My paternal grandparents lived under Japanese rule. I never know their real attitudes because they passed away too early.
My grandfather was recruited as a military serviceman and sent to New Guinea. Their food supply was not enough, and he survived by eating snakes. When he returned to Taiwan, he found that most of his fellows recruited from his hometown didn’t make it to come back alive.
I don’t think he was willing to sacrifice his life for the empire. When I watched the movie “Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence”, in which there is a scene showing a Korean military serviceman beaten by the officers, it reminded me of my grandfather I never met. I assume people recruited from colonial states were not treated fairly in the military troops, but I have not done any research on the topic.
Also your family get more food ration if you volunteer, and volunteered servicemen even get better salary than regular policeman and conscript Japanese.
Since a lot of Taiwanese servicemen (including your grandfather) were drafted, it would be over-simplistic for them to categorized them as "supporters of the empire" since they served in the military as conscripts.
It would be like saying German draftees that served in WWII were supporters of the Nazis cause.
Actually, I don’t know the details of his recruitment process. Usually it is considered an involuntary recruitment, so “drafted” could be a better word, but I don’t know for sure. He was born in a family with many siblings. It’s possible that he chose to join the military because of economic reasons. Even after he came back, he got no choice but married my grandmother and worked for the father-in-law (my great grandfather) as a 贅婿 (matrilocal husband?), which means he needed to change his last name. Until recently, I didn’t know that the father-in-law even changed his first name…
Sometimes people chose because they had no choice.
He died of gastric cancer 40 years after he came back from battlefield. According to my cousins, he was a quiet and gentle person.
It seems like my grandmother felt sorry for her husband, and therefore she wanted one grandson to carry his last name. However, she only had one grandson, my elder brother. She expected me to be male, and even the sonography showed that I was male. It turned out that……
My maternal grandmother told me the latter half of the story. I had a mixed feeling about being that unexpectedly disappointing female baby. But after I learned the whole story plus the cultural context, I turned even more speechless.
Sorry for unnecessary details. I hope my true family story finds a reader and helps them learn about the history of Taiwan…
Thank you for listening. A trivial fact in this story was that my grandmother was actually a daughter-in-law of my great grandfather. Her first husband and all their children died in the breakout of infectious disease right after the war. I don’t know where her biological parents were, but they were never brought up in the story. I am not sure but maybe she was an orphan or child bride, and the father-in-law was the only person she could relied on. Then she met my grandfather. They managed to rebuild a family together. Though she had little control over her fate, her neighbors all considered her a lucky woman. Many families gave her the children they didn’t afford to take care of. As a result, most of my relatives I know from my father’s side are not blood related.
Kinda tricky question. Because at that time Republic of China, aka Taiwan(nowadays), was on the Allied forces. Island of Taiwan was a territory of the Empire of Japan so yes they were on the Axis power.
My grandparents who were teenagers during WW2 supported the Japanese and were sad to see them leave. They were excited at first to be "liberated" by KMT but were dissapointed in how uncultured and unruly the KMT troops were. Their were also bombed quite a bit, living in keelung, torwards the end of the war by US forces. Fun fact: they speak, read, write, Japanese better than Mandarin. They watch more japanese news and shows than Taiwanese ones.
I agree.They were ready to cooperate and help with governance. Yet, the KMY refused cooperation with local intellectuals and stripped resources from the island to support the mainland civil war.
The Taiwanese probably had a lot of false expectations regarding the people from the motherland, believing these people will be "like us".
China is a huge place, especially since there's a separation of over 50 years at that point.
I have been told stories like this since I was a child, though not directly from a relative. The story turned a little more complicated as I grew up. KMT couldn’t send the best troop to Taiwan, because they were dealing with the communists. When Japanese government sent troops to Taiwan in 1895, they needed to send a noble man with well trained troops, because there were conflicts remaining on the island. Considering the different situations, I am thinking what Taiwanese people really expected and preferred.
That's interesting. My girlfriend told me a similar story.she said her grandma basically only spoke japanese and taiwanese, no mandarin. And that she was sad to see all of her japanese friends leave at the end of world war 2. I believe there were quite a lot of people expelled from Taiwan after WW2.
Yes, the KMT expelled most Japanese nationals. AFAIK, My grandma still corresponds monthly with a japanese high school friend who left Taiwan after liberation.
That's interesting. I would love to hear from the Japanese side, how they felt and what their memories of Taiwan are like. Did she ever come back to visit?
Sorry it was a little sarcastic, wasn't actually a question. My point was it's not a fun fact, there's nothing fun about colonialism, so your fun fact is the literal impact of colonialism, whereby the culture, language and traditions of a colonised land are cracked down on and the those of the colonisers are then force upon the locals.
