Politics and polemic Archive

Razam! United with Belarus

The following feature appeared in today’s Taipei Times: Anastasia Kurlenia recoils in mock horror. Her daughter Sophie has broached the unthinkable. “Those are the Russian colors,” says the six-year-old, pointing at the red and white of the flags and traditional attire on the walls of Liuminzhan Bar & Bed, a cosy cafe on a backstreet […]
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In Trump we trust

The following feature appeared in today’s Taipei Times: Taipei rally sees eclectic gathering united in support of outgoing US president Things get off to strange start as the gathering on Ketagalan Boulevard takes shape from 1:30pm on Saturday. A gathering of pro-Taiwan independence groups and activists marching in support of outgoing US President Donald Trump […]
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End of an era: Cartier-Bresson and the cross-strait diaspora

The following essay appeared in the December issue of University of California Press’ Afterimage magazine. The pdf is embedded here as the piece is behind a paywall online. (Use the scroll bar on the right-hand side to flick through the pages).
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Seeing past Taiwan’s identity politics: a review of ‘The Great Exodus’ for Global Asia

The following article appeared in the December issue of Global Asia magazine: Many China watchers see it as only a matter of time before Xi Jinping makes his move against Taiwan. The Hong Kong crackdown, the coming Biden presidency and the distraction of the Covid-19 pandemic, not to mention Xi’s own statements on the matter: […]
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Finding compassion for refugees: a review of ‘The Global Exodus’ for Taipei Times

The following review appeared in today’s Taipei Times: With calls to grant political asylum to Hong Kong dissidents, Taiwan’s refugee law has been in the spotlight recently. Exhibitions, workshops and presentations on the issue have been organized by NGOs and activists. However, absent from the discussion has been an examination of the role of refugeeism […]
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Anger with focus

The following article appeared in today’s Taipei Times: In language that belies her cherubic appearance, Julia Mariano calls for “revolutionary rage.” She is speaking at Taipei’s Vinyl Decision bar, alongside a portrait of Bob Dylan. This is the language of protest, for sure, but rather than channeling voices from a bygone era, Mariano is demanding […]
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The glorious contradictions of Lee Teng-hui

The following article was published in The Diplomat on August 18: “It was one of the few days in my life when I wore a suit,” remembers Hans Breuer. Back in 1996, Breuer, then a freelance translator, was contacted to work as an interpreter for German TV network ZDF, which was in Taiwan to cover […]
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Not quite Chinese (Taipei Times review of Russia’s Chinese Princess)

The following book review appeared in today’s Taipei Times: “Though Chiang was born in Siberia, she displayed the virtues of a traditional Chinese woman,” said then-president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) following the death of Chiang Fang-liang (蔣方良) in 2004. “She was a good mother and a good wife who always put her family first.” Leaving aside […]
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Understanding remains key to changes in refugee situation

A slightly edited version of the following feature appeared in today’s Taipei Times: A recent exhibition in Taipei highlights the lack of comprehensive refugee legislation — an issue politicians are unwilling to tackle In his 1958 book, A Nation of Immigrants, then United States Senator from Massachusetts John F. Kennedy wrote the following words: “Little […]
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Despite Covid-19 success, Taiwan still struggles for international legitimacy

The following article appeared in the June 2020 issue of Global Asia: Two recurring themes in Western media analysis of the Covid-19 pandemic have been the inherent untrustworthiness of China and the near unparalleled success of Taiwan in tackling the disease. Strangely, few commentators have expressly connected these strands. The West, we are repeatedly told, […]
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