Creation: Political Economy Group of the Proletarian Liberation Struggle Association
ㅤㅤAccording to Taiwanese media reports, Vice Mayor of Shanghai Hu Yuan, who led the delegation to the Taipei-Shanghai City Forum, arrived in Taipei on December 16 and gathered protesters outside Songshan Airport in Taipei, while the two major political parties in Taiwan also engaged in fierce verbal battles.
ㅤㅤThe Taipei-Shanghai City Forum, abbreviated by both sides as the Twin Cities Forum, has been a platform for exchanges between the two major cities of mainland China and Taiwan since 2010. Since 1998, the mayor of Taipei has been mainly held by Kuomintang (KMT) members, including former Taiwanese “President” Ma Ying-jeou. Therefore, this forum is primarily led by the official Chinese revisionists and their comprador representatives from the KMT in Taiwan. The current Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an is also a puppet of the Chinese revisionists. Since Lai Ching-te was elected “President” in May this year, the situation across the Taiwan Strait has continued to escalate. Although Taiwan remains largely within the sphere of U.S. imperialist influence, due to the recent economic invasion by Chinese revisionists, the KMT still retains considerable influence, such as holding a majority of seats in the Legislative Yuan and exercising democratic rights.
ㅤㅤUnder these circumstances, the Twin Cities Forum also reflects the struggle between two comprador factions within Taiwan. On December 13, Taiwan announced that the large-scale military buildup around Taiwan by Chinese revisionists had ended, and the unprecedented scale of naval and coast guard vessels assembled recently was returning to mainland coastal areas. Taiwan’s Chief of the General Staff, Mei Chia-shu, had already issued orders to lift the alert on December 12. The Taiwan Strait Exchange Foundation also called on mainland China during the same day to cease military threats during the forum, in an attempt to show goodwill and even display a pleading attitude—“Three days, five days, a week, whatever it takes, this is goodwill.” They hoped Chiang Wan-an could convey this to mainland China.
ㅤㅤHowever, regarding the forum between Shanghai and Taipei, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) apparently did not show any “goodwill.” The Shanghai delegation for this visit had 102 applicants to participate in the Twin Cities Forum, but ultimately none passed the review. On December 13, Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council issued a written statement pointing out that due to mainland China’s unfriendly actions such as the “22 Measures to Punish Taiwan Independence,” they must scrutinize Taiwanese officials involved with China when they come to Taiwan, as a form of protest and dissatisfaction, seemingly defending the “Democratic World MVP.” Therefore, when Vice Mayor Hu Yuan and his delegation arrived at Songshan Airport in Taipei on December 16, protesters gathered outside. Both “Taiwan Nation” and “Pro-Unification Parties” sent people to the scene, making the situation tense. The DPP, as a comprador of U.S. imperialism, acted in this manner without surprise, while the opposition Kuomintang, claiming to uphold “democracy,” posted on Facebook on December 13 emphasizing that “The Republic of China has undergone democratization, and freedom of the press has long been embedded in society’s blood, which is also Taiwan’s pride.” They condemned the DPP for blocking mainland media, criticizing Lai Ching-te for turning the Mainland Affairs Council into a “Green Committee,” and shamefully degrading Taiwan’s image. The KMT called on Lai Ching-te not to let his ideology and emotions override the progress of cross-strait exchanges, city governance, and the interests of all people. However, no matter how much the KMT advocates “democracy,” it remains a comprador of the Chinese imperialist bloc opposed to the DPP. They promote an abstract notion of democracy, which is essentially “zero knowledge of history,” completely forgetting that it was the long and complex struggle of the Taiwanese people under the “228 War Song” that shattered Chiang Kai-shek and Chiang Ching-kuo’s fascist rule and led to Taiwan’s current democratic system. The Taipei-Shanghai forum is merely another reconciliation between the KMT and Chinese revisionists. In fact, the real underlying reflection of the struggle between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait and the two Taiwanese parties is the uncertainty of U.S.-China relations after Trump’s potential return to power. At that time, the Taiwan Strait will inevitably become a key battleground in the U.S.-China rivalry.