Opinion | Hong Kong’s hopes and fears are not Taiwan’s – and its protests are a distraction for Taiwanese voters
- Owing to Hong Kong’s colonial history and role in global affairs, the city’s relationship with Beijing is vastly different from the equally complex cross-strait relations
- Extrapolating from events in Hong Kong to forecast Taiwan’s future is a mistake, and a setback for Taiwanese democracy
There have been signs of a new democratic maturity in Taiwan, particularly since 2014 – the electorate has been more welcoming of off-centre independent politicians, the traditional dualistic political positions of the two main parties have been questioned, and there have been clear signs of a public rejection of the predominant “Chinese fear” rhetoric on cross-strait issues.
Presently, however, mere weeks away from the Taiwanese presidential election, a barrage of confused information and reportage on the Hong Kong protests is distracting the Taiwanese electorate from debating very pressing domestic issues.
For such reasons, it is worth pointing out just how different the Taiwanese relationship with China is compared to that of Hong Kong’s.
An industrially and militarily dominant, and highly aggressive colonising nation, Britain took Hong Kong from China in 1842 through the Treaty of Nanking following its military victories.
