Last week, former premier and former Kaohsiung mayor Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) agreed to run in the Taipei mayoral race on behalf of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). This is most certainly one of the best pieces of news the party has had since the the investigation into corruption among top DPP officials and members of the first family began.
It is no secret that Hsieh has his eyes on the DPP candidacy for the 2008 presidential election. Hsieh and President Chen Shui-bian (
This is not to mention that Hsieh was twice elected mayor of Kaohsiung City -- the only special municipality in Taiwan other than Taipei. Under the circumstances, the Taipei mayoral seat was simply not enough to attract Hsieh's interest and satisfy his ambition. Following Chen into the Presidential Office -- or at least winning the DPP's nomination -- has to be the next logical step in Hsieh's career plan.
It is also no secret that up until the time when the insider trading scandal involving Chen's son-in-law Chao Chien-ming (
But then Chao was taken into custody and Chen delegated most of his constitutional powers to Su. The "balance of power" and the race between the four superstars changed overnight. Su surpassed everyone else, and with the government more or less completely in his hands, Su has been given a chance to prove himself. Su is now not only the center of power, but also Chen's most likely successor -- that is, if Su performs well.
There are, of course, grave risks as well. With the pan-blue camp using every chance it can get to pull Su off his horse, he has every reason to fear becoming a casualty long before the 2008 presidential race even begins.
Under the circumstances, Hsieh's decision to run in the Taipei mayoral race is a wise move -- both for himself and for his party. For Hsieh, running for mayor will keep him in the media spotlight and give him the visibility he needs to maintain his status within the DPP. Even if he trails behind Su for now, at least there is a chance to catch up later. Of course, Hsieh is very likely to lose the mayoral race, given that the level of support for the DPP is at an all-time low and that voters in Taipei traditionally lean toward the pan-blues.
However, he will be remembered and revered by his comrades within the DPP for stepping up to fight a gritty battle. For the DPP, Hsieh's decision salvages the party from the embarrassment of having no candidate in the race. More importantly it gives the party some hope at a time when it has hit rock bottom. With a strong candidate in the race, the mayoral race is likely to become a focal point that unites the party -- and that is something that the DPP desperately needs at the moment.
Labubu, an elf-like plush toy with pointy ears and nine serrated teeth, has become a global sensation, worn by celebrities including Rihanna and Dua Lipa. These dolls are sold out in stores from Singapore to London; a human-sized version recently fetched a whopping US$150,000 at an auction in Beijing. With all the social media buzz, it is worth asking if we are witnessing the rise of a new-age collectible, or whether Labubu is a mere fad destined to fade. Investors certainly want to know. Pop Mart International Group Ltd, the Chinese manufacturer behind this trendy toy, has rallied 178 percent
My youngest son attends a university in Taipei. Throughout the past two years, whenever I have brought him his luggage or picked him up for the end of a semester or the start of a break, I have stayed at a hotel near his campus. In doing so, I have noticed a strange phenomenon: The hotel’s TV contained an unusual number of Chinese channels, filled with accents that would make a person feel as if they are in China. It is quite exhausting. A few days ago, while staying in the hotel, I found that of the 50 available TV channels,
Kinmen County’s political geography is provocative in and of itself. A pair of islets running up abreast the Chinese mainland, just 20 minutes by ferry from the Chinese city of Xiamen, Kinmen remains under the Taiwanese government’s control, after China’s failed invasion attempt in 1949. The provocative nature of Kinmen’s existence, along with the Matsu Islands off the coast of China’s Fuzhou City, has led to no shortage of outrageous takes and analyses in foreign media either fearmongering of a Chinese invasion or using these accidents of history to somehow understand Taiwan. Every few months a foreign reporter goes to
There is no such thing as a “silicon shield.” This trope has gained traction in the world of Taiwanese news, likely with the best intentions. Anything that breaks the China-controlled narrative that Taiwan is doomed to be conquered is welcome, but after observing its rise in recent months, I now believe that the “silicon shield” is a myth — one that is ultimately working against Taiwan. The basic silicon shield idea is that the world, particularly the US, would rush to defend Taiwan against a Chinese invasion because they do not want Beijing to seize the nation’s vital and unique chip industry. However,
RSS