People 人物 To Mention Only A FEW.: TKACIK: Taiwan struggles in China’s trade grip 維安特勤、霹靂小組、夜鷹部隊

TKACIK: Taiwan struggles in China’s trade grip
Islanders fear trade in services pact with Beijing will swallow their economy

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By contrast, China’s financial institutions are all centrally controlled and have vastly more capital. The agreement affords Chinese banks and institutions up to 20 percent ownership in Taiwan counterparts and thus effective control. It is impossible for any Taiwan institution to take effective control of any Chinese counterpart.

Small retail businesses face a similar potential for being swamped. The investment threshold of $200,000 brings with it a potential of bringing in 21 new immigrants from China — three employees and up to seven family members per worker.

In a broad demographic sense, China can absorb unlimited Taiwan immigration, but Taiwan cannot absorb unlimited Chinese migration. Nor can Taiwan’s retail sector absorb unlimited competition. Unlike other foreign investors in Taiwan, Chinese investors do not have to renounce Chinese citizenship to be naturalized as Taiwanese voters inTaiwan.

Taiwan’s voters see few if any real advantages of the Trade in Services Agreement to Taiwan’s overall economy over what Taiwanese businesses already enjoy in China. There are no new investment guarantees, no new arbitration advantages, no new dispute-settlement mechanisms.

No doubt the agreement fulfills a Taipei government goal of further integrating Taiwan’s economy with China’s and enhancing China’s already massive influence in Taiwan’s economy.

Like Ukrainians’ view of their Russian economic partnership, most Taiwanese see the agreement as a strategic move on the way to Taiwan’s political union with its biggest economic counterpart.

Unlike Ukrainians, Taiwanese have parried the maneuver cleverly. Legislators, including the speaker of Taiwan’s parliament, have acquiesced in a physical takeover of the country’s Legislative Yuan by demonstrators — mostly students and young activists — on the eve of the agreement vote. Anxious parliamentarians worried about voters, but under a strict party whip, now seem content to let the demonstrations delay the vote indefinitely.

Most Taiwanese hope they will get enough moral support from Washington, Tokyo, Canberra, Ottawa and Brussels to persuade the ruling Nationalist Party to rethink the Trade in Services Agreement. It is a move they judge will not draw backlash from Beijing.

The Obama administration’s Ukraine policy has been a horrible failure for Washington and the Western democracies. But it seems that the State Department has learned its lesson. With a little bit of encouragement for Taiwan’s people, the United States may be able to preserve Taiwan as an important trading partner separate from China. Without it, Taiwan will eventually disappear as an independent entity in democratic Asia.

John J. Tkacik is president of China Business Intelligence

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民進黨團今（30）日上午舉行記者會指出，面對330捍衛民主活動，執政當局竟然動用維安特勤、霹靂小組、夜鷹部隊來對付學生，甚至連在保一大隊服替代役的役男也被召回上第一線執行鎮暴任務，民進黨立委警告馬政府不要「無事惹事」。

民進黨籍立委李應元表示，從未有執政者不斷恐嚇百姓，把用在應付恐怖攻擊的裝備、人員、設施，用來恐嚇手無寸鐵的學生、老師和公民團體，他警告政府不要無事惹事，學生和平理性的活動，如果有任何流血，唯國民黨馬是問。

民進黨籍立委陳歐珀指出，他有接獲警校學生的家長投訴，學生昨晚被緊急召回，要著鎮暴裝帶齊眉棍去執勤。他並提出一名替代役家長的投訴，家長投訴說「我兒在保一服替代役，昨晚放假被緊急召回，今著鎮暴裝帶齊眉棍出勤。沒有專業訓練下連替代役都被推上火線，請問是否違法？」

對於總統府宣稱，只要衝進總統府，就是要直接政變，以現行犯逮捕，民進黨籍立委吳宜臻則反駁說，試問何來直接政變的法條？馬總統可能擔心，人民站出來的力量，是喪失政權的前哨，所以透過傳聲筒放出政變說。她認為，是馬總統不頃聽人民聲音才會到這地步。

民進黨立委姚文智也表示，這次學生運動是全世界最平和、非暴力，意志最堅定的。攻佔行政院用棉被和梯子，會造成什麼傷害？不成比例的血腥鎮壓不要再強加學生運動身上，今天出動維安特勤、霹靂小組、夜鷹部隊，這樣安排是否無事惹事、先鎮後暴？