While the violence of the pan-blue rent-a-mob outside the Presidential Office on Saturday night and in the small hours of yesterday morning can only be deplored in the strongest terms, it might in the end have done Taiwan a favor. For it has made it absolutely plain, even to the greatest skeptic, who in Taiwan represents the stability that is necessary for Taiwan's continued prosperity and who represents mob rule, violence and gangsterism.
Of the people arrested Saturday night, half were found to have criminal records concerning involvement with Mainlander-run organized-crime gangs the Bamboo Union and Four Seas Gang. These are the kind of people that Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Lien Chan (
Perhaps we might be glad they have lowered their sights. After all, in the immediate aftermath of the election results the pan-blue leaders made a vigorous attempt to entice members of the armed forces to launch a military coup d'etat in the name of "defending democracy." To the military's credit, it no longer sees itself as the private army of the KMT and Lien and Soong were snubbed. Just as importantly, the message from Washington following the promulgation of the election result contained a stern reminder aimed at the pan-blues that any attempt to go outside the law to solve election disputes would not be tolerated. This punctured the more wildly ambitious plans of the election losers to regain power. Since then they have been confined to ruining the weekends of members of the Taipei City police force with demands that are barely coherent.
First they wanted a recount and foreign investigators brought into the inquiry into the shooting of President Chen Shui-bian (
One aspect of Saturday's events is easily overlooked, namely, what the protesters sought. Answer: the trashing of the Constitution. That is not what they wrote on their placards; there they demanded a legislative committee to investigate the shooting. But the shooting is a criminal case and falls under the jurisdiction of the Judicial Yuan. Now the pan-blues suggest having a referendum on the issue, despite the fact that no referendum result can be valid if it conflicts with the Constitution.
Mob rule, the junking of the Constitution when it doesn't serve their ends, contempt for the legal system, obstruction of the very tasks they have demanded be undertaken, contempt for Taiwan's international reputation and indifference to the very real negative economic consequences of the anarchy they are promoting -- this is what the pan-blues stand for. The irony is that they ran their election campaign on the theme of being able to provide stability and prosperity. It has become obvious now who cares about and can provide stability. Let us hope therefore for an overwhelming pan-green victory in December.
As strategic tensions escalate across the vast Indo-Pacific region, Taiwan has emerged as more than a potential flashpoint. It is the fulcrum upon which the credibility of the evolving American-led strategy of integrated deterrence now rests. How the US and regional powers like Japan respond to Taiwan’s defense, and how credible the deterrent against Chinese aggression proves to be, will profoundly shape the Indo-Pacific security architecture for years to come. A successful defense of Taiwan through strengthened deterrence in the Indo-Pacific would enhance the credibility of the US-led alliance system and underpin America’s global preeminence, while a failure of integrated deterrence would
The Executive Yuan recently revised a page of its Web site on ethnic groups in Taiwan, replacing the term “Han” (漢族) with “the rest of the population.” The page, which was updated on March 24, describes the composition of Taiwan’s registered households as indigenous (2.5 percent), foreign origin (1.2 percent) and the rest of the population (96.2 percent). The change was picked up by a social media user and amplified by local media, sparking heated discussion over the weekend. The pan-blue and pro-China camp called it a politically motivated desinicization attempt to obscure the Han Chinese ethnicity of most Taiwanese.
On Wednesday last week, the Rossiyskaya Gazeta published an article by Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) asserting the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) territorial claim over Taiwan effective 1945, predicated upon instruments such as the 1943 Cairo Declaration and the 1945 Potsdam Proclamation. The article further contended that this de jure and de facto status was subsequently reaffirmed by UN General Assembly Resolution 2758 of 1971. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs promptly issued a statement categorically repudiating these assertions. In addition to the reasons put forward by the ministry, I believe that China’s assertions are open to questions in international
The Legislative Yuan passed an amendment on Friday last week to add four national holidays and make Workers’ Day a national holiday for all sectors — a move referred to as “four plus one.” The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), who used their combined legislative majority to push the bill through its third reading, claim the holidays were chosen based on their inherent significance and social relevance. However, in passing the amendment, they have stuck to the traditional mindset of taking a holiday just for the sake of it, failing to make good use of
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