Good News Hour: Support for the U.S. and Taiwan! Mainland China Emerges with “Anti-Communist Unification Faction”

Today’s focus: During the US-Russia talks, Russia launched missile attacks on Ukraine; China seeing emergence of “anti-communist unification faction” who do not want to unify Taiwan by force; From bustling crowds to emptiness, Shanghai Shimao Plaza is no longer vibrant.

To push for a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine, a US delegation held talks with Russian negotiators on March 24 in Saudi Arabia. The one-day negotiations focused on discussing a ceasefire agreement for Russia and Ukraine in the Black Sea. The US hopes to reach this agreement through diplomatic efforts to pave the way for future peace negotiations.

As of now, it is unclear whether the two sides have reached an agreement or made progress.

A Russian source revealed to Reuters that the negotiations have concluded, and a draft joint statement has been submitted for approval to Moscow and Washington. The two sides plan to release the statement on Tuesday.

However, during the talks, a Russian missile hit the Ukrainian city of Sumy. Vladimir Artiukh, the governor of Sumy region, stated in front of a smoky building that several high-rise residential buildings, a school, and a hospital were damaged. He mentioned that there were no serious casualties as children were all in shelters.

Before the talks, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stated: “These negotiations are primarily aimed at ensuring maritime safety.” He specifically pointed out that the 2022 Black Sea Navigation Agreement failed to fulfill promises made to Russia.

Peskov referred to the 2022 Black Sea agreement reached under the auspices of the United Nations and Turkey after the outbreak of war between Russia and Ukraine. The agreement expired in 2023. Russia claims that its demands were not met regarding this agreement.

Since 2022, Ukraine has significantly damaged the Russian Black Sea fleet, forcing Russia to withdraw some of its ships from its base in Crimea. Despite Russia’s attacks on Ukrainian ports, Ukraine still exports food, iron ore, and other commodities through three major seaports in the Odessa region, with export volumes similar to those before the war.

The day before the US-Russia meeting, teams from the US and Ukraine held talks in Saudi Arabia to intensify efforts to end the Russia-Ukraine war.

After the meeting, Ukrainian Defense Minister Ruslan Umurov stated that the talks were “productive and focused”.

According to Bloomberg, President Trump hopes for a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine within weeks, with the White House aiming to reach a ceasefire agreement by Easter, April 20. However, considering the significant differences in positions between the two sides, the White House is aware that the process of signing a ceasefire agreement may be prolonged.

President Trump is more optimistic about reaching a ceasefire agreement. He stated on March 22 that efforts to prevent war have been intensified recently, and the situation is “to some extent under control”.

Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, expressed optimism before the talks with Russia, believing that it is possible for Russia and Ukraine to end the war.

Now, regarding the Russia-Ukraine ceasefire agreement, we will stop here and move on to the next topic.

In recent times, tensions in the Taiwan Strait have been escalating, with China repeatedly emphasizing not giving up the use of force, while the US states readiness for conflict, hinting at an imminent war. On the mainland, the mainstream opinions mostly conform to the official Chinese Communist Party (CCP) line, but in reality, there is a large number of people who remain silent and not only oppose war but belong to the “anti-communist unification faction.” In other words, if a war breaks out, they might actually guide the US military! What exactly is going on here?

Independent commentator Du Zheng recently published an article in Taiwan’s media “Shang Bao,” sharing some Chinese perspectives he collected. He found that many Chinese indeed hope for reunification across the strait, but their understanding of “unification” does not align with the official CCP stance.

A cultural businessman who recently moved overseas stated, “Greater reunification is a Chinese obsession.” He hopes for reunification but strongly opposes war, not wanting to see Taiwan suffer. This businessman is an anti-communist and sees through the nature of the CCP, choosing to leave China.

A dissident working in mid-level management at a real estate company in China also supports cross-strait reunification, but believes that now is not the time. He suggests that only when China truly becomes democratic, can genuine reunification be achieved.

An elderly legal scholar believes that Taiwan’s politicians have a narrow mindset, with Taiwan’s people focusing only on the island without heeding the goal of “the Republic of China liberating the people of mainland China.” He stated, “We on the mainland still hope for the government of the Republic of China to liberate the people in the occupied areas.”

Du Zheng mentioned that while he is unsure about the number of people similar to the elderly man, there used to be a circle of “ROC faction” individuals in the past. They hoped for Taiwan’s democratic system to lead China’s unification and even did not rule out the use of force. He sarcastically noted this might be suitable for Taiwan’s former leader Ma Ying-jeou to hear, given his attention to mainland China’s democratization many years ago. However, last year, Ma publicly stated that one must “believe in the dictator Xi Jinping,” citing Xi’s “overwhelming power.”

Du Zheng also received striking feedback from a man in his sixties from Wuhan, expressing discontent about the country’s economic downturn, widespread misery, political oppression hindering breathing, rampant corruption, and a lack of avenues for complaints. He mentioned that if he had any means, he would do everything to leave China.

When discussing “reunification by force with Taiwan,” this man bluntly stated, “Even in my youth, I wouldn’t help the CCP attack Taiwan.” He recounted how sometimes while chatting with lower-class people, they would collectively criticize the Communist Party. He even believed that if the US and China went to war, many would be willing to guide the US military, with himself among them.

The man’s words evoked memories of the scenes when the Eight-Nation Alliance invaded Beijing. In August 1900, the Eight-Nation Alliance landed from Tianjin and attacked Beijing, prompting the Qing imperial family and officials to flee in panic. At that time, many commoners rolled up their sleeves to “guide” the alliance. Historical images from the late Qing era show commoners holding ladders for the alliance, risking collecting intelligence for them; more observers simply watched the battles calmly.

