The presidential election is two-and-a-half weeks away and all parties are clarifying their campaign themes in a bid to win over undecided voters, who must have been confused as to the strategy of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) when he called President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), who is running for re-election as the Democratic Progressive Party’s candidate, an “ill-starred woman” (衰尾查某) on Tuesday last week.
Little knowledge is needed to explain Wu’s behavior. He was caught in an unfavorable situation and human nature kicked in. Wu instinctively protected himself without taking other factors into consideration.
Wu is defending his chairmanship in the run-up to a potential election defeat — no longer prioritizing the party or its candidates before himself. Generally, when an army begins to retreat, the higher ranks, in addition to watching out for enemy troops behind, must work to prevent a mutiny.
If the KMT suffers a defeat in the Jan. 11 presidential and legislative elections, the diehard supporters of Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜), the KMT’s presidential candidate, would undoubtedly look to settle accounts with Wu. His remark was aimed at putting on an act to get recognition from Han supporters in anticipation of their attacks.
The supporters are not a virtual or imaginary enemy. A call by KMT Tainan chapter head Hsieh Lung-chieh (謝龍介) gained more than 10,000 new members for the party. In short, post-election preparations are under way. Han supporters are within the party, not just on the periphery.
Politicians tend to gravitate toward extremist elements within their parties when they are in trouble so that they have good company as they seek to build fortifications together. For example, then-president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) siding with the pro-independence camp at the end of his second term.
However, the effectiveness of such an alliance depends on some connection existing between the politician and the extremist faction, as with Chen and the pro-independence camp. This kind of connection is missing between Wu and Han supporters.
Wu climbed the ranks under a KMT policy in the mid-1980s known as chui tai qing (吹台青), that promoted talented young Taiwanese to the party and local governments. If the Mainlander elite were considered the inner circle of the party, then Wu made it to the second circle.
However, the Han supporters tend to be from the outer circle. It remains to be seen whether they will positively receive Wu and his expression of goodwill.
Wu’s remark put the KMT’s campaign agenda on a tangent by targeting “women” after former premier Simon Chang (張善政), Han’s running mate, accused unmarried and childless Tsai of being incapable of understanding how new mothers feel, the type of judgement that is always unwelcome from a male politician.
Not only did Wu not correct Chang’s remarks, he exacerbated the situation. Why did they shift the focus to gender? It might have been a knee-jerk reaction, but it showed how in tune they are with the long-standing male dominance in Taiwanese politics and how they do not feel compelled to change things.
From an international perspective, whether the KMT likes it or not, Tsai’s historic role as the first female president of Taiwan has been lauded. Neither the US, the world’s only superpower, nor Japan, Asia’s most advanced civilization, have ever elected a female president or prime minister, showing the significance of Taiwan in the development of democracies.
Tsai is not without flaws and has received continuous criticism from the outside world, but male politicians in the KMT choosing to make an issue of the president’s gender was a surprising choice. That was unwise and shows either a lacking worldview or way too much male chauvinism.
Given his lack of connection with Han supporters and his poor judgement, Wu’s leadership in his party’s retreat deserves no praise.
Tzou Jiing-wen is the editor-in-chief of the Liberty Times (sister newspaper of the Taipei Times).
Translated by Eddy Chang
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