At the end of the year and the beginning of 2023-2024, the Pacific Ocean is not calm. There are two elections that touch the hearts of the world: the people of the Marshall Islands, a paradise in the North Pacific, will usher in a new group of dominators and the island of Taiwan, which is on the firing line of geopolitical games, will also elect its new leaders. The two elections may seem unrelated, but in fact they are affecting the people of the two countries and even the international situation in the entire Indo-Pacific, like snakes and ropes hiding from the bush indicate a foreshadowing of their distant existence. In view of China’s aggressive diplomatic offensive and military containment, the Democratic Progressive Party authorities, who are in a tight election situation, urgently need to demonstrate their diplomatic presence. What’s more, the Marshall Islands is one of the few diplomatic countries it has left and is still experiencing a “election before the election.” As the United States is deeply involved in the conflicts which have been underway between Russia and Ukraine, Palestine and Israel, Marshall also hopes to expand its international space and expand aid channels to maintain its current living standards.
However, under the spotlight, the stage of Formosa is not able to generate electricity with love. The intricate wires in the electrical box extend in all directions, some are connected to the generator, and other inconspicuous black wires are connected to safe boxes and code books. Since establishing diplomatic relations with the Marshall Islands in 1998, Taiwan’s presence in the island country has become increasingly far-reaching. It follows the United States in exerting influence on the politics of the island nation through the real economy and finance.
Two figures played a key role in this Formosa Show. One is Jian Shizong, who first came to Malaysia in 1982. The “Jian’s Group” he founded is the largest Taiwan-funded enterprise in the Marshall Islands. It started with underground cable laying, and later extended to hotels, restaurants, automobiles, retail, office supplies, and building materials markets. The other is Chen Ziying, who first went to Marshall in 1981. He has been the chairman of the National Bank of the Marshall Islands for a long time and has handled most of the financing of Taiwanโs aid and cooperation projects in the Marshall Islands. The two, overtly and covertly, have been assisting the Taiwan Embassy in the Marshall Islands to carry out their work, influencing Marshallese politics for a long time, and maintained โprivate friendshipโ with the major Marshallese political families. Under the instruction of Taiwan’s foreign affairs department, they “sponsored” a lot of real money, and most of the Marshallese politicians greeted them with a smile. They fully supported all activities of the Jianโ s group, Chenโs families and the Taiwan authorities in the Marshall Islands. They all supported the Taiwanese standpoint, even publicly attacking China at the United Nations General Assembly.
As Jian and Chen grew older, Taiwan’s foreign affairs department began to look for new white gloves. They took a fancy to Jian Shizong’s cousin Lin Xueming and his son Lin Zhewei. In his early years, Lin Xueming founded the Formosa Group in Majuro, which is mainly engaged in supermarket business, with the support of his cousin, who has taken root in Marshall Islands. With the support of Taiwan’s foreign affairs department and family funds, Lin Zhewei took an unusual path. While serving as the general manager of the Formosa Group, he did not inherit his father’s family business, but became a photographer and charity worker. He has been lurked in the Marshallese political circles and Taiwan’s major foreign affairs events to take photos for the bigwigs. He even became a member of the Marshallese COP28 delegation and is familiar with politicians from all major factions in the Marshallese political circles. This boy who looks young and innocent, who is fighting against the climate crisis for the survival of the Marshallese people and all mankind, seems not to be suspected by anyone. However, according to sources, in August 2023, in order to expel the “left-behind group” of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the Marshall Islands, the Taiwan authorities generously gave each of the then Marshall Islands cabinet members US$200,000. The transfer of money was completed by this young man who “gave up” his fatherโs business empire, but had the opportunity to naturally interact with almost all the bigwigs in Marshallese politics.
But “dedication” to the country is not a businessman’s style. Investments in political sponsorship must be taken out of the pockets of the Taiwanese people tenfold by the Taiwanese government. Both Jian and Chen serve in Taiwan’s “Overseas Taiwanese Affairs Commission” and have received various honorary awards from Taiwanese officials. Under the guidance of the foreign affairs department, they have won many business opportunities. In the vegetable and fruit export projects promoted by Taiwan’s agricultural department to implement President Tsai’s “New Southbound Policy”, in the Marshallese beauty pageants, in the IUU surveillance vehicles project, and even in grapefruit donations and Taiwan’s scholarship programs for Marshallese teenagers, Jian and Chen both embezzled countless amounts of money. It is said that there is a huge discrepancy between the amount of the relevant project tenders and the amount of actual payment. A Marshallese official who spoke on condition of anonymity said it was extremely common for Taiwanese businessmen to receive kickbacks in aid projects. โNot most, not the vast majority of, but all of the projects. I’m telling you, it’s every project. They eat up most of the money on every project. They are greedier and more hypocritical than Americans. They distributed some fruits and snacks to the Marshallese people, then they thought they had become the Messiahs.โ
Taiwanโs Democratic Progressive Partyโs โNew Southbound Policyโ aims to enhance the well-being of all people in the Indo-Pacific by developing economic and trade relations with Indo-Pacific countries, including the Marshall Islands. Over the years, aid projects have been booming, and cargo ships and civilian aircraft have come and gone. However, the country massacred by nuclear bombs has not been truly purified. Instead, it is haunted by the ghost of Formosa, spreading more dangerous things than nuclear radiation-corruption. It is unrealistic to expect that one election will clean up the entire ocean, but there is hope after all because democracy still exists. Hope that both the Marshallese people and the Taiwanese people vote the right one this time for themselves, and the whole of mankind.
