2009-05-21a
*Disclaimer: This was written in 1 day due to lack of time – therefore ridden with flaws and should not be taken as a serious academic essay.
Power relations in the construction of Taiwanese identity
Of the many things that may be discussed about Taiwan, the issue of the Taiwaneses’ quest for a Taiwanese identity comes to mind as one of the most forefront issues in understanding the place, its people as well as its diplomatic relations.
The question of Taiwanese identity is inextricable from discussions of cross-straits relations between Mainland China and Taiwan and it is bound up in politics, culture, historical sentiments, economy and many other nuanced factors. The terms “China”, “Chinese”, “Taiwanese” are labels that became the cause for much debates and conflicts, and as Chang and Holt (2007) suggested, “zhongguoren and taiwanren, much like zhongguo and taiwan, are not merely descriptors but symbols that help construct political realities”. Indeed, these labels have become terms of intense sensitivity as could be seen in the deliberations of their use on various stages, from international political conferences to major sporting events.
Political leaders within Taiwan are expected to, in a way or another, explicitly express their stands on the Taiwanese identity. Such expressions could largely influence their political standing both domestically and internationally, for the better or for the worse.
Amidst the noises of politics, the questions that inevitably arise are: What do the Taiwanese themselves make of their own identity? Would there, or could there ever be a consensus among themselves as to how they should position their identity? Even when there is an answer, would their answer sway the international forces attempting to push them in certain directions, shape them in certain ways or place them under certain labels?
Those questions subsequently prompts for us to examine the underlying power relations in the identity politics of Taiwan, in particular the awareness that the Taiwanese and the Chinese are not the only parties involved in constructing the Taiwanese identity. As we understand from history, Mainland China and Taiwan populations became two entities of different political administrations following the migration of Kuomintang to Taiwan around 1949. It would however be presumptuous to claim that identity differences between Mainland China and Taiwan lie simply in political views. One must also take into account the presence of aborigines, occupation of the Dutch, Spanish and Japanese as well as American economic aid, all these being historical developments occurring prior to and transcending the political party divides.
Historical influences being taken into account, one also notes that Taiwan being a major player in Asian economics is a key influencer of regional economics and politics. Conspiracy theorists may suggest that power agencies may manipulate cross-straits developments between Mainland China and Taiwan to their own purposes. That being said, there are numerous power relations determining the construction of Taiwanese identity which cannot be accounted for simply in terms of economic and political forces.
References:
Chang, H.C & Holt, R. (2007) Symbols in conflict: taiwan (Taiwan) and zhongguo (China) in Taiwan’s identity politics. Nationalism and Ethnic Politics, 13:129–165.
