reality of China's threats against Taiwan, record numbers of Chinese fighter jets and warships surround the island of democracy China says these exercises are punishment for Taiwan's 'independence forces'. A direct response to the Taiwanese president's speech during national day celebrations "This is the second round of Chinese military exercises in 2024 around Taiwan which Beijing claims as 'sacred' territory." Although Taiwan has been self-governing for over 70 years few countries recognize it as a sovereign state China calls Lai a 'dangerous separatist' and since she took office, cross-strait tensions have reached higher levels and Chinese intimidation has expanded not only through military means but also increased pressure, no doubt from Beijing trying to make it clear that the ultimate goal of uniting Taiwan with China is still Beijing's priority. At the heart of this conflictis the question of identity about being Taiwanese.
In June this year, China sent a shock to Taiwan Beijing announced a new interpretation of the law against separatists who they believe are trying to separate Taiwan from China. In September, activist Yang Chih-yuan became the first Taiwanese to be convicted under this new interpretation. A court in East China sentenced him to 9 years in prison on secession charges. Yang is one of more than 800 Taiwanese who have been detained or simply disappeared in China over the past 10 years. Some face separatist or other charges, according to Amnesty International. Offenses punishable by death, according to Beijing, include advocating for Taiwan to become a member of international organizations that only sovereign states can join.
History of Taiwan
In the first half of the 20th century, Taiwan was a colony of Japan, When Japan lost World War II, it ceded Taiwan to the Republic of China under the Chinese Nationalist Party or KMT When the KMT lost the Chinese Civil War and fled to Taiwan in 1949. In Taipei they established a temporary capital for the Republic of China or ROC which remains the official name of Taiwan to this day, The winner of the civil war, the Chinese Communist Party, established the People's Republic of China on the mainland that year.
When the KMT arrived in Taiwan, they were concerned that the people living there were not 'Chinese' enough, so they enacted draconian policies to re-educate them on how to be properly Chinese. The KMT declared martial law in 1949 and for decades ruled Taiwan as an authoritarian state. At first, China's seat at the United Nations was represented by Taipei as the Republic of China but that changed in 1971 with Resolution 2758 which said that the People's Republic of China in Beijing was China's only legitimate representative.
The delegation of the Republic of China has decided not to take part in further laws, then many countries have shifted China's diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing.
In 1996, Taiwan held direct presidential elections for the first time and since then, democracy has become an important part of Taiwanese identity. Today, more than 60% of Taiwanese see themselves as Taiwanese. As a democracy, power has alternated between Taiwan's two main political parties, the KMT and the now-governing Democratic Progressive Party, or DPP, and relations with China continue to dominate elections. The two main parties say they want to maintain Taiwan's ambiguous status quo, but want to achieve it in different ways. The KMT, once fiercely anti-communist, now favors closer ties with Beijing, while the DPP is wary of Chinese influence and advocates keeping Beijing at a distance.
So why is this conflict getting worse now?
Lai Ching-te is the current president of Taiwan. Lai comes from the ruling DPP Beijing Taiwan party which is seen as separatist. Her victory in the 2024 election marks the first time any party in Taiwan's democratic history has won three consecutive elections. The DPP under Lai's leadership says that Taiwan is already a sovereign state so there is no need to declare formal independence, a red line for Beijing.
Then there is Xi Jinping, the Chinese president who believes that Taiwan is a province of China and has no right to call itself an independent country. He describes 'reuniting' Taiwan with China as one of Beijing's main goals. One that he says he hopes to achieve as leader.
Conclusion
