Taiwan’s treatment in the international arena is just one example of China’s increasingly belligerent campaign against the free, prosperous island nation.
Taiwan’s treatment in the international arena is just one example of China’s increasingly belligerent campaign against the free, prosperous island nation.
N early 3,000 outstanding athletes from more than 90 national Olympic committees are in Beijing this month on a quest to reach the pinnacle of their beloved sports. These brave Olympians are the embodiment of the Olympic values of friendship, excellence, respect, courage, determination, inspiration, and equality, and they are certainly deserving of our recognition.
But while we cheer on our respective countries, let’s not forget that the nation hosting these competitions is acting in ways that directly contradict these noble values. Hosting the Olympics has not stopped Beijing from pressuring its neighbors as well as dissidents at home. Such actions run contrary to the “Olympic spirit,” to say the least.
Taiwan is a case in point. As Team Taiwan’s Olympians strive for success in the most important competitions of their careers, they do so under a name that is not their own. In every Olympic Games since 1984, athletes from Taiwan, a democratic country of 23.5 million people, spend their time on the world’s stage competing under an entirely different name: “Chinese Taipei.” When receiving their medals, they can only stand under a flag that is not Taiwan’s, listening to a song that is not their national anthem.
This censorship is not limited to the international arena: It also extends to multinational companies that do business in China. In the past few years, a number of American corporations have drawn Beijing’s ire for daring to acknowledge the existence of Taiwan.
These stories have appeared in many forms and typically lead to quick apologies and corrections so as not to lose access to the Chinese market. In some cases, such as that of Marriott a few years ago, the “mistake” was listing Taiwan as a country on its website. In other examples, something as simple as depicting Taiwan as distinct from China on a map can land a company in hot water, as Gap learned the hard way when it was forced to apologize for selling a T-shirt with a map of China that did not include Taiwan. At times, this pressure campaign leads to total erasure: A few years ago, many international airlines found it easiest to drop references to “Taiwan” entirely after Beijing threatened punishment to those that did not comply.
Perhaps most troubling is that all this has led to a wave of preemptive self-censoring. Many companies now refer to “Taiwan, China” on their websites and in their reports, in what appears to be their best efforts to avoid becoming the next victim of Chinese bullying. Companies such as Fitch Ratings, Moody’s, and Capri Holdings Limited (which owns the brands Michael Kors, Versace, and Jimmy Choo) have quietly altered references to Taiwan in recent years. Similarly, the NFL’s recent announcement regarding international marketing areas incorrectly depicts Taiwan as part of China on its world map.
These incidents simply serve as a microcosm of Taiwan’s international plight under Chinese pressure. Taiwan continues to be excluded from key international organizations, including the U.N. There is no apolitical basis for this exclusion, as the commonly cited UNGA Resolution 2758 does not actually address the issue of Taiwan’s representation. Moreover, Taiwanese passport holders are denied access to U.N. premises, both for tours and meetings, while Taiwanese journalists cannot obtain accreditation to cover U.N. events. While some member-states called for change and requested that the U.N. Secretariat address these issues in 2021, they have yet to receive a response.
From a moral standpoint, this is unjust, given that Taiwan is offered no voice on issues of direct concern to its people. And from a more material standpoint, too, the world has been deprived of Taiwan’s contributions, a point made especially tragic by its exclusion from the World Health Organization amid a global pandemic.
Yet this is only one aspect of China’s efforts to annex Taiwan. Aside from Beijing’s attempts to curtail Taiwan’s international participation, the CCP has also increased its disinformation campaigns in order to sway public opinion and export its authoritarianism abroad. In the meantime, thousands of Chinese ballistic missiles are targeting Taiwan, as Beijing continues to refuse to renounce the use of force. Moreover, its near-daily military-aircraft incursions into Taiwan’s air-defense identification zone are aimed at intimidating the Taiwanese people and wearing down Taiwan’s defense capabilities. As Taiwan stands at the front line of the fight against Beijing’s expansionism, China’s increasingly aggressive authoritarianism is one of the most daunting challenges facing our democratic institutions and values worldwide. Effectively resisting Chinese malign influence, whether directed at Taiwan, the United States, or elsewhere, will require collective efforts from governments and stakeholders around the world. It is imperative for the international community to help defend Taiwan so that China’s expansionist goals can be deterred.
It is within this context that Beijing has been hosting the 2022 Olympic Games. And it is also within this context that Beijing has continuously warned the international community against the politicization of sports, arguing that it would “damage the spirit of the Olympic Charter and the interests of athletes from all countries.” There is a certain irony in claiming this, as Beijing has not changed its tactics during the Olympic Games, and it does not appear to plan on doing so any time soon.
We are proud of our athletes, and we will always root for their success. But when the curtain comes down on Beijing’s spectacle and everyone returns home, let’s not forget the reality behind this year’s Olympic Games.