The “Sense of Losing One’s Country” Could Perhaps Save Tsai Ing-wen, But Can’t Save Taiwan's Economy

 The “Sense of Losing One’s Country” Could Perhaps Save Tsai Ing-wen, But Can’t Save Taiwan's Economy

United Daily News Editorial (Taipei, Taiwan)

December 3, 2019

 Translation of an Excerpt

In last year's local elections, the KMT mainly played the "economics card" and in one stroke took the beaches of 15 counties and cities. In this year's general elections campaign, the DPP has been playing the "sense of losing one’s country," featuring anti-China and defending Taiwan; this prescription of poisonous drug surprisingly has allowed Tsai Ing-wen's poll ratings to keep climbing up, making her greatly elated. A “sense of losing one’s country” could, to surprise of many, save President Tsai from her four-year maladministration; this is the irony of Taiwan's democracy. Nevertheless with the chilling economy, where do these hot support ratings come from? Although the “sense of losing one’s country” could perhaps save Tsai Ing-wen, it cannot save Taiwan's economy. Examining the recent economic figures, everything is crystal clear.

First, let’s look at the composite index of monitoring indicators for Taiwan’s economy made public four days ago by the National Development Council: they have been flashing ten consecutive “yellow-blue lights,” representing weakening prosperity, and the composite judgment grades have slid down for three months in a row, right now, only 18 points, two points away from the “blue light,” representing recession. Then, let's look at the export figures released by the Economics Ministry: up to the end of October, “twelve consecutive months in the black,” meaning negative growth for twelve consecutive months. On the other hand, the import/export trade statistics from the Finance Ministry show that, with the exception of the slight increase in June and August, the figures since last December have been in the black, with the whole year destined to have negative growth.

Seen from these statistics, we can't smell any warming-up or vitality in Taiwan's economy, while the Budget Office under the Cabinet, nevertheless, has chosen this moment to revise upward the projected growth rate of the GDP. Was it really deliberately making up good news for electioneering purposes? Let us look at more data: One, in the first three quarters of this year, nearly 30,000 companies were dissolved, an increase of 30% year-on-year; thus, can we truly find any inklings of an economic rebound? Two, in the first three quarters of this year, the profits of companies listed on the TAIEX dropped by 19% year-on-year, a record decline in the scope of seven years; can we use the TAIEX index climb to embellish this contrast? Three, last year, the average monthly wages were a little over NT$38,000, more than NT$100 lower than that in 2001. Domestic wages have backpedaled 18 years, yet the Tsai government prided itself on being "at the head of the four dragons." Isn’t this black lie shameful?

Most ironically, although the Tsai government has raised the minimum wages in recent years, according to the statistics of the Budget Office, three million people’s wages are still below NT$30,000. Among them, nearly 50% are young people under the age of 30, and these young men are precisely the group most deeply affected by the "sense of losing one’s country" manipulated by the DPP; this is Taiwan's sorrow. "A sense of losing one’s country" perhaps could save Tsai Ing-wen's electoral prospects, but it cannot save Taiwan's economy; that is another round of perdition.

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