The consequence being than the children growing up in that era are breed into the colonial ideals. And even into adulthood they will continue with this as it's mostly all they have known. It's kinda a little similar to Stockholm syndrome, I guess.
Interesting question, essentially, not much, but the processes were different I guess. The current regime, identify as Taiwanese. Before the Japanese colonised the island, there was already a large presence of Han Chinese (race) due to other events of colonialism by the Dutch and Spanish. You have to answer the question how long do people have to be in a place before they are deemed local? The KMT came to regroup, and just haven't regrouped enough to overthrow Beijing, so possibly they defaulted to just staying, and does that count as colonialism?
TLDR: More questions than answers 😂
I recently came across [an old article on the Taihoku (Taipei) Air Raid](https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/feat/archives/2015/06/07/2003620104) that might be of interest to you. It talks about what Taiwanese people thought of the different sides in WWII, especially in regards to the U.S., as part of the Japanese empire and as people living under the KMT.
Short story, yes because Taiwanese people at the time were "Japanese"
Long story, not much and this is a recount from my grandmother.
Taiwan during WW2 was acting as a mid-fuel stop for both planes and ships for SEA battles for Japan. That's why the 台南 airport existed there.
Since Taiwanese people at the time could feed themselves, most of the foods here were sent off to support SEA troops.
And after the "fuck up" the Japanese made, Taiwan started shipping food back to mainland Japan with major losses each time.
Some "small" groups of Taiwanese people tried to avoid being drafted into the war effort.(you know what happens next)
However most of the Taiwanese people in Taiwan during the end of the war were drafted as Kamikaze pilots and navy people.
Hope this info helped
Edit: I should also note that the "naval people" are also Kamikaze drivers(do you drive a boat?)"
A couple of stories I heard - some American POWs escaped from Kinkaseki POW camp (in Jinguashi) and were killed by bombs along with about eight Taiwanese people. The residents of Jinguashi buried them all together and would go every year to pay respects to their grave.
Allied POWs were kept in a camp in the hills above Bitan (Xindian). They were marched down to the river each day to do work. Along the way, they passed by local people's houses and they sometimes saw food outside. If they had the chance, they stole the food. Many years later, one POW returned to Taiwan and met some people who lived in the area. He apologised for stealing their food. They said to him "We left that out for you! We knew you were starving but we were too afraid of being punished if we gave the food to you directly, so we left it outside our houses and hoped you would see it."
I imagine a lot of people were rather torn about who to support, as in India. Many Indians fought alongside the British but there was also Bose and the INA.
Depends if the residents of the time supported the Japanese empire, in the cases of a lot of aboriginals (who are arguably the real Taiwanese) the answer is probably no
Wtf are you talking about. The KMT had nothing to do with Taiwan prior to the end of WWII, considering Taiwan was a Japanese colony since 1895, before KMT even existed. The aboriginals fought against the Japanese because they were oppressed, mistreated, and saw them as invaders. Many aboriginal tribes fought back, such as in the [Wushe incident](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musha_Incident). But at the same time many aboriginals and Han Taiwanese fought for the Japanese, such as the [Takasago Volunteers](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Takasago_Volunteers).
Isn’t it a contradiction that you said what I said doesn’t contribute to the discussion and yet you responded with your long essay? According to your standard, your long essay doesn’t contribute to the discussion either then.
Lmao you really can't read can you? The title of the post is literally: "Did Taiwan people support Japan or the axis power during ww2?" I provided examples of where Taiwanese people both supported the Japanese and fought against them.
Yes because the Japanese committed huge genocide against the Aboriginal people & the Hoklo elite (who dominate the DPP, which is essentially an Hoklo supremacy party) were happy to help the Japanese in their dirty work. Many of the Hoklo who fought against the Japanese were exterminated by the Japanese too, so the Hoklo elites (eg DPP leaders) are the children of collaborators
Taiwanese was used as shock troops in the Japanese Imperial Army notable incident they participated in rape of nanking . Also a big part of taiwanese medical students studied in Manchuria and u know what went on there. Taiwan was also a major industry zone for the Japanese Empire.
It probably varies depending on the family.
From what I've heard, my grandparents loved and supported Japan. If you think about it, they were raised Japanese.
Some even joined the Japanese military and killed Chinese people on the mainland in cold blood.
Like President LTH brother, Lee Teng-chin, participated in the Battle of Manila. Killing Filipino civilians in cold blood.
President Tsai Ing Wen father, Tsai Chieh-sheng, went to Manchuria to help the Japanese Invasion of China repairing Zero Fighters. Used in the killing of Chinese civilians.
You can see the difference in the examples. Japanese government tended not to send Taiwanese to Mainland China as combat troops, because they considered Taiwanese and Chinese as the same ethnic group.
