Will Taiwanese Be Ready?

Realistic portrayals in new series spark reactions among residents on threat of war

- Yip Wai Yee

TAIPEI - As enemy warplanes and ships surround an island in a military blockade, chaos ensues on city streets: Convenience stores are looted, the internet is knocked out and panicked residents attempt to flee.

These are scenes from Zero Day Attack, a new Taiwanese television fictional series. The show so realistically portrays what a Chinese invasion of Taiwan could look like that it is also a wake-up call for the territory's residents.

Ahead of its release on Aug 2, trailers of the 10-episode drama — the first of its kind — have already sparked discussions and emotional reactions over a potential conflict close to home.

"Goosebumps! It's hard to imagine how we will face it when the day (of invasion) comes... When the day comes, will Taiwanese be ready? It takes only one moment to lose our freedom," wrote a YouTube user in a comment that has garnered more than 3,600 upvotes.

Taiwan has lived under Beijing's constant military threat of "reunification" for decades, leading to fears in some quarters that most Taiwanese people have become desensitised to the dangers of a possible war.

According to a March poll by the Institute for National Defence and Security Research (INDSR), a Taiwanese think-tank, China was listed as Taiwan's greatest threat to national security in the next five years, but only 33 per cent of those surveyed said they believed it.

Some respondents were more concerned about declining birth rates (27 per cent) and economic stagnation (18 per cent).

These findings have been consistent for the past several years, even as Beijing has considerably ratcheted up military pressure against Taiwan during the same time period, staging massive war games around the island and sending warplanes and ships almost daily.