The Politics of Borders Control During the COVID-19: E

• In Event: Policymaking and Responsiveness in Taiwan During COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

As the COVID-19 has spread all over the world since early 2020, many countries close their borders to contain the pandemic from spreading abroad. Accordingly, international travels are either interrupted or suspended in most countries in the world during the pandemic. One key issue for the post-COVID-19 era is how to reopen their borders. Yet, a country’s decision to reopen borders may not be solely determined by public health considerations but political and economic ones. In this article, we investigate how citizens support their government to reopen borders in Taiwan, one of the most successful countries in control over the COVID-19. Specifically, we conducted an online experimental survey with 1200 respondents in December 2020 to investigate determinants of Taiwanese citizens’ support for reopening borders to international tourists. The results of conjoint analysis suggest that respondents’ decision to welcome international tourists is not only determined by the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases of tourists’ home countries but also other factors, such their home countries’ political and economic relations with Taiwan. In particular, Taiwanese people are more likely to support their government to open the borders to countries that have a lower number of confirmed cases of COVID-19, have closer economic relations with Taiwan, or support Taiwan to join the World Health Organization. They also prefer tourists from countries where their governments have restrictions on international travels and the media can freely report the disease information. These findings shed lights on the post-pandemic politics of borders control.

Authors

• Wen-Chin Wu, Academia Sinica

• Hans Hanpu Tung, National Taiwan University

• Greg Chih-Hsin Sheen, National Cheng Kung University