Saturday is the day of the first batch of recall votes primarily targeting lawmakers of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT). The scale of the recall drive far outstrips the expectations from when the idea was mooted in January by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘).
The mass recall effort is reminiscent of the Sunflower movement protests against the then-KMT government’s non-transparent attempts to push through a controversial cross-strait service trade agreement in 2014. That movement, initiated by students, civic groups and non-governmental organizations, included student-led protesters occupying the main legislative chamber for three weeks.
The two movements are linked in several ways:
First, they are perhaps the most momentous events in Taiwanese politics in their decades, and yet despite being inspired by the misconduct of politicians, were initiated by non-political actors and ordinary Taiwanese alarmed by actions in the legislature.
Second, the impetus in both was the actions of lawmakers from essentially one party: the KMT.
Third, the mass recall movement is only possible due to the conclusions drawn by the Sunflower movement. The protests and the occupation at the legislature led to a push to lower recall thresholds. Ironically, the efforts were championed by the New Power Party (NPP) following the 2016 legislative elections, spearheaded by then-NPP chairman Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌). Huang is now chairman of the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), which has been playing second fiddle to the KMT since the two parties achieved a combined legislative majority. Unsurprisingly, Huang’s support for recalls as a mechanism for removing problematic lawmakers has dropped.
Fourth, interest in the unprecedented, politically fascinating and significant nature of the two movements has been glossed over by international media.
It is confusing that foreign media have not shown more interest in the recalls, given the captivating historic arc and the relevance for the immediate future of a nation that plays an important geopolitical role.
The dramatis personae include the DPP, which started in the dissident dangwai (黨外, “outside the party”) movement in the authoritarian KMT party-state era, but became the dominant governing party in the past quarter-century; and the KMT, which guaranteed its grasp on power through the courts, education system and martial law, and has fallen from grace and power since its authoritarian heyday.
Only one of its presidents — Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) — in the democratic era has held office for two terms. Ma sailed into power on the back of a massive corruption scandal involving the first non-KMT president, the DPP’s Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁). Ma’s pro-China stance, backing eventual unification, elicited suspicion among the electorate, leading to the Sunflower movement, which helped push the KMT from power.
Another cast member is Huang, transformed from a central figure in the Sunflower movement to a poster boy for the Stockholm-syndromed KMT appendage that the TPP has