A few points about the Paraguayan Taiwanese

Earlier I wrote that most of the Taiwanese immigrants here came in the 1949 immigration, but that seems to be less true than I originally thought. In fact, many of the people I've talked to have said that their family has been in Taiwan for hundreds of years, part of an earlier Han-Chinese migration to the island.

One family said that many of the first Taiwanese immigrants in the 1970s left Taiwan not only because of poor economic conditions, but also because of political reasons as well. It may seem hard to believe now, but the "East Asian tigers" (Taiwan, S. Korea, Singapore, and Hong Kong) were very poor countries even in the late 1960s. I can't remember the exact ranking, but I remember in my East Asian and Latin American Development class the GDP ranking of Taiwan and South Korea was in the ballpark of countries like Congo and Sudan, which they have obviously surpassed. Suffice it to say, only thirty or forty years ago, these were poor countries.
Furthermore, only in the past thirty-something years has Taiwan (as well as a slew of other developing countries, such as S. Korea, Brazil, South Africa... and notably NOT mainland China) moved towards a functioning democracy. Apparently the Kuomintang, (KMT) the ruling party in Taiwan after 1949, suppressed any kind of opposing political activity for its first few decades in Taiwan. As a result, many immigrants came to South America. That same family that came to Paraguay for political reasons told me that the father went panning for gold in the Brazilian Amazon during the late 1970s and early 1980s, getting malaria a remarkable eighteen times!

One final remark about Paraguayan-Taiwanese relations: they exist (diplomatically, that is). Taiwan, or more correctly, the "Republic of China," is only recognized by 23 countries, mostly countries you haven't heard of. Surprisingly, most are in the Americas, mostly Central American countries (Nicaragua, Panama, Honduras...), and little Caribbean islands. Paraguay is the only country in South America that recognizes Taiwan.

Why so few? Well, the People's Republic of China, aka mainland Communist China, makes cutting relations with Taiwan a prerequisite for diplomatic relations. Most countries, such as the US and all of Europe (sans the Vatican City, which still recognizes Taiwan), have jumped ship and joined the PRC sometime in the 1970s or 1980s... Taiwan also lost its seat in the UN then.

So why recognize Taiwan? For small, poor countries -- which describes every country (excepting the economic powerhouse, Vatican City) with diplomatic relations with Taiwan -- Taiwan can offer lots of aid and economic opportunity. While the PRC is obviously an economic powerhouse, Taiwan is perhaps more willing to engage in "aid-diplomacy," exchanging lots of cash and economic aid in exchange for diplomatic recognition. Hospitals are built. Public facilities constructed. Money injected into the economy. Let us not forget, either, that Taiwan is not excluded from the World Trade Organization: whereas the UN can function politically without Taiwan's participation, the world economy is far more dependent on Taiwan's participation. If anything is going to keep the current status quo and keep Taiwan afloat, it's Taiwan's economy.

Okee, one final anecdote. So the Lonely Planet guidebook alleges Paraguay is the most bribe-hungry country outside of Africa. I haven't seen much police around here, and saw my first police car earlier this week -- which had decals all over it reading "donated by the Republic of China."