People who have misgivings about former president Lee Teng-hui (
Lee was not invited to the 16th national congress. Even the former chairman's son-in-law, Lai Kuo-chou (
The KMT has expelled people such as Lin Yang-kang (
The KMT is an authoritarian party in the mold of the Soviet Communist Party. Little wonder then that the party's old guard has had so much difficulty adapting to democracy. Instead of using rational debate to persuade party members to support Lee's expulsion, they resort to emotional blackmail of the party chairman -- a clear sign of an authoritarian mindset. Their failure to understand that the times have changed and that different strategies are needed now, is as much a tragedy for the KMT as for themselves.
In an age of democratic politics, everything has to be decided by majority support. If most of the people in the KMT supported expelling Lee, Lien would have been able to jettison him by now. But Lee represents the mainstream political path that is supported by a majority of the people of Taiwan. The KMT's sprawling party machine and massive resources cannot give Lien the power he needs to challenge Lee head-on in the face of democratic opposition.
Democratic politics remain a foreign language for the dinosaurs of the KMT who long for a return to the dynastic politics of the Chiangs. Instead of trying to pacify them, pity or change them, the KMT would be better served by treating them simply as museum pieces too dusty for display. Respect for one's elders is a worthy tradition. But respect should include a willingness to prevent one's elders from hurting or embarrassing themselves.
The party congress was a public relations disaster both for Lien and the KMT. Instead of emerging re-energized with a new image and policy platform, the KMT proved it is not much more than a shell of its former self -- still chained to policies and people that toppled it from its throne in the first place.
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