In the wake of President Chen Shui-bian's (
Taiwan's president has wielded power poorly. In a political structure in which great power is concentrated in the hands of one man, the premier is simply not in a position to oppose the will of the president -- and we have yet to see a Cabinet that dares ignore presidential dictates. Now, after an unremarkable six-year administrative track record, Chen is attempting to pick up the pace and make up for past failings in reform. In addition to his new economic policy, he has targeted the 18 percent preferential interest for retired civil servants, the stolen assets of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), constitutional reform and a minimum tax. This flurry of activity brings to mind the saying "waiting until you are thirsty before you dig a well."
As a result of such tardiness, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) is not likely to win public support. The defeats suffered by the DPP in the 2004 legislative elections and last month's local government elections where not the result of the Cabinet's failure to carry out the presidential will, but rather because they carried it out to the letter. It is Chen who must shoulder responsibility for the government's failures. As for the scandals which have ensnared various senior government officials and which are now awaiting investigation by the judiciary, neither the Presidential Office nor the Executive Yuan is likely to escape blame.
Chen ignored calls to hold fast to former president Lee Teng-hui's (李登輝) "no haste, be patient" economic policy, and instead plunged headlong into the unrestricted opening up of commercial relations with China. It was under Chen's call for a "New Middle Way" that in 2001 the government launched the misguided policy of "active opening, effective management."
We can see now that this policy, which was intended to pander to Taiwanese businesses with interests in China and China itself, has had a pernicious effect on Taiwan. Unemployment, broadly defined, has risen to a high of 7 percent, capital has fled the country and entire industries have relocated away. This kind of damage cannot be quickly remedied.
Based on past performance, Chen's new determination to better manage cross-strait economic ties prompts mixed feelings. Chen will hopefully become a fearless and charismatic leader who is undaunted by setbacks and unafraid to admit mistakes, rather than a politician who only pursues short-term advantage and bows to pressure from financial groups and trade associations. Such short-sighted behavior is exactly what has made DPP supporters lose faith in his promises.
Chen and his party must admit that the DPP has lost the ideals it once had as a local party under Chen's leadership. As a result of Chen's weakness, the public has also begun to let down their guard toward China's "united front" strategies and military ambitions, with some even espousing an absurd desire to unify with China. What Taiwan needs is a determination to press on with reform and a more consistent implementation of policy. In this effort, Chen has no greater enemy than himself.
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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