Reader Response Draft 5 (Final Draft)

In the article “Where ISN’T social media ubiquitous?”, Levi (2012) suggests that not every part of the world has been exposed to the social media. This is clearly evident in areas where the access to Internet is scarce, such as undeveloped areas or regions facing political instability. In addition, Levi adds that the unavailability of particular languages contributes to the lack of prevalence, though the problem is lessened by the availability of second language platforms. The author also highlights that, to avoid any political complications, Facebook has intentionally omitted some languages, such as Taiwanese and Tibetan.

Political disputes between countries may result in severe consequences. In worst case scenarios, countries may eventually wage wars and cause serious harm towards themselves, their people and also neighbouring countries. In addition to death tolls and massive damages to infrastructures, such devastating occurrences might lead to an economic meltdown. As such, in order to maintain political ties between countries, it is advisable that social media sites exclude the language supportability of countries such as Taiwan and adopt a "wait-and-see" approach before making these national languages available on its platform.

On Mar 8, 2008, China released details of the planned new anti-secession bill during its annual session of parliament. The bill stressed that any attempt of secession by the Taiwanese government might result in an initiation of war, something which Wang Zhaoguo, vice-chairman of the National People's Congress (NPC) said that China was prepared for (Labott, E., Grant, S., & Duffy, T., 2014). In addition, it was later announced that Beijing’s arms budget would increase by 12.6% in that year (Labott, E., Grant, S., & Duffy, T., 2014). The strong emphasis on a possible attack by China had prevented Taiwan from trying any means of declaring independence. Social media websites introducing Taiwanese as a ‘language selection’ may suggest that they are supporting Taiwan’s proposition of autonomy. This will then risk agitating the Chinese, thinking how netizens or international companies are not taking their side.

The use of hanyu pinyin has been accepted by the Taiwan government since more than five years ago (The Economist, 2014). Both its president, Mr Ma Ying-jeou, and other high officials supported the use of this phonetic system and agreed it would improve Taiwan’s economic situation with other Chinese-speaking regions. However, this view was not shared amongst the rest of the country. The same Economist article reported that citizens in major cities of the country insisted on using the former Romanization system, which was introduced in 2002. Therefore, Facebook’s implementation of the Taiwanese language may insinuate the view of the opposition parties, and aggravate relations domestically as well as internationally, between Taiwan and China. In this way, the omission of the language by social media sites may help in prevent potential political problems both amongst the Taiwanese and also between Taiwan and China.

Despite all the potential consequences social media sites might create upon the official release of the Taiwanese language, it does not mean that they should exclude this possibility as an area of development. In the article "Taiwan stays on course for closer ties with mainland China", Chung (2015) noted that Wang Yu-chi, the chairman of the Mainland Affairs Council, which oversees policies towards the mainland, said that one of the government's goals this year was to engage in further talks with Beijing. Chung also mentioned that recent polls have revealed that 80 per cent of the Taiwanese public supports the idea of fostering closer ties with mainland China. 

In conclusion, it is only right for social media sites refrain from supporting these countries’ first language, such as Taiwanese and Tibetan, on their platforms, and remain sensitive to the political situation in these countries. Nevertheless, social media sites may eventually and subtly put up more languages in its options when the political situation has stabilized. This “wait-and-see” approach will help prevent unnecessary unhappiness and agitation to dominant countries.   

(676 words)

References:

Chung, L. (2015). Taiwan stays on course for closer ties with mainland China. Retrieved from http://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1689369/taiwan-stays-course-closer-ties-mainland-china

Labott, E., Grant, S., & Duffy, T. (2014). U.S urges China to rethink Taiwan. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/asiapcf/03/07/china.npc.law/

Levi, D. (2012, July 24). Where ISN'T social media ubiquitous? [Web log post].Retrieved from http://www.etondigital.com/where-isnt-social-media-ubiquitous/

Murdoch, G., & Richardson, A. (2008). TIMELINE: Milestones in China-Taiwan relations since 1949. Retrieved from http://www.reuters.com/article/2008/06/12/uk-china-taiwan-idUSSP28081420080612

The Economist. (2014). Lost in Romanization. Retrieved from http://www.economist.com/news/asia/21603500-ideological-warfare-over-spelling-lost-romanisation?zid=306&ah=1b164dbd43b0cb27ba0d4c3b12a5e227

Strait of alarm. [Online Video]. (2014). The Economist. Available from http://www.economist.com/blogs/banyan/2014/03/taiwans-relations-china?zid=306&ah=1b164dbd43b0cb27ba0d4c3b12a5e227#