TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — On Sept. 2 former President of Taiwan Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) said he would not attend the national day celebrations beacuse of the inclusion of the English word "Taiwan" instead of the "Republic of China (ROC)" in the event's official communications.
The former Kuomintang (KMT) president said the decision to change the name covertly normalizes Taiwan independence and endangers Taiwan’s people. Taipei’s mayor has hinted at a similar sentiment, and the KMT’s presidential candidate on Monday warned against forgetting that the ROC “is our roots.”
But what do the non-politicians think? Taiwan News asked several Taiwanese people in Taipei about Ma’s decision, and got a mixture of responses from a range of different viewpoints.
Wei Chih-chia is pictured in Daan Park. (Taiwan News, Jono Thomson photo)
Wei Chih-chia (魏志嘉) from Taichung
Wei: I don’t think President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) changing the name to “Taiwan National Day” is a very big problem, but it might be a tense or sensitive issue internationally, and could possibly make some problems worse.
In terms of former president Ma’s position, if he is coming at the issue from the perspective of the country’s interests, I think it’s fine, but if he’s talking about “Taiwan independence” and is personally opposed to it, I don’t really support it, because I think that we can do what we want to do.
Taiwan takes the shape of an independent country, but after all, we are small, and I’m not sure how the other countries of the world would look upon this issue.
Hsu I-hui and Chen Yu-hsuan are pictured at Liberty Square. (Taiwan News, Jono Thomson photo)
Hsu I-hui (許翊慧) from Yilan and Chen Yu-hsuan (陳妤瑄) from Pingtung
Chen: It's a historical name. Because my mum is Chinese, I actually tend to lean towards the Kuomintang or Chinese side.
Because before, Taiwan was also China, and everyone established a holiday together. When (the Republic of China) came to Taiwan they brought this holiday with them.
TN: Why do you think they only changed the English and not the Chinese wording?
Hsu: Taiwanese people, in relation to the Chinese (language) part, feel that if that is changed to “Taiwan” (instead of “the Republic of China) it will be a little sensitive.
Chen: And most people won’t really pay attention to the English part
Hsu: Right, if they changed the Chinese part, it would become very direct!
Chang Shih-tsai (張世在), in his 60s, from Taipei
TN: What do you think of Ma Ying-jeou’s decision to skip the event?
Chang: I think it’s the correct one. Because this country is the Republic of China, it's not Taiwan. If we changed to (the country of Taiwan), there wouldn’t be any benefits. I believe that in regards to a safe and stable life, if you were to change the country’s name to Taiwan, it would make cross-strait relations more tense. It’s not necessary, and would give the people a feeling of instability.
TN: Will you be watching the National Day Celebrations at the Presidential Palace?
Chang: I won’t be watching that, but will instead watch the performance of the armed forces.
Vivian Yang and her mother pictured outside the Presidential Office. (Taiwan News, Jono Thomson photo)
Vivian Yang (楊小姐) from Taipei
TN: What do you think of using the word “Taiwan”?
Yang: I think it’s fine, right now we are here, we are Taiwan, we are Taiwanese. I think he wants to let the other side of the strait know that he doesn’t support Taiwan independence.
I don’t think it will have any negative impact, I think it will be good for us!
Recent university graduate Huang Yu-ting (黃鈺婷) from Taipei and her auntie Yu Pin-jung (余品蓉) from Kaohsiung.
TN: Do you agree with Ma?
Yu: I understand and agree with his thinking, and I agree that using “Taiwan” has the feeling of Taiwan independence. As for next year, we will have to see if the next government agrees to this kind of change.
Huang: I think it will produce a feeling of greater separation in cross-strait relations. That is, the other side of the strait might think: “You were originally the Republic of China, Chinese Taipei, etc., why is it changing to Taiwan?”
Liao Chiu-yeh is pictured in Dongmen. (Taiwan News, Jono Thomson photo)
Liao Chiu-yueh (廖九月) from Taipei
Liao: President Tsai Ing-wen uses “Republic of China (Taiwan),” and for me, I think this is fine. Because (at the national celebrations), they sing the national anthem and make the subject the Republic of China anyway, so there isn’t any feeling of Taiwan independence.
So actually, I think the name isn’t the important part – people are concerned that this issue doesn’t produce too big of a conflict. So, if former president Ma declines to participate and says it's because of Taiwan independence issues, I think it’s a bit far-fetched, because we haven’t reached that degree yet.
TN: Do you think it has anything to do with the upcoming election?
Liao: I think that Ma will be able to draw support from the KMT’s base, but he won’t be able to attract any new voters by taking on this issue.
Liu Hsuan-cheng holds a Chinese flag outside the Presidential Office. (Taiwan News, Jono Thomson photo)
Liu Hsuan-cheng (劉軒誠) from Taipei
TN: Ma said he would not attend the national day celebrations because of what he said was a feeling of Taiwan independence.
Liu: This is a fact, everything this current government does is for Taiwan independence. They are doing this, but they won’t dare to say it, that’s all.
But they are kind of fooling themselves, because Taiwan people all know (what they are doing).
TN: Why bring the flag?
Liu: I worked in China for a long time, and when I was there received its influence. I think the mainland, China, is always developing, but because of the current government, things in Taiwan have stagnated.
Why are Taiwan people so unfortunate that they can’t raise families and advance more?
TN: Do you think it’s because of democracy?
Liu: Democracy isn’t a problem. Both Taiwan and China have democracy, but Taiwan’s democracy is in a kind of chaos.
Li Chih-feng holds his dog at Chiang Kai Shek Memorial Hall. (Taiwan News, Jono Thomson photo)
Li Chih-feng (李誌峰) from Tainan
TN: Do you mind that the English word "Taiwan" was used?
Li: Not at all, because Taiwan is Taiwan.
TN: What about the Republic of China?
LI: The Republic of China is also Taiwan
TN: So why do you think Ma Ying-jeou is choosing not to go?
Li: He’s got his own way of thinking. He’s like most of the KMT, and perhaps hopes that our (country’s) name can conform to China or the mainland’s thinking, or the name that they want.
Mr. Zhao (趙先生) from Taipei
TN: What do you think about using the English word “Taiwan”?
Zhao, pointing at the presidential office’s Chinese banner: You can see it from here: "Celebrating the Republic of China’s 112th National Day." Now, I think the English part is an international issue, but the people of this country will look at the Chinese part.
TN: What if they changed the Chinese words to “Taiwan”?
Zhao: That would be too sensitive. After all, we are the Republic of China.
I think Taiwan is just a geographic name. If you changed it to “Taiwan National Day” that would be very obvious in comparison.
Hsu Hung-pin (far left) is pictured with his family in front of the presidential office. (Taiwan News, Jono Thomson photo)
Hsu Hung-pin (徐宏斌) from Taipei
TN: What do you think about Ma’s position?
Hsu: I think it’s really bad. He’s the former president, how could you say these things about a country you have led?
If you’re in your own home, you shouldn’t say that holding an event there is a bad thing. For the sake of your country in the long run, you should choose a better direction.
