Chinese Knight from a Polish Friend

It is fun to get a picture from someone who drew it especial for me, especial in a situation that we have never seen each other. Both of us did not put our own photo with oneself on our respective blog. Before I got this picture, I wonder what would be the topic of the picture she – I am even not sure the gender of my friend before I got her works - might draw for me.

Now the answer is revealed - a Chinese knight. Of course, I am happy to have this special gift from another world. This is a really strange but exciting feeling that some person in Poland would draw something for me, a Taiwanese living in Beijing now. I guess this is why the Internet, or blog, fascinates millions of people. However, I can’t help to wonder why she decides to draw a "Chinese Knight” for me.

There may have many different reasons from the impression she get from my blog to her own understanding of the world. I don't want to further analyze the deeper rationale as what an artist psychologist might do. The only thing I want to mention is my strange feeling once I see the title the little painter gave the picture. I noticed myself experiencing a complicated feeling once I read the title- Chinese Knight. It is because the word “Chinese” or “China” has become sensitive in Taiwan. Just a few days ago, there is a controversial "de-Chinese” activity enforcing by the authorities in the society. The Democracy Progress Party, the ruling party of Taiwan, was changing the name of China Post Office into Taiwan Post Office, with the intention to remove all words of “China” in all the state-own companies and public organization. Their conviction is that Taiwan is not part of China so that it is necessary to make this idea clear in all the names of the relevant organization.

I don't think my friend understand so much about the complicated status quo in Taiwan. In addtion, I believe she doesn't know that the official name of Taiwan is Republic of China, instead People's Republic of China. Very few foreigners know about this, and, of course, they don’t have to care about this. Foreigners with deeper understanding about Taiwan would just call my country “Taiwan”, instead of official country name, which is a country name not recognized in international society, whereas Foreigners who don't care about Asian affairs would simply see Taiwan as the synonym of China. This is an unfortunate destiny of all Taiwanese.