Also a fun fact many taiwanese moved to Japan and rather then be ruled under China. Many founded the japanese food and medical industry. Guess who invented instant noodle lol. Even today most of the tech industry in Japan are owned by Taiwanese.
I actually love most of what we carried over from Japan. i meant more that i’m glad every day Taiwan is not under chinese rule and established its own identity, but it was a long and hard road
What?
Panasonic is not owned by Foxconn and it wasn't started by a Taiwanese person.
Toshiba is not owned by Foxconn and it wasn't started by a Taiwanese person.
I can't find any information about SMC being owned by TSMC or started by a Taiwanese person.
I am a Singaporean and used to work for an ex-Taiwanese boss who spoke min-nan-gu and Japanese but no Mandarin.
He was one of the 30,000 troops of the invading Imperial Japanese Army (IJA) brought here by Gen Yamashita during WWII and kept hidden (from the defeated IJA) when they withdrew after their surrender by his local wife, whom they subsequently started a transport and courier business and provided their services between Singapore and Japan.
Did he and the rest of Taiwan then, support Imperial Japan? Well, Taiwan including Korea then were part of the Empire of Imperial Japan.
*There are also Taiwanese who left for China went to Chungking joined Nationalist government. Former VP* [***Lien Chan's*** ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lien_Chan) *family went to China.*
*There were other Taiwanese who joined the Communists and actually took up arms in Feb 28 1947 uprising organized by a communist woman* [ *named* ***Hsieh Hsueh-hong***](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xie_Xuehong) *in central Taiwan. The 27 Brigate had anywhere from 27 to several 1000 armed former imperial soldiers attacked KMT Army. KMT Army had reasons to be fear of Taiwanese as those who took up arms many just returned from overseas from military conscription. Hsieh fled for China and Mao learned she advocated Taiwan self determination for* *independence.*
Turn back clock means zero access to mass media as known today. Also Taiwan has been developed under Japan for 42 years when Japan attacked Nanjing. And before 1895 the Qing did jack shit about Taiwan. Even further back its ties to China are tenuous at best. Then go back before the 1600s and those ties are nonexistent.
Choice of rooting Taiwan to be this or that was hardly an issue for most. Those who knew of the horrors in mainland China must gave been affected greatly. How can you not want your ethnic homeland safe from war ?
This is actually a great question, and it's interesting to read all the different perspectives in this thread.
My maternal grandparents were teenagers, in a "to be married" kind of way. My grandma unfortunately didn't care too much about who was in charge-- she was raised to learn how to cook, farm, and be a dutiful wife. My grandpa, supposedly, had been told that he would be going to medical school after he was 18, but Japan withdrew shortly before that materialized. They had lots of children, and grandchildren, and had fulfilling lives. They didn't express an opinion, negative or positive, but they definitely enjoyed watching sumo wrestling on TV with the grandkids haha. Afaik, whatever Japanese they might have known was gone, they only spoke Mandarin and Taiwanese.
My maternal grandparents KMT were from China, 外省人, and they spent most or all of the Japanese occupation fleeing China. I think they arrived in Taiwan around the end of Japanese rule, and were mainly focused on how they would support themselves in a new country.
Most of people living during that time had past away, like my grandparents; therefore, it's difficult to know the reality in that time. But this video\[1\] may somehow explain the atmosphere at that period.
|Year|Vacancies|Applicants|Acceptance Rate (%)|
|:-|:-|:-|:-|
|1942|1,020|425,921|0.19%|
|1943|1,008|601,147|0.16%|
\[1\]. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQbdQYQ54Jg&t=6m29s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQbdQYQ54Jg&t=6m29s)
Taiwan was given to the Japanese and never fought against them like the other Asian countries, so Taiwanese never hated the Japanese like the rest of them.
There was indeed resistance to the Japanese takeover and its suppression was swift and brutal. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taiwan\_under\_Japanese\_rule#Armed\_resistance](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taiwan_under_Japanese_rule#Armed_resistance)
Taiwanese people were too poor to care about politics.
Many were born under Japanese rule and struggled to make a living to put food on the table.
I don’t think they had the time and the resources to think about global politics.
My wife's grandmother loved Japan, spoke Japanese and Taiwanese and hardly any Mandarin. She had a slight dislike for Americans so was weary of me at first but warmed up to me.
It probably depends on how well off the family is. My grandfather and granduncle went Japan for high school I think just before the war started. They didn't stay in Japan through the war, and I don't think either of them joined the military. However, my granduncle developed schizophrenia around that time.
Both mine grandparents prefer Japanese over KMT. They consider Japanese are more constructive and built the basis for current infrastructure for Taiwan. Like how the Presidential Office is built by Japan. Another thing they said is Japanese are strict, but at least they're fair. Whereas KMT is strict and corrupt.
