After first lady Wu Shu-jen (
Opinion polls show that support for the anti-corruption campaign has also dropped, which fascinated and confused me. I could feel a subtle change but was unable to explain it.
After reading the Nov. 9 open letter from Nobel laureate Lee Yuan-tseh (
In response to this letter, as with Lee's previous letters, politicians who did not want to stake out a position merely said they respect his view and appreciate his effort.
Politicians who wanted to respond labeled his views and praised or criticized him without restraint. They saw only their own stance and did not sense the social significance of the letter.
I want to thank Lee for writing the letter at a time of crisis in Taiwan. Through his letters, Lee has always observed Taiwan's developments patiently and optimistically, despite his own concerns.
I believe this is the attitude of most good and decent Taiwanese people. Unfortunately, confrontation can and does occur, caused by radicals on both ends of the political spectrum. But despite such confrontation, I believe that Lee sees how, in the long-term, good people create positive values.
From an overall perspective, there is no lack of criticism and freedom in Taiwan. What we do lack is a spiritual force that upholds positive values.
In the past, both the ruling and opposition camps failed to build and nurture positive values. Nobody talked about this before, but now Lee has highlighted the issue.
I hope that people will pay attention when they read two important passages in Lee's letter. The first says "On a deeper level, this crisis is a democratic result of Taiwan's power transfer."
The second says "Today, the judiciary has demonstrated an independence unprecedented in Taiwan. The investigation and indictment of the first family -- although that does not mean that they are guilty -- represents a giant leap for judicial independence; a great result of the power transfer in 2000."
Positive values can only grow with the help of positive attitudes. Lee reminded us that the indictments were a tangible result of Taiwan's power transfer and a key turning point for building positive values.
This letter shares similar ideas with Lee's previous letter in late June, in which he condemned the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) for "too few achievements and too much corruption."
On the other hand, he worried that perhaps the opposition was too eager to recall the president, saying that Taiwan's political situation would continue to tread water if the two camps constantly went opposite ways and that he did not see the possibility of forming positive values for Taiwan at that time.
However, in his recent letter, Lee's optimism and determination are apparent because he can now see the possibility for building positive values.
I now understand why people have stopped discussing whether the president should step down and why the "reds" have lost support: these issues reflected an anxiety caused by the absence of positive values in Taiwanese society.
Taiwanese are fundamentally good and decent. When a reliable, positive value such as that exhibited by the judicial system emerges, we must nurture it patiently so it can become stronger. Lee's letter showed us that this is possible.
Wang Szu-hsun is chief editor at Ruguo Publishing.
Translated by Eddy Chang
Concerns that the US might abandon Taiwan are often overstated. While US President Donald Trump’s handling of Ukraine raised unease in Taiwan, it is crucial to recognize that Taiwan is not Ukraine. Under Trump, the US views Ukraine largely as a European problem, whereas the Indo-Pacific region remains its primary geopolitical focus. Taipei holds immense strategic value for Washington and is unlikely to be treated as a bargaining chip in US-China relations. Trump’s vision of “making America great again” would be directly undermined by any move to abandon Taiwan. Despite the rhetoric of “America First,” the Trump administration understands the necessity of
In an article published on this page on Tuesday, Kaohsiung-based journalist Julien Oeuillet wrote that “legions of people worldwide would care if a disaster occurred in South Korea or Japan, but the same people would not bat an eyelid if Taiwan disappeared.” That is quite a statement. We are constantly reading about the importance of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), hailed in Taiwan as the nation’s “silicon shield” protecting it from hostile foreign forces such as the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), and so crucial to the global supply chain for semiconductors that its loss would cost the global economy US$1
US President Donald Trump’s challenge to domestic American economic-political priorities, and abroad to the global balance of power, are not a threat to the security of Taiwan. Trump’s success can go far to contain the real threat — the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) surge to hegemony — while offering expanded defensive opportunities for Taiwan. In a stunning affirmation of the CCP policy of “forceful reunification,” an obscene euphemism for the invasion of Taiwan and the destruction of its democracy, on March 13, 2024, the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) used Chinese social media platforms to show the first-time linkage of three new
Sasha B. Chhabra’s column (“Michelle Yeoh should no longer be welcome,” March 26, page 8) lamented an Instagram post by renowned actress Michelle Yeoh (楊紫瓊) about her recent visit to “Taipei, China.” It is Chhabra’s opinion that, in response to parroting Beijing’s propaganda about the status of Taiwan, Yeoh should be banned from entering this nation and her films cut off from funding by government-backed agencies, as well as disqualified from competing in the Golden Horse Awards. She and other celebrities, he wrote, must be made to understand “that there are consequences for their actions if they become political pawns of
RSS