| The following is the second of a series of columns written by Paul Jackson of the Calgary Sun while he was in Taipei. This column was run on June 6, 2001. WAR OF NERVES AGAINST TAIWAN By Paul Jackson KINMEN (a.k.a. Quemoy) ISLAND, Taiwan � The tunnels are long and winding, sometimes blasted out of solid granite rock and go deep. They are part of a determined strategy to ensure Taiwan�s defence. At one observation point, we peer through the binoculars at the coastline of Communist China just across the Taiwan Straits and wonder what military activity is under way. Taiwan intelligence officials say Beijing has some 300 missiles aimed at their country from the mainland. Another point on Kinmen Island reveals a vast underground waterway designed to once hold 40 vessels and thousands of combat troops who would sweep out to defend their island should Beijing order and invasion. The underground waterway is now a tourist attraction, Taiwan having upgraded its entire defence structure since it was built in the 1960s. Still, 15,000 crack troops are stationed on the island, just a 45-minute flight from Taiwan itself. Significantly, in Kinmen National Park there is a display of de-commissioned jet-fighters, helicopters, artillery and other military equipment. It�s a reminder that the small, democratic country has always been on the alert. Today there is measurable tension in the air. Communist China � with its 2.5 million strong �People�s Liberation Army� � is about to launch military exercises targeting the capture and occupation of a Taiwan island and an aircraft carrier. The buildup of as many as 100,000 soldiers has been under way for months. One exercise now in progress is codenamed �Defence of Holy Territory.� The big one, codenamed �Liberation Number One� is expected to start today. A U.S. aircraft carrier, the USS Carl Vincent, is said to be headed to the region to show the flag. The Beijing government is conducting yet another war of nerves against Taiwan because it thinks the country�s new leader, President Chen Shui-bian, is too cozy with the U.S. and isn�t kowtowing to Beijing�s demands for one-sided talks on unification. Beijing wants to demonstrate that it can take Taiwan by force anytime if necessary. Amidst all the prosperity and colorful atmosphere on Taiwan, there is an underlying feeling that the nations is a bit like Israel, surrounded by enemies bent on its destruction � or like Britain in 1939, facing up to Adolf Hitler�s Nazi regime all alone. The current maneuvers, designed to rattle Taiwan, are said to have been ordered by President Jiang Zemin, architect of the 1989 slaughter of hundreds of students in Tiananmen Square, just 12 years ago this week. The dictator caused an uproar when he visited Calgary and was personally �white-hatted� by mayor Al Duerr, a close friend of Communist China. Perhaps only the fear of world condemnation and the threat of trade sanctions keep Jiang Zemin and his hardliners in check. Coincidentally, one reason Taiwan has refused official unification talks with Beijing is because the Communist regime refuses to rule out the use of force to unite the two countries. Chen, and other Taiwanese presidents, have wondered why, if Beijing�s of honest dealings are legitimate, it won�t commit itself not to start a war. After all, Communist China, with the 1.2 billion people and the largest army in the world, has nothing to fear from Taiwan�s 22 million and a military of less than 400,000. Taiwan�s military budget by the way, is now the lowest in a decade. Meanwhile, China is beefing up its military, a move that has Washington worried. That�s why, even now and again, just to show that Communist China means business, Beijing gets belligerent and tries to bully Taiwan into submission. This is one of those times. Way back in 1958, the Communists actually occupied Kinmen Island, but the Taiwanese defenders drove the Communist soldiers out in three days. In 1966 (sic, should be 1996), in another terror campaign, the Communists launched missiles across the Taiwan Straits, and Washington was sufficiently worried that it sent warships into the area to let Beijing know it regarded Taiwan�s freedom as worth fighting for. In April, President George W. Bush approved a major arms sale to Taiwan. That infuriated Communist China. Then, last month, Chen made a visit to New York City and was treated like the head of an independent state he is. This week, after a tour of Latin America, Chen is back in the U.S., significantly in Bush�s home state of Texas. Communist China, which tries to portray Taiwan as nothing more than a breakaway province of the mainland, is again angry. Bush has basically pledged the U.S would go to the defence of Taiwan if it is actually attacked and Beijing does try to take it by force. This would obviously put the world in a precarious position. Taiwan, which along with Japan has the highest standard of living in Asia and the most democratic political system, doesn�t want war. It wants peace and freedom. But ever since Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek and his supporters fled to Taiwan in 1949 ahead of Mao Tse-Tung�s Communist onslaught � the Republic of China was established as a sovereign state in 1912 � Beijing has tried to undermine it. Beijing had a huge diplomatic success in 1971 when it managed to have Taiwan ousted from the UN and take its place. That was ironic, because Taiwan was a founding member of the UN. Still, Beijing�s attempt to portray Taiwan as a �pariah� nation have not worked. The nation has official recognition from about 150 nations, including Canada. This show of strength by Beijing involves PLA land, sea, and air forces. It is said to be the largest ever. To keep residents from panicking � and the stock market and the Taiwanese dollar from falling � the Taiwanese government has tried to spread calm, contending the exercise is just routine. Perhaps this time, once again, it is. Yet one day the people of Taiwan know it might be the real thing. And they plan � every single man, woman and child of them � to fight to preserve their democracy�s freedom. Back to the home page. |