A public opinion poll released yesterday showed most people do not trust lawmakers and law enforcement officials, and believe that not even a change of administration would change the situation.
Asked whether the judiciary is able to safeguard social justice and fairness, 69.1 percent of respondents said no, while only 17 percent said yes and 13.9 percent did not give an answer, the poll by Taiwan Indicators Survey Research showed.
The survey also found that 58.7 percent did not think law enforcement officials — including police, prosecutors and Investigation Bureau agents — enforced the law fairly, while 30.6 percent thought they did and 10.8 percent gave no answer.
Most respondents appeared to have given up on having a respectable judicial system, with 78.8 percent saying they did not believe there would ever be an independent judicial system in Taiwan, regardless of whether the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) or the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) is in power.
As for the Legislative Yuan, most respondents appeared suspicious of lawmakers’ motives and interests.
Asked about KMT lawmakers, 24.6 percent of respondents said they work for the interests of their own families and factions, followed by corporates and specific interest groups at 23.6 percent and the KMT at 21.5 percent. Only 6.9 percent said KMT lawmakers have the interests of all people in mind and 6 percent said they work for their constituencies.
Trust in DPP lawmakers was also low, but respondents’ view on whose interests they uphold varies slightly. Working for the interests of their own families and factions also ranked first at 24.9 percent, followed by the DPP at 24.4 percent. However, only 8 percent linked DPP lawmakers with corporations and specific interest groups, while 14.9 percent believed they had the public interest in mind.
Meanwhile, President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) approval rating plunged again after showing signs of life last month.
Ma had an approval rating of 14.8 percent, down 6.3 percentage points from the poll last month, and a disapproval rating of 74.3 percent, up 7.1 percentage points from last month.
Asked if Ma could crack down on corruption and build a clean government, 73.8 percent of respondents said he would not be able to do that.
Ma’s latest credibility rating was 18 percent, with 66.5 percent of those who took part in the poll saying they did not find Ma trustworthy.
Premier Jiang Yi-huah’s (江宜樺) approval rating also dropped to 15.6 percent, 3.7 percentage points lower from the previous poll.
The survey, conducted on Wednesday and Thursday last week, collected 1,008 valid samples and had a margin of error of 3.1 percentage points.
A series of discussions on the legacy of martial law and authoritarianism are to be held at the Taipei International Book Exhibition this month, featuring findings and analysis by the Transitional Justice Commission. The commission and publisher Book Republic organized the series, entitled “Escaping the Nation’s Labyrinth of Memory: What Authoritarian Symbols and Records Can Tell Us,” to help people navigate narratives through textual analysis and comparisons with other nations. The four-day series is to begin on Thursday next week with a discussion between commission Chairwoman Yang Tsui (楊翠), Polish-language translator Lin Wei-yun (林蔚昀), and Polish author and artist Pawel Gorecki comparing
‘EFFECTIVE DETERRENCE’: If the Biden administration suspends arms sales to Taiwan, the military could still ready a nimble fighting force for defense, an analyst said The “US Strategic Framework for the Indo-Pacific” last week sparked debate among analysts after US President Donald Trump declassified the document 20 years ahead of schedule. Trump on Tuesday last week released the document that had governed US strategic action in the region since the US leader approved its use in 2018. The document, which outlines US priorities in the region, emphasizes the importance of defending Taiwan against military aggression and facilitating the country’s development of asymmetric strategies and capabilities. The overall directive of the document is for the US to prevent China from establishing sustained air and sea dominance inside the first
MOVING OUT: A former professor said that rent and early education costs in Taipei are the nation’s highest, which makes it difficult for young people to start families The population of Taipei last year fell to the lowest in 23 years due to high rent, more transportation options and the expansion of northern cities into a single metropolis, academics and city officials said on Monday. Data released this month by the Ministry of the Interior showed that the capital was home to 2,602,418 people last year, down 42,623 from 2019. The decline is second only to 1993, when the population fell by 42,828 people, while Taipei’s population was the lowest it has been since 1997. Taipei saw the biggest drop among the six special municipalities, while Taoyuan led the group in
A legislator yesterday called for authorities to investigate the sale of Chinese-made, Internet-connected karaoke machines containing “propaganda songs.” Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Chen Ting-fei (陳亭妃) said she was approached by a person who had discovered Chinese patriotic songs such as My Motherland (我的祖國) — which is commonly referred to as China’s “second national anthem” — in Chinese-made karaoke devices sold in Taiwan. The machines are popular, as they can connect to the Internet, providing access to thousands of songs, she said. One retailer, who asked to remain anonymous, said that the machines first entered the local market about three years ago, starting with
RSS