Former Presidential Office secretary-general Su Tseng-chang (
Perhaps Lien just didn't want to be reminded about his own job. Although he has repeatedly claimed he will step down when his term as chairman expires in August, he has remained tight-lipped about a transition of power.
Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (
After Su assumed the DPP leadership, he said he would rely on action and interaction to maintain the DPP's position as a party able to touch the hearts of the people. "Action" is not something the DPP has ever lacked. The biggest obstacle to the DPP retaining that position is the different roles that parties in government and in opposition are expected to play.
While in opposition, the DPP sympathized with the poor and pushed for democracy. When looking at the DPP's development, it is hard to forget the many magazines established in the 1980s by Kang Ning-hsiang (
The DPP's firm support for and love of Taiwan were closely connected to environmentalism, and the workers' and farmers' movements, including efforts to inspire a greater cultural consciousness among indigenous peoples as part of the localization movement. It spoke for minority groups. Its members carried out forceful protests despite the risk of being sent to prison.
Obviously, it is not in the nature of environmental interests, labor groups and groups for the disadvantaged to be led by a ruling party, but at the same time, a ruling party must not sacrifice the interests of the people by compromising with established interests. Pushing for direct links amounts to toadying to capitalists intent on exploiting the China market, and risks the future of this nation's workers. If the DPP aims to please the capitalists and forgets its obligations to its grassroots supporters, then it is clearly a party that has been corrupted and lost its way.
If the DPP wants to touch the hearts of the people, then it must rekindle the flame of idealism, so that this flame can light the way for a new generation of intellectuals. Compromise may be politically expedient in the short term, but it could cause supporters to desert. The suggestion that the KMT move its headquarters south is not new, but it is something that the DPP could learn from. The south is the center of agricultural production and traditional industries, the core of the workers' and farmers' movements, and therefore also the fount of Taiwan consciousness.
The gutting of Voice of America (VOA) and Radio Free Asia (RFA) by US President Donald Trump’s administration poses a serious threat to the global voice of freedom, particularly for those living under authoritarian regimes such as China. The US — hailed as the model of liberal democracy — has the moral responsibility to uphold the values it champions. In undermining these institutions, the US risks diminishing its “soft power,” a pivotal pillar of its global influence. VOA Tibetan and RFA Tibetan played an enormous role in promoting the strong image of the US in and outside Tibet. On VOA Tibetan,
Sung Chien-liang (宋建樑), the leader of the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) efforts to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lee Kun-cheng (李坤城), caused a national outrage and drew diplomatic condemnation on Tuesday after he arrived at the New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office dressed in a Nazi uniform. Sung performed a Nazi salute and carried a copy of Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf as he arrived to be questioned over allegations of signature forgery in the recall petition. The KMT’s response to the incident has shown a striking lack of contrition and decency. Rather than apologizing and distancing itself from Sung’s actions,
US President Trump weighed into the state of America’s semiconductor manufacturing when he declared, “They [Taiwan] stole it from us. They took it from us, and I don’t blame them. I give them credit.” At a prior White House event President Trump hosted TSMC chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家), head of the world’s largest and most advanced chip manufacturer, to announce a commitment to invest US$100 billion in America. The president then shifted his previously critical rhetoric on Taiwan and put off tariffs on its chips. Now we learn that the Trump Administration is conducting a “trade investigation” on semiconductors which
By now, most of Taiwan has heard Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an’s (蔣萬安) threats to initiate a vote of no confidence against the Cabinet. His rationale is that the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)-led government’s investigation into alleged signature forgery in the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) recall campaign constitutes “political persecution.” I sincerely hope he goes through with it. The opposition currently holds a majority in the Legislative Yuan, so the initiation of a no-confidence motion and its passage should be entirely within reach. If Chiang truly believes that the government is overreaching, abusing its power and targeting political opponents — then
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