Chiang Kai Shek (CKS) International Airport
Taipei, Taiwan

Helen Liu (United States) - April 3, 2013
Letter to the Editor, Taipei Times

Uncivil Encounter at CKS Airport Terminal 2

On March 28th, 2013, my son and I were traveling back to the US after spending two fun-filled weeks visiting friends and relatives in Taiwan. We expected an uneventful departure from CKS airport much like our previous departures.

Instead, as we stood in a long line for the Immigration checkpoint, we found a scene that was disturbing and disappointing: unruly travelers—in groups and individually—cutting in line with no regard for others who stood in orderly queues; airport guard barely holding back a gesticulating group as they try to cut en masse; individuals brazenly crawling under ropes to get a few spaces ahead. I watched these behaviors in disbelief as other foreign travelers commented on the chaos around us. I felt embarrassed and angry.

The ability to stand in orderly queues may seem a trivial matter to some, but to me, it is one of the indicators of a civil society. I recall staring in amazement back in the year 2000 when I first set eyes on such orderly queues in an MRT subway station. It wasn’t always this way. Those of you of a certain age group will remember the bee-swarm style of boarding a train or a bus.

As a Taiwanese American who came home to discover a different Taiwan than the one I left behind four decades ago, I am protective of what Taiwan has become in recent years—a place where folks queue up without question for public transportation and give up seats for the elderly or pregnant women. In other words, a civil society! So I was particularly disappointed when, in the international departure Terminal 2 at CKS, of all places, I was treated to a terrifying glimpse of those uncivil days of elbow-pushing and line-cutting. Surely, airport authority could have managed Terminal 2 more intelligently. And the tourist bureau could have demanded travel agents manage their tour groups more ably. Flights could have been scheduled in such as way as to minimize extreme congestion. The logistical problems are not insurmountable.

Let’s not allow the rush to profit from tantalizing tourist dollars blind us to something more precious—our pride in Taiwan’s evolution toward a civil society. Civility and respect toward fellow travelers on this planet—whether in an airplane, on the subway, or on foot—is something the Taiwanese people should not negotiate on, no matter the economic profit.

This letter was sent also to Taiwan Tourism Bureau http://eng.taiwan.net.tw/

Helen Liu and Benjamin Liu-May
Currently living in Eugene, Oregon, USA