Taiwanese began voting today to decide whether the president’s party and its staunch pro-independence allies will win a majority in the legislature for the first time – a change that could bring the island closer to a conflict with rival China.
President Chen Shui-bian’s coalition has been making China nervous by pushing for a new Taiwanese identity that’s separate from its communist neighbour – which claims self-governed Taiwan is Chinese territory and must eventually accept Beijing’s rule.
A victory today would likely bolster Chen’s campaign for a new Taiwan.
A bloody civil war split the two sides in 1949, and China has repeatedly warned that it is ready to fight again if the Taiwanese refuse to eventually unify or keep dragging their feet on the issue. So far, China has been silent about today’s election.
In the capital, Taipei, voter Tsai Ming-tai said she supported Chen’s party and didn’t care what Beijing thought.
“We can’t stand China. Whatever we try to do, China tries to block it. Anyway, if a war breaks out, America will help defend us, and China is afraid of that,” the 34-year-old businesswoman said.
But Mary Lee, a 45-year-old office worker, supported the opposition Nationalist Party. “We need the Nationalists to check and balance Chen Shui-bian so he won’t lead the country on the dangerous path to independence,” she said.
Beijing has held out hope that Taiwan won’t try to break away for good because the pro-unification Nationalist and People First parties have held a slight majority in the 225-seat legislature. The opposition has blocked most of Chen’s initiatives, and Beijing hoped the parties – especially the former ruling Nationalists – would eventually return to power.
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