Su Beng and Taiwan's 2008 pre-election atmosphere

Su Beng has been extremely busy since he returned to Taipei from Tokyo on February 25th. He was there to look in on his noodle shop, the “New Gourmet” (新珍味) restaurant which is located in Ikebukuro, Japan. A few days ago I met with him to continue work on the biography and to talk about the atmosphere in Taiwan, prior to the upcoming presidential elections.

With Taiwan’s presidential elections (on March 22) drawing near, numerous rallies have been organized for the presidential candidates, and Su Beng has been doing his part by attending rallies, talking to voters, and encouraging the undecided to vote.

The “Walk Against the Wind” was one such movement which supported Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate, Frank Hsieh (謝長廷). It was initiated by 12 young people, including former National Youth Commission chairwoman Cheng Li-chun (鄭麗君) on February 5th. The walk started in Oluanpi (鵝鸞鼻), the southernmost tip of the country, and finished on February 28th in Taipei.

If you'd like to know more about the “Walk Against the Wind”, click here.

Shortly after his return, on February 26th, Su Beng joined a segment of the “Walk Against the Wind” which was organized by the Taiwanese Association of University Professors (TAUP). The TAUP had set off from Tai Dong (which is on the east coast of Taiwan) and walked eastward.


Su Beng walked with the Taiwanese Association of University Professors in the "Walk Against the Wind".


And mobilized his Taiwan Independence Action motorcade to join them


One of the Taiwan Independence Action motorcade "propaganda trucks" with a poster of Su Beng's latest booklet Taiwan Should Be Independent.


A shot of "Walk Against the Wind" participants



He handed out copies of his booklet, Taiwan Should be Independent.




Here Su Beng sits on one of his “propaganda trucks” as he shouts to participants of the “Walk Against the Wind”: “There’s so many of you but you are not loud enough! Long live Taiwan Independence!”

I talked to Su Beng about the pre-election atmosphere, his views on the two presidential candidates and people’s attitudes towards the Taiwan independence issue.

The frustrating thing is that there have been many accounts floating around about the Chinese Nationalist Party’s aka Kuomintang’s (KMT) vote buying schemes and bribes.

According to Su Beng, the KMT has increased their vote buying tenfold and changed their vote buying strategies. Previously they’d pay a person NT$300-500 to vote for their candidate, but when this didn’t bring them the results they expected in the past two elections, they decided to change their strategy. Now they are using even more devious tactics by paying each person around NT$3000-5000, but this time around, people are only paid one-third upfront and are promised the remaining two-thirds of the payment only after the KMT presidential candidate, Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) has been successfully elected.

This account has been floating around from several sources, not just from Su Beng. People have called in to political talk shows reporting such incidents, but unfortunately, as is so often the case in these situations, no one has been able to substantiate it as of yet.

On the Taiwanese people’s attitudes towards independence for Taiwan, Su Beng believes:

The independence of Taiwan is not a matter just to be decided solely by its people; there are some other outside forces that will impact it. 400 years ago many of our ancestors came from China; they had fled the oppressive Ching dynasty to seek a better life, and freedom, but the KMT didn’t teach us this history.

There has been a worldwide trend, wherein most colonized territories became independent after World War II, except for Taiwan. Many small countries and islands that are less developed and have lower standards of living than Taiwan have become independent. So, history is on our side, but Taiwan’s current political situation is not favorable.

Taiwanese people do not take action or heed other’s advice until things become really bad or serious. It’s as if things are fermenting, then after having been suppressed for so long, when things have reached a boiling point, then the Taiwanese will be galvanized into taking action.

The Taiwanese people want independence, it is a much more popularly accepted idea now, but still, many Taiwanese people can be bought. They don’t have any principles; they prefer the guarantee of having money.

Regarding the presidential candidates, the party platforms and what their election would mean for Taiwan, Su Beng had this to say:

If Ma Ying-jeou becomes president, then Taiwan will slowly be infiltrated by China. The KMT’s view is that Taiwan is a part of China; their goal is eventual unification of Taiwan and China. They are very firm and strong in these beliefs; these are among this party’s principles.

The DPP’s stance on Taiwan independence is not so firmly rooted. It began as an emotional reaction to the authoritarian rule of the KMT. The DPP lacks conviction, strategy and a rational approach in the fight for Taiwan independence.

