Our opponent is not a competitor, but an enemy. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is using the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) coalition to “control Taiwan by using Taiwan” to achieve its goal of unification.
The enemy has launched a battle of unrestricted warfare — a total war that leaves Taiwanese, who uphold the democratic ideal that sovereignty rests with the people, with nowhere to turn. It would be foolish of us to continue using a limited-war mindset to respond to their tactics.
Pretentiously touting “values” and “neutrality” only allows those with extremist ideas to take advantage of the situation, bringing disaster to the nation. The CCP, KMT and TPP are using an indirect democratic majority to contravene the public’s sovereign rights, undermining the self-determination of Taiwanese on their own land. How could human rights be traded under majority rule? Even if both sides were to agree, human rights are not market commodities to be bought and sold. If one fails to understand the meaning of freedom in democratic thought, pursuing justice on behalf of the public is out of the question.
Therefore, a mass recall movement is an appropriate solution. The KMT and TPP are no longer loyal opposition parties. Their representatives no longer serve as a bridge connecting society with the nation — rather, they would become the butchers of societal values and national survival.
Taiwan’s democratic constitutional system is being gradually consumed by our enemies, internal and external. Civil society must demonstrate the power of self-determination. The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) cannot remain neutral on this matter — it is imperative that it establishes partnerships with civil groups.
Democratic social movements should awaken the consciousness of self-determination in each member of the public, even those who voted for the KMT or TPP. They should also aim to disseminate true and accurate information to the international community to ensure that allies around the world do not misjudge the situation. Taiwanese should not merely sit back and watch as our democratic system fails. We want to decide the fate of our own land.
Lai Rung-wei is an assistant professor and former manager of a financial company’s investment research office.
Translated by Kyra Gustavsen
It is almost three years since Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and Russian President Vladimir Putin declared a friendship with “no limits” — weeks before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Since then, they have retreated from such rhetorical enthusiasm. The “no limits” language was quickly dumped, probably at Beijing’s behest. When Putin visited China in May last year, he said that he and his counterpart were “as close as brothers.” Xi more coolly called the Russian president “a good friend and a good neighbor.” China has conspicuously not reciprocated Putin’s description of it as an ally. Yet the partnership
The ancient Chinese military strategist Sun Tzu (孫子) said “know yourself and know your enemy and you will win a hundred battles.” Applied in our times, Taiwanese should know themselves and know the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) so that Taiwan will win a hundred battles and hopefully, deter the CCP. Taiwanese receive information daily about the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) threat from the Ministry of National Defense and news sources. One area that needs better understanding is which forces would the People’s Republic of China (PRC) use to impose martial law and what would be the consequences for living under PRC
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said that he expects this year to be a year of “peace.” However, this is ironic given the actions of some KMT legislators and politicians. To push forward several amendments, they went against the principles of legislation such as substantive deliberation, and even tried to remove obstacles with violence during the third readings of the bills. Chu says that the KMT represents the public interest, accusing President William Lai (賴清德) and the Democratic Progressive Party of fighting against the opposition. After pushing through the amendments, the KMT caucus demanded that Legislative Speaker
Although former US secretary of state Mike Pompeo — known for being the most pro-Taiwan official to hold the post — is not in the second administration of US president-elect Donald Trump, he has maintained close ties with the former president and involved himself in think tank activities, giving him firsthand knowledge of the US’ national strategy. On Monday, Pompeo visited Taiwan for the fourth time, attending a Formosa Republican Association’s forum titled “Towards Permanent World Peace: The Shared Mission of the US and Taiwan.” At the event, he reaffirmed his belief in Taiwan’s democracy, liberty, human rights and independence, highlighting a
RSS