China envoy’s Taiwan trip highlights differences

Chinese envoy Chen Yunlin made history this week when he became the most senior Chinese official to visit Taiwan. But his five-day visit, which ends Friday, also highlighted how – socially and politically – Taiwan and China are not merely like two separate countries. They are more like different planets.

While Chen hobnobbed with tycoons and officials on Taiwan’s banquet circuit, he was mocked by comedians, cursed by rowdy street protesters and scrutinized by the island’s aggressive media.

Despite the insults and mockery, Chen’s visit was remarkable because it would have been virtually impossible a year ago.

That’s when Taiwan had a president, Chen Shui-bian, who was despised by Beijing because he favored permanent independence. The two sides split amid civil war in 1949, and China says Taiwan has two choices: eventual unification or war.

The icy relations went into a fiery wok six months ago with the election of Ma Ying-jeou as Taiwan’s president. The former Taipei mayor pledged to forge closer ties with China, where Taiwanese businesses have invested billions in recent years despite the political animosities.

On Thursday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang rhetorically laid down a marker for President-elect Barack Obama. Qin told reporters in Beijing that Taiwan was the “most sensitive issue” in China’s relations with America.
“We hope the U.S. will properly handle this issue ... so that our relations will develop in a sound and stable way,” Qin said.