Time for the KMT to pay up
This week might possibly prove to be yet another watershed in what academics would term the consolidation of Taiwan's democracy. The recent proposals that would effectively end the business operations of political parties in Taiwan are long overdue.
It has always seemed somewhat odd that political parties, ostensibly geared toward fulfilling society's needs, should be controlling vast business empires that serve to benefit only a select few.
Also, in a nation such as Taiwan, which is seeking to consolidate democratic values, it should come as no surprise that such legislation is eventually developed in order to eliminate crony capitalism and the corruption that goes with it.
Indeed, in this way the DPP is only responding to the public will as polls in Taiwan have consistently shown strong support for the curtailment of "black gold" within Taiwan.
Of course, it is no surprise that the KMT would cry foul, as it is their vast range of businesses and assets that are set to be attacked.
The fact that the KMT will be the most affected -- and perhaps weakened -- by this legislation should, however, be irrelevant to the argument.
While I'm sure that the DPP is not exactly upset at dealing their foes a mortal blow, one cannot justify that the KMT, the richest political party in the world, should continue to enjoy its financial dominance over both its political competitors and society.
Objectively speaking, the proposed bills will strengthen Taiwanese democratic institutions and practices, which are desirable goals for creating a better, more responsively governed Taiwan.
If anything, these two bills do not go far enough.
Provisions that still allow political parties to have direct interests in newspapers, magazines and so on fall short of creating an independent media that is based on professionalism and objectivity.
The possibility that a political party may influence editorial decisions is a concern, and the fact that the influence on news media might be more subtle -- and thus harder for the general public to detect -- is also deeply troubling.
These bills also do not attack another root cause of political corruption within Taiwan, the electoral method of choosing members of the Legislative Yuan.
While efforts to fight electoral corruption have produced some results, it has not eliminated the inherent weakness of the Single Non-Transferable Voting System, which allows multiple candidates to be elected from the same district.
This method of voting makes it possible to buy enough votes to win elections.
Changing the electoral system to one that is more in line with other democracies in the world (Taiwan is the only country in the world using this system) would raise the costs of vote-buying and, in combination with the proposed bills above, would effectively limit the ability of political bodies to buy votes.
Thus, in conclusion, one can see that the implementation of these bills is one step among many that need to be taken if Taiwan wishes to consolidate its democratic achievements.
The fact that the KMT will suffer because of this should be viewed as a matter of circumstance, a necessity that must be borne by its leaders to help Taiwan's democratic development. It is the price that should be paid for the wealth and benefits that the party generated for itself while it was in power throughout the last century.
Michael Faass
Burlington, Ontario, Canada
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