Part of the problem, part of the reason conduct of this sort continues, is that Taiwanese have been largely dispassionate, with a few opposition lawmakers denouncing the KMT’s latest offense against the nation’s dignity until the story disappeared from newspapers and TV news. In every instance, the government has been allowed to walk away free, without so much as a slap on the wrist or a reminder that people will not brook such behavior. The authorities have been able to make a travesty of the judiciary and still Taiwanese stand aside, as if they didn’t realize that something was dangerously amiss.
At some point, if Taiwanese are to avoid joining the overcooked frog in its basin, they will have to stand up and say: “Enough is enough. This is my country and under no circumstances will we allow our government to add national holidays that have nothing to do with or and that celebrate mass murderers and repressive regimes (we’ve had our own). Enough is enough, only fools would believe all those lies.”
Until Taiwanese wake up and take Ma and his henchmen to account, the KMT will continue to chip at the edges until one morning people will wake up to a country they no longer recognize.
J. Michael Cole is a writer based in Taipei.
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