The KMT is set to expel James Soong (
Like former president of the Judicial Yuan Lin Yang-kang (
Therefore, they believe that it makes no sense for President Lee Teng-hui to overstep himself and expel them from the party.
They can never accept such a dismissal.
Even if they are kicked out, they still want the public to know that in their hearts they will always remain mem
bers of the KMT.
But democracy, by its very nature, is a game of alternation.
If the ruling party loses the election, it will have to relinquish its political power; if a party member loses the party primary and refuses to accept his defeat, he will have to leave the party.
Take the party primaries in the US as an example.
Patrick Buchanan, an ultra-right wing Republican, used to consider himself an orthodox Republican. He recently declared his withdrawal from the Republican Party and joined the Reform Party -- to pursue his presidential dream.
New York real estate tycoon Donald Trump is another example. Trump also resigned from the Republican Party to join the Reform Party in his bid for the presidency.
Basically, the principle of democracy works in a very simple manner in intra-party rivalry -- the stronger candidate takes power. Whoever fails to win power simply leaves the party, claims to be an independent or joins another party.
It is virtually impossible to find anyone as indecisive as Soong.
During the past few months, Soong has bitterly criticized the KMT as a "rotten party" -- not only is its leadership rotten, but its policies are also rotten, Soong said.
Since he feels ashamed to be associated with the KMT and believes that the party has lost its vision, he should cut his ties with the party to preserve his "non-stick" reputation.
Besides, Soong, educated in the US, is deeply influenced by that country's democracy.
Therefore, he should realize that his refusal to resign from the party is inappropriate in the context of party politics.
By considering himself an upholder of orthodoxy, he proves himself to be a loyal follower of the Chiang dynasty.
But orthodoxy and democracy are incompatible.
On the one hand, Soong continuously speaks of democracy; and on the other hand, his mind is still stuffed with old-fashioned party loyalties. Apparently, he only has a partial understanding of democracy.
Whether Soong resigns from the party or not is therefore a matter of considerable importance, because it is an indication of his basic democratic maturity.
It is not yet too late for him to make the right decision.
Wang Chien-chuang is president of the Journalist magazine.
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