Thoughts on Taiwanese History

According to Wikipedia, the term coolie has two definitions:

1. "A historical term for manual laborers from Asia, particularly China and India, in the 19th century and early 20th century"

2. "A contemporary racial slur or ethnic nickname for people of Asian descent, including people from India, Central Asia, etc."

While the term has a South Asian origin, the Chinese translation of the term is quite interesting and worthy of note. 苦力, pronounced exactly the same as the English term, only with the addition of tones, is composed of two characters. The first one, "ku", means bitterness. The second one, "li", means strength or force.

The term accurately conveys a part of Taiwan's history. The Han did not always live in Taiwan. The Dutch colonists of the 17th century, after forcibly taking land from the aborigines and decimating the islands deer population for skins, proceeded to transform the prairies and forests of southwest Taiwan into endless sugar plantations. To work the fields they needed laborers, and for that they turned to a turbulent, impoverished, war ravaged, and desperate 17th century China. Chinese coolies were brought over to work in the sugar fields, facing extreme hardship, exploitation, heavy taxation, and conditions of de-facto slavery. The sugar was planted with their strength and toil, but they ate only bitterness. They suffered "ku"; used all their "li" to survive. They were coolies. Then, in the 1660's, the pirate king Koxinga came to Taiwan, fleeing the Manchu invasion of China and plotting a reconquest which would never be realized. Koxinga's forces ousted the Dutch, liberated the coolies, and declared an independent kingdom which would ultimately be overrun by the Manchus.

Taiwan may seem like a very different place from where I grew up. Furthermore, Taiwan's history and culture appear alien to that of America. But looking through my eyes, Taiwan is reflection of my own heritage, a mirror image of my own past. I'm fortunate in that I was raised in a multicultural home and had exposure to African-American, Jewish, and Jamaican cultures. I feel very lucky to have grown up in such a home because it allowed me to view the world from multiple perspectives. Here are some of my thoughts on the similarities between Taiwan's history and my own history:

1. Coolie slavery in Taiwan and chattel slavery in Jamaica

At the same time as Chinese coolies were being brought to Taiwan to work as de-facto slaves on Taiwan's sugar plantations, African slaves were being brought by the Spanish (and later the English) to work Jamaica's sugar plantations. Slave and coolie half a world apart shed blood, sweat, and tears for the same system of colonialism. Following the abolition of Jamaican slavery, Chinese and Indian coolies were brought in as indentured servants.

2. Dutch rule in Taiwan and Dutch rule in New York

During the 17th century, at the same time as the Dutch ruled Taiwan, my hometown of New York was also a Dutch colony and as in Taiwan, influences from the Dutch period can still be found in New York's architecture, street names, and culture.

3. Han-Aborigine intermarriage in Taiwan and Black-Indigenous intermarriage in America

Because most of the coolies in Taiwan were young men, many intermarried with aborigines and between the two groups there was a complex cultural exchange. Similarly, many African-Americans intermarried with America's own indigenous peoples (including my great-grandmother’s parents).

4. Yiddish and the struggle to preserve Taiwan's linguistic diversity

After a century of Japanese rule and KMT dictatorship, Taiwan's people have managed to preserve their language and culture. Taiwanese (Minnan), Hakka, and aboriginal languages such as Atayal and Bunun have survived despite efforts of the Japanese to make everyone speak Japanese and of the KMT to make everyone speak only Mandarin. However, with the notable exception of Taiwanese (Minnan), many of Taiwan's languages were on the verge of extinction twenty years ago. Following political reforms of the 1990's, the "mother tongue" movement was born. The movement hoped to revitalize Taiwan's linguistic diversity by promoting the use of Taiwanese, Hakka, and indigenous languages. Many Taiwanese youth who were not familiar with the languages of their ancestors began to study their "mother tongues" in Taiwan's high schools and universities. Today, one can hear songs in aboriginal langauges and Hakka on the radio in addition to songs in Minnan, Mandarin, and English. However, in the aboriginal communities, preservation of indigenous languages has been an uphill battle against sinification. It is unclear how aboriginal languages will fare in the 21st century. Following the horrors of the Holocaust and the decimation of Jewish communities in Eastern and Central Europe, Yiddish - the language of Europe's Jews - began to disappear. Further blows came to the language via the assimilation of America's Jews and the adoption of Hebrew as the national language of Israel. However, in the past few decades, many Jews around the world have made efforts to promote the Yiddish language.

In conclusion, while Taiwan may seem like the far side of the world (indeed it is halfway around the world from America), upon closer examination it appears much more familiar.

