As the morning started, I realized, I had not packed enough warm clothes. Weather.com said the temps would be lows of 55 and highs of 65 with some rain. Yesterday, it didn't get out of the 40s and it was wet and cold. However, this was not a day to complain, it's a day to learn.
The culture in Taiwan is traditional and polite. Colin Kao of the American Affairs department picked us up. He's a career diplomat who has been assigned to the US, Asia and the Vatican. We started the day with an overview of Taiwan at the Government information office. The themes of the day were revealed there.
Let's set up the day with a little history. The evening before, I probably spoke too soon, by asking about the reunification of China and Taiwan. I could tell by the look on Colin's face, that it was over his pay grade. While I had read about improvements in the relations between Taiwan and Mainland China. The Taiwan constitution still identifies the Mainland as part of Taiwan. There is a desire in Taiwan to get along with the Mainland. In the last few years, travel has been relaxed, trade agreements have been struck and there is a Mainland Affairs Council headed by a man outside of government who has come in from the academic and private sector, Dr. Chien-min Chao. However, with all this good news about the Mainland, there is cautious optimism. China has just announced, while U S Sec. of Defense Robert Gates visited, they have their own "stealth bomber" with technology more advanced than any in the world. Makes you think the Clinton Administration's policy to share "domestic" technology with the Chinese.
We also met Dr. Lyushun Shen, Dep Minister of Foreign affairs. He has been all over the world and at every big historical event in the last 50 years. Tall and charming, he hit the themes of Visas, normalization and defense. He told a great story and if he every writes his memoir, I am buying a copy.
. All of the officials we met has some level of education in the US. One point that was made is in the current Communist China cabinet there are only two members of 61 who were educated in the US. But among their Deputy Ministers, a majority have gone to US Universities. Taiwan believes that will lead to a thaw. They do not believe that China is not a danger, but they do believe that if China has an investment in Taiwan, they are less likely to attack. China doesn't shell Taiwan every day anymore, but there is a business that uses the spent shells to make things and we were told there are so many spent shells that there is a 30 year supply of scrap metal on hand.
We met Jason Hu, the Mayor of Taichung, and he has secured 53 billion dollars in American private investment in Taiwan. He was the former Ambassador to the US and when the new party was elected, he came home and ran for Mayor and has been there for 11 years. 3 years ago they reorganized their cities and merged counties and cities and now Taichung has 5.3 million people. There are 23 million people in Taiwan.
Their biggest challenge is birthrate. they only had 170,000 births last year, which is less of a birthrate than Europe.
They are a democracy, but they passed universal health care a few years ago and are running deficits and have had to reduce coverage just this last week to make ends meet.
The food has been wonderful and we have been treated to multi course high Taiwanese cuisine at every stop.
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