Han Kuo-yu’s (韓國瑜) rapid rise to become the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) mayor-elect of Kaohsiung has been rivaled by only one other figure — his daughter, Han Bing (韓冰).
The public has an insatiable appetite for the 23-year-old Han, whose telegenic looks and charm led observers to dub her a “lethal weapon” for her father’s campaign. Her star power proved so alluring that she was even trusted with solo appearances on the campaign trail, attracting a media scrum during her visit to Rueifong Night Market (瑞豐夜市) in Kaohsiung’s Zuoying District (左營) to canvas for votes on Nov. 22.
But Han’s popularity as a quintessential “beauty with brains” actually reveals deep-set problems in how women are treated and perceived.
Photo: CNA
BALLOT BEAUTIES
A lot of the attention given to Han has been directed at her looks. Headlines tout Han’s modeling photos, praise her likeness to actress and sex symbol Shu Qi (舒淇) and fixate on her appearances in tight-fitting or skin-baring clothes. Disturbingly, many photos were taken from her private social media accounts and redistributed for the nation’s ogling.
This is not new. Women of all stripes, whether seasoned politicians or teenage students, have long been considered fair game for physical descriptions — and even rankings. This practice is rampant on mainstream media, variety shows and online fora.
Photos: CNA
Reducing women to their physical attributes is repugnant. Even more troubling, many use this as an excuse to discount women’s intelligence and ability to lead public affairs. It reinforces the message, especially to young girls, that a woman’s worth lies in how pleasing her appearance is, rather than the quality of her values, thoughts and actions.
MAIDENS AND MONSTERS
Han has also captured the public’s imagination by embodying all the most (seemingly) benevolent, positive stereotypes of womanhood. She is lauded for being a young woman who somehow manages to be beautiful, poised, intelligent and friendly all at the same time.
Photo: CNA
But by placing her on a pedestal, we risk dragging other women through the mud.
In a Facebook post, political scientist Hu Yu-wei (胡幼偉) wrote that Han’s persona of “elegance and warm femininity” (高雅暖女) was unprecedented in Taiwan’s political scene. Her refined image contrasted starkly with the Democratic Progressive Party’s unruly image of “ferocity, aggression and harshness” (殺氣重、鬥性強、刻薄寡恩). Hu claimed that this alone improved public perception of the KMT.
Party politics aside, what Hu identifies is a familiar dichotomy between what society deems to be desirable and undesirable behavior by women.
While embracing Han’s unwavering smile and gentle demeanor, we should be aware of how we treat women unlike her, who bare their teeth and are not afraid to offend. Otherwise, in glorifying one female archetype, we reject other ways of being female and put unbearable pressure on women to ensure that only their most polished selves are ever seen in public.
UPGRADE HIM
In the past year, Han Kuo-yu has made a series of public remarks that discriminate against, objectify and ridicule women. Some choice takes: “for men, the world is their oyster; for women, the home is their entire world;” “a mature woman is like a bowl of soup — drink quickly once it’s cooked, otherwise it will burn” and to a group of female supporters, “if investment into Kaohsiung provides 1,000 jobs, I will give you a kiss, and if it provides 10,000 jobs, I will repay you with my body and sleep with you for a night.”
Han Kuo-yu was criticized for these comments, but brushed them off as jokes. His daughter’s presence in his campaign was useful in that regard, as it helped to absolve him of accusations of sexism. This relied on the very flawed assumption that a man capable of raising such an outstanding and filial daughter could not actually be a misogynist.
Han Bing has comported herself impressively throughout the election, and her achievements speak for themselves. It is a shame to see her used as sexual gratification, a narrow feminine ideal or a smokescreen for sexism. If Taiwan really wants our women to shine, we will need to learn to treat them right.
WOMEN MAKE STRIDES AT THE LOCAL LEVEL
According to figures released by the Central Election Commission, female representation rose at almost every level of local government after the Nov. 24 elections. Among city mayors and county commissioners, a historic high of seven out of 22 positions went to women, up from the previous two. Women also made gains among grassroots leaders, including councilors at all levels. Among borough wardens, female representation rose from 13.95 percent to 16.61 percent, equivalent to 191 more representatives.
The LGBTQ community has been celebrating a breakthrough as the first two openly LGBTQ city councilors were elected to office. Miao Po-ya (苗博雅) of the Social Democratic Party and Lin Ying-meng (林穎孟) of the New Power Party won their races in Taipei.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like the two will share much common ground. During an interview on Monday, Lin called on Miao to take responsibility for the defeat of referendum question 14 on amending the Civil Code to protect same-sex marriage, which Miao had proposed. As of press time, Miao had yet to respond.
FILM FESTIVAL
After an island-wide tour, Women Make Waves Film Festival (台灣國際女性影展) is back in Taipei for its last screenings of the year. Registration is free for today’s four screenings of short films. If you’re in Taoyuan, the festival’s 25th anniversary retrospective exhibition is having its last weekend at the Taoyuan Arts Cinema II (桃園光影文化館). For more information, visit: www.wmw.org.tw.
The Gender Brief is a weekly column focusing on gender and sexuality-related stories from the previous week’s news.
Food can reflect culture, but can food also reflect history? That was what Lee Chi-lin (李其霖), associate professor of history at Tamkang University (淡江大學) wanted to explore when he gathered historians, local officials and culinary enthusiasts at the Tamsui Red House (淡水紅樓), an exquisite red-brick Taiwanese cuisine restaurant built in 1899. Lee planned the menu to reflect the historic Qing victory over the French in the Battle of Tamsui, also known as the Battle of Hobe (滬尾, Tamsui’s old name). On Aug. 23, 1884 war had broken out due to a territorial dispute in Vietnam between the French and Taiwan’s Qing
What sort of science fiction does Xi Jinping (習近平) like? How can China’s weathermen use the president’s political philosophy to improve their forecasts? In what ways can “Xi Thought” help prepare the country for the next big earthquake? These are the sorts of questions Communist Party cadres are now pondering as they prepare for the next big milestone in the president’s effort to cement control: Elevating Xi Thought alongside Maoism. The esoteric concept is expected to be written into the five-year development blueprint that will be unveiled after party meetings later this month. Everyone from diplomats to executives to sci-fi writers
This year’s Kuandu Arts Festival (關渡藝術節), which opened on Sept. 23 and runs through Nov. 29, is focused on music. Under the theme “Joy of Music,” a nod to the 250th birthday of Ludwig van Beethoven, the program features performances by seven symphony orchestras as well as several Taipei National University of the Arts (TNUA, 國立臺北藝術大學) student and faculty shows, in addition to the annual film and animation festivals. However, there is still room for other performing arts, and two productions this weekend and next at the university in the hills of Taipei’s Guandu area (關渡) feature students from the
The prognosis for biodiversity on Earth is grim. According to a sobering report released by the UN last year, 1 million land and marine species across the globe are threatened with extinction — more than at any other period in human history. According to a recent study, about 20 percent of the countries in the world risk ecosystem collapse due to the destruction of wildlife and their habitats, a result of human activity in tandem with a warming climate. The US is the ninth most at risk. Despite this desperate outlook, the Trump administration, as part of its aggressive rollback of regulations designed
RSS