History of Taiwan

Many teachers ask us whether Taiwan is really a country. Many teachers haven't even considered that it isn't and would have similar opinions of Hong Kong and Macau... though there is a good likelihood that many weren't even aware that Macau existed.

In addressing the questions of Taiwanese sovereignty, it would be best to start only a short while ago in China in 1945.

On October 25, 1945, Republic of China (ROC) troops representing the Allied Command accepted the formal surrender of Japanese military forces. This ended Japanese occupation of 50 years. Chang Kai-shek led the ROC administration when they announced that this day was "Taiwan Restoration Day". The United Nations put China in control of the administration of Taiwan. The ROC left administration in place under the leadership of Chen Yi. Unfortunately corruption and a number of other influences culminated in a loss of popular support for the ROC administration leading to civil unrest and an major uprising on Feb 28, 1947. The Chinese government sent over troops on March 7, 1947 and for a three day period anyone seen on the street was shot, homes were broken into and occupants killed. Wikipedia talks about the 228 Incident in greater detail.

The times following 228 Incident were terrible. Martial law was imposed from March 7, 1947 to 1987. During this time, NOTHING could be talked about. No complaints could be made. People were unceremoniously and indiscriminately killed or beaten, and many had property or landed expropriated.

In terms of political development, Taiwan has grown into a free and vibrant democracy. In 1987, martial law was lifted by the government, and a series of political reforms were launched in order to expand the democratic process.

When the Chinese Communists, under Mao Tse-tung, were vying for control over China with Chiang Kai-shek's Nationalists, in an interview with American reporter Edgar Snow, Chairman Mao said: "...we will extend them (the Koreans) our enthusiastic help in their struggle for independence. The same thing applies for Taiwan"
(p. 110 in Red Star over China, by Edgar Snow).

Taiwan held their first direct presidential election in 1996.

In 2000, the presidential election ended five decades of government under the KMT and power was peacefully transferred from the Nationalist to the Democratic Progressive Party. Taiwan has thus established itself as a powerful working model for democracy.

On Feb 28, 2004, in commemoration of the 228 incident, Taiwanese people formed a human line 500 kilometers long from the northern tip of Taiwan (Keelung) to it’s southern tip. This was done in an effort to bring light to their oppression and to call for peace and to protest China.

Taiwan has a competitive and dynamic free-market economy which has brought all levels of society unprecedented prosperity. Taiwan joined the WTO in 2002, thereby becoming an official partner in the world trading system. The government is now promoting industrial modernization and a knowledge based economy.

Taiwan has entered the circle of developed nations with its continued advancement of democracy, economic liberalization, social pluralization, universal education and technological standards.

In 2004, President Chen Shui-bian was re-elected by a narrow margin following a questionable assassination attempt on him mere hours before the election. Chen Shui-bian promised to forge closer relations with China and leave the volatile issue of Taiwan's sovereignty off the political reform agenda.