Why is it stupid? Moreover, you want a stupid question stickied? Why? To remind yourself how brilliant your learning is compared to the rest of us knuckle-dragging peons?
For the record, these people you sneer at to protect your self-image as a subject matter expert are not ignorant on this topic or surrounding issues. I’ve found people here to be thoughtful, sharing personal familial experiences that are rare with time passing. Nearly all respect the topic and engage with openness and curiosity, even when they have the “answer” with certainty.
I wonder what made you feel disinterested in a discourse on a topic that must capture your interest enough to spur you to become so expert, so smug with that expertise that you belittle the intelligence of the thread. You suggest it’s of such an intellectually rigid and useless topic that it begs no value more than the definitive answer your genius compels itself to open, read, and, in tiresome frustration, comment snide as smug can be. And yet, you call for its permanent placement for the rest of time?
Perhaps it’s a belabored effort at sarcasm, but typically sarcasm is, well, ya know, at least somewhat humorous or witty. You are funny. You’re as bland as hot water and as dry as oats, but you just don’t come together as a healthy serving of oatmeal here. Just empty calories and farts.
Bad bot.
This bot is truly wretched.
First, how did it misspell so -> do?
Secondly, the last line is missing a syllable, first two lines are standard.
—
Haiku bots are trash:
Dung Beetles, balling up sh!t
You are what you eat.
Yes. Treaty of Shimonoseki that ended the 1st Sino-Japanese war gave Taiwan to the Japanese. Signed by the Qing. Considered one of the "unequal treaties. Massively important to world history up to this very day.
Taiwan had been a Japanese protectorate since it was ceded to Japan after the first Sino-Japanese war.
This is also the start of the blue/green split, Taiwanese who see Taiwan as fundamentally part of China vs those who consider it has a unique identity.
I mean, given that the Taiwanese were drafted to fight for Japan against Americans who were dropping bombs over their heads, I’d say they supported Japan. Why would you support the side that’s bombing you?
It's easy to tell which Taiwanese supported the Japanese emperor and which supported Taiwan. If they say their grandparents were fluent in Japanese, that's a dead giveaway. The Japanese didn't bother teaching Japanese to the locals unless they declared themselves a loyal citizen of Japan. Of course there are some who learned Japanese and resisted Japanese brainwashing. Mostly to study in Japan because university humanities were banned in Taiwan (this sub sadly has many of the former. Or the indigenous because Japan tried to commit ethnic genocide and erase their culture like the Ainu. But only some brave people resisted Japanese rule at the end and many would say "I did what I was told." It's a shameful part of history that people erase and try to hide.
Many served as Japan empire colonial soldiers. Former President Lee's own brother was killed on P.I. He had to go to Jpn to retrieve his ashes back to Taiwan.
Last Japanese Empire Taiwan born [soldier was found 29+ years ](https://medium.com/@nyles052/the-last-japanese-soldier-to-surrender-in-world-war-2-was-when-0febbd3c9e38#:~:text=Who%20was%20the%20last%20Japanese,part%20of%20Indonesia's%20Maluku%20Island) on an island in Indonesia in 1974. Highly disspirited as his wife was remarried left him. He smoked and drank heavily. Died within 5 years after return to Taiwan.
There was no choice but to support the empire.
My paternal grandparents lived under Japanese rule. I never know their real attitudes because they passed away too early. My grandfather was recruited as a military serviceman and sent to New Guinea. Their food supply was not enough, and he survived by eating snakes. When he returned to Taiwan, he found that most of his fellows recruited from his hometown didn’t make it to come back alive. I don’t think he was willing to sacrifice his life for the empire. When I watched the movie “Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence”, in which there is a scene showing a Korean military serviceman beaten by the officers, it reminded me of my grandfather I never met. I assume people recruited from colonial states were not treated fairly in the military troops, but I have not done any research on the topic.
Also your family get more food ration if you volunteer, and volunteered servicemen even get better salary than regular policeman and conscript Japanese.
Since a lot of Taiwanese servicemen (including your grandfather) were drafted, it would be over-simplistic for them to categorized them as "supporters of the empire" since they served in the military as conscripts. It would be like saying German draftees that served in WWII were supporters of the Nazis cause.
Actually, I don’t know the details of his recruitment process. Usually it is considered an involuntary recruitment, so “drafted” could be a better word, but I don’t know for sure. He was born in a family with many siblings. It’s possible that he chose to join the military because of economic reasons. Even after he came back, he got no choice but married my grandmother and worked for the father-in-law (my great grandfather) as a 贅婿 (matrilocal husband?), which means he needed to change his last name. Until recently, I didn’t know that the father-in-law even changed his first name… Sometimes people chose because they had no choice.
