“Soft power” as imagined by scholars and politicians in the context of cross-Strait relations is often discussed in terms of film, music, food, and social media messaging. Less commonly analyzed, however, is the “Love Boat Taiwan” program – formally referred to as the “Overseas Compatriot Youth Taiwan Study Tour” (全球青年返台營隊). The program, established in 1966 by the Kuomintang (KMT, 國民黨) but now generally funded by the Taiwanese government, continues to play an extremely important role in how young Taiwanese Americans conceptualize their Taiwanese identity and how Taiwanese influence is established in the United States. For instance, two of the program’s most famous alumni are Congresswoman Judy Chu and American singer Wang Leehom (王力宏).
As Taiwan stands as a beacon for democracy and human rights in the Indo-Pacific, programs like Love Boat Taiwan should be promoted as a crucial soft power mechanism to attract international support and counter Chinese influence globally. Taiwan must use soft power tools to “increase global awareness, gain sympathy and win support from the international community” as an East Asia Forum report argued this March. Love Boat Taiwan is an important program for Taiwan advocates to focus on, especially as President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) faces ever-increasing Chinese opposition and a polarized legislature.
Love Boat Taiwan: A history
Offered each summer, Love Boat Taiwan recruits college-aged Chinese and Taiwanese Americans to learn about Taiwan’s history, study Mandarin, and engage in cultural activities. The “Love Boat” nickname reflects the program’s reputation for participants hoping to find love on the trip. While the Love Boat program’s history is complicated by its KMT origins and has been criticized for its failure to acknowledge indigenous displacement, it has been regarded as a prestigious program for Taiwanese American families to participate in, especially as its current programming promotes Taiwanese culture and society.
The China Youth Corps (救國團) a youth organization founded in 1952 at the recommendation of Chiang Kai-shek (蒋介石) to ensure youth loyalty to the Republic of China (ROC, 中華民國) established the original Study Tour in 1966. The Corps aimed to “help youths with their intellectual and physical development … and cultivate their sense of comradeship for the final victory over the Chinese Communists and the restoration of national order.” Government officials, university faculty, and even local community members committed to promoting the KMT cause helped staff the program.
Growing from 102 participants in 1967 to 1,075 in 1999, the program gained traction among Taiwanese American families especially, becoming a tradition within Chinese and Taiwanese communities abroad and even a status symbol as admission became more competitive. As described by 2000 program alum Audrea Lim, “[Love Boat] is thought to be popular among diaspora Chinese parents for its alter ego … [a] code for ‘suitable marriage partners.’”
Historically, the KMT worked to promote Chinese culture through the program. The tour originally hosted students for four to six weeks, providing classes in Chinese folk dancing, martial arts, and calligraphy. Field trips to KMT-established memorials, such as the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, and museums with extensive KMT history, like the National Palace Museum, were common. Love Boat was established to promote not only youth support for the KMT but also to “reconnect overseas Chinese and Taiwanese people to Chinese language and culture, of which the KMT believed they were the rightful heirs,” as scholar Mila Zuo describes in a review of a Love Boat documentary.
The political aims of the program during its early years were evident to participants, who recognized KMT biases within the program’s idolization of Chiang Kai-shek and failure to address flaws of KMT rule. “[The program was] very political. You could not be unaware of the propaganda they were pushing,” 1995 alum Karen Houa said. “A government luncheon? A lecture and brochure packet about the government prior to a visit to some government museum? It wasn’t subtle.” Additionally, 1996 alum Cynthia Cheng reported that she “came back from the trip a militant, proud, pro-Taiwanese individual even though my family’s actually from Hong Kong.” There were “a lot of lectures on Chiang Kai-shek and how great Chiang Kai-shek was,” said Felicia Sze, a 1994 alum.
Political motivations of the program, however, became less obvious once a 2000s Democratic Progressive Party-led (DPP, 民進黨) government also took charge of the tour. “I kept waiting for the political indoctrination session to materialize,” Lim described, “but it never did.” “Instead, we marveled at the architectural symmetries and upturned roof of the National Concert Hall, ate our way through every market in Taipei, witnessed superhuman feats of acrobatics and martial arts, and hiked through the lush mountains of central Taiwan.”
When the 2024 Love Boat class embarked on their summer trip, a new class of around 1,000 global college-aged participants with connections to Taiwan was led on trips around the country, similarly exposed to the beauty of Taiwan’s famous night markets, phenomenal food, and diverse landscapes. The Taiwanese government continues to annually fund the program with hopes that these students will tell their Taiwan stories back home.
