Beijing blasted by nationalists over reaction to Taiwan election

Chinese netizens who advocate for hardline measures on cross-strait issues criticized Beijing for not being tough enough on Taiwan.

The Chinese governmental organ in charge of Taiwan affairs found itself in the crosshairs of riled up netizens after claiming that the Taiwanese people prefer closer ties with China, which many pointed out is contradicted by the victory of William Lai, generally considered in China as a pro-independence politician, during Saturday’s presidential election in Taiwan.

Reacting to the election result, a spokesperson from China’s Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council said it shows that the Democratic Progressive Party, which Lai belongs to, does not represent the mainstream public opinions in Taiwan, possibly referring to the party’s failure in securing over 50% of all Congressional seats.

“Taiwan is the Taiwan of China,” the statement reads. “This election does not change the direction of the fundamental situation and development of the cross-strait relations, nor is it going to change the same willingness shared by compatriots across the strait of growing closer and becoming more intimate, or the trend that the country will be and must be unified.”

这次台湾地区两项选举结果显示，民进党并不能代表岛内主流民意。台湾是中国的台湾。这次选举改变不了两岸关系的基本格局和发展方向，改变不了两岸同胞走近走亲、越走越亲的共同愿望，更阻挡不了祖国终将统一、也必然统一的大势。

On China’s internet, where strict censorship has resulted in the amplification of nationalistic voices, the statement has been blasted by netizens who say Beijing is delusional about how much the people in Taiwan want to be unified and must take tougher measures toward the island, including a possible violent takeover, to ensure the success of unification.

“Stop lying to yourself,” one netizen commented on Weibo. “This election result is not surprising at all. It’s time to halt policies that benefit Taiwan and speed up rolling out policies aiming at trapping and retrieving Taiwan.”

“I feel like poeple from across the strait don’t want to come close to us and instead want to distance themselves,” another netizen wrote. “If we have to use violence then let’s do it.”

William Lai, the president-elect, once described himself as a “pragmatic worker for Taiwan Independence”, although he has somewhat walked back on it. In January last year, he said in a speech that Taiwan is a de facto independent country and there is no need to formally claim so. But on China’s internet and in narratives promulgated by Beijing, Lai remains a promoter of Taiwan independence.

To many in China, Lai’s victory on Saturday, which comes after the two consecutive wins in 2016 and 2020 of the current president Tsai Ing-wen, who Beijing has also depicted as a Taiwan separatist, shows that the people in Taiwan would rather pull away from than being unified with China. To some Chinese nationalists, this warrants a violent takeover.

“No more delays, the earlier we attack the better, the bigger the scale of the attack is the better,” prominent online nationalist “Ziwu Xiashi” wrote on Weibo on Saturday before Lai formally won but whose victory was clear. “I didn’t think so in the past, but I feel like we don’t have much time left.”

The post has since been deleted.

Although China has only increased its aggression toward the self-governing island in recent years, Chinese nationalists keep complaining that Beijing hasn’t been tough enough.

One such incident where nationalists were let down by Beijing not following through with its warnings happened in August 2022, when then US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi flew to Taiwan. Netizens tracked Pelosi’s flight in real time, expecting Chinese Air Force to intercept the jet or even shoot it down, which did not happen.

Chinese state media has been relatively quiet on this year’s Taiwan election. There have been no coordinated propaganda campaigns at large scale to attack the election or stir up anti-Taiwan sentiment online. Social media platforms such as Weibo has limited discussions about the election, shutting down certain election related hashtags and hot topics.

But that did not discourage online nationalists from mocking the Taiwanese presidential candidates, especially Lai, in weeks leading up to the election day.

“Lai has said a bunch of bullshit, lies and laughable things in recent months in order to get votes,” Jin Canrong, a prominent foreign relations expert in China, wrote on Weibo days before the election. “If there are still people on the island believing him, then we will have to help raise their intelligence after the unification.”

Wang Yaqiu, director for China, Hong Kong and Taiwan at Freedom House, pointed out to me (when I talked with her for a similar but different VOA story) that online nationalism and hatred toward Taiwan no longer need to survive on Beijing’s propaganda materials.

“Nationalism has created its own ecosystem,” she said.