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the tariff commission of the state council recently issued an announcement, deciding to stop implementing the policy of exempting 34 agricultural products from taiwan from import tariffs from september 25, 2024.

tan zhu noted that many local media followed up with reports immediately, and related businesses lamented that "it was all the dpp's fault" and "it's all over", and some local analysts pointed out that "this has a huge impact on taiwan's economy".many scholars, celebrities and representatives of public opinion have also called on the dpp authorities to review their cross-strait policies and stop wasting mainland china's goodwill.

however, the reaction of the dpp authorities and the feelings of taiwanese society are obviously not in the same stratosphere, and they just brushed it off with the words "little impact". some analysts on the island pointed out that such understatement was just a lie and a cover-up.

screenshot of media reports on the island

so, what is the dpp trying to cover up by saying that the impact is "not significant"? today, i will talk to you about this topic.

the dpp uses "little impact" to cover up policy mistakes

regarding the cancellation of zero tariffs on 34 agricultural products, taiwan's agricultural department said that "the overall impact is limited and the risks are within controllable range", and the green camp's public opinion representatives claimed that "taiwan's agricultural products do not rely on the mainland, so the impact is not great." the calm reaction made public opinion on the island very dissatisfied.they directly accused people of "why not eat meat porridge" and "telling lies"... in fact, "the impact is limited" and "the influence is not great" cannot appease the worries of the grassroots at all.

taiwanese farmers and fishermen who make a living from planting and fishing related products will be directly affected. some taiwanese farmers said that they were "badly harmed by the dpp."taiwan's united news network reported that the tariffs on various taiwanese products that were no longer exempted will be restored to 5% to 20%. taiwan's senior media person zhao shaokang pointed out that the economic output of agriculture is low, and the increased tariffs will affect the livelihoods of farmers and fishermen. chen baoji, the former head of taiwan's agricultural department, believes that farmers have spent a year growing agricultural products. now that the mainland's tariff preferences are gone because of the democratic progressive party, what will happen to the products?

screenshot of media reports on the island

many analysts believe that after the dpp destroys the tax-free treatment, taiwan’s agriculture, fisheries and even the overall economy will be impacted.in recent years, thanks to the mainland's tariff exemption policy, taiwan's agricultural products exports to the mainland are extremely competitive, and the mainland has become taiwan's largest export destination for agricultural and fishery products. many agricultural and fishery professionals on the island are worried that if taiwan's agricultural products lose their tariff preferences in the mainland market, it will lead to higher costs, lower competitiveness, and a sharp drop in exports to the mainland. many companies and self-employed individuals in the industrial chain will face crises. economic experts on the island bluntly stated that the damage to taiwan's agriculture and fishery is only an observation indicator. against the backdrop of the democratic progressive party's constant provocations for "independence" that have led to tensions in cross-strait relations, other industries in taiwan will also face the same risks, and the impact on the overall economy is self-evident.

faced with the complaints from the grassroots, why did the dpp authorities lie and try their best to "whitewash" the situation? many analysts told tan zhu that it can be seen from this that the dpp is guilty. they know that the culprit for the current situation is their "anti-china and independence" cross-strait policy. in order to cover up their mistakes, they have to deceive the people on the island by saying that "the impact is not great" in an attempt to get away with it.

professor tang yonghong of the taiwan research institute of xiamen university said that the dpp authorities did not want the people on the island to know that it was their continued provocations to seek "independence" and undermine the political foundation of cross-strait economic and trade cooperation and the principle of fair and equal trade that led to the loss of the original preferential treatment. scholars on the island told tan zhu that "only brothers and compatriots will make concessions. the 'taiwan independence' regards the mainland as an enemy. you certainly cannot expect the hostile mainland to make concessions unconditionally. the dpp deliberately downplays the losses and evades responsibility." taiwan current affairs commentator lai yueqian said that in the face of the mainland's goodwill, the dpp did not treat it equally, but instead engaged in discriminatory trade practices against the mainland. it is no wonder that the mainland stopped tariff concessions, and "the dpp is hurting and deceiving taiwanese farmers."

people on the island call for "stop wasting mainland china's goodwill"

mr. tan noticed that in recent days, public opinion on the island has been calling on the dpp authorities not to just divert attention and "cover up the truth", and asked them to adjust their "anti-china and anti-china" line, reflect on their trade discrimination against the mainland, and "stop wasting the goodwill of the mainland."

public opinion on the island believes that although the mainland was forced to cancel some of its concessions this time, compared with the dpp authorities' excessive behavior of not allowing mainland products to enter the island for a long time, the mainland has been "goodwill enough."current affairs commentator chen huiwen angrily stated in a political talk show that taiwan unilaterally restricted the import of more than 1,000 agricultural products from the mainland. "it is forbidden to buy apples from mainland compatriots, but buy apples from other countries, and shamelessly ask the mainland for tariff exemption? we don't even want to sell mainland products to us, and they have no way to pay tariffs." some scholars pointed out that not only mainland agricultural products, but also processed agricultural products are prohibited from being sold to taiwan. if you sell mainland snail noodles that are very popular among the people on the island in taiwan, you may even face a fine of up to nt$3 million. former legislator zheng liwen believes that the mainland has always expressed goodwill and said that any difficulties, misunderstandings, and knots in the family can be resolved. "but the dpp insists on "taiwan independence" and does not allow mainland products to be sold to taiwan. what qualifications do you have to make irresponsible remarks?"

screenshot of media reports on the island

scholars on the island told mr. tan that even if the mainland suspends zero tariffs on 34 taiwanese agricultural products, the mainland's preferential treatment in cross-strait economic and trade exchanges will still be significantly tilted towards taiwan.according to statistics, there are still more than 300 other taiwanese products enjoying tariff preferences from the mainland, which means that there are still tens of thousands of taiwan's small and medium-sized businesses and grassroots people who continue to gain tangible benefits from the goodwill of the mainland.

however, many people expressed concern that if the dpp authorities continue to "resist china and seek independence," the mainland's concessions may be "wiped out."tang yonghong analyzed that the mainland suspended tariff concessions on some products under the ecfa twice in december last year and june this year, which has warned the dpp authorities, but the dpp not only did not take practical measures to lift discriminatory trade restrictions on the mainland, but also intensified its provocations to seek "independence", which led to the expansion of the scope of "stopping concessions". zhao shaokang believes that if the dpp authorities continue to ignore the mainland's warnings, the mainland may increase sanctions on taiwan or cancel more preferential policies in the future, and "businessmen and farmers will be unlucky."

obviously, more and more people on the island have realized that, as chen binhua, spokesperson for the taiwan affairs office of the state council, said, there will be no peace and development if "taiwan independence" is pursued, and it will only bring disaster to taiwan; supporting "taiwan independence" will only harm their own interests.what tan wants to say is that peaceful development of cross-strait relations and fair and equal cross-strait economic and trade cooperation are the blessings of taiwan's development and the interests of the people. if the dpp continues to ignore the welfare of the people and engage in "anti-china and independence", it will be abandoned by the extremely disappointed people on the island.