With polls showing Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (
Both Ma and Wang were criticized by the DPP for their conservative pro-China stances. But given the constituency they are competing for, anything else could hardly be expected. It was inevitable that Ma should make his ritual denunciation of Taiwan's independence. But it was interesting to note that he also pointed out that "one country, two systems" was unacceptable to Taiwan. This was encouraging. Of course, Ma was only saying what is true, but that was unusual in itself for a party where lies usually compete with pipe dreams for prominence.
While Lien has not actually endorsed "one country, two systems," he has not been willing to frankly spell out its unacceptability to China. Ma on the other hand has been something of a thorn in China's side on the erosion of democratic standards in Hong Kong and its human-rights situation in general. Ma, it appears, will want to tread a fine line between stressing Taiwan's Chineseness (during his terms as mayor he has been a tireless promoter of "mainland Chinese" cultural forms and activities) and his apparent dislike of the government and political system of contemporary China. Since the Chinese Communist Party has no intention of changing in any significant way, Ma's chairmanship of the KMT might result in an expected froideur between two parties which have, under Lien's misguided leadership, been hand in glove.
Another area which surprised was Ma's attitude toward the KMT's assets. Ma came out quite strongly against the KMT's holding on to any "illegal" assets. This was interesting because the KMT has claimed that it has no illegal assets, despite a Control Yuan investigation establishing that it stole over 400 properties from the state. Ma seems ready to admit there are illegally acquired assets and that these assets should be restored to their rightful owners. He claimed that the KMT had a right to defend its legally acquired assets, which of course it does. But given the Control Yuan's findings and Ma's legal background, it will be interesting to see how he interprets what is "legally acquired." Given his reputation for opposing corruption -- the zeal over which lost him his post as justice minister nearly a decade ago -- some might expect Ma to be honest about the KMT's ill-gotten gains and give them back. But it should also be pointed out that Ma appears to have been quite happy to tolerate the high level of corruption among his political allies in Taipei during his mayorship, as well as frequently sheltering his people from the consequences of their administrative incompetence.
"Reform is not just a slogan," Ma said on Sunday. So far, under Lien, it has been. Remember the farce about putting the KMT's assets into trust? And can Ma really make good on his promise? Certainly nobody expects reform from his opponent, Wang, -- the party's bagman-in-chief for nearly a decade.
Initial opposition in the party to Ma's campaign was based on fear that his lack of tolerance for corruption would step on too many toes. If he is serious, Ma's chairmanship could be very interesting indeed.
The US Senate’s passage of the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which urges Taiwan’s inclusion in the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise and allocates US$1 billion in military aid, marks yet another milestone in Washington’s growing support for Taipei. On paper, it reflects the steadiness of US commitment, but beneath this show of solidarity lies contradiction. While the US Congress builds a stable, bipartisan architecture of deterrence, US President Donald Trump repeatedly undercuts it through erratic decisions and transactional diplomacy. This dissonance not only weakens the US’ credibility abroad — it also fractures public trust within Taiwan. For decades,
In 1976, the Gang of Four was ousted. The Gang of Four was a leftist political group comprising Chinese Communist Party (CCP) members: Jiang Qing (江青), its leading figure and Mao Zedong’s (毛澤東) last wife; Zhang Chunqiao (張春橋); Yao Wenyuan (姚文元); and Wang Hongwen (王洪文). The four wielded supreme power during the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976), but when Mao died, they were overthrown and charged with crimes against China in what was in essence a political coup of the right against the left. The same type of thing might be happening again as the CCP has expelled nine top generals. Rather than a
Taiwan Retrocession Day is observed on Oct. 25 every year. The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government removed it from the list of annual holidays immediately following the first successful transition of power in 2000, but the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT)-led opposition reinstated it this year. For ideological reasons, it has been something of a political football in the democratic era. This year, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) designated yesterday as “Commemoration Day of Taiwan’s Restoration,” turning the event into a conceptual staging post for its “restoration” to the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The Mainland Affairs Council on Friday criticized
A Reuters report published this week highlighted the struggles of migrant mothers in Taiwan through the story of Marian Duhapa, a Filipina forced to leave her infant behind to work in Taiwan and support her family. After becoming pregnant in Taiwan last year, Duhapa lost her job and lived in a shelter before giving birth and taking her daughter back to the Philippines. She then returned to Taiwan for a second time on her own to find work. Duhapa’s sacrifice is one of countless examples among the hundreds of thousands of migrant workers who sustain many of Taiwan’s households and factories,
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