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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Language in the study of Dutch Formosa

20 November 2017

Written by Ann Heylen. Ahead of my talk on the history of the Dutch East India Company (VOC) on 22 November, I have decided to

Taiwan in a Challenging East Asia Security Environment

14 November 2017

Written by Gordon Houlden. The retreat of the Republic of China (ROC) government and its armed forces to Taiwan did not occur in a strategic

The New Southbound Policy: Tsai’s Soft Power Alternative

13 November 2017

Written by Mariah Thornton. During the presidential debate of 2016, then Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) candidate Tsai Ing-wen boldly posited: ‘When the maintenance of our diplomatic

Catalonia, Taiwan, and the Centralising State (part II)

8 November 2017

Written by Ben Goren. In the first part of this article, I briefly explored the wider historical contexts of current rising claims to independence in Catalonia and

Taiwan, China, and the future of U.S. policy in Asia

7 November 2017

Written by Douglas Paal. China has just concluded its 19th Party Congress. The air is redolent with questions about how much will change and what

Taiwan’s cross-border marriages: Discrimination via the discourse of love

6 November 2017

Written by Hong-zen Wang and Mei-hua Chen. In the old days, the purpose of marriage in traditional Han Chinese society was to establish a relationship between two

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