On Tuesday, January 9, 2024 at 3:04 p.m., the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of China, Taiwan, issued an alert urging the population to exercise extreme caution following the passage of a Chinese satellite through the airspace from the island.
The message written in Chinese characters and followed by an English translation appeared on the smartphones of Taiwan residents, sparking widespread concern, amplified by what was later described by the ministry itself as a translation error. Indeed, while the message in Chinese indicated “China launched a satellite at 3:04 p.m. and it has already flown over the southern part of the country. Please pay attention to the safety of citizens,” the English version read: “ [Alerte aérienne] A missile flies over Taiwan airspace. »
Despite the correction of the ministry – which admitted the error of having used the term missile in English to translate the Chinese word wèixīngsatellite —, no changes have been made to the alert message on the Public Warning Cell Broadcast Service website.
This service is responsible for quickly warning the population via mobile broadband telecommunications systems. Alerts are triggered in the event of natural disasters, road accidents, risks to public health and danger to national defense. They are also broadcast on the Web and indicated using icons illustrating the current risk situation.
On the service’s website, two specific icons represent missile air raid warning; one of them was used to classify the January 9 incident. However, this is not the first time that a satellite has crossed Taiwanese airspace. Similar situations occurred, for example, on December 5 and 10, as well as November 9 and October 5. However, after reviewing the alert archives available on the site, it appears that there is no mention of these events.
The only reports regarding the missile air raid alert that can be found in the site’s archives actually refer to defense exercises that took place on the island last July. So one might wonder why, for the first time in 12 months, a missile alert was triggered in response to a satellite passing through the airspace.
Just a few days before the presidential elections on the island, this alert takes on a stronger connotation of threat than ever. Whether this is a real threat or a political strategy aimed at dissuading the population from voting for political parties that are poorly perceived by Beijing, it is difficult to say with certainty.
The threat of war is part of the rhetoric used by parties to influence the decision of voters who will be called to the polls on January 13, 2024. Currently, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) candidate, Lai Ching-te, also known as the name of William Lai, seems to maintain his position at the top of the polls. If victorious, it would be the third term for the DPP, following the electoral successes of outgoing President Tsai Ing-wen in 2016 and 2019. According to recent interviews with local residents, the candidacy of the Taiwanese politician and former representative of Taipei in the United States (2020-2023), Hsiao Bi-khim, serving as vice president alongside William Lai, appears to be an important motivating factor for the Taiwanese electorate in favor of the DPP.
Also according to discussions with residents, the president of the People’s Party of Taiwan (PPT), Ko Wen-je, also nicknamed the Taiwanese “Trump”, seems to be less well received by women due to certain comments considered sexist. Nevertheless, it enjoys a certain popularity among the 30 to 40 year old generation. His program is widely seen as a possible third way for managing political and economic relations with Beijing.
In contrast, the Kuomintang (KMT), the historic party founded in China in 1919 and transferred to Taiwan in 1949 at the end of the Chinese Civil War, is a staunch defender of Chinese identity and cross-Strait collaboration. Its candidate, Hou Yu-ih, whose name — almost ironically — means “friendship,” supports positions in favor of collaboration with China.
If, on the one hand, this position can alleviate the fear of armed conflict, on the other, it raises concerns about the economic and democratic destiny of the island. Whoever wins, especially among young people, there is a certain degree of disillusionment, often expressed by saying to “vote with tears in your eyes” (“vote with tears in your eyes”). hán lèi toupiào “).
The January 9 alert certainly does not help to lighten hearts, but on the contrary seems to underline once again the precarious balance on the island.