Taiwan Insight

Mei’s Original Sin (美之原罪): Settler Colonialism, “Beautiful Country,” White Beauty

16 October 2026 Chee-Hann Wu

Written by Sheng-mei Ma. This article focuses on self-alienation and the pursuit of Eurocentric beauty standards. It examines how Chinese linguistic biases and the prevalence of cosmetic surgery among celebrities reflect a subconscious, self-inflicted whitewashing that parallels historical settler colonialism and racial hierarchies.

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LIBERTY SQUARE REVISITED: THE WILD LILY MOVEMENT AND TAIWAN’S DEMOCRATIC CRISIS

15 October 2026 Adrian Chiu

Written by Vasja Hafner. This article argues that the Wild Lily Movement not only created repertoires that have been repeatedly reused in subsequent movements, using occupation of public space as the primary way to articulate democratic legitimacy, but also helped create a structural gap in the constitutional architecture. The same protest repertoire is now being used to contest the institutional order.

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Beyond Exclusion: Countering Taiwan’s Identity Subordination in Non-State Institutions

14 October 2026 Chee-Hann Wu

Written by Nilufer Mistry Sheasby. This article examines how non-state institutions undermine Taiwan’s identity by mandating subordinating terminology in ostensibly apolitical settings. It argues that traditional diplomatic responses are insufficient and proposes a multi-faceted playbook: coordinating government and private actors to challenge naming decisions, mobilising stakeholder pressure, and mitigating harm when reversal remains impossible.

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Lithuania’s Taiwan Balancing Act Tests Europe’s Resolve

2 October 2026 Chee-Hann Wu

Written by Jozef Huljak. This article discusses how Lithuania is resuming economic cooperation talks with Taiwan despite internal political pressure to reset relations with Beijing. This strategy aims to shift the relationship from symbolic solidarity to durable economic interest, testing Europe’s resolve against Chinese coercion while proving that a resilient, mutually beneficial partnership can withstand domestic political cycles.

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Nigeria-Taiwan row: Understanding China’s influence in Africa

22 January 2018

Written by Abdul-Gafar Tobi Oshodi. Little is known of the details of Nigeria-Taiwan relations, but last year will go down as the most turbulent in

Despite icy China relations, Tsai starts 2018 in command at home

17 January 2018

Written by Sheryn Lee. After being elected on a high in 2016, President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) administration faced the harsh realities

In the event of a crisis with China, Taiwan must come to its own defense

17 January 2018

Written by Adam Hatch. Taiwan’s defense spending, always an important issue both domestically and internationally, has been in the news even more frequently than usual