Collective Pushback Against China’s Aggression is Strengthening

“As much as China may look like they’re having the upper hand, the pushback is gaining strength so much, no matter who wins the elections in the US in November, our understanding.. is that a we’re looking at a bipartisan consensus… that engagement trap is not working. Something different has to be done.”

This was one of the conclusions of Filipino political analyst, Richard Heydarian, on recent political developments that could impact on the future of democracy in Asia. He made the observation in a July 28 webinar co-organized by the Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats (CALD) and the National Democratic Institute (NDI). The virtual event brought together leading democrats from Hong Kong, Taiwan, the Philippines and the United States to address the question: “Is Hong Kong’s present going to be Asia’s future?”

Emily Lau, CALD individual member and former chairperson of the Democratic Party of Hong Kong, emphasized the need to “get China to behave according to the code of behavior of the civilized world.” She encouraged the international community to continue to speak up, not only for Hong Kongers, but for people everywhere whose freedom is under threat. She conceded that for some people, including herself, speaking up may entail huge sacrifices. However, she said that “we only live once, and we want to make it worth living.”

Preserving the democratic way of life is also the main reason why Taiwan is pushing back against Chinese aggression. “Democracy and freedom for Taiwan is like breathing air”, says Ketty Chen, vice president of the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy. For this reason, the country is doing its best to counter the pressure from China by passing new legislation, or amending existing ones, to beef up its national security. Moreover, members of Taiwan’s vibrant civil society are working with the country’s equally vibrant digital minister, Audrey Tang, to safeguard the cyberspace by addressing disinformation or information operations.

“China is now expanding its digital footprint as a way to shift and change narratives and spread disinformation”, observed Manpreet Singh Anand, NDI regional director for Asia-Pacific. Moreover, the regional superpower’s actions in the recent past – from Tibet to Nepal – lend credence to the claim of “an increasingly assertive Beijing.” According to Anand, NDI is addressing this worrying trend by providing support and assistance to established and transitioning democracies alike. In the latter, NDI is also finding ways of expressing “solidarity to those who are fighting for democracy and looking to amplify their voices to the international community.”

Countries outside the United States-China power dynamics should also take a more active role in the pushback. Cherie Wong, executive director of the Alliance Canada Hong Kong argued that middle powers like Canada, Australia, New Zealand, France, Germany and the European Union should expand their soft power to “influence the democratization of developing countries, as well as of China, Hong Kong, and [other] associated territories.” Beyond sanctions and divestments, she called for the creation of an “Indo-Pacific strategy” which requires collaboration and cooperation among multiple countries, with the middle powers taking the lead, to reduce Chinese influence in the developing world.

All the speakers in the online talk emphasized that the above-mentioned responses and proposals should not be construed as “anti-China.” As put by Heydarian: “The endgame here is to constrain the worst instance of China by realism and by collective pushback.”

“Civil libertarians around the world must continue to put up a united stand against tyranny in order to push for a democratic, rule- based order”, said Francis Pangilinan, CALD chairperson and Philippine senator. “We must unite and cooperate online and offline and address the long- felt need to rebalance power dynamics in our region.”