American lore touts the nation as a “city on a hill” — a democracy shining brightly for the world to see and emulate. Yet, Americans should look to Taiwan — an island in the sea — for a model of the civic values and national spirit central to a strong democracy.
It is true that both democracies exhibit room for improvement. Partisanship and sensationalism, in particular, threaten political stability in Taipei and Washington.
My tour of Taiwan — as part of the Mosaic Taiwan 2018 fellowship program sponsored by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs — has evidenced that Americans can learn from Taiwan’s approach to stemming the distrust and apathy facing democratic progress worldwide.
The US should study Taiwan’s reliance on diplomacy, insistence on refining its democratic institutions and celebration of democratic participation.
Withstanding the idiosyncrasies associated with Taiwan’s position in the international community, democracies around the world should study its democratic best practices.
The maturity and vibrancy of its democracy, although younger than most, is often more advanced than the democracies that fail to formally recognize the nation.
Its democracy is strengthening at a time otherwise defined by global democratic regression.
Its diplomatic corps practices the exchange of goods, ideas and people, a superior approach to international relations.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs manages extensive efforts to increase people-to-people connections with democracies worldwide, securing educational and professional exchanges that empower Taiwanese to travel and contribute to other democracies.
The government has lowered obstacles to the exchange of ideas by negotiating visa agreements and memorandums of understanding with several nations.
A 2010 agreement with Canada on youth mobility facilitates the exchange of young workers.
Taiwanese pursue informal exchanges as well, exhibiting one of the world’s highest overnight stay rates.
Taiwan demonstrates the democratic humility and dexterity to identify institutions that require improvement.
With government backing, the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy offers grants to nurture non-governmental organizations in diverse communities, laying the seeds for an even stronger democracy.
Taiwan places a high priority on membership and participation in international forums such as the World Health Assembly.
Although these organizations wrongly deny Taiwan the chance to contribute its knowledge and expertise to global progress, Taiwanese remain devout democrats. The nation is home to robust civil discourse, with at least 14 TV stations and four newspapers.
Voters, perhaps energized by the lively debates held on TV and in editorial pages, act on opportunities to voice their opinions — the nation boasts a 67 percent voting turnout rate.
High-ranking diplomats will tell you that the democratic ethos defines the nation’s reputation internationally.
Travelers to Taiwan quickly sense the freedom of expression and independent spirit that pervades its civic society.
Democracies are buckling under the pressures of income inequality, populism and globalization, but an island in the sea — Taiwan — provides sore eyes with an uplifting view of what democracy can look like in the 21st century.
In Taiwan, everyone can see that where freedom of expression and civic participation exist, democracy thrives.
Kevin Frazier is a Masters of Public Policy candidate at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government visiting Taiwan through the Mosaic Taiwan 2018 fellowship program.
With escalating US-China competition and mutual distrust, the trend of supply chain “friend shoring” in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and the fragmentation of the world into rival geopolitical blocs, many analysts and policymakers worry the world is retreating into a new cold war — a world of trade bifurcation, protectionism and deglobalization. The world is in a new cold war, said Robin Niblett, former director of the London-based think tank Chatham House. Niblett said he sees the US and China slowly reaching a modus vivendi, but it might take time. The two great powers appear to be “reversing carefully
As China steps up a campaign to diplomatically isolate and squeeze Taiwan, it has become more imperative than ever that Taipei play a greater role internationally with the support of the democratic world. To help safeguard its autonomous status, Taiwan needs to go beyond bolstering its defenses with weapons like anti-ship and anti-aircraft missiles. With the help of its international backers, it must also expand its diplomatic footprint globally. But are Taiwan’s foreign friends willing to translate their rhetoric into action by helping Taipei carve out more international space for itself? Beating back China’s effort to turn Taiwan into an international pariah
Typhoon Krathon made landfall in southwestern Taiwan last week, bringing strong winds, heavy rain and flooding, cutting power to more than 170,000 homes and water supply to more than 400,000 homes, and leading to more than 600 injuries and four deaths. Due to the typhoon, schools and offices across the nation were ordered to close for two to four days, stirring up familiar controversies over whether local governments’ decisions to call typhoon days were appropriate. The typhoon’s center made landfall in Kaohsiung’s Siaogang District (小港) at noon on Thursday, but it weakened into a tropical depression early on Friday, and its structure
Since the end of the Cold War, the US-China espionage battle has arguably become the largest on Earth. Spying on China is vital for the US, as China’s growing military and technological capabilities pose direct challenges to its interests, especially in defending Taiwan and maintaining security in the Indo-Pacific. Intelligence gathering helps the US counter Chinese aggression, stay ahead of threats and safeguard not only its own security, but also the stability of global trade routes. Unchecked Chinese expansion could destabilize the region and have far-reaching global consequences. In recent years, spying on China has become increasingly difficult for the US
RSS