The poll released yesterday, and cited by Taipei City Councilor and legislative candidate Lin Chin-chang (
But the more interesting thing about the poll was what it might tell us about the topic of localization. In terms of which party "loves Taiwan," the DPP beat the KMT by a 2:1 ratio. Just as interesting, a very large number of respondents said they believed the reason the DPP was able to obtain power so soon after its creation was because of its Taiwan-centered consciousness.
Lin has taken the results of the poll to mean that people reject the idea of "one China," and he advises the KMT to drop its commitment to this ideal or else face catastrophe at the polls. But "one China" is a symptom of the KMT's malaise, not its cause. The real locus of the KMT's problems is in the leadership's refusal to face facts.
The election result in March should have been a wake-up call. In 2000 Lien Chan (
The last thing the KMT needs, if it is to become centrist and mainstream again, is a merger with the PFP. Yet this is exactly what Lien has been working on.
You might think that the election results since 1996 show the popularity of the "Lee Teng-hui line" and the likely success at the polls of whoever can assume the mantle of heir to the pragmatic pro-Taiwan centrism that was Lee's hallmark. Yet James Soong said that he would not merge with the KMT as long as it still retained what he called "the stink of Lee Teng-hui." We can only interpret this as ideology blinding common sense.
If the KMT wants to see power again, it has to become what Lee tried to make it (and let us note here that the centrist Lee, who kept stealing the DPP's popular policies in the 90s, was something different from the fulminating anti-China zealot he has latterly become).
Younger KMT members surely realize this. Lin is not the first among the younger generation in the party to talk of a radical makeover. Ever since the pan-blue ticket's election defeat, there has been talk in the party of adopting a more vigorous pro-Taiwan stance, dropping the "commitment" to unification and even changing the name to the Taiwan Nationalist Party.
But such voices are simply not heard, and the party is moving in exactly the opposite direction.
There is much evidence that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is sending soldiers from the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) to support Russia’s invasion of Ukraine — and is learning lessons for a future war against Taiwan. Until now, the CCP has claimed that they have not sent PLA personnel to support Russian aggression. On 18 April, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelinskiy announced that the CCP is supplying war supplies such as gunpowder, artillery, and weapons subcomponents to Russia. When Zelinskiy announced on 9 April that the Ukrainian Army had captured two Chinese nationals fighting with Russians on the front line with details
On a quiet lane in Taipei’s central Daan District (大安), an otherwise unremarkable high-rise is marked by a police guard and a tawdry A4 printout from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs indicating an “embassy area.” Keen observers would see the emblem of the Holy See, one of Taiwan’s 12 so-called “diplomatic allies.” Unlike Taipei’s other embassies and quasi-consulates, no national flag flies there, nor is there a plaque indicating what country’s embassy this is. Visitors hoping to sign a condolence book for the late Pope Francis would instead have to visit the Italian Trade Office, adjacent to Taipei 101. The death of
By now, most of Taiwan has heard Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an’s (蔣萬安) threats to initiate a vote of no confidence against the Cabinet. His rationale is that the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)-led government’s investigation into alleged signature forgery in the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) recall campaign constitutes “political persecution.” I sincerely hope he goes through with it. The opposition currently holds a majority in the Legislative Yuan, so the initiation of a no-confidence motion and its passage should be entirely within reach. If Chiang truly believes that the government is overreaching, abusing its power and targeting political opponents — then
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), joined by the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), held a protest on Saturday on Ketagalan Boulevard in Taipei. They were essentially standing for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), which is anxious about the mass recall campaign against KMT legislators. President William Lai (賴清德) said that if the opposition parties truly wanted to fight dictatorship, they should do so in Tiananmen Square — and at the very least, refrain from groveling to Chinese officials during their visits to China, alluding to meetings between KMT members and Chinese authorities. Now that China has been defined as a foreign hostile force,
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