The importance of soft power and Taiwanese identity
Love Boat continues to foster a strong sense of Taiwanese identity among its participants, encouraging international connections to the country while creating a feeling of belonging. For many Love Boat participants, the program is not only their first time in Taiwan – but their first time contemplating their Taiwanese and Asian identities while in a group of similar peers. “I have always wondered whether the Study Tour ‘worked’ on me. Not despite, but because of my Asianness, I found that I belonged,” Lim writes. “I now understand that this feeling of belonging is what Love Boat is attempting to forge.”
The effectiveness of programs like Love Boat in fostering a connection between participants and host countries is evident. For example, Israel’s Birthright program which offers free trips to Israel for Americans with Jewish ties has effectively formed connections between participants and the country. While a May 2023 Brandeis University study found that the trip had “little or no effect on participants’ political opinions with regard to Israel’s political conflicts,” the strongest impact of the trip was on participant’s connection to Israel. Prior to the trip, 30 percent of participants felt “very much” connected to Israel a figure which increased to 49 percent at the conclusion of Birthright.
Love Boat Taiwan works as a similar soft power tool, creating cultural ties between overseas participants and Taiwan. While no longer promoting a KMT-centered political agenda, the ability of Love Boat to connect international participants to Taiwan bolsters support for the nation globally. Soft power programs like Love Boat are especially important as Taiwan attempts to gain international leverage, and even more so when understanding the need to compete with similar, extensive Chinese soft power campaigns.
China’s soft power campaigns
While China has experienced recent economic downturns and US policies that have thwarted some of its most successful soft power projects – from China’s continued Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) to Confucius Institutes to educational exchanges to TikTok campaigns – the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) soft power ambitions continue to operate at full force. Brand Finance’s Global Soft Power Index recently ranked China as the fastest growing “nation brand” this year.
China’s economy has experienced a significant downturn in recent years due to lasting effects of pandemic policies, with China’s BRI facing liability forgiveness issues and skepticism. However, the BRI continues to work as an effective soft power mechanism. The BRI has exceeded USD $1 trillion in participation since 2013 with China signing over 200 cooperation agreements. Countries continue to subscribe to China’s “global network of connectivity,” as Xi Jinping (習近平) described the program in October.
China’s continued establishment of Confucius Institutes across American university campuses perhaps even more clearly captures the PRC’s soft power goals. While 104 Institutes were closed in June of 2022 due to US State Department policy, reports indicate that at least 28 of them have been replaced with similar programs – with at least 58 of them retaining close ties with their old partners. The State Department described these institutes in 2019 as “foreign mission[s] of the People’s Republic of China” as they censored China-critical speech on campuses and sponsored free trips to China.
The CCP additionally continues to influence American audiences through TikTok. TikTok only recently announced it had taken down thousands of accounts conducting “covert influence operations,” with the second largest network of these operations belonging to China. A February report from the US Office of the director of National Intelligence outlined how the PRC influenced US midterm elections in 2022, warning of the impacts of PRC influence this November.
These programs, coupled with various cultural exchanges sponsored by the CCP, directly work to expand Chinese influence globally. While Love Boat offers a small counter-effort to these Chinese campaigns, the importance of Taiwan’s summer program becomes clear when understanding China’s continued influence within global educational, economic, and entertainment spheres.
Conclusion
Each summer, Love Boat Taiwan works as an effective tool to expand global education and appreciation for Taiwanese culture, people, and even independence. Love Boat’s ability to expose international participants to the natural beauty of the island, Taiwanese cuisine, and nightlife within the progressive, democratic environment of the country alone is enough to foster national ties. Taiwan’s government continues to offer the program in hopes that these connections are communicated globally as participants marvel about their Taiwan summer trip memories.
Recent successes of Love Boat Taiwan can be seen through the publication of the Loveboat, Taipei (2020) series, an American young adult romance about the program. The series was turned into a Paramount+ film in 2023 called Love in Taipei, starring American actors Ross Butler, Ashley Liao, and Nico Hiraga. Love Boat Taiwan is actively influencing American audiences. The program should be considered and promoted as a powerful soft power tool as it continues to educate international youth about Taiwan’s importance and counter Chinese soft power campaigns.
The main point: Love Boat Taiwan is an important soft power mechanism for Taiwan. As the program continues to host international youth for portions of the summer, participant’s experiences on the trip form global connections and support for Taiwan as they explore the nation. Love Boat must be upheld as a strong tool to promote Taiwan’s global influence, especially among the world’s youth, as the CCP continues to expand its soft power campaigns.
