Taiwan protests: view from mainland China
Deng Yuwen and Jonathan Sullivan say the chaotic scenes of student protests across the strait bode ill for political liberalisation on the mainland but they have, at least, prompted discussion of democratic rights
The sudden eruption of student protests in Taiwan, ostensibly against the cross-strait services and trade agreement but incorporating wider concerns about President Ma Ying-jeou's government, has elicited minimal coverage in the mainland media.
Due to controls exerted on the media, it has been difficult to find reports or analysis of the Taiwan student movement.
One exception, an editorial in the Global Times on March 24, was emblematic of the tone of coverage of the escalating protests: a predictably adamant condemnation of the students' behaviour. Their actions are variously described as illegal and shameful, bringing chaos, disruption and paralysis to Taiwanese society.
Given the Chinese government's insistence on stability, such framing of the student protests is hardly news.
The same newspaper also averred that people on the mainland regarded the unfolding events in Taiwan with detached interest, given that they were taking place under democratic conditions. This explained the calm and objective manner of those witnessing the unfolding spectacle in Taipei.
But based on the discussions we have seen on Chinese social media, Global Times' editors are wrong about this. Although they are bystanders, people on the mainland are discussing the events in Taiwan with anything but calm detachment. Weibo and Weixin have lit up with conversations about the students' actions, and, whether for or against, debate has been intense.