Taishang Explained

Taishang are Taiwanese businesspeople who do business in mainland China.[1] The term literally translates into English as "Taiwan Business." There are no official statistics on the number of Taishang working in mainland China. Unofficial estimates circulating in 2011 suggested that between 1 million and 3 million Taiwanese nationals (including family members) lived in mainland China.[2]

Economic impact

The more Taiwanese capital is invested in the mainland, the more it becomes part and parcel of China's growing economy.[3] Therefore, the Taishang are a major force in the economic integration of China with the larger world-economy.

After the economic reform escalated, China has attracted a huge amount of direct investments from Taiwan and concomitantly a large number of Taiwanese entrepreneurs, managers, and professionals moved to China. China replaced the US as the top destination for Taiwanese exports in 2003.[4]

The change of government in Taiwan in May 2008 and the economic crisis that took hold of coastal China in late 2008 and continued throughout 2009, forced many factories in Taiwan to close down or relocate to other countries. This led to a large increase in the number of Taishang in mainland China.[5]

As of the end of 2008, China's Ministry of Commerce (MOC) reported Taiwanese direct investment (TDI) in China to be US$47.7 billion; Taiwan's Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) Investment Commission (hereafter, Investment Commission) announced a total investment value of US$75.6 billion; Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) estimated the amount at between US$100 billion and US$150 billion; many private sectors in Taiwan estimated the amount to be between US$100 billion and US$200 billion.[6]

Political impact

Collectively, the Taishang are seen as an important group in Taiwanese politics and are widely perceived to be supportive of deeper economic integration between Taiwan and mainland China.[7] [8] [9] [10] Taishang as a group are widely assumed to support Taiwan's pro-Chinese-Nationalist KMT party.[11] Prior to the 2012 Taiwanese legislative and presidential elections, an organization controlled by the Chinese government's Taiwan Affairs Office, (ATIEM), organized discounted flights to Taiwan for Taishang to vote in Taiwanese elections.[12] [13]

Most Taishang are not interested in Chinese media journalism or television programmes. This is because the perception of being superior to the PRC Chinese discourages them from becoming involved in Chinese society and politics.[14]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Taishang in 2012: Still "business is business"?. nottspolitics.org. 2015-02-06. 2022-04-22. https://web.archive.org/web/20220422091149/http://nottspolitics.org/2011/11/04/taishang-in-2012-still-business-is-business/. dead.
  2. Web site: Asia Times Online :: Politics seen in cheap China-Taiwan flights. https://web.archive.org/web/20111207225107/http://atimes.com/atimes/China/ML08Ad01.html. unfit. 2011-12-07. atimes.com.
  3. Shu Keng. Gunter Schubert. Agents of Taiwan-China Unification? The Political Roles of Taiwanese Business People in the Process of Cross-Strait Integration. Asian Survey. March–April 2010. 50. 2. 287–310. 10.1525/as.2010.50.2.287.
  4. Tseng Yen-Fen . Jieh-Min Wu . April 2011 . Reconfiguring citizenship and nationality: dual citizenship of Taiwanese migrants in China . . 15 . 2 . 265–282 . 10.1080/13621025.2011.549728 . 144452072.
  5. Schubert . Gunter . 2010 . The Political Thinking of the Mainland Taishang: Some Preliminary Observations from the Field . . 39 . 1 . 73–110 . 10.1177/186810261003900104 . free.
  6. Chen-yuan TUNG . Chia-ko HUNG . December 2012 . The Estimation of Aggregate Statistics for Taiwan-Invested Enterprises in China: 1988–2008 . . 10 . 3 . 119–132 . 10.1353/chn.2012.0034 . 168625126.
  7. Web site: Beijing's Trojan Horse? China Policy Institute Blog. nottingham.ac.uk. 2015-02-06. 2015-02-06. https://web.archive.org/web/20150206160603/http://blogs.nottingham.ac.uk/chinapolicyinstitute/2014/11/18/beijings-trojan-horse/. dead.
  8. News: Jacobs . Andrew . 2012-01-12 . Taiwan Vote Lures Back Expatriates in China . en-US . . 2023-09-05 . 0362-4331 . 2023-09-05 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230905030158/https://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/12/world/asia/taiwan-vote-lures-back-expatriates-in-china.html . live .
  9. Book: Steve Tsang. The Vitality of Taiwan: Politics, Economics, Society and Culture. 10 September 2012. Palgrave Macmillan. 978-1-137-00991-3. 14. 20 October 2016. 5 September 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230905030159/https://books.google.com/books?id=sS3be-JlTXsC&pg=PA14. live.
  10. Book: Murray Scot Tanner. Chinese Economic Coercion Against Taiwan: A Tricky Weapon to Use. 30 January 2007. Rand Corporation. 978-0-8330-4253-8. 111–112. 20 October 2016. 5 September 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230905030159/https://books.google.com/books?id=IF39ysRpl8MC&pg=PA111. live.
  11. Web site: Fair Observer blog. www.fairobserver.com. 9 February 2012. 6 February 2015. 4 February 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150204201030/http://www.fairobserver.com/region/central_south_asia/2012-taiwan-and-taishang/. live.
  12. News: 2014-11-27 . How China's shadowy agency is working to absorb Taiwan . en . . 2023-03-09 . 2023-03-09 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230309020249/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-taiwan-china-special-report-idUSKCN0JB01T20141127 . live .
  13. Book: Barss, Edward J. . Chinese Election Interference in Taiwan . 2022-02-06 . . 978-1-000-51949-5 . en . 10.4324/9781003157434 . 1273727799 . 245973725.
  14. Ping Lin . 2013 . Taiwanese women in China: Integration and mobility in gendered enclaves . . 27 . 1 . 107–123 . 10.1177/0920203x12470321 . 143902235.

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