As Taiwan’s president-elect, Lai Ching-te is anticipated to pledge continued neutrality towards mainland China during his inauguration in Taipei this coming Monday. Despite this, he is likely to voice criticism regarding Beijing’s militaristic and diplomatic strains on the autonomously-run island, including naval and air force interventions near its coasts.
“Tomorrow’s calm transfer of authority marks a crucial point for Taiwanese democracy”, Mr Lai expressed during Sunday’s pre-inauguration event in Taipei.
Lai’s electoral triumph in January paves the way for him to take over from Tsai Ing-wen, a two-term president and ally in the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). Beijing perceives the party as separatist, risking conflict in the Taiwan Strait by bolstering the island’s defence forces, strengthening ties with the United States and flirting with the concept of Taiwanese sovereignty.
Despite once labelling himself a “sensible advocate for Taiwan’s sovereignty”, Mr Lai has more recently alluded that an explicit declaration of independence is not required. The majority of nations, including the United States and member nations of the European Union, abide by a One China policy and consequently, do not engage in diplomatic relations with Taiwan.
The United States is planning to send a retired officials’ delegation to the inauguration on Monday, and despite Lithuanian MEP Rasa Jukneviciene’s attendance, the EU will not be formally present. The countries who will be diplomatically represented at the inauguration are AParguay, Eswatini, Palau and the Marshall Islands- each sending their respective Heads of State. The Prime Ministers of Belize, Tuvalu and St Vincent and the Grenadines will be in attendance, as well as Guatemala’s Foreign Minister.
In Sunday’s remarks, Lai was grateful to Taiwan’s international allies for their backing.
“I am also optimistic that Taiwan will still count on your invaluable support in terms of upkeeping regional peace, fostering our economy, and facilitating our role on the international stage,” he commented.
Reflecting on Taiwan’s transformation from an authoritarian state to a robust and energetic democracy in recent decades, Mr Lai affirmed that he, alongside vice president-elect Hsiao Bi-khim, would carry forward the popular work of his predecessor, Ms Tsai.
“We plan to continue on this democratic journey and remain engaged globally, to further strengthen Taiwan,” he concluded.
Last week, officials in Beijing announced that they would be watching Mr Lai’s Monday speech with keen interest, specifically paying attention to his remarks about the relationship across the strait. Beijing’s Taiwan Affairs Office spokesperson, Chen Binhua, criticised the DPP for intentionally exacerbating tensions between mainland China and Taiwan.
“We will neither endure nor ignore such actions, nor will we overlook them,” he firmly stated.
Furthermore, Mr Chen announced plans for Beijing to impose sanctions on five pundits who frequently take part in TV political debates. He accused them of manipulating some of the island’s inhabitants, fostering animosity and disagreement across the Taiwan Strait, and causing emotional distress to citizens on both territories.
Mr Lai emerged victorious in the elections held in January, receiving 40% of the votes. The rest of the electorate, 60%, voted for candidates who advocated for further communication with Beijing. The DPP suffered a loss in Taiwan’s legislative yuan, the country’s parliament, with the opposition party KMT securing the position of speaker.
The parliament witnessed a physical altercation last Friday when the DPP attempted to obstruct the approval of a law providing unprecedented oversight of the executive for the legislators. The most contentious part of this proposed law would make it a criminal offence for officials to provide false information to the parliament.
Scuffles broke out when a DPP member attempted to seize the draft of the bill with the intention of delaying the proceedings. Following the incident, Mr Lai called for a reasonable discussion on the subject to restore harmony and reach a mutual understanding.