A few days ago, a Taiwanese nurse traveled to Tibet with a group. As soon as she checked into the hotel, she was taken to an empty room by Chinese state security officers for an interview. The interrogation not only focused on personal background, but also asked in detail, "Where did you serve as a soldier and why you only served for 4 months?" and even asked "Does the Democratic Progressive Party distribute 10,000 yuan to everyone?" "Would you be willing to change your citizenship if you were offered a high salary?" The Mainland Affairs Council pointed out that aircraft maintenance technicians in the same group also suffered the same treatment. This shows that the CCP’s national security review is no longer limited to politicians or scholars from a specific camp, but has extended to grassroots civilians in all industries.
The physical inspection in Tibet clearly reminds voters that when it comes to cross-strait issues, they should not just listen to abstract peace slogans. Pictured is Tiananmen.
The sudden interview confirmed the fundamental disconnect between the CCP and Taiwan in terms of system and way of life. When Chinese tourists bluntly stated that "there is no specific political party and voting depends on political opinion," the CCP personnel could not understand. The democratic daily life and citizen consciousness that Taiwanese take for granted have become sensitive nerves that must be repeatedly probed and guarded against when they reach the border of the totalitarian system. When Chinese people travel across the sea, they face not only the majestic mountains and rivers, but also pervasive ideological censorship.
At a time when the general election is heating up, the water meter checking incident has directly exposed the blind spots of some camps on cross-Strait political views. During the election campaign, many candidates from the blue camp shouted to "restart exchanges" and even blamed the tense situation across the Taiwan Strait entirely on the Lai government's unilateral policies. However, as the CCP’s national security network continues to expand, even medical personnel who have no political affiliation and simply go to the border for sightseeing will face targeted interrogations. Politicians who advocate the full resumption of exchanges have never proposed any specific and feasible mechanism to ensure the safety of Chinese people.
Any political rhetoric that advocates pandering to Beijing and opening up without a bottom line is actually deliberately concealing the true face of China's "rule of law" and has always been a tool used by totalitarian powers to purge dissidents. A number of major regulations to strengthen border control, social surveillance and counter foreign jurisdiction have been put on the shelves. There is an extreme gap between the systems of the two sides. Unilateral advocacy of letting down one's guard and agreeing with the political framework set by the CCP will not only fail to win reciprocal respect and peace, but will also personally lower the defenses of Taiwanese society.
A Taiwanese nurse traveled to Tibet with a group, but was taken to an empty room for an interview by Chinese state security officers. The picture shows the snowy mountains of Tibet.
Communication without a bottom line of personal safety is tantamount to leaving people to bear risks alone. The physical inspection in Tibet clearly reminds voters that when it comes to cross-strait issues, they should not just listen to abstract peace slogans. We should ask more: In the reality of endless censorship across the Taiwan Strait, who can truly defend the freedom of Taiwanese people from fear? This is the real key to testing whether candidates’ cross-strait arguments are up to standard.