If Frank Hsieh is elected, it will be an extension of President Chen’s policies, the DPP doesn’t have many firm policies, they have been just trying to fight off the KMT. The greens will feel at ease if Hsieh is elected, and take things calmly day by day. But if Ma is elected, the greens will feel more uncertain about the future, agitated and concerned. This may lead to aggression. Perhaps some oppositional, resisting forces will be organized, but the KMT dominated government will suppress people, and democracy and the path to independence will be impeded.

How does Su Beng think the clashes in Tibet will affect the Taiwanese?

What’s happening in Tibet may stimulate some thought amongst the Taiwanese, but it won’t have as much impact as it does on the people in the surrounding areas of Tibet. Tibet has a lower literacy rate and standard of living; the Tibetans are willing to lay down their lives to fight for their independence, but the Taiwanese are unable and unwilling to sacrifice themselves for the independence of Taiwan.

And finally, Su Beng commented on the Taipei Taxi Driver Association’s support of Ma Ying-jeou:

Well, democracy is a double-edged sword; it can be both good and bad. The Taipei Taxi Driver Association’s taxi drivers elect a president to represent them, but this also gives him a lot of power.

The rumor is that the KMT bribed the president of the Taipei Taxi Driver Association by giving him between NT$5 million and NT$ 20 million to distribute amongst taxi drivers in order to buy their votes. There were about 1000-1500 taxi drivers at the March 10th rally which was organized to support Ma Ying-jeou, but it’s unclear how many of these taxi drivers will actually vote for him.

On March 12th over 2000 taxi drivers participated in a rally to support DPP presidential candidate, Frank Hsieh. They wanted to borrow my “propaganda trucks” and megaphones, but unfortunately my megaphones were broken, so we couldn’t go, but many of the main organizers are amongst my supporters.

There are about 5000 taxi drivers affiliated with the Taipei Taxi Driver Association. Only about 1500 of 5000 taxi drivers were at the rally for Ma Ying-jeou.

*Special Thanks to Su Beng's assistant, Bin Hong (敏紅) who provided me with the photos and video footage included in this post

Greens turning blue

Su Beng's support base in his fight for Taiwan independence has been amongst the working classes, especially taxi drivers. Since his return to Taiwan from Japan in 1993, he has worked tirelessly to educate them about Taiwan's history, to increase political awareness and to instill in them a strong sense of Taiwanese identity. He has a force of them called the "Taiwan Independence Action Motorcade"(獨立台灣會). The motorcade has made rounds in Taipei every Saturday and Sunday afternoon for more than ten years, delivering messages over a megaphone- that the Taiwanese need to stand up for Taiwan, to build their own nation, and shake off the shackles of colonialism. In recent years Su Beng has also mobilized his taxi driver base to protest several high level Kuomintang (KMT) officials' meetings with Communist Chinese officials.

Those leaning towards self-determination or independence for Taiwan (as Su Beng and his supporters), and traditionally supporters of the Democratic Progressive Party have been dubbed the “greens” or more collectively, the “pan-greens.”

The “blues” or “pan-blues” are those favoring the opening up of Taiwan to China- in the form of recognizing Chinese educational credentials, greater communication, transportation links and investment opportunities. This is the platform of the Nationalist Chinese Party aka Kuomintang.

Now that we are in the last stretch before Taiwan's presidential election on March 22, it's down to a contest between the green and blue. The run up to the presidential election is always an intense period of time in which the media loves to throw in speculation over which side (green or blue) is gaining momentum and support amongst the public.

So the Taipei Taxi Drivers' Association's announcement that they will officially support the blue presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou on Saturday, March 8th was one such story that was recently circulated in the media. In addition to its announcement, the Taipei Taxi Driver's Association organized a rally supporting Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) on Monday, March 10th. About a thousand or so taxi drivers turned out for the rally. When asked by television reporters who they’d vote for, some taxi drivers said that they didn’t know whether or not they’d actually vote for Ma.

Why is this such a big deal?

