Song Siyao Incident: DPP's Fragile Heart on "Taipei, China"
Tsai Hsuan, China Times Commentary, December 5, 2024
Former President Ma Ying-jeou invited mainland Chinese students to Taiwan, and controversy erupted when one student congratulated the “Taipei, China” team for winning a world championship. This led to accusations of "taking advantage of Taiwan" and sparked a strong backlash from Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) figures. The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) expressed regret over the remarks, saying they hurt the feelings of the Taiwanese people. Executive Director Hsiao Hsu-tsen of the Ma Ying-jeou Foundation, responded by pointing out that “Taipei China” is the term used in mainland China, and that Taiwan’s democratic openness should not be hindered by differences in nomenclature.
Minister Chiu Tsui-cheng of the MAC vowed to impose administrative penalties, restricting future visits from such institutions for periods ranging from six months to five years. This might even include mainland Olympic gold medalists such as Fan Zhendong, Quan Hongchan, and Pan Zhanle. The reaction to student Song Siyao's use of “Taipei, China” underscores the DPP's hyper-sensitivity to the term.
Ms. Song, a student from Fudan University, congratulated the “Taipei China” team on behalf of her faculty and fellow students, leading to widespread criticism from DPP lawmakers and media figures. The DPP condemned the statement as a political attack on Taiwan, reiterating the stance that "China is China, and Taiwan is Taiwan." The party urged the Ma Ying-jeou Foundation to stop using academic and sports exchanges as a cover for the mainland’s "united front" tactics. However, the DPP administration, despite holding three terms in office, has never amended the constitution or pursued a formal name change, which some argue reflects a fundamental political divide.
Taiwan participates in international events under the name "Chinese Taipei," a term that is inseparable from Taiwan's constitutional framework, rooted in the 1981 Lausanne Agreement with the International Olympic Committee (IOC). According to Taiwan's Constitution and the Cross-Strait Relations Act, Taiwan's official name remains the "Republic of China," with the "mainland" considered part of it. Under this constitutional framework, Taiwan’s international participation is necessarily constrained, and "Chinese Taipei" has become a historical compromise within the existing legal structure.
The DPP administration emphasizes localization and the desire for name rectification, yet it has never addressed constitutional changes. The reason lies in the fact that constitutional amendments require a two-thirds majority in the Legislative Yuan and must be approved by a majority of voters in a national referendum. Given the current political landscape under the administration of President Lai Ching-te, such reforms seem nearly impossible. If the DPP truly believes that the name issue is crucial, it should push for constitutional amendments to rectify the name, rather than mainland students when the constitutional framework remains unchanged.
Following Ms. Song’s visit to Taiwan as part of a delegation of mainland Chinese university students, critics argued that calling Taiwan's team “Taipei, China” was an act of "united front" strategy and a severe challenge to Taiwan's sovereignty. They labeled all the students as tools of China's united front efforts. However, the remarks of individual students in the visiting group are not enough to alter the majority of Taiwanese people's stance on national identity. If the DPP administration is confident in Taiwan's democratic freedoms, why worry excessively about the influence of a minority opinion?
United front tactics require a certain scale and strategic coherence, which cannot be achieved through isolated individual comments or single events. Overstating such incidents only blurs the issue and exposes internal insecurities within Taiwan. Ms. Song’s personal statement cannot sway the collective social perception in Taiwan, nor can it be extended into a full-fledged united front campaign. Interpreting it as an attempt to "diminish Taiwan" or as part of a "united front offensive" is clearly an overreach, one that does not aid in promoting cross-strait exchanges. On the contrary, it highlights Taiwan's low tolerance for diverse opinions.
Taiwan has long prided itself on baseball as the national sport, but today, political issues are overshadowing the spirit of unity and struggle that sports represent. Looking back at the success of the 1992 "Cross-Strait Baseball Exchange Tournament," it demonstrated that sports can transcend ideology and return to pure athletic competition. Now, however, congratulating a baseball team for winning a championship is being labeled a conspiracy to "diminish Taiwan," ignoring the unifying values that the sport brings.
The Song incident has triggered a "broken window" effect, with the visiting Chinese student group facing protests at National Taiwan University. They were surrounded by demonstrators shouting, "This is not Chinese Taipei," leaving the students speechless. DPP legislator Wu Pei-i, however, praised NTU’s Zhuoshui River Club students, emphasizing that Taiwan’s youth can protest without resorting to blank papers because Taiwan is a democratic country. When politicians adopt a confrontational stance towards mainland Chinese students and manipulate the situation to stir up divisive emotions, Taiwan not only loses the international community's expectation of tolerance for its democracy but may also risk setbacks in cross-strait exchanges.
The controversy over the name "Chinese Taipei" reflects the real compromises inherent in Taiwan's constitutional framework. Yet, Ms. Song’s congratulatory remarks sparked a political storm, highlighting how the DPP administration, in the absence of constitutional amendments, shifts blame to individual statements, neglecting the core value of democratic tolerance. Without strategic backing, the concept of united front tactics cannot truly challenge Taiwan's national identity. However, exaggerating personal opinions only exposes internal low tolerance for dissent and insecurity. Moreover, baseball, once a symbol of unity and effort, has been derailed by the intrusion of political ideology, further undermining the potential for cross-strait exchanges.
If Taiwan wishes to break through its international predicament, then it must first build internal consensus and respond to external challenges with a rational and mature democratic attitude. Only then can Taiwan truly gain respect and elevate its self-positioning. Ms. Song has now become, in the eyes of the DPP, a collaborator in mainland China's united front, with the "diminishment" rhetoric masking internal divisions and a lack of confidence—allowing the actions of one girl to dictate the narrative.
From: https://www.chinatimes.com/opinion/20241205000011-262110?chdtv