Young Taiwanese tell Tsai Eng-meng what they think [UPDATED]

Young protesters mobilize in Taipei

Young Taiwanese can’t be mobilized? Think again. Give them a cause that animates them, and they’ll show up with wit, energy and creativity 

It’s often been said that young Taiwanese are not political enough, naïve, or simply don’t care about politics or the future of their country. Whenever I hear this being said of younger generations, my answer is to tell the (usually older) critics that it isn’t so much that young Taiwanese cannot be mobilized, but that the issues that awaken the fire in their bellies tend to be different, focusing more on matters of social justice than abstract concepts about, say, unification versus independence.

Who's the monster?

Anyone who doubts this surely hasn’t followed the news about the various student organizations across Taiwan that came out in opposition to the bid by the pro-China Want Want China Times Group to acquire the cable TV services operated by China Network System (CNS), especially after an employee at the media giant threatened to sue a student from National Tsing Hua university for posting pictures of a China Times Weekly deputy editor-in-chief on his Facebook, or when the group used its media outlets to launch attacks against an associate research fellow at Academia Sinica, accusing him of paying students to attend protests against the media merger. 

Earlier this year the chairman of the group and Taiwan’s richest man, Tsai Eng-meng (蔡衍明), denied during an interview with my friend Andrew Higgins of the Washington Post that the events of June 4, 1989, constituted a massacre, a convenient denial for someone who has made his fortune in China. As his empire grows, Tsai has awakened fears in Taiwan that if the CNS deal went through, his group would become a “media monster” with too much control over information and distribution. The National Communications Commission (NCC), Taiwan’s media regulator, needed 18 months to look into the controversial acquisition, and finally have conditional approval last month, which Tsai, contemptuous as ever, said he was not required to follow.

Very few elderly there

It’s difficult to say whether it’s fears of a pro-China media empire, the attack on a student or against an academic, but what is certain is that young Taiwanese have come out in force, mobilizing on the Internet, launching boycotts of Want Want products and, today, Sept. 1, participating in a large rally co-organized by student groups, journalist associations, civic groups and NGOs, that started from the group’s headquarter building and ended up in front of the NCC. (Tsai couldn’t help display his arrogance, with large banners gracing the wall of his building heckling its media competitor, the Apple Daily — “Who’s scarier, who’s bigger” — while responding to the young people’s protest slogan “You are very big, we’re not scared.”)

Tsai heckling protesters

Although organizers said they expected about 2,000 people to turn out, at least twice that many, if not more, showed up, armed with purpose, humor, and creative banners, effigies and placards (“Today’s my birthday, all I want is an apology,” or, from a group representing the rights of homosexuals, “I don’t want big media, I want a big dick”). Dogs, parrots, a very large number of people in their 20s from various student associations and older supporters meandered their way for about 4.5km under the direction of student organizers who did an impeccable job ensuring everything remained civil (how many protests include instructions on the Internet that include tips on what to bring, how to hold warm-up exercises, while reminding people not to litter, as it is their city and they want to keep it clean?). Another admirable — and revealing — aspect of the protest was the organizers’ insistence that political parties should not involve themselves, lest their presence turn into a publicity event for the green camp while detracting from the purpose of the rally.

Whether the exercise will have any impact on the group or the NCC remains to be seen, but what is known is that young Taiwanese do care about issues and will act if powerful individuals or government are perceived to be compromising their interests and future. Today’s protest was very moving, renewed my hope for Taiwan’s future and confirmed beyond doubt that the nation’s future leaders were somewhere in that crowd.  

Some additional thoughts: There are some people out there (usually people from older generations) who will say that efforts like yesterday were “naïve” and ultimately “fruitless.” Some of those people are purportedly friends of Taiwan and presume to speak on behalf of its people in newspaper editorials or at various gatherings. Do not ever let such cynics destroy your sense of purpose or make you doubt whether it’s worth your time and effort. Today’s youth are like that of three decades ago, who fought the first battle to pry this nation from the cold iron claws of authoritarian rule. New, equally daunting challenges lie ahead, and whether Taiwan safely navigates the stormy seas will depend on you, your conviction, and the expression of your leadership. What you did on Saturday was as commendable as it was beautiful. More of that will be required of you.