How overseas Chinese could help revitalise the ‘one China’ dream

When I watched both Korean Winter Olympics teams marching out under one flag during the 2018 Games opening ceremony, it made me think about cross-strait relations. While there are deep unresolved issues between North and South Korea, they were willing to put them aside in honour of the Olympic spirit.

Recent events have once again sparked tensions in cross-strait relations, from the launching of a Taiwanese independence referendum campaign by two former Taiwanese presidents to the US Senate passing a bill promoting closer ties between the United States and Taiwan. And, in response, Beijing has delivered a stern warning to Taiwan that any independence movement will not be tolerated and to the US and other countries not to interfere in what Beijing believes to be internal business.

After years of acknowledgement of the status quo and attempts to improve trade and dialogue, it seems cross-strait relations are once again at a crossroads. As a Chinese-Australian member of the overseas Chinese diaspora and a follower of Sun Yat-sen’s teachings, I want nothing more than peaceful reunification between the Chinese mainland and Taiwan.

The reunification dream is not just the dream of the People’s Republic; it is a dream shared by many overseas Chinese and their communities. But due to political, cultural and historical complexities, Beijing’s proposed model of “one country, two systems” would only add further challenges.

Taiwan is not Hong Kong or Macau. Taiwan has a thriving democracy. It is the 22nd-largest economy in the world and is highly ranked in areas such as public education, economic freedom, innovation, health care and human development.

One of Taiwan’s major political parties, the Kuomintang, and its founders played a leading role in overthrowing the last imperial dynasty of China. In addition, the KMT’s role in ending the warlord era, unifying China under the Republic of China banner and leading China in repelling Japanese aggression and imperialism during the second Sino-Japanese war and second world war, should never be forgotten. The Democratic Progressive Party played a major role later on in the democratisation of Taiwan.