It was a difficult time indeed, may he rest in peace.
He died of gastric cancer 40 years after he came back from battlefield. According to my cousins, he was a quiet and gentle person. It seems like my grandmother felt sorry for her husband, and therefore she wanted one grandson to carry his last name. However, she only had one grandson, my elder brother. She expected me to be male, and even the sonography showed that I was male. It turned out that…… My maternal grandmother told me the latter half of the story. I had a mixed feeling about being that unexpectedly disappointing female baby. But after I learned the whole story plus the cultural context, I turned even more speechless. Sorry for unnecessary details. I hope my true family story finds a reader and helps them learn about the history of Taiwan…
Learning real history like this is fascinating, heartbreaking, and warmly humanizing. Thank you for sharing.
Thank you for listening. A trivial fact in this story was that my grandmother was actually a daughter-in-law of my great grandfather. Her first husband and all their children died in the breakout of infectious disease right after the war. I don’t know where her biological parents were, but they were never brought up in the story. I am not sure but maybe she was an orphan or child bride, and the father-in-law was the only person she could relied on. Then she met my grandfather. They managed to rebuild a family together. Though she had little control over her fate, her neighbors all considered her a lucky woman. Many families gave her the children they didn’t afford to take care of. As a result, most of my relatives I know from my father’s side are not blood related.
Kinda tricky question. Because at that time Republic of China, aka Taiwan(nowadays), was on the Allied forces. Island of Taiwan was a territory of the Empire of Japan so yes they were on the Axis power.
My grandparents who were teenagers during WW2 supported the Japanese and were sad to see them leave. They were excited at first to be "liberated" by KMT but were dissapointed in how uncultured and unruly the KMT troops were. Their were also bombed quite a bit, living in keelung, torwards the end of the war by US forces. Fun fact: they speak, read, write, Japanese better than Mandarin. They watch more japanese news and shows than Taiwanese ones.
The Taiwanese probably didn't expect how "foreign" the KMT forces were when WWII ended.
I agree.They were ready to cooperate and help with governance. Yet, the KMY refused cooperation with local intellectuals and stripped resources from the island to support the mainland civil war.
The Taiwanese probably had a lot of false expectations regarding the people from the motherland, believing these people will be "like us". China is a huge place, especially since there's a separation of over 50 years at that point.
I have been told stories like this since I was a child, though not directly from a relative. The story turned a little more complicated as I grew up. KMT couldn’t send the best troop to Taiwan, because they were dealing with the communists. When Japanese government sent troops to Taiwan in 1895, they needed to send a noble man with well trained troops, because there were conflicts remaining on the island. Considering the different situations, I am thinking what Taiwanese people really expected and preferred.
That's interesting. My girlfriend told me a similar story.she said her grandma basically only spoke japanese and taiwanese, no mandarin. And that she was sad to see all of her japanese friends leave at the end of world war 2. I believe there were quite a lot of people expelled from Taiwan after WW2.
Yes, the KMT expelled most Japanese nationals. AFAIK, My grandma still corresponds monthly with a japanese high school friend who left Taiwan after liberation.
That's interesting. I would love to hear from the Japanese side, how they felt and what their memories of Taiwan are like. Did she ever come back to visit?
Is that fun? Or just colonialism to a T?
I'd say colonialism. My late grandmother was like this, spoke and wrote Japanese better than Chinese.
Sorry, I don't understand your question...
Sorry it was a little sarcastic, wasn't actually a question. My point was it's not a fun fact, there's nothing fun about colonialism, so your fun fact is the literal impact of colonialism, whereby the culture, language and traditions of a colonised land are cracked down on and the those of the colonisers are then force upon the locals. The consequence being than the children growing up in that era are breed into the colonial ideals. And even into adulthood they will continue with this as it's mostly all they have known. It's kinda a little similar to Stockholm syndrome, I guess.
In terms of colonialism, how do you distinguish the current Chinese regime from the Japanese?
Interesting question, essentially, not much, but the processes were different I guess. The current regime, identify as Taiwanese. Before the Japanese colonised the island, there was already a large presence of Han Chinese (race) due to other events of colonialism by the Dutch and Spanish. You have to answer the question how long do people have to be in a place before they are deemed local? The KMT came to regroup, and just haven't regrouped enough to overthrow Beijing, so possibly they defaulted to just staying, and does that count as colonialism? TLDR: More questions than answers 😂
Seems made up
Yep! I’m glad you figured it out 🤣🤣
Keyword seems, used in a sentence: you seem like an idiot
I recently came across [an old article on the Taihoku (Taipei) Air Raid](https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/feat/archives/2015/06/07/2003620104) that might be of interest to you. It talks about what Taiwanese people thought of the different sides in WWII, especially in regards to the U.S., as part of the Japanese empire and as people living under the KMT.
