Politics Prof in Washington Post: Hong Kong Protests Echo Through Taiwan
September 12, 2019
- Author
- Jay Pfeifer
On , Brown Professor of Political Science Shelley Rigger analyzed the impact of the ongoing Hong Kong protests on Taiwan.
Filing from Taiwan, where Rigger is serving as a Fulbright U.S. Scholar, she wrote in the highly influential blog that the Taiwanese are watching Hong Kong very closely. The two regions share similarly strained relationships with mainland China.
Despite being claimed as a territory of the People檚 Republic of China, Taiwan has maintained a multiparty democracy. China has tried to woo the Taiwanese, proposing the 淥ne Country, Two Systems model that would supposedly unite the countries as one without changing the Taiwanese government.
However, the events in Hong Kong, which is governed under the OCTS model, have revived fresh doubt in Beijing檚 genuine interest in that system. To complicate matters, Taiwan is in the midst of a presidential campaign.
淲hile domestic issues are important, managing relations with Beijing successfully is paramount. Voters confidence in the ability of Taiwan檚 candidates and parties to keep the relationship stable and fend off pressure for unification tends to be the most important variable shaping their vote choice, Rigger wrote.
