020.3.10
    By Paul Lin 林保華

During the Sino-Japanese war, China’s Henan Province experienced a series of human-made disasters due to mismanagement and lax military discipline in the Nationalist Army in the region. One of these disasters was said to be the regional military commander, Tang En-po (湯恩伯), the others being drought, floods and locusts.

Seventy years after the communists took over, it seems the Chinese Communist Party is experiencing its own series of disasters: the African swine fever, COVID-19, Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and an incoming plague of locusts.

Xi and Tedros are asking too much
By Paul Lin 林保華
Taipei Times  2020.2.25

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Feb. 10 tweeted that he had “just been at the airport seeing off members of an advance team for the @WHO-led #2019nCoV international expert mission to #China.”

Reuters reported a day earlier that it had taken nearly two weeks for the director-general to get the Chinese government’s green light regarding the team’s composition, after meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in Beijing on Jan. 28.

Pro-China parties must be rejected
By Paul Lin 林保華
Taipei Times  2019.12.2

In Hong Kong’s district council elections on Nov. 24, the pro-democracy camp won just more than 81 percent of the seats, dealing the pro-Beijing camp a crushing defeat. The New People’s Party, chaired by Regina Ip (葉劉淑儀), failed to secure a single seat.

Ip, who worked hard to push for national security legislation during her stint as the Hong Kong secretary for security, was severely punished by voters for supporting police violence.

Warding off CCP’s ‘underground’
By Paul Lin 林保華

TaipeiTimes 2019。11.2

Rumors have been spreading online that Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam (林鄭月娥) and Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) are long-time members of the “underground” Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Other secret members allegedly include the “three Leungs” — former Hong Kong chief executive Leung Chun-ying (梁振英), former Hong Kong secretary of justice Elsie Leung (梁愛詩) and former Hong Kong secretary of financial affairs Anthony Leung (梁錦松).

While the rumors cannot be verified, if true, it would mean that the CCP — the world’s largest political party with nearly 100 million members — is on a mission to bring the world under its thumb through its shadowy membership outside of China.

HK’s official reaction crippling a generation
By Paul Lin 林保華
Taipei Times 2019.10.2

The anti-extradition movement is uniting under the slogan “Liberate Hong Kong, the revolution of our times,” a slogan proposed following the “Umbrella movement” by Edward Leung (梁天琦), who was then a leader of Hong Kong Indigenous (本土民主前線) and is now serving a six-year prison sentence for rioting in connection to the 2016 protests.

When he proposed the slogan, Leung gave some thought to whether it should be “our times” or “our generation,” as ideas diverged between the young generation and the old pan-democracy camp. Because he felt that intergenerational unity was important, he picked “revolution of our times,” which also reflected the Hong Kong spirit.

Election focus is on beating Tsai
By Paul Lin 林保華
Taipei Times  2019.9.22

Late on Sept. 16, the Formosa Alliance announced that it had nominated former vice president Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) as its presidential candidate. That was followed by Hon Hai Precision Industry Co founder Terry Gou’s (郭台銘) announcement that he would not be running for president. This basically settled the confusion over who would run.

An inventory of potential and actual candidates and their backgrounds results in a list of people from across the political spectrum who want to bring down President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), which is quite shocking.

HK police are loyal to China, not the public
By Paul Lin 林保華
Taipei Times  2019.8.27

Since the anti-extradition protests began in Hong Kong in June, the public has focussed its attention on the performance of the Hong Kong police force.

After police shot teargas and rubber bullets at protesters in a bloody incident on June 12, there have been calls for an independent investigation of their abuse of power, but such calls have been opposed by police-related groups and rejected by Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam (林鄭月娥).

Hong Kong police and gangsters
By Paul Lin 林保華
Taipei Times  2019.8.6

The July 21 anti-extradition bill demonstration in Hong Kong showed another kind of “two systems.”

Traditionally, demonstrations start at Victoria Park at 3pm. In the past, protesters would reach Admiralty or Central districts before dispersing by subway, but the July 21 march was ordered by police to end at Luard Road i n Wan Chai.

HK protests need West’s support
By Paul Lin 林保華
Taipei Times 2019.6.25

Last week’s 2 million-strong demonstrations in Hong Kong shook the world and exceeded even the 2 million who supported the student-led demonstrations in China in 1989.

In 1989, the demonstrators in Hong Kong expressed their support for the Chinese democracy movement; this time they are fighting to protect their own rights.

The lies that lie behind negotiations with China
By Paul Lin 林保華
Taipei Times  2019.3.26

In a Jan. 2 speech to mark the 40th anniversary of the “Message to Compatriots in Taiwan,” Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) announced a five-point proposal to bolster China’s “united front” tactics against Taiwan, using the term “democratic negotiation” to divide Taiwanese over issues such as signing a cross-strait “peace agreement.” Some Taiwanese lose their bearings when they hear the phrase “democratic negotiation” and think that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) really is expressing good will.

What does “democracy” mean to China? Communists think of Vladimir Lenin’s “democratic centralism.” As elaborated by Mao Zedong (毛澤東) on several occasions, the concept combines centralism on a democratic basis with democracy under central guidance. In the Chinese constitution, Mao made the concept more concrete, saying that it means “from the people, to the people.”

Removing stains of Chinese culture
By Paul Lin 林保華
Taipei Times 2019.3.16

The nationwide local elections on Nov. 24 last year saw major losses for Taiwan’s pro-independence parties. One of the reasons for this setback is that some voters fell for then-Kaohsiung mayoral candidate Han Kuo-yu’s (韓國瑜) promise that they would get rich if he became mayor. Some of those people already regret voting for him.

Why did voters fall for Han’s promises so easily? Some observers put it down to a Taiwanese tendency to “love money and fear death.” These words were originally spoken by Shinpei Goto, who served as head of civilian affairs under the Japanese governor-general of Taiwan from 1898 to 1906.

Traitors need to be rooted out now
By Paul Lin 林保華
Taipei Times  2019.3.8

In an interview, newly appointed National Security Council Deputy Director-General Arthur Iap (葉國興) said: “The current domestic situation is grim, the enemy is already in the country.”

Regardless of what Taiwan’s future looks like, and regardless of whether the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) salvages the situation, this statement will become a classic.

US could go to war to fix China
By Paul Lin 林保華
Taipei Times 2019.1.5

Tuesday marked the 40th anniversary of official US-China diplomatic relations. On Thursday last week, US President Donald Trump wrote on Twitter: “Just had a long and very good call with President Xi [Jinping (習近平)] of China. Deal is moving along very well. If made, it will be very comprehensive, covering all subjects, areas and points of dispute. Big progress being made.”

Trump is very experienced in dealing with rogue states. He talks a lot and no one knows if what he says is true.

The many challenges facing the DPP
By Paul Lin 林保華
Taipei Times  20190102

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) celebrated its 30th anniversary only two years ago. “At 30, I stood firm,” as Confucius says.

The party should only just have entered the stage of maturity, but instead it looks as if it is on its last legs, ready to draw its last breath. Watching the largest Taiwan-centered political party meet this fate, supporters are devastated.