Taiwan Tati Cultural and Educational Foundation

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Saturday last week accused China of “digital authoritarianism” and transnational repression after Strait Plus (今日海峽), a Chinese state-controlled media channel, disseminated personal information about Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Puma Shen (沈伯洋), including satellite images of his home and workplace in Taipei.

It was the latest escalation in a months-long campaign of intimidation and harassment that has followed Shen well beyond the realm of rhetoric, testing the boundaries of what Taiwan and the international community are prepared to tolerate.

For many, the escalation in intensity of military exercises around Taiwan has ceased to be shocking and is now a familiar, yet hard-to-ignore background noise. They have seeped into everyday life in the form of breaking news notifications during the early morning commute, military alerts that pop up between tasks at work and occasional forwarded discussions in family group chats. The seemingly muted response from members of the public is a result of adaptation under long-standing pressures.

For frontline workers, the drills have a tangible impact on the rhythms of daily life. Teachers must face questions from students and offer calm explanations of the situation; industry workers must consider impacts on shipping, logistics, and market fluctuations for how their supply chains and clientele might be affected. By and large, people’s concerns are simple and pragmatic. They center on whether or not their jobs would be affected and what adjustments they might need to make in their day, rather than on grand political considerations.