Images of riot police battling protesters in Hong Kong this week have reverberated in nearby Taiwan where many recoil at what they fear could be their future if Beijing has its way. Taiwan has been a self-ruled de facto nation in charge of its own affairs and borders for the last 70 years. In an attempt to persuade Taiwan’s 23 million inhabitants to consider a return to the mainland, China has touted the framework it devised with Britain to allow Hong Kong to keep its unique freedoms after the city’s 1997 handover.