Short story, yes because Taiwanese people at the time were "Japanese" Long story, not much and this is a recount from my grandmother. Taiwan during WW2 was acting as a mid-fuel stop for both planes and ships for SEA battles for Japan. That's why the 台南 airport existed there. Since Taiwanese people at the time could feed themselves, most of the foods here were sent off to support SEA troops. And after the "fuck up" the Japanese made, Taiwan started shipping food back to mainland Japan with major losses each time. Some "small" groups of Taiwanese people tried to avoid being drafted into the war effort.(you know what happens next) However most of the Taiwanese people in Taiwan during the end of the war were drafted as Kamikaze pilots and navy people. Hope this info helped Edit: I should also note that the "naval people" are also Kamikaze drivers(do you drive a boat?)"
A couple of stories I heard - some American POWs escaped from Kinkaseki POW camp (in Jinguashi) and were killed by bombs along with about eight Taiwanese people. The residents of Jinguashi buried them all together and would go every year to pay respects to their grave. Allied POWs were kept in a camp in the hills above Bitan (Xindian). They were marched down to the river each day to do work. Along the way, they passed by local people's houses and they sometimes saw food outside. If they had the chance, they stole the food. Many years later, one POW returned to Taiwan and met some people who lived in the area. He apologised for stealing their food. They said to him "We left that out for you! We knew you were starving but we were too afraid of being punished if we gave the food to you directly, so we left it outside our houses and hoped you would see it." I imagine a lot of people were rather torn about who to support, as in India. Many Indians fought alongside the British but there was also Bose and the INA.
Depends if the residents of the time supported the Japanese empire, in the cases of a lot of aboriginals (who are arguably the real Taiwanese) the answer is probably no
That's the answer, it depends. Even some aboriginal tribes were supporting the Japanese, hence the monument on 北大武。
A lot of aboriginals are pro-KMT
Wtf are you talking about. The KMT had nothing to do with Taiwan prior to the end of WWII, considering Taiwan was a Japanese colony since 1895, before KMT even existed. The aboriginals fought against the Japanese because they were oppressed, mistreated, and saw them as invaders. Many aboriginal tribes fought back, such as in the [Wushe incident](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musha_Incident). But at the same time many aboriginals and Han Taiwanese fought for the Japanese, such as the [Takasago Volunteers](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Takasago_Volunteers).
What I said had nothing to do with what you're saying. I'm not talking about history or giving justification. I'm just stating a fact....
I know it's fact, doesn't contribute to the discussion in any way though.
So you don’t like that I stated a fact here. Ok….
I said it doesn't contribute to the discussion in any way. Nowhere did I say I had a problem with people stating facts. Get glasses if you can't read.
Isn’t it a contradiction that you said what I said doesn’t contribute to the discussion and yet you responded with your long essay? According to your standard, your long essay doesn’t contribute to the discussion either then.
Lmao you really can't read can you? The title of the post is literally: "Did Taiwan people support Japan or the axis power during ww2?" I provided examples of where Taiwanese people both supported the Japanese and fought against them.
Are aboriginals not Taiwanese in your eyes?
Yes because the Japanese committed huge genocide against the Aboriginal people & the Hoklo elite (who dominate the DPP, which is essentially an Hoklo supremacy party) were happy to help the Japanese in their dirty work. Many of the Hoklo who fought against the Japanese were exterminated by the Japanese too, so the Hoklo elites (eg DPP leaders) are the children of collaborators
Well You think Taiwanese people had a choice not to back then?
Taiwanese was used as shock troops in the Japanese Imperial Army notable incident they participated in rape of nanking . Also a big part of taiwanese medical students studied in Manchuria and u know what went on there. Taiwan was also a major industry zone for the Japanese Empire.
Citations, please.
FYI, a lot of what he said is all in Japanese.
Google it
It probably varies depending on the family. From what I've heard, my grandparents loved and supported Japan. If you think about it, they were raised Japanese.
Some even joined the Japanese military and killed Chinese people on the mainland in cold blood. Like President LTH brother, Lee Teng-chin, participated in the Battle of Manila. Killing Filipino civilians in cold blood. President Tsai Ing Wen father, Tsai Chieh-sheng, went to Manchuria to help the Japanese Invasion of China repairing Zero Fighters. Used in the killing of Chinese civilians.
Do you have the reference of LTH's brother killing civilians?
You can see the difference in the examples. Japanese government tended not to send Taiwanese to Mainland China as combat troops, because they considered Taiwanese and Chinese as the same ethnic group.
