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Did you know that all the water buffalo in Taiwan are the descendants of a group of these bovines from Indonesia (formerly the Dutch East Indies)? These poor water buffalo were put on a sailing ship by the Dutch in 1648 and sent to Taiwan! Who knew? Well, former Dutch diplomat and current George Mason University Taiwan history professor Gerrit van der Wees does… and that’s not all he knows.
It was a genuine pleasure to chat with a person who's not only studied Taiwan extensively but who also played a big role in Taiwan’s fight to become a democracy. The day before former President Tsai Ing-wen stepped down, she honored van der Wees by conferring on him the Order of Brilliant Star with Grand Cordon, primarily for his work as chief editor of Taiwan Communiqué, a bi-monthly publication that chronicled Taiwan’s transition to democracy from 1980 to 2016.
Cover: Former Dutch diplomat and current George Mason University Taiwan history professor Gerrit van der Wees stands next to former Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen after she conferred on him the Order of Brilliant Star with Grand Cordon, on May 19, 2024, the day before she stepped down after serving two terms. (Via CNA)
Right top: A farmer in Yuanlin prepares to send the last water buffalo in Huwei Township to an animal sanctuary. (Via Taipei Times)
The water buffalo that once were commonly seen across Taiwan, usually working in rice fields, are not Taiwanese or Chinese... in fact, they came to Taiwan under the Dutch in 1648! Bottom right: A 1986 edition of the Taiwan Communiqué, a bi-monthly publication that chronicled Taiwan’s transition to democracy from 1980 to 2016 and was edited by Professor van der Wees.
AND: If you're interested, check out our other podcast on books - Bookish Asia
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Check our very first episode, the story of a very white man who showed up in London in 1703... and claimed to be from Formosa. Or try a foodie episode from Season 3. Or, for those who want some harder-core history, hear the tale of the Lockheed U-2 pilot Wang Hsi-chueh 王錫爵, who became famous for defecting to the PRC by hijacking China Airlines Flight 334 on May 3, 1986.
