Wu Pao-chun Incident Reflects the DPP's Anxiety

 Wu Pao-chun Incident Reflects the DPP's Anxiety

China Times Editorial (Taipei, Taiwan)

December 13, 2018

 Translation of an Excerpt

Wu Pao-chun, who won the title of Master Baker in the 2010 Bakery Masters competition and has been considered the pride of Taiwan, in order to ease the pressure of Mainland netizens’ request for political manifestations, released a statement with reference to "the two sides of the Strait are like family and supporting the 1992 Consensus"; however, this elicited questioning and controversy in Taiwan, leaving him mired in a trap and predicament of being sandwiched by criticisms from both sides. Especially, the commentaries of President Tsai Ing-wen and some DPP political figures were improper, so much so that the general public feel worried about the future of cross-Strait relations.

The Wu Pao-chun incident, from beginning to end, has had no connection with the Mainland government; it was a spontaneous criticism and boycott on the part of Mainland netizens. We must seriously face and point out that the populist mentality toward Taiwan by Mainland netizens has been apparently escalating in the past few years; as to the causes, principally because of the irritation of specific DPP and Taiwan independence figures who incited Taiwan’s populism, Mainland netizens have been enraged to counterattack. To put it simply, Taiwan independence populism has incited the rage and counterattack of Mainland populism. Precisely because of these atmospherics, they caused troubles for Taiwan’s public in their business or development on the Mainland, including Wu Pao-chun.

The Wu Pao-chun incident reminds all those who care about the future of cross-Strait development that they must ponder on several important things: First, the rash advances of the DPP government have ignited a tongue of flames of cross-Strait populism, thus confrontation has escalated, and small frictions can easily lead to serious events; we must guard against this. Second, the China-US confrontation has escalated; when the US plays the Taiwan card and Taiwan plays the US card, cross-Strait confrontation will become a conflict between enemies; this must be avoided with all efforts. Third, once populism erupts like a prairie fire, any government would find it difficult to handle. We expect the knowledgeable, both in political circles and the private sector, to seriously face and erect a crisis alert and communication mechanism as soon as possible. Fourth, "the two sides of the Strait are like family" is not a slogan. The Mainland’s strength far exceeds that of Taiwan; people on Taiwan who are willing to invest and open shops on the Mainland will not deny that they are Chinese, and Mainland compatriots should treat them well.

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