<p>blah im bored</p>
<p>so why not just post a thread</p>
<p>what do you ppl think?</p>
<p>NOPE....they have their own Olympiad team.</p>
<p>1 country, 2 governments (if that's a word)</p>
<p>Taiwan is not a part of China. China is oppressing the Taiwanese by disallowing their self-determination and sovereignty.</p>
<p>HELL YEAH IT IS! To those of you who disagree, read some Chinese history books regarding the last civil war before you even open your mouth. Just because the Communists and the Nationalists didn't finish their war back in the day, does not give Taiwan the status as a country.</p>
<p>taiwan should be a part of china. also singapore. moreso than tibet which actually has their own culture.</p>
<p>i'd say it's a province. twnese ppl can still show their 'taiwanese pride' just as shanghai'ers can show their 'shanghai-nese pride'</p>
<p>nam'sayn?</p>
<p>Depends on your view of the state.</p>
<p>There is no doubt that there are legitimate reasons for Taiwan to be part of the PRC, but under what circumstances? I also don't necessarily believe that the historical fallacy is a good argument. Just because it was under Qing suzerainty doesn't necessarily mean that it should be under PRC control today.</p>
<p>This then brings us to questions of defining autonomy and more generally sovereignty. If we go with a Westphalian definition of sovereignty, then Taiwan is almost definitely a distinct state with acceptable reasons for wanting to be independent. If you reject the Westphalian model and look to other, as of yet undefined models of state-defining, then Taiwan could theoretically be part of China.</p>
<p>However, I believe (and this is just my opinion) that the PRC's reasons for wanting to keep Taiwan close have little to do with its historical value as a suzerain of Taiwan. It has much more to do with signaling to other recusant portions of the PRC (Uighur territories come to mind.) The second the CCP admits that Taiwan has a legitimate claim for independence, it also has to accept Uighur and Tibetan claims for independence, something that it has been extremely reluctant to do. In effect, letting Taiwan go means letting a significant portion of the Chinese western territory go as well-- this is unacceptable both economically and strategically for a regime that already has to fight to maintain its legitimacy.</p>
<p>Mainland China and Taiwan ought to be ruled by the Kuomintang as a single nation.</p>
<p>De jure, not really. De facto, definitely.</p>
<p>bartleby,</p>
<p>The KMT was as much a disaster as the CCP. No thanks.</p>
<p>Taiwan is it's own country on a map -- why would anyone consider it as part of China?</p>
<p>Taiwan is part of China. Period. No room for argument. (If you couldn't tell, I'm quite stubborn on this topic) I hate it when "Taiwanese-Americans" are go around screaming "FREE TAIWAN!" and "I HATE THE CHINESE". Some of those people are actually my friends, and I feel annoyed because they have no idea what the economic and cultural situation in Taiwan is. Suppose Taiwan did actually become independent - it's economy would fall drastically because it won't have China to back it up. I don't have anything against the Taiwanese. There probably are people who want to be independent and have good reasons, maybe I just haven't heard them yet. Plus, it seems Taiwan's having a civil war with it's own "president" anyway.</p>
<p>Most of Taiwan's residents come from mainland China, are ethnically Chinese, speak a dialect of Chinese, and have family members in mainland China. Very few countries recognize Taiwan's independence--and the US is not one of them. The UN expelled the ROC from the UN and reinstated the PRC as the legitimate governing body of China. Why are they considered a separate nation?</p>
<p>Many of these people really don't care.</p>
<p>As for me, I don't consider Taiwan a part of China. They're less screwed up at the moment anyhow.</p>
<p>If you look at maps printed in China, it treats Taiwan as a province of China, given the coloring of Taiwan on the map.</p>
<p>bah,</p>
<p>Maps printed in Japan show "Takeshima" as part of Japan. Maps printed in Korea show "Dokdo" as part of Korea. Border disputes are fun, huh?</p>
<p>kxliu,</p>
<p>I'm a bit confused by what you mean about Taiwan not having China to back its economy up. It's not like Taiwan receives direct aid, they just trade. How would independence affect that?</p>
<p>And civil war against its president? You mean they don't like him? Sure. How's that any different from the situation in the US?</p>
<p>enderkin,</p>
<p>The UN argument is probably the most legitimate argument for favoring PRC control of the ROC. It avoids the historical fallacy, and actually gives us some international law and precedent to work on.</p>
<p>As for the olympic team argument...</p>
<p>Doesn't Hong Kong have it's own olympic team? Is Hong Kong a seperate country?</p>
<p>If you consider Puerto Rico part of the US, doesn't it have its own Olympic team too? A team that beat the Americans in basketball in Athens?</p>
<p>Taiwan is a part of China. And people who claim they are 'Taiwanese' are actually ethnically Chinese.</p>
<p>SteveTheBeav,</p>
<p>That's only true if you don't consider the aboriginal Taiwanese.</p>
<p>Taiwanese</a> aborigines - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia</p>
<p>Plus, it depends on how you define identity.</p>