Tsai Ying-wen (蔡英文), a researcher of democracy and totalitarianism at Academia Sinica’s Research Center for Humanities and Social Sciences, has passed away, a group of fellow researchers announced on Facebook on Sunday.
Tsai, who has the same Chinese name as President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), was 67.
He was the first Chinese-speaking researcher to invoke the work of late American-German philosopher Hannah Arendt in his research, the group said.
Tsai Ying-wen died on Thursday last week from liver and lung infections caused by gastroesophageal reflux disease.
In the statement on the Facebook page for a political science text titled Who Governs? (菜市場政治學), the group praised Tsai Ying-wen for his contributions to the study of democracy and dictatorships.
He introduced Taiwanese students to the works of Arendt, as well as many legal principles new to them, it said.
Tsai Ying-wen’s translation of Chapter 2, “Imperialism,” and Chapter 3, “Totalitarianism,” of Arendt’s The Origins of Totalitarianism sparked a surge of interest in the subjects in Taiwan, it said.
He also translated works by German political theorist Carl Schmitt, which he discussed in comparison with Arendt’s theories, and was one of the first researchers in Taiwan to critically discuss Italian philosopher Giorgio Agamben’s concept of ausnahmezustand, or the “state of exception,” it said.
Tsai Ying-wen’s published works include From Monarchy and Autocracy to Democracy (從王權,專制到民主:西方民主思想的開展及其問題), Contemporary Political Thought (當代政治思潮) and Political Practice and Public Space (政治實踐與公共空間).
He also published a translation of John Gray’s Two Faces of Liberalism.
From Monarchy and Autocracy to Democracy won an award from Academia Sinica, the nation’s top research institute.
“That obscure academic work was reprinted after only three months. I suspect it was likely because readers mistakenly thought the author was the other Tsai Ing-wen,” the statement cited Tsai Ying-wen as jokingly saying when he accepted the award at the time.
The statement ended by thanking him for his contributions to the field of political science research.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), spokeswoman Yang Chih-yu (楊智伃) and Legislator Hsieh Lung-chieh (謝龍介) would be summoned by police for questioning for leading an illegal assembly on Thursday evening last week, Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) said today. The three KMT officials led an assembly outside the Taipei City Prosecutors’ Office, a restricted area where public assembly is not allowed, protesting the questioning of several KMT staff and searches of KMT headquarters and offices in a recall petition forgery case. Chu, Yang and Hsieh are all suspected of contravening the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法) by holding
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by
RSS