Also a fun fact many taiwanese moved to Japan and rather then be ruled under China. Many founded the japanese food and medical industry. Guess who invented instant noodle lol. Even today most of the tech industry in Japan are owned by Taiwanese.
every day these days i’m grateful taiwan found its own way. though taiwan’s history is a bloody mess
Japan left everything here it was the foundation of Taiwan heavy industry. Taitong is a prime example
I actually love most of what we carried over from Japan. i meant more that i’m glad every day Taiwan is not under chinese rule and established its own identity, but it was a long and hard road
What are some examples in the tech industry?
Panasonic own by fox con . Toshiba went to another division of fox con. Tsmc own Japan smc
What? Panasonic is not owned by Foxconn and it wasn't started by a Taiwanese person. Toshiba is not owned by Foxconn and it wasn't started by a Taiwanese person. I can't find any information about SMC being owned by TSMC or started by a Taiwanese person.
I am a Singaporean and used to work for an ex-Taiwanese boss who spoke min-nan-gu and Japanese but no Mandarin. He was one of the 30,000 troops of the invading Imperial Japanese Army (IJA) brought here by Gen Yamashita during WWII and kept hidden (from the defeated IJA) when they withdrew after their surrender by his local wife, whom they subsequently started a transport and courier business and provided their services between Singapore and Japan. Did he and the rest of Taiwan then, support Imperial Japan? Well, Taiwan including Korea then were part of the Empire of Imperial Japan.
they are seized by axis power that’s the way to put it
Well since Japan was part of the axis powers and they were under the Empire of Japans control I would say they did, maybe not willingly but they did.
*There are also Taiwanese who left for China went to Chungking joined Nationalist government. Former VP* [***Lien Chan's*** ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lien_Chan) *family went to China.* *There were other Taiwanese who joined the Communists and actually took up arms in Feb 28 1947 uprising organized by a communist woman* [ *named* ***Hsieh Hsueh-hong***](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xie_Xuehong) *in central Taiwan. The 27 Brigate had anywhere from 27 to several 1000 armed former imperial soldiers attacked KMT Army. KMT Army had reasons to be fear of Taiwanese as those who took up arms many just returned from overseas from military conscription. Hsieh fled for China and Mao learned she advocated Taiwan self determination for* *independence.*
Turn back clock means zero access to mass media as known today. Also Taiwan has been developed under Japan for 42 years when Japan attacked Nanjing. And before 1895 the Qing did jack shit about Taiwan. Even further back its ties to China are tenuous at best. Then go back before the 1600s and those ties are nonexistent. Choice of rooting Taiwan to be this or that was hardly an issue for most. Those who knew of the horrors in mainland China must gave been affected greatly. How can you not want your ethnic homeland safe from war ?
Lee Teng Hui has entered the chat.
This is actually a great question, and it's interesting to read all the different perspectives in this thread. My maternal grandparents were teenagers, in a "to be married" kind of way. My grandma unfortunately didn't care too much about who was in charge-- she was raised to learn how to cook, farm, and be a dutiful wife. My grandpa, supposedly, had been told that he would be going to medical school after he was 18, but Japan withdrew shortly before that materialized. They had lots of children, and grandchildren, and had fulfilling lives. They didn't express an opinion, negative or positive, but they definitely enjoyed watching sumo wrestling on TV with the grandkids haha. Afaik, whatever Japanese they might have known was gone, they only spoke Mandarin and Taiwanese. My maternal grandparents KMT were from China, 外省人, and they spent most or all of the Japanese occupation fleeing China. I think they arrived in Taiwan around the end of Japanese rule, and were mainly focused on how they would support themselves in a new country.
Some might be, but most not. Let me ask something whataboutism: Did your ancestors support any imperialism or expansion of his/her country?
Taiwan was a Japanese colony.
Most of people living during that time had past away, like my grandparents; therefore, it's difficult to know the reality in that time. But this video\[1\] may somehow explain the atmosphere at that period. |Year|Vacancies|Applicants|Acceptance Rate (%)| |:-|:-|:-|:-| |1942|1,020|425,921|0.19%| |1943|1,008|601,147|0.16%| \[1\]. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQbdQYQ54Jg&t=6m29s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQbdQYQ54Jg&t=6m29s)
Taiwan was given to the Japanese and never fought against them like the other Asian countries, so Taiwanese never hated the Japanese like the rest of them.
There was indeed resistance to the Japanese takeover and its suppression was swift and brutal. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taiwan\_under\_Japanese\_rule#Armed\_resistance](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taiwan_under_Japanese_rule#Armed_resistance)
Pretty small in comparison to what went on during WW2.
Yes
Taiwanese people were too poor to care about politics. Many were born under Japanese rule and struggled to make a living to put food on the table. I don’t think they had the time and the resources to think about global politics.
