Papa Chang's Brief History of Taiwan

Read and inform yourself about the History of Taiwan, in my father's words (although a few of them are mine!)

Taiwan has been ruled by foreign powers for much of its existence; from Spain to the Dutch, to China, to Japan (50 years), and then now to the Kuomintang Chinese (55 years and counting). When the Chinese started to immigrate to Taiwan over 500 years ago, it was all single young males. They intermarried with native women. Therefore, Taiwanese, (not including the 2 million Chinese who came with Chiang in 1949) have a very high percentage of local aboriginal blood.

In 1895, China lost in the Sino-Japan war. As a result, China gave Korea and Taiwan to Japan as colonies. Taiwan spent 50 years as a colony of Japan, who while a strict ruler, allowed Taiwanese elite to be educated and assimilate into Japanese culture. During this period, the Japanese implemented much of the infrastructure that exists in Taiwan today, including railways and city sewage systems. In 1945 following Japan's loss in World War II, people in Taiwan were glad to return to the “Mother Land." However, the ruling Kuomintang (KMT) and Chiang Kai-Shek were extremely corrupt, and they ruled Taiwan with the same brutality that they had ruled China. In 1947, on February 28, the infamous “2-28 Incident” began. Here the native Taiwanese rebelled against the KMT. It is said the KMT massacred approximately 20,000 Taiwanese in several months time, mostly educated and political elite. It was the Taiwanese against the Chinese. The 2-28 Incident had a profound effect on Taiwan and it continues to influence the relationship between Chinese mainlanders (who came to the island with the KMT) and Taiwanese natives to this day, similar to the the sentiments that the Chinese had against the Japanese regarding the Nanking massacre. (A great book about this is called The Rape of Nanking by Iris Chang)

In 1949, the KMT were driven out of China by the communists and they fled to Taiwan. KMT then declared a martial law which lasted 38 years finally ending in 1987 (it was the longest period of martial law in any history). The KMT ruled by force and secret police, who were as ruthless as the Nazis. In 1950 the Korean War broke out and Truman decided to protect Taiwan from the Chinese communists. This saved the corrupted KMT government in Taiwan. However, the native Taiwanese were treated as 2nd class citizens and even today this mentality still exists in Taiwan.

The Chang family realizes that our history and blood line are different from the Chinese. Most of us now consider ourselves as Taiwanese. It might sound strange, but when I (my father) grew up, it was considered taboo to intermarry between Taiwanese and Chinese.

Today, Taiwan is a separate, democratic country. Whatever democracy we enjoy in Taiwan today was fought for long and hard by people who considered themselves none other than Taiwanese. Due to China's influence, we are NOT recognized as a country, do not have a seat in the United Nations, or membership in the WHO, the World Health Organization. Today, we just want the freedom to say who we are, and be proud of our own separate country and the freedom to say that we are a separate people.