I remember when I was first learning about settler colonialism, I thought to myself: “Huh, this sounds like Taiwan and Israel” My instincts were correct on Israel, but I never looked too deeply into Taiwan. The fact that the Kuomintang displaced the Austronesian natives is a pretty strong indicator, but is Taiwan really a settler colonial state or are my intuitions wrong?
Yes. The island was colonized by previous Chinese dynasties and there’s a clear imbalance between the indigenous Taiwanese and the Han settlers that currently rule the island. I hope that when reunification finally happens this damage can be undone. While not perfect the CPC has shown a willingness to bolster regional identities and allow for their cultures to really flourish. Seeing the indigenous Taiwanese get that same treatment would be really cool.
I think that under reunification the indigenous Taiwanese could get their own autonomous prefectures, just like other ethnicities in the PRC