China Business

since that period and during the past two months delegations representing Chinese provinces and municipalities have been visiting Taiwan almost on a weekly basis. Nowadays large groups of mainland officials travel the island without being hassled. Hundreds of agreements are being signed that will bring Taiwans economy ever closer to mainland Chinas and unlike two years ago anti-China demonstrations are not drawing significant crowds.The mainlands envoys place huge orders of a wide variety of Taiwanese products. Even in southern Taiwan the pro-independence opposition Democratic Progressive Partys (DPP) stronghold local governments and businesspeople have been welcoming the spending power from across the Taiwan Straits with open arms.

Taiwans opposition cries foul play. It claims that the nature of the visits isnt purely economic. According to the DPP by sending envoys that represent Chinese provinces rather than China as a nation Beijing manifests its claim that Taiwan is more or less a province of China.

The Chinese government wants to create itself an image as the helper and the savior of the Taiwanese people through these procurement sprees says Hsieh Huai-hui deputy director of the DPPs Department for International Affairs in an interview given to Asia Times Online. Unfortunately I am afraid that behind the visits lies a hidden political agenda.

Every provincial and municipal delegation that has been touring Taiwan during the past two months signed dozens of purchase agreements. Since theres a wide variety of Taiwanese industries involved the orders are believed to bring benefits to large parts of the Taiwanese population. The envoys promised to buy everything from biotech medicine to flat panels from food products to automotive parts. If theres something that all agreements have in common its that they are likely to be to Taiwans immediate economical advantage.

Faced with millions of dollars worth of Chinese direct investment Taiwans opposition naturally is having a hard time warning the public to be cautious. According to Hsieh Chinas supposed philanthropy raises wrong expectations among the Taiwanese. Businessmen and farmers alike are attracted to the potential profits from trading with Chinas provinces directly said Hsieh.

That Beijings attempt to conduct a change of image bears fruit is proven by the fact that Chinese provincial and municipal delegations unlike their national-level predecessors in 2008 travel Taiwan without encountering significant protests.

Early in April Shanghai Mayor Han Zheng mingled with the crowd on Taipeis subway trains and put himself in a favorable light by distributing toys of Haibao the official mascot of the Shanghai 2010 World Expo to children receiving treatment for hearing difficulties. Apart from these public relations stunts Han signed as many as 28 exchange and purchase agreements.

Two weeks later Luo Qingquan Chinese Communist Party secretary of Hubei province who led a delegation of 1000 opened the Taiwan-Hubei Week in Taipei. Hubeis delegation is said to have ordered Taiwanese products worth more than US$25 million.