If Taiwan wants to become a normal country, it has to establish a normal legislature, political parties and media that do not bow their heads to the dark remainders of the past authoritarian regime. The old-fashioned legislature, political parties and media that remain controlled by old and young followers of the past regime must be encouraged to embrace freedom, democracy and independence.
January's legislative elections will offer a historical opportunity for the nation to reform the old-fashioned legislature. Some argue that Taiwan has become a two-party system, with the two parties suppressing political forces external to themselves. If these two parties really were working to protect the welfare of the public and guarantee sovereignty, there would be nothing wrong.
Alas, they are not. One of the parties ought to go back to China to run for election for a spot at the National People's Congress. It will stay in Taiwan, of course, but it's in the wrong place.
Although the other party is Taiwanese and has made considerable contributions to democracy and other forms of progress, it has not shown that same spirit of democracy in the past few years.
In the past, it took great risks and worked with the public to put an end to martial law, the Temporary Provisions Effective During the Period of Communist Rebellion (
That same party has regressed to the point where it has denied our nation's freedom -- which it fought for with the public -- by suddenly saying that it is "moving toward Taiwanese independence."
Although these two parties will continue their incessant bickering, they share the same mind-set: One is a fossil of a party living in the past; the other is a new party that has turned its back on progress and is headed in the wrong direction.
There are two ways for Taiwan to establish a normal legislature. One is to reform the political parties, the other is to create new parties.
When I suggested earlier in the Chinese-language New Taiwan weekly that former Presidential Office secretary-general Chen Shih-meng (陳師孟) take over as Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) chairman, it was in the hope that the DPP would be able to win next year's legislative and presidential elections and move toward a normal legislature and a normal country.
Chen has long promoted reforming the DPP. He has academic training, a sense of mission and a strong willpower on politics.
When Su Tseng-chang (
If the nation had a left-leaning social democratic party working for fair and just representation of the middle and lower middle classes, it would help establish modern parties.
The public regard the bickering legislature as a major problem. The new electoral system, which has small districts and a dual ballot system, requires that a candidate obtain the support of half of all voters to get elected. If new candidates were to step forward to confront those representing the old mind-set, they would be certain to win.
The next legislative elections will be a battle between the new nation and an old-fashioned legislature. Now is the time for all of us to take a stand.
Ruan Ming is a consultant at the Taiwan Research Institute.
Translated by Ted Yang
Concerns that the US might abandon Taiwan are often overstated. While US President Donald Trump’s handling of Ukraine raised unease in Taiwan, it is crucial to recognize that Taiwan is not Ukraine. Under Trump, the US views Ukraine largely as a European problem, whereas the Indo-Pacific region remains its primary geopolitical focus. Taipei holds immense strategic value for Washington and is unlikely to be treated as a bargaining chip in US-China relations. Trump’s vision of “making America great again” would be directly undermined by any move to abandon Taiwan. Despite the rhetoric of “America First,” the Trump administration understands the necessity of
In an article published on this page on Tuesday, Kaohsiung-based journalist Julien Oeuillet wrote that “legions of people worldwide would care if a disaster occurred in South Korea or Japan, but the same people would not bat an eyelid if Taiwan disappeared.” That is quite a statement. We are constantly reading about the importance of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), hailed in Taiwan as the nation’s “silicon shield” protecting it from hostile foreign forces such as the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), and so crucial to the global supply chain for semiconductors that its loss would cost the global economy US$1
US President Donald Trump’s challenge to domestic American economic-political priorities, and abroad to the global balance of power, are not a threat to the security of Taiwan. Trump’s success can go far to contain the real threat — the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) surge to hegemony — while offering expanded defensive opportunities for Taiwan. In a stunning affirmation of the CCP policy of “forceful reunification,” an obscene euphemism for the invasion of Taiwan and the destruction of its democracy, on March 13, 2024, the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) used Chinese social media platforms to show the first-time linkage of three new
Sasha B. Chhabra’s column (“Michelle Yeoh should no longer be welcome,” March 26, page 8) lamented an Instagram post by renowned actress Michelle Yeoh (楊紫瓊) about her recent visit to “Taipei, China.” It is Chhabra’s opinion that, in response to parroting Beijing’s propaganda about the status of Taiwan, Yeoh should be banned from entering this nation and her films cut off from funding by government-backed agencies, as well as disqualified from competing in the Golden Horse Awards. She and other celebrities, he wrote, must be made to understand “that there are consequences for their actions if they become political pawns of