The most important election in Taiwan's history has sadly become dominated by extensive use of negative campaigning tactics that aim to persuade voters against casting ballots for rival candidates through the time-honored tradition of mudslinging or, in Taiwan political language, "painting black (
The usual motive behind mudslinging is to convince voters that "all the crows are the same shade of black" (天下烏鴉一般黑) and to imply that the crow with the deepest color -- and the longest experience in being "black" in this sense -- may the best qualified to lead the flock.
In the current campaign, there is little if no debate about which party is most closely associated in the public eye with "black gold" corruption. In its 54 years of power just in Taiwan, the KMT maintained institutional corruption in the era of the authoritarian party-state and fostered pervasive "black gold" money politics to retain power in the post-martial law period.
Lien Chan (連戰) has endeavored to shake off the bad image from this legacy by vowing to "declare all-out war on "black gold" politics and to implement "sunshine" reforms on Jan. 2. Most polls showed that few voters took Lien's conversion seriously.
Moreover, Lien's own actions -- notably his decision to share campaign platforms with such notables as ex-convict legislator Wu Tse-yuan (伍澤元) of Pingtung County, reputed "Tientaomen" (天道盟) gang spiritual leader Lo Fu-chu (羅福助) of Taipei County and Yunlin County Commissioner Chang Jung-wei (張榮味). Whether Lien discussed his war strategy with these notables is worthy of question.
The case of mainland-born former Taiwan Provincial Governor and ex-KMT secretary-general James Soong (宋楚瑜) appears more complex given Soong's effort to package himself as a "reformer" despite his role in helping to repress the tang wai (黨外) grassroots opposition movement in the late 1970s and 1980s.
But the Chung Hsin Bills (中興票券) Finance scandal exposed a previously dimly perceived darker side to Soong's record as KMT secretary-general and Taiwan provincial governor that has yet to be adequately addressed. Only the declaration of support for Soong by former justice minister and Investigation Bureau chief Liao Cheng-hao (廖正豪) helped stem the outflow of support from the Soong campaign.
Despite Liao's image as an anti-corruption fighter, the color scheme in the ex-KMT secretary-general's camp seems to be taking on tints all too similar to that of the KMT candidate.
Last week, Soong gained the support of KMT Taichung County assembly speaker Yen Ching-piao (顏清標), who joins other controversial figures such as former Legislative Yuan speaker Liu Sung-fan (劉松蕃), a major faction leader in Taichung County and former chairman of the Taichung Business Bank and important witness in the Kuang San enterprise stock default scandal.
The competition between Lien and Soong for the "loyalty" of politicians such as Yen Ching-piao or Chang Jung-wei does little to bolster public confidence in the likelihood of either candidate ringing in a new era of clean government. Lamented Academia Sinica president Lee Yuan-tseh (李遠哲) last Friday: "The only people standing up for candidates are corrupt politicians."
Lee's observation was accompanied by his decision on Friday to stand beside DPP candidate and former Taipei Mayor Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁).
Chen, the only one of the five candidates who does not reek of paternalism, has urged the Taiwan people to take history into their own hands and "dump gang and money politics and protect democracy" by ousting the KMT. Reliable indicators show a high degree of popular confidence in Chen's determination and capability to deal with vote buying, root out "black gold" corruption and improve social order and public safety.
Certainly, claims by any politician or party -- in any country -- to be pristine should be taken with a healthy dose of skepticism and few would claim that Chen's administration was defect-free.
Nevertheless, despite being under a virtual microscope for over five years, accusations against Chen for corruption have not had "sticking power." Charges by "independent" legislator Lin Jui-tu (林瑞圖) regarding an abortive Taipei City lottery have not had the credibility as the charges leveled against Soong.
The more interesting issue is why -- given claims that the DPP has become "KMT-ized" -- there have been so few accusations against senior DPP politicians that have "stuck."
Part of the reason lies in the history of the DPP and its predecessor of the tang wai grassroots democratic movement. One factor was the intense supervision of the democratic opposition by the Taiwan Garrison Command (警備總部), the Investigation Bureau, the KMT controlled media and other agencies directed at tang wai activists and its few elected officials.
The DPP's willingness to take crucial actions -- even at a cost to itself -- indicates that, for all its shortcomings, it is still far from being entirely "KMT-ized." It will not be easy for the DPP to imitate the notable record of the KMT given the likelihood of intense supervision by the media and the KMT in its possible new role as an opposition party.
This may be one reason why, despite the vast quantity of mud being slung at him, Chen received a vote of confidence from Academia Sinica President Lee Yuan-tseh on Friday.
Just as the attraction of politicians of the stripe of Pingtung County's Wu Tseh-yuan and Taichung County's Yen Ching-piao to Lien and Soong, the decision by Lee and other members of Chen's new "National Policy Advisory" team points to the validity of another proverb: "Birds of a feather flock together."
Dennis Engbarth (
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
‘FORM OF PROTEST’: The German Institute Taipei said it was ‘shocked’ to see Nazi symbolism used in connection with political aims as it condemned the incident Sung Chien-liang (宋建樑), who led efforts to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lee Kun-cheng (李坤城), was released on bail of NT$80,000 yesterday amid an outcry over a Nazi armband he wore to questioning the night before. Sung arrived at the New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office for questioning in a recall petition forgery case on Tuesday night wearing a red armband bearing a swastika, carrying a copy of Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf and giving a Nazi salute. Sung left the building at 1:15am without the armband and apparently covering the book with a coat. This is a serious international scandal and Chinese
COUNTERINTELLIGENCE TRAINING: The ministry said 87.5 percent of the apprehended Chinese agents were reported by service members they tried to lure into becoming spies Taiwanese organized crime, illegal money lenders, temples and civic groups are complicit in Beijing’s infiltration of the armed forces, the Ministry of National Defense (MND) said in a report yesterday. Retired service members who had been turned to Beijing’s cause mainly relied on those channels to infiltrate the Taiwanese military, according to the report to be submitted to lawmakers ahead of tomorrow’s hearing on Chinese espionage in the military. Chinese intelligence typically used blackmail, Internet-based communications, bribery or debts to loan sharks to leverage active service personnel to do its bidding, it said. China’s main goals are to collect intelligence, and develop a
RSS