Chinese Teacher Training

Today I had the pleasure of assisting with ICLP's Chinese teacher training class. ICLP offers the training on weekends for people interested in learning how to teach Chinese. The teachers in training got to practice going over a lesson with my classmates and me. Not only was the activity a lot of fun, but it also gave me a chance to really appreciate how amazing ICLP's teachers are and how difficult teaching Chinese as a foreign language is.

The Hike

Just came back from my three day hike of Hsue Shan, the second tallest mountain in Taiwan. Hsue Shan, which means Snow Mountain in Chinese, was referred to as Mt. Sylvia by Western explorers in past centuries and as Tsugitakayama by the Japanese, which means "second highest mountain" in their language. The East Peak is over 10,000 feet high and the Main Peak rises to a staggering 12,749 feet above sea level. The hike is considered the hardest in Taiwan and the most beautiful on an island known for its beautiful scenery. The hike was grueling, the mountain vistas breathtaking, and the trip a lot of fun.

All together the our group consisted of about 20 students, 2 teachers, and our experienced guide. Amongst the students were two soldiers, a doctor, and a girl from the Rocky Mountains so I felt pretty safe. The first day we only hiked two hours from the trail head to the first cabin where we got an early sleep. The lovely pine forests reminded me of the White Mountains in New Hampshire where I hiked as a boy. The second day we woke up at 3am and hiked to the second cabin, located on a grassy slope on the mountain. After a quick break to take in the scenery, we continued hiking switchback after switchback until we reached the fir forest higher up on the mountain. From there we hiked up for several hours until reaching the rocky stretch to the top. The last stretch to the peak was barren and rocky, covered only with tough little bushes. In a month all of it would be covered with snow. Unfortunately, 15 minutes from the Main Peak, my altitude sickness flamed up. I was dizzy and could barely breathe and decided not to climb any further. Still, I took in the views from where I was. Then we headed back down to the second cabin. I was surprised to actually get radio reception on the trail. We spent the second night at the cabin. The third morning we were up at 4:30am and soon hiking down towards where we started, with a short diversion to reach the East Peak, which offered a spectacular view of the sunrise.

From the trail head, we piled back into the bus and headed down the rough mountain roads back to Yilan and from Yilan we headed back to Taipei.

Hsue Shan (Mt. Sylvia)

Taipei International Flora Expo

Sick in Taiwan

Last Tuesday I came down with a nasty stomach virus. I had to miss two days of school, was sick for almost a week, and was in a lot of pain for most of that week. Fortunately, the illness did give me a chance to see a doctor in Taiwan and learn more about the Taiwanese medical system. Especially given the healthcare debate in America, Taiwan's system is worth studying.

Even though I am not a citizen, I am a student at at the University so I was able to use the University health clinic without issue. While there, I saw a doctor and four prescriptions filled for a total of 120 NTD or about four American dollars, and this was without insurance. With insurance it would have been free. While things are slightly cheaper on campus, off campus I've heard things are not that much more expensive. Another foreign student I know spent a night in a hospital, got seen by a doctor, got some shots, and got four prescriptions filled the next morning for a grand total of about 30 American dollars. Another foreign student I know got an x-ray for the equivalent of about 30 American dollars.

This leads me to the conclusion that not only is healthcare free in Taiwan, but health care costs must be dramatically lower. I did a little research online to find out more.

In Taiwan, everyone is covered by the National Health Insurance, which is payed for by income taxes. Taiwan spends less than a thousand dollars on healthcare per capita compared to the United States which spends more than seven thousand dollars per capita.

Funeral Procession

Few sounds are more eerie than that of the funeral processions which pass by Xinhai Road. In accordance with the Chinese almanac, funerals are best held on certain days of the year. At least once a week, one of those days will come to pass and dozens of funerals will be held in Taipei. As one of the larger funeral homes is near the University, the long funeral processions can often be seen winding along nearby Xinhai Road, each one consisting of dozens of blue pickup trucks decorated with flowers and ribbons with bands, loudspeakers, drummers, and wailers belting out music as they zip pass. The music is unbelievably eerie and says to the world, "Today a man or woman is laid to rest". It reminds me of Louisiana style funeral bands, though the Eastern variant is far less festive. One day in my newspaper reading class, a student asked the teacher what the eerie music outside was and she explained the connection between funerals, tradition, and the Chinese almanac. She taught us the names of the different types of funerals in Chinese: sea burial, cremation, land burial, and sky burial. In the West we can commonly see the first three, but what is the last one, the so-called sky burial? Specific to Tibetan culture, the sky burial consists of presenting the body of the deceased to vultures. This is seen as an act of compassion in Tibetan Buddhism. Furthermore as the vultures fly around the world, the deceased is scattered as well, kind of like letting ashes scatter in the wind. The ritual is often accompanied by specific chanting and rituals performed by Tibetan monks.