Taiwan turns to celebrity diplomacy

Reporting from Taipei, Taiwan — 

One is a chubby amateur singer with a bowl haircut, the other a vegetable seller with a big heart. Together, they may have done more to put Taiwan in an international spotlight than years of checkbook diplomacy by the previous government.

The singer Lin Yu-chun became an instant celebrity after a clip of him singing in perfect pitch the Whitney Houston hit “I Will Always Love You” in a local talent show went viral on YouTube, with millions of views and counting.

The vegetable vendor, Chen Shu-chu, appeared on Time magazine’s list of the 100 most influential people of the year, for years of generous donations to charity despite her humble earnings.

These two cases had nothing to do with the government, but they were exactly what Taipei wanted, falling neatly into an effort by President Ma Ying-jeou’s administration in the two years since he was elected to raise Taiwan’s profile.

Even as it builds closer economic ties with mainland China, Taiwan’s administration is aware that it must make the island stand out from its giant neighbor. Beijing considers Taiwan one of China’s provinces, despite it being ruled separately since the end of a civil war in 1949, and the government has more than 1,000 missiles targeting the island to warn it against declaring formal independence.

Unable to compete with China’s military might, economic power and international clout, Taiwan hopes to distinguish itself in other ways.

Under the administration of former President Chen Shui-bian, Taiwan tried to raise its international profile by giving large sums of money to mostly small, underdeveloped countries in Africa, Central America and the South Pacific in exchange for their diplomatic recognition.

Despite all the money spent, only 23 countries have formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan instead of China. Seeing the effort to compete with the mainland as counterproductive, Ma focuses on a strategy known as “soft power.”

As part of the strategy, his government is nurturing Taiwanese films and supporting Taiwan’s performers and artists so they can earn international fame for the island. This year, it will open Taiwan Academies — the island’s version of the British Council — to promote Taiwanese culture and the Chinese language overseas.

The government also spends millions of dollars on issues such as humanitarian assistance, including aid for victims of January’s devastating earthquake in Haiti.

“In the past, we’ve emphasized foreign diplomacy. We still do this, but we feel there are many areas [in which] Taiwan can contribute, such as culture, humanitarian aid and science,” presidential office spokesman Wang Yu-chih said. “Of course, with contributions, people will recognize Taiwan.”

But more than anything, it may be ordinary Taiwanese who touch others.

“I was just a normal, chubby boy yesterday, but now everyone is looking at me. I’m very surprised,” said Lin, the singer who has been billed as Taiwan’s Susan Boyle, after a woman who shot to fame for wowing audiences in the TV program “ Britain’s Got Talent.”

Lin, who has encouraged other overweight people to overcome teasing by being confident, has since appeared on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” and “Lopez Tonight” and has been the subject of news reports by CBS and CNN.

“I hope I can stand on a stage and sing,” Lin said. “I hope I can let everyone hear my voice.”

He may soon gain more fame for Taiwan: He recently signed a deal with Sony to release an album this year.

Initially the government wasn’t sure what to make of Lin’s sudden fame, but President Ma eventually seized the opportunity and openly praised him. When Chen also shot to fame, Ma persuaded the initially reluctant vegetable seller to go to New York to attend Time’s ceremony, on the government’s dime.

As for Chen, the Government Information Office was considering a movie about her trying childhood, including the death of her mother from lack of medical care, which inspired her to help others.

She has told reporters: “Money is useless unless you give it to people in need.”

Sui is a special correspondent.