On Feb. 20, the Central Election Commission published the names of the presidential and vice presidential candidates. The election campaign officially began the next day, which was also the day that the second round of televised presidential debates took place.
In the next month, the two camps will go all out to pitch their campaign platforms and attack those of the other side. This year's election will have a major impact on the future of Taiwan and is also critical to the future of every voter and of future generations. In the next month, everyone should carefully compare the two tickets and uphold their duty to protect the interests of the nation.
Why is this year's election so critical? It is hard to tell, looking at the issue based strictly on the basis of who gets elected. However, if we step back and examine things from a broader perspective -- including the significance of the March 20 referendum and 228 Hand-in-Hand Rally -- it isn't difficult to understand the meaning of this election.
This year's election is the third popular presidential election, which is a further step in the development of the nation's democracy. The March 20 referendum and the Hand-in-Hand Rally serve to protect the nation's sovereignty. Since democracy and sovereignty are central to the future of the people, the significance of this year's election is magnified.
In the past, the people of Taiwan did not have the right to elect their president. During the Chinese Nationalist Party's (KMT) era of totalitarianism, the president was elected by a National Assembly comprised of members elected from the days when the KMT government was in China.
After democratic reforms began, the right to popular presidential elections was sought by the people.
At the time, many top-ranking officials of the pan-blue camp advocated using "delegates" to replace the National Assembly in electing the president, so as to conceal their their "Great China" ideology. In other words, they did not want the people to directly elect their president.
The people demanded to have power returned to them, and former president Lee Teng-hui's (
Historical momentum requires further progress in reform and the consolidation of Taiwan's sovereignty. This is the only way for the people, who still expect further reforms, to ensure that popular presidential elections -- the fruit of the last phase of reform -- can continue to usher in reforms in the next phase, instead of becoming the war spoils of the greedy or even tools of the old factions seeking to return to power.
This is the way to keep democracy from backtracking. Otherwise, we might even lose our right to popular presidential elections.
Therefore, the debate over reform during this election campaign should not be deemed mere campaign sloganeering, with the historical background of the debate ignored.
The March 20 referendum and the Hand-in-Hand Rally serve to resist external threats to sovereignty and democratic reform. China has repeatedly tried to meddle with presidential elections here and to keep candidates who reflect the mainstream popular will of "Taiwan First" from being elected. Its intention in this regard is evident.
Since 1996, China has used military coercion, an economic unification campaign and the infiltration of Taiwan to undermine democracy. The goal is none other than to obstruct democratic development and cut off the consolidation of Taiwan's sovereignty.
This year, China began to use the fruits of its economic unification campaign, fabricating espionage charges against some Taiwanese businessmen to coerce others into supporting pan-blue candidates. This shows that China has launched a war without a shot, and has begun to market the so-called "one China" principle to cut off the idea of Taiwan's sovereignty.
Such threats by China often cannot be perceived by the public because they are not as concrete as the 496 missiles targeting Taiwan. However, the threats they pose cannot be ignored.
The March 20 referendum and the Hand-in-Hand Rally are a response to China's increasing threats. They serve the common goal of urging Taiwanese people to stand up to express their national identification, so that China and the international community can both hear our voices: The people of Taiwan want democracy and sovereignty.
The presidential election has become part of our democratic system, part of the nation's norms. However, Taiwan is in a very unique predicament, with the hostile China just on the other side of the Strait seeking to engulf it. As a result, Taiwan has never been able to become a completely normal country.
Some say electing a president is the best referendum, and treat the presidential election as a proof of the normalization of the country, and also propose to cast aside the issue of sovereignty in an attempt to seek peace with China. Such individuals' unwillingness to defend the sovereign status of Taiwan is plainly evident.
The 228 Hand-in-Hand Rally and the March 20 presidential election and referendum are three democratic milestones. Seeing how the general public supports such accomplishments, not even opponents of these events dare to openly express their opposition. They can only boycott the referendum, citing administrative technicalities. Facing the overwhelming support for the rally, they can only try to match it with other activities.
Their mentality is no different than it was when they spearheaded the passage of the rubber-stamp Referendum Law (
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