The Taipei City Government has granted permission to former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) chairman Shih Ming-teh (
The decision has provoked anger and skepticism because the Taipei City Government has never before allowed rallies of this nature to extend beyond a late evening deadline.
Attacks on this special treatment for Shih, of course, will not hurt Shih's rally in garnering more media attention.
Of more interest is whether the campaign can attract support from the wider community of pan-green supporters and civic groups. If the purpose of Shih's rally is to convince Chen to step down of his own accord, rather than provide a stage for Shih as a comeback politician, then the last thing that Shih would want is to have his rally too closely associated with the pan-blue camp.
Most pan-green supporters are disappointed with Chen, and among these are some voices calling for him to step down. However, because of the long history of antagonism between the pan-green and pan-blue camps, pan-green supporters tend to back down or at least hold great reservations about giving support to causes if they are deemed to be "pan-blue" activities.
Shih's rally does seem to be gathering a level of support from the general public. But the question is: who exactly? If the bulk of support comes from supporters of the pan-blue camp, then this is hardly constructive in terms of making Chen step down. The reason that Chen is able to continue his presidency is that most in the pan-green camp do not support his resignation or removal.
However, in view of the treatment granted to Shih by the Taipei City Government -- interpretable as special treatment from Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman and Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (
Making the situation more complicated for Shih and Ma is criticism from within the pan-blue camp, and the People First Party (PFP) in particular. The PFP pointed out that two years ago Ma ordered Taipei police to disperse an anti-Chen rally led by then KMT chairman Lien Chan (
Hoping to make hay out of all of this, the Taiwan Solidarity Union's Taipei mayoral candidate, Clara Chou (
Recently, China launched another diplomatic offensive against Taiwan, improperly linking its “one China principle” with UN General Assembly Resolution 2758 to constrain Taiwan’s diplomatic space. After Taiwan’s presidential election on Jan. 13, China persuaded Nauru to sever diplomatic ties with Taiwan. Nauru cited Resolution 2758 in its declaration of the diplomatic break. Subsequently, during the WHO Executive Board meeting that month, Beijing rallied countries including Venezuela, Zimbabwe, Belarus, Egypt, Nicaragua, Sri Lanka, Laos, Russia, Syria and Pakistan to reiterate the “one China principle” in their statements, and assert that “Resolution 2758 has settled the status of Taiwan” to hinder Taiwan’s
Can US dialogue and cooperation with the communist dictatorship in Beijing help avert a Taiwan Strait crisis? Or is US President Joe Biden playing into Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) hands? With America preoccupied with the wars in Europe and the Middle East, Biden is seeking better relations with Xi’s regime. The goal is to responsibly manage US-China competition and prevent unintended conflict, thereby hoping to create greater space for the two countries to work together in areas where their interests align. The existing wars have already stretched US military resources thin, and the last thing Biden wants is yet another war.
As Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu’s party won by a landslide in Sunday’s parliamentary election, it is a good time to take another look at recent developments in the Maldivian foreign policy. While Muizzu has been promoting his “Maldives First” policy, the agenda seems to have lost sight of a number of factors. Contemporary Maldivian policy serves as a stark illustration of how a blend of missteps in public posturing, populist agendas and inattentive leadership can lead to diplomatic setbacks and damage a country’s long-term foreign policy priorities. Over the past few months, Maldivian foreign policy has entangled itself in playing
A group of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers led by the party’s legislative caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (?) are to visit Beijing for four days this week, but some have questioned the timing and purpose of the visit, which demonstrates the KMT caucus’ increasing arrogance. Fu on Wednesday last week confirmed that following an invitation by Beijing, he would lead a group of lawmakers to China from Thursday to Sunday to discuss tourism and agricultural exports, but he refused to say whether they would meet with Chinese officials. That the visit is taking place during the legislative session and in the aftermath