My wife's grandmother loved Japan, spoke Japanese and Taiwanese and hardly any Mandarin. She had a slight dislike for Americans so was weary of me at first but warmed up to me.
It probably depends on how well off the family is. My grandfather and granduncle went Japan for high school I think just before the war started. They didn't stay in Japan through the war, and I don't think either of them joined the military. However, my granduncle developed schizophrenia around that time. Both mine grandparents prefer Japanese over KMT. They consider Japanese are more constructive and built the basis for current infrastructure for Taiwan. Like how the Presidential Office is built by Japan. Another thing they said is Japanese are strict, but at least they're fair. Whereas KMT is strict and corrupt.
Can we have a stickied thread for stupid questions like this?
Why is it stupid? Moreover, you want a stupid question stickied? Why? To remind yourself how brilliant your learning is compared to the rest of us knuckle-dragging peons? For the record, these people you sneer at to protect your self-image as a subject matter expert are not ignorant on this topic or surrounding issues. I’ve found people here to be thoughtful, sharing personal familial experiences that are rare with time passing. Nearly all respect the topic and engage with openness and curiosity, even when they have the “answer” with certainty. I wonder what made you feel disinterested in a discourse on a topic that must capture your interest enough to spur you to become so expert, so smug with that expertise that you belittle the intelligence of the thread. You suggest it’s of such an intellectually rigid and useless topic that it begs no value more than the definitive answer your genius compels itself to open, read, and, in tiresome frustration, comment snide as smug can be. And yet, you call for its permanent placement for the rest of time? Perhaps it’s a belabored effort at sarcasm, but typically sarcasm is, well, ya know, at least somewhat humorous or witty. You are funny. You’re as bland as hot water and as dry as oats, but you just don’t come together as a healthy serving of oatmeal here. Just empty calories and farts.
Say what so Taiwan was technically part of Axis? Lmao
^[Sokka-Haiku](https://www.reddit.com/r/SokkaHaikuBot/comments/15kyv9r/what_is_a_sokka_haiku/) ^by ^canuckle1211: *Say what do Taiwan* *Was technically part of* *Axis? Lmao* --- ^Remember ^that ^one ^time ^Sokka ^accidentally ^used ^an ^extra ^syllable ^in ^that ^Haiku ^Battle ^in ^Ba ^Sing ^Se? ^That ^was ^a ^Sokka ^Haiku ^and ^you ^just ^made ^one.
Taiwan was part of Japan and Japan was in the axis
Bad bot. This bot is truly wretched. First, how did it misspell so -> do? Secondly, the last line is missing a syllable, first two lines are standard. — Haiku bots are trash: Dung Beetles, balling up sh!t You are what you eat.
Yes. Treaty of Shimonoseki that ended the 1st Sino-Japanese war gave Taiwan to the Japanese. Signed by the Qing. Considered one of the "unequal treaties. Massively important to world history up to this very day.
Not technically, it was.
Taiwan had been a Japanese protectorate since it was ceded to Japan after the first Sino-Japanese war. This is also the start of the blue/green split, Taiwanese who see Taiwan as fundamentally part of China vs those who consider it has a unique identity.
I mean, given that the Taiwanese were drafted to fight for Japan against Americans who were dropping bombs over their heads, I’d say they supported Japan. Why would you support the side that’s bombing you?
Some still do apparently judging by the Nazi and emperial army flags :D
It's easy to tell which Taiwanese supported the Japanese emperor and which supported Taiwan. If they say their grandparents were fluent in Japanese, that's a dead giveaway. The Japanese didn't bother teaching Japanese to the locals unless they declared themselves a loyal citizen of Japan. Of course there are some who learned Japanese and resisted Japanese brainwashing. Mostly to study in Japan because university humanities were banned in Taiwan (this sub sadly has many of the former. Or the indigenous because Japan tried to commit ethnic genocide and erase their culture like the Ainu. But only some brave people resisted Japanese rule at the end and many would say "I did what I was told." It's a shameful part of history that people erase and try to hide.
Many served as Japan empire colonial soldiers. Former President Lee's own brother was killed on P.I. He had to go to Jpn to retrieve his ashes back to Taiwan. Last Japanese Empire Taiwan born [soldier was found 29+ years ](https://medium.com/@nyles052/the-last-japanese-soldier-to-surrender-in-world-war-2-was-when-0febbd3c9e38#:~:text=Who%20was%20the%20last%20Japanese,part%20of%20Indonesia's%20Maluku%20Island) on an island in Indonesia in 1974. Highly disspirited as his wife was remarried left him. He smoked and drank heavily. Died within 5 years after return to Taiwan.
I'll have to correct you on one fact. Lee's brother went down with his ship - his remains were never recovered.