Taiwan is facing a political situation that is not without its ironies. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) has joined hands with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to isolate President Chen Shui-bian (
Worst of all, a beleaguered Chen, the pillar of "Taiwan consciousness," has begun lashing out at his allies and comrades. People are looking for comfort and many have turned to former president Lee Teng-hui (
The situation could get even more thrilling. People First Party (PFP) Chairman James Soong (
The recent wave of "China fever" has revealed an amazing amount of spinelessness among the nation's politicians. Lien has proven his willingness to lick Beijing's boots while Chen's inability to strategize and his constant flipflopping and waffling have proven to be his Achilles' heel. Both men have proven they care more for power than this nation and that neither has what it takes to be a statesman.
It's hard to believe that Soong has any admirable qualities, but at least he has dared to talk in China about the Republic of China (ROC) that he believes in, something Lien was too lily-livered to do. Of course, Soong could end up prostrating himself before Hu today.
The only person who has remained consistent is Lee. Now that Chen has revealed his feet of clay, Lee is the only champion of "Taiwan consciousness." His basic position on the cross-strait issue has remained unchanged -- in office and out -- even if some of the details have changed.
But this is no consolation when with the National Assembly elections just two days away. If the Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP) loses votes to the TSU, then reform of the legislature, of which the DPP has been such a strong proponent, will come to nothing. The TSU is unlikely to support changes detrimental to the survival of small political parties like itself. The final result of Taiwan's "China fever" will then not only be the collapse of the DPP hopes for legislative reform, but continued paralysis for the administration.
And what will happen when Chen's position becomes untenable? If the opposition gains an even greater advantage in Saturday's elections this can only delight China. The real casualty of Chen's political demise will be the nation's democracy.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (傅?萁) has caused havoc with his attempts to overturn the democratic and constitutional order in the legislature. If we look at this devolution from the context of a transition to democracy from authoritarianism in a culturally Chinese sense — that of zhonghua (中華) — then we are playing witness to a servile spirit from a millennia-old form of totalitarianism that is intent on damaging the nation’s hard-won democracy. This servile spirit is ingrained in Chinese culture. About a century ago, Chinese satirist and author Lu Xun (魯迅) saw through the servile nature of
In their New York Times bestseller How Democracies Die, Harvard political scientists Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt said that democracies today “may die at the hands not of generals but of elected leaders. Many government efforts to subvert democracy are ‘legal,’ in the sense that they are approved by the legislature or accepted by the courts. They may even be portrayed as efforts to improve democracy — making the judiciary more efficient, combating corruption, or cleaning up the electoral process.” Moreover, the two authors observe that those who denounce such legal threats to democracy are often “dismissed as exaggerating or
Monday was the 37th anniversary of former president Chiang Ching-kuo’s (蔣經國) death. Chiang — a son of former president Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石), who had implemented party-state rule and martial law in Taiwan — has a complicated legacy. Whether one looks at his time in power in a positive or negative light depends very much on who they are, and what their relationship with the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is. Although toward the end of his life Chiang Ching-kuo lifted martial law and steered Taiwan onto the path of democratization, these changes were forced upon him by internal and external pressures,
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus in the Legislative Yuan has made an internal decision to freeze NT$1.8 billion (US$54.7 million) of the indigenous submarine project’s NT$2 billion budget. This means that up to 90 percent of the budget cannot be utilized. It would only be accessible if the legislature agrees to lift the freeze sometime in the future. However, for Taiwan to construct its own submarines, it must rely on foreign support for several key pieces of equipment and technology. These foreign supporters would also be forced to endure significant pressure, infiltration and influence from Beijing. In other words,
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