Because in the beginning, back in the day, not long after the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) was formed, its support base in large part came from the working classes. The demographic of the average DPP supporter has certainly changed over the years, but this perception remains. In particular, there is a perception that taxi drivers in Taiwan tend to be predominantly green supporters. In the past, groups of taxi drivers have mobilized in support of the green camp. Practically everywhere you go in Taiwan there are yellow taxi cabs to be hailed, so they would seem to be a formidable force of green supporters. To hear of this flip in political alliance would seem to be a huge blow to the green camp.

A few days after the March 10th rally, there were television reports revealing that the KMT had paid taxi drivers NT$1000 per head to attend the rally supporting Ma Ying-jeou.

On March 12, a rally to support Frank Hsieh (謝長廷), the DPP presidential candidate was organized by taxi drivers in Banciao- near the DPP campaign headquarters there. There were about 2000 taxi drivers in attendance.

What is the story behind the Taipei Taxi Driver Association's switch in support?

I'm certain that Su Beng has plenty to say on this topic, and that, amongst other things will be a topic of discussion at our upcoming meeting in a few days.

Response to June 29 Reuters article about Su Beng

Ralph Jennings' article about Su Beng came out the day before I was to leave Taiwan to relocate in New York City. I have finally composed my response, which I've sent off to some major newspapers, and I offer it here in its complete unedited form:

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While Mr. Jennings’ June 29, 2007, article, “Taiwan ex-communist on long march for independence,” succeeds in juxtaposing Su Beng’s involvement and eventual disillusionment with the Chinese communists, it also creates the false impression that Su Beng became a member of the Chinese Communist Party under the direct tutelage of Mao Zedong.

Being labeled a communist is certainly nothing new to Su Beng and it’s a label loaded with complexity. During his years of study at Waseda University, Su Beng became a Marxist devotee and he fully embraced Marx’s communist ideology. But to imply that Su Beng went to China to be trained by Mao to become a (Chinese) communist is deeply misleading.

When Su Beng left for China in 1942, he was already a “believer” of communism- of the purely Marxist variety. To him communist China was a utopian society that offered him the opportunity to be a part of the Chinese Communists’ resistance of Japanese imperialism. At that time he couldn’t even speak Mandarin, so it’s doubtful that he set out specifically to participate in the Chinese revolution. His motivation was to oppose Japan’s rising aggression.

To say that “Su Beng trained assiduously under Chairman Mao Zedong” is tantamount to stating that Su Beng was personally trained and shaped by Mao Zedong to follow the Chinese revolution. This a bit of a stretch; the reality of the situation is not so stark. The Chinese Communists faithfully used Mao’s teachings to indoctrinate all those within their reach; there was no choice in this matter and Su Beng was no exception.

Mr. Jennings’ description of Su as “disillusioned with his former party” brands Su Beng as a member of the Chinese Communist party. If Mr. Jennings had delved deeper or simply asked Su Beng about his relationship with the Chinese Communists; his article would not be leading the reader into such false assumptions.

In my discussions with Su Beng, he has talked about how the indoctrination of Maoism led to his disillusionment with the Chinese Communist party; Chinese communism bore no resemblance to Marx’s theory of communism. It was then that he vowed never to join the Chinese Communist Party. He has also talked of how the Chinese Communists kept a watchful eye on him and excluded him from party member meetings.

Mr. Jennings continues to describe Su Beng’s ongoing fight for Taiwan’s independence, but neglects to mention Su’s greatest legacy, which is authoring the mammoth “Taiwan’s 400 Years of History”- a veritable encyclopedia of Taiwan’s history, that has influenced generations of Taiwanese by awakening an awareness of their past and a sense of Taiwanese identity.

Two final points of clarification required. First, the charge of 50 days in jail now facing Su Beng, is for failing to stop a protest after being given 3 warnings. On April 27, 2005, Su Beng and his motorcade assembled outside of a jail to protest the immediate arrest of the taxi driver who- just the day before (April 26 2007)- had driven Su Beng during a high speed chase of Lien Chan’s (then chairman of the Kuomintang party) car en route to the Taiwan Taoyuan airport. On that day, mass protests erupted in the Taiwan Taoyuan airport in response to the visits of Chinese Nationalist Party (Kuomintang) officials with the People’s Republic of China officials.

