Holding the Republic of China (ROC) as its hostage, the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) moved its “party state” from its place of origin to Taiwan. In this occupied land, it took over the assets left by Japan when its colonization ended, registering some of it to government agencies, while some of it was given to the KMT for its use. In addition, some of it fell into the pockets of top officials.
After a long struggle, a new government replaced the KMT between 2000 and 2008 and it attempted to recover these assets through the courts. Some of the KMT’s inappropriately obtained assets were recovered, but a lot more disappeared into the pockets — both private and public — of the party state, transformed into “black gold,” as the party claimed to have “rid itself” of all its assets. Relying on the law will not necessarily mean that the government will be able to recover everything.
Theft, robbery, forceful takeovers, seizing, stealing at night or in broad daylight: all is illegal. The encroachment of the KMT party state resulted in incomparable plunder, making them bona fide traitors, condemned by everyone. When the party lost its beloved China, it colonized this nation, making it its “motherland,” forcing the name of a state no longer theirs onto Taiwan. It took control of every aspect of the state apparatus, kidnapping the population in the process.
In addition to being the creator of so-called “party-state capitalism,” another image of the KMT is that of the cruel capitalist that puts some of the state’s capital into its own pockets. The party state used vicious methods to get its hands on more wealth. The effects of this even extend to such matters as the gas pipeline explosions in Greater Kaohsiung at the end of July: The company allegedly responsible for the accident used to be jointly owned by the KMT and state-run oil refiner CPC Corp Taiwan.
This was all the result of the privileges the party enjoyed as part of the party state. Still, the KMT tried to use the disaster to drag down Greater Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊). The shamelessness of President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) really knows no bounds.
The leaders of the party state rely on education and culture to control people’s minds. At every turn, they try to amend history books because some more progressive members of the former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government obstructed the party state. Democratization and pro-localization are its enemy, yet it uses them to hide behind and cover up its actions.
The evil foundation that the party state is built on is the use of its assets to help win elections. In normal times, the party state builds profit-sharing networks with a few capitalists. However, at election time, if it has no champions, it buys them, spreading its money around.
During the past year, it has engaged in various activities to boost its popularity ahead of next month’s nine-in-one elections — eating, drinking and grabbing what it can. Still, why care about opinion polls when they can follow their own underground campaign logic? Just look at the mayoral election in Taipei: It is ridiculous to see how the KMT candidate attacks Ko Wen-je (柯文哲), the candidate nominated by the opposition alliance.
The KMT has lost China, and it has no people. Such a party should have disappeared into the mists of history a long time ago; there is no place for it here. The future of Taiwan’s democracy should not be overshadowed and kidnapped by such traitors. Only if yet another transfer of power were followed by a clearing up of the KMT’s party assets and the cleansing of the party-state capitalist poison would Taiwan be able to move toward normalization.
Lee Min-yung is a poet.
Translated by Perry Svensson
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