Snapshot of Taiwan's Historic Timeline

Pre-1600's
- Originally, Taiwan was settled by people of Malay-Polynesian descent, who initially inhabited the low-lying coastal plains. They called their island Pakan. The Han Chinese began arriving in the 1200's but there is very little information to say how many came. It is guessed that there were very few until the 1600's
1544 - Portuguese wave as they pass by
- As they passed by the island, and Jan Huygen van Linschoten, a Dutch navigator on a Portugese ship, exclaimed "Ilha Formosa" (meaning "Beautiful island"), which became its name for the next four centuries.
1624 - Dutch arrived and established a colony.
- During the subsequent settlement by the Dutch and the waves of settlers from China, the aborigines retreated to the hills and mountains, and became the "mountain people."
- On a narrow peninsula on the Southwestern coast of the island, the Dutch established a fortress named "Zeelandia", after the Dutch province of Zeeland. The peninsula was called Tayouan, meaning terrace bay. This later evolved into Taiwan, and came to be the name for the whole island.
- The Dutch brought in Chinese laborers as migrant workers. for the sugar plantations and rice fields. They usually came for a few years (without family) and then returned to China. Eventually, more settled, and married aborigine wives. Thus a new race was born: the Taiwanese.
1662 Dutch were defeated by a Chinese pirate, Cheng Cheng-kung (Koxinga), a loyalist of the old Ming dynasty.
1662 - Chinese occupation by Ming Dynasty outcasts
- Following the fall of the Ming Dynasty the leaders fled to Taiwan and used it as a base to regain power from the Qing Dynasty
1683 - Qing Dynasty formally annexed Taiwan.
- This could have been a move from the Qing to get rid of the Ming or perhaps because Japan was manuevering to perhaps position themselves on the island.
1871 - Japan ship crashes off the southern tip of Taiwan
- This incident is important for what happened and the result. When the ship crashed, the entire crew of 54 is killed by Paiwan aborigines and Japan asked for compensation from China. China said no becuase the aborgines were outside their juridiction.
1874 - Japan sends troops to invade and lose.
1887 - Qing government make Taiwan a province and name Taipei the capital
1894/95 - Japan invades again and wins
- The Japanese defeated Qing China who officially ceded Taiwan to Japan. Many libertarians would argue that when this was done there was no 99 year stipulation like in Macau or Hong Kong.
- The new Japanese rulers gave Chinese people wishing to remain Chinese 2 years to get out or all property and rights would be expropriated.
- The Japanese occupation was harsh, but at least the Japanese were not corrupt. The educational system was built up to the same level as in Japan, infrastructure, trains, roads, industry etc. were developed extensively. An excellent academic work on the Japanese period is Mr. George Kerr's work on the "Formosan Home Rule Movement."

1945 - WWII ended and the United Nations gave temporary administrative control to the Republic of China.
1949 - Chiang Kai-shek lost the war on the mainland, and fled to Taiwan.
- During this time many of the most influential people from the Kuomintang (KMT) came over to Taiwan and they brought with them many great Chinese treasures that they did not wish the new regime to have.
- Chiang Kai-shek established his new regime in Taiwan. For the next four decades, the people of Taiwan lived under Martial Law, while the Kuomintang (KMT) attempted to maintain the fantasy that they ruled all of China, and would some day "recover" the mainland.
- Chinese mainlanders who came over with Chiang Kai-shek constituted 15 percent of the population of the island, but were able to maintain themselves in a position of power over the 85 percent native Taiwanese through tight control of the political system, police, military, educational system and media.
1951-52 the Allied Powers and Japan formally concluded World War II
- The San Francisco Peace Treaty is important for Taiwan, because was during the signing of this treaty, with all the Allied Powers, Japan formally gave up sovereignty over Taiwan, but it was not determined who was the beneficiary: it was concluded that "...the future status of Taiwan will be decided in accord with the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations."
1979 - movement begins to end martial law
- The tangwai ("outside-the-party") democratic opposition started to question the KMT's anachronistic claim to represent all of China, and began to work towards ending the 40-years' old martial law. In September 1986, this movement culminated in the formation of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which then began its growth into a full-fledged opposition party.
1987 - Martial law ends
- Martial Law was finally dropped in 1987, but replaced by a less-stringent National Security Law.
1991 the KMT's officially recognize that they do not rule China
- the aging Nationalist Chinese legislators in Taiwan -- elected on the mainland in 1947 -- were sent into retirement.
- Since then the island has made major strides in the direction of a fully democratic political system,
1992 President Lee Teng-hui Reforms
- National Security Law, which continued to restrict freedom on the island until it was abolished.
- Lee gradually started to restructure the anachronistic system brought over by the Kuomintang from China in the late 1940s. He pushed through reforms which abolished the Legislative Yuan and National Assembly seats still held by aging representatives since their election in China in 1947.
- Thus in 1991-92, Taiwan saw its first direct elections of all legislators.
1996 - President Lee is officially elected
- President Lee continued his push for reforms and in 1996, for the first time in history, the Taiwanese were able to directly elect their President. Lee also pushed for the abolishment of the "Taiwan Province" layer of government, as well as of the National Assembly, which eventually ceased to function in 2005.
March 2000 Elections
- The transition to democracy culminated in March 2000 in the election of Chen Shui-bian, who won with 39.3% of the vote in a three-way race against KMT candidate Lien Chan and independent candidate James Soong. In March 2004, President Chen consolidated his position with a slightly over 50% victory over a combined ticket of Messrs. Lien and Soong.

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