Du Zheng asserted that the behavior of the common people at that time stemmed from the fact that the court did not genuinely care for the people. In such circumstances, how could people be expected to care for the court?

He noted that at times like these, moral coercion of the common people is futile, and hence, 11 years later, the Qing dynasty met its demise. Today, faced with a situation similar to the late Qing era, how much longer can the CCP regime endure?

In recent years, there have been continuous calls within the CCP for the use of force to unify Taiwan. For instance, the so-called “scholar” Li Yi claimed, “Prepare for an early strike, a large strike, and a nuclear war.” Many people online also support war, making “military unification with Taiwan” seemingly the people’s will.

But is this reality?

In May 2023, the English journal “Journal of Contemporary China” published survey results involving over 1800 Chinese citizens. The data showed that 55% support Beijing’s “military unification” with Taiwan, while 33% clearly oppose the use of force, with only 1% expressing a desire for immediate war against Taiwan.

In China, those openly opposing “military unification” are indeed few, but that does not mean they do not exist. In 2022, Beijing University professor Zheng Yefu published an article overseas titled “The Plebeian Speaks on the Taiwan Strait,” squarely stating: “Oppose military unification” and “oppose military intimidation.” He believes that military intimidation will only exacerbate cross-strait hatred, turning peaceful unification into a mere fantasy.

Zheng Yefu further pointed out that due to speech censorship, voices in mainland China opposing “military unification” have been almost silenced. In such a context, individuals daring to speak up are invaluable. He cautioned everyone, “Not speaking out is acquiescence; if everyone remains silent, it is consenting to ‘military unification’.”

Du Zheng noted that some foreign media treat open “pink” opinions of Chinese netizens as true public sentiment, which he views as playing dumb. Under strict internet control, the voices of many Chinese cannot be heard. Those he collected who do not align with the official “unification” narrative can be broadly considered anti-war factions, or even termed as the “Chinese anti-communist unification faction.”

Well, that concludes this topic, now let’s move on to another issue. Why is Shanghai, China’s most bustling city, now so desolate?

In recent times, many netizens have posted videos claiming many abandoned villages and even towns have emerged in China. Several netizens filming these videos expressed surprise at the emptiness in former busy streets, questioning where all the people have gone. Initially thought to be isolated incidents, who could have imagined that Shanghai, the world’s third-ranked city, and formerly one of the most vibrant commercial streets, now appear so deserted.

Recently, renowned blogger “Master Mei” shared a video on social media saying, “Shocked! The busiest place on Nanjing Road has begun shutting down!”

In his live broadcast, “Master Mei” revealed he had a friend from Shenzhen who invited him to dine at Shimao Plaza. Despite being a local, “Master Mei” hadn’t visited for many years. Using this opportunity, he offered viewers a “live visit” to Shanghai’s Nanjing Road at Shimao Plaza.

Upon entering Shimao Plaza, “Master Mei” exclaimed, “Oh my! Why are all these shops closed? The liveliest place on Nanjing Road is now like this? It’s so surprising!” In his footage, several shops in the plaza were shut, and even those open had few customers.

Shockingly, he said, “We used to say everything could be sold on Nanjing Road, but now, I don’t know how to express it anymore! This is the busiest section of Nanjing Road, the starting point of the pedestrian street!”

“Master Mei” continued, “I’m sorry, everyone, I didn’t intend to film this for you, but my friend invited me for dinner at 6:30 pm, so I wanted to take some videos while strolling, as I haven’t been here in many years, and I wanted to show everyone.” Regrettably, he added, “But I didn’t expect, it disappoints you, sorry, I didn’t mean to.”

As “Master Mei” filmed while walking, with the restaurant on the fourth floor, the second and third floors appeared empty in his footage, revealing significantly reduced foot traffic, hardly spotting a few individuals. Filming in amazement, he remarked, “My goodness! My goodness! It’s hard to imagine this is the liveliest place on Nanjing Road!”

“Master Mei” passed by a jewelry store with empty display cases. He mentioned they likely cleared out. This used to be Nanjing Road where everything could be sold! Unbelievably, Nanjing Road is still Nanjing Road, but the marketplace is no longer the same.

Continuing up, passing by a barbecue restaurant, he observed few patrons inside. Likewise, other restaurants only had a few customers. Finally, he arrived at the restaurant “New Shanghai Cuisine” where his friend invited him for dinner, a well-known eatery with high customer traffic in the past, now also sparsely populated.

Nanjing Road is a renowned commercial street in Shanghai, and Shimao Plaza is a landmark building on Nanjing Road, a large integrated commercial complex that includes shopping, dining, entertainment, office space, and hotels, attracting numerous prominent brands such as Nike’s global flagship store, M&M’s chocolate world’s only Asian flagship store, Sephora’s Asian flagship store, and Lego’s first urban flagship store in Asia, a trendy hotspot highly favored by Shanghai’s youth.

Being the world’s third-ranking city, Shanghai is synonymous with vibrancy. Whether during the war-torn period of the Sino-Japanese War, or China’s early years after the Communist Party’s rise with the widespread “Three Years of Natural Disasters,” Shanghai continued to be one of China’s most vibrant regions. Its current condition is not just shocking to “Master Mei” but unimaginable for many netizens too.

One netizen commented, “It’s collapsing. I’ve lived on Nanjing Road for forty years and never seen such a phenomenon.”

Another lamented, “The escalating US-China trade war will lead to higher commodity prices, causing more businesses to shut down. These beautiful malls will become empty shells.”

A netizen recalled, “In 2018, when I returned to Shanghai and met friends on Nanjing Road pedestrian street, I remember people crowding even above the escalators. I can’t believe now Shimao Plaza has become so deserted.”

The “Jiayin Moment” Production Team