Successful films often fuel sequels, giving audiences the opportunity to perpetuate the satisfying illusion created in the original. In Taiwan, the presidential election and its aftermath became a real-life thriller -- but the captive public has been unable to walk out on it ever since. The tension associated with this Saturday's sequel, not unlike Speed 2: Cruise Control, is a creation that has been forced on the public, with most only wanting an end to disruption and a return to normality. As part of the new script, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Lien Chan (
According to Article Two and Article Three of the Additional Articles of the Constitution, the premier is appointed by the president and does not require the approval of the legislature. Although the premier is responsible to the legislature, his position as a presidential appointee is in no way related to who holds a majority in the legislature. These articles were added to the Constitution to allow Lien to serve as vice president and premier concurrently under former president Lee Teng-hui (
Although the presidential appointment of the premier is not affected by who has a legislative majority, the premier's ability to maintain his position is. Lien's suggestion that the pan-blue camp will be able to form government if it wins a majority can therefore take place, but only as a result of vicious political fighting. The scenario would be as follows: The president appoints a premier from a minority party. The administration of the premier is boycotted by the majority party, which passes a vote of no confidence, forcing the president to dissolve the legislature and call for new elections. The opposition keeps its majority, forcing the president to bow to political realities and appoint a candidate that they can accept.
Although the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) won the presidential elections in 2000 and this year, the opposition has maintained a majority in the legislature and has constrained the government on many fronts. So far, the opposition has retained a sense of proportion, and while opposing most legislation and budget measures, has not engaged in a "scorched earth" policy of initiating a vote of no confidence, which would precipitate a political crisis. Lien's announcement makes it clear that the opposition will raise the level of its resistance if it wins a majority this time, going so far as to challenge the right of the president to appoint the premier. This will be a political battle with incalculably high political and social costs that could wear on indefinitely.
If Taiwan were a normal democratic country, the actions of political parties taken in accordance with the Constitution and their relative levels of strength would be considered acceptable. But Taiwan faces threats and obstruction from China on all fronts, and it cannot sustain another period in which it fails to advance, or slips backward, because of domestic political factors. The political scene cannot afford to become an endless series of Friday the 13th sequels, with the public serving as teen fodder for a deranged and slowly decomposing villain.
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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