Twenty-five years ago, a group of death-defying tang-wai (outside the party) democracy activists organized a large demonstration in Kaohsiung City to call for democracy and freedom in Taiwan and demand that the government end martial law, lift the ban on establishing new newspapers, end the Temporary Provisions Effective During the Period of Communist Rebellion (動員戡亂時期臨時條款) and allow a comprehensive re-election of the legislature. Treating the demonstration as a riot, the government suppressed it and sent many of the participants to prison. It became a turning point for democracy in Taiwan -- the Kaohsiung Incident.
Today, 25 years later, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has returned to the site to hold another demonstration. The past democratic demands have now been implemented, making up the backbone of Taiwan's legal and political system. The tang-wai group founded the DPP and has now moved into government, and Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) -- at the time one of the defense lawyers for the participants in the demonstration -- has become president. The persecutor, the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), has splintered into the KMT, the People First Party (PFP), and the New Party and moved into opposition.
Has the passage of time brought full social justice? No. The KMT is still sitting on over NT$10 billion in party assets resulting from the party's past direct access to the national treasury, and it is still in possession of many media outlets and several enterprises that enjoy special privileges. Lien Chan (
Today, while standing in front of the ballot box, block out the noise of campaigns. Ignore the various deceptive statistics, vote allocation, and the dump-save strategy. Ignore the politician's tricks of "weeping, kneeling and buying votes," and think about which of the politicians in your district has stood out. Whose face do you remember? Whose political background and policy proposals have touched your heart? If you do not have a candidate in mind, then carefully consider the path traveled by democracy in Taiwan, the development of human rights, the contributions of the DPP and the role played by the KMT.
Think about how your life has been in recent years. If it hasn't matched your expectations, is this because the government hasn't worked hard enough on your behalf? Or is it because of obstruction of the government's policies, which has made progress very difficult? In the future, do you want a government that can really rule, or do you want a continuation of a situation in which the government is blocked by a powerful opposition? Do you want a future in which Taiwan consciousness will be emphasized? Or do you want to see Taiwan more and more reliant on China?
The answer should be clear. Taiwan needs a government that is in step with the wishes of the people, that is both efficient and has clear lines of accountability. If this is what we want, then give the green camp a clear majority.
Saudi Arabian largesse is flooding Egypt’s cultural scene, but the reception is mixed. Some welcome new “cooperation” between two regional powerhouses, while others fear a hostile takeover by Riyadh. In Cairo, historically the cultural capital of the Arab world, Egyptian Minister of Culture Nevine al-Kilany recently hosted Saudi Arabian General Entertainment Authority chairman Turki al-Sheikh. The deep-pocketed al-Sheikh has emerged as a Medici-like patron for Egypt’s cultural elite, courted by Cairo’s top talent to produce a slew of forthcoming films. A new three-way agreement between al-Sheikh, Kilany and United Media Services — a multi-media conglomerate linked to state intelligence that owns much of
The US and other countries should take concrete steps to confront the threats from Beijing to avoid war, US Representative Mario Diaz-Balart said in an interview with Voice of America on March 13. The US should use “every diplomatic economic tool at our disposal to treat China as what it is... to avoid war,” Diaz-Balart said. Giving an example of what the US could do, he said that it has to be more aggressive in its military sales to Taiwan. Actions by cross-party US lawmakers in the past few years such as meeting with Taiwanese officials in Washington and Taipei, and
The Republic of China (ROC) on Taiwan has no official diplomatic allies in the EU. With the exception of the Vatican, it has no official allies in Europe at all. This does not prevent the ROC — Taiwan — from having close relations with EU member states and other European countries. The exact nature of the relationship does bear revisiting, if only to clarify what is a very complicated and sensitive idea, the details of which leave considerable room for misunderstanding, misrepresentation and disagreement. Only this week, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) received members of the European Parliament’s Delegation for Relations
Denmark’s “one China” policy more and more resembles Beijing’s “one China” principle. At least, this is how things appear. In recent interactions with the Danish state, such as applying for residency permits, a Taiwanese’s nationality would be listed as “China.” That designation occurs for a Taiwanese student coming to Denmark or a Danish citizen arriving in Denmark with, for example, their Taiwanese partner. Details of this were published on Sunday in an article in the Danish daily Berlingske written by Alexander Sjoberg and Tobias Reinwald. The pretext for this new practice is that Denmark does not recognize Taiwan as a state under