Secondly, when Su Beng stowed away in a banana boat to Japan in 1952, he was immediately arrested for illegal entry and charged with four months in detention, despite his request for political asylum. It is an oversimplification to state that Su Beng “persuaded authorities to let him live in exile.” In a strange twist of fate, the banana exporting company reported Su Beng missing to the Kuomintang authorities in Taiwan, who in turn contacted Japanese authorities for their cooperation in arresting Su. Since Su was wanted for plotting to assassinate Chiang Kai-shek, this notification actually proved that Su Beng was in need of political asylum, and so he was released and allowed to live in Japan in exile.

Furthermore it is Mr. Jennings' opinion that the authorities wouldn’t let a 90-year-old man serve time in jail. When he asked me what I thought about the matter I said that I believed that Su Beng probably wouldn’t have to serve time since he has not yet served any time for previous arrest warrants. Su Beng has not been officially pardoned, but before President Chen Shui-bian’s inauguration in 2000, he honored Su Beng for his contributions to Taiwan.

Mr. Jennings has used broad statements that are open to wide interpretation to simply grab the reader’s attention without considering the damage done by putting such falsehoods on out record. There is still much more to set straight about the life of Su Beng- revolutionary, historian, educator and idealist.

Felicia Lin
Su Beng’s biographer

Reuters article about Su Beng

Ralph Jennings' article about Su Beng appears
here on Reuters. I have much to say on it. My comments will follow shortly.

Taiwan ex-communist on long march for independence
Fri Jun 29,2007 7:32PM EDT
By Ralph Jennings

TAIPEI (Reuters) - Taiwan-born Su Beng trained assiduously under Chairman Mao Zedong 60 years ago to be a communist, shunning marriage and refusing to have children so he could follow the Chinese revolution.

But more than half a century later, Su, weak and almost 90, is now back in Taiwan, long ago disillusioned with his former party as he cultivates a network to press for the self-ruled island's formal independence from China.

These days his tactics include traffic blockades and burning Chinese flags to dramatize his cause.

"In 400 years the Taiwanese have never been their own bosses. It's not independent yet," said Su, sitting in the study of his Tapei home, a room filled with books, four of which he wrote. Su's spirited tactics are aimed at promoting change from the bottom up, but they have also gotten him and his 2,000 Taiwan supporters in trouble at times.

Su, who walks with a limp and sports a mane of long white hair, is appealing a six-month sentence for setting off fireworks at the Taipei international airport in an April 2005 protest against a trip to China by a top official of the main opposition Nationalist Party.

He faces another 50 days in jail for refusing to disband a traffic blockade.

Possibly because of his age, or because today's ruling party quietly supports him, Su may be excused from serving time, his biographer said.

"Su Beng has recently risen out of relative obscurity in the wake of China's growing aggression and the Chinese Nationalist Party's questionable exchanges with China," said Felicia Lin, an English teacher in Kaohsiung, who is writing the biography.

In her blog, Lin refers to Su as an "inspiring" man who believes it is not a question of if, but when, Taiwan will gain formal independence.

Taiwan has been self-ruled since the Nationalists, headed by Chiang Kai-shek, fled there in 1949 after losing a civil war to the Communists. But it has never declared formal independence, and Beijing has threatened to invade if it ever does so.

Su, the nom-de-guerre for the man born as Shih Chao-hui, was anti-Japanese for much of his formative years, opposing Japan's colonial control of Taiwan during his time as a Waseda University student in Tokyo and later in China from 1942 to 1949.

Disheartened by what he describes as cruelty among the Communists, he returned to Taiwan shortly before the Communist victory, going back and forth between Taiwan and Japan since.

Shortly after his initial return to Taiwan, he fought Chiang Kai-shek's authoritarian rule by stockpiling old Japanese weapons, leading to charges that he was plotting to assassinate the late strongman.

He escaped the government's fury by stowing away in 1952 on a banana boat to Japan, where he persuaded authorities to let him live in exile. Su became a legend there by opening a noodle restaurant that trained revolutionaries on its fifth floor.

During his 40 years in Japan, he illegally entered Taiwan several times to try to destabilize the Nationalists and promote Taiwan independence. He returned to stay in 1993, and since then he has organized motorcades of slogan-painted taxis on weekends and started a foundation to promote his history books.

He expects local supporters to carry on his cause as he ages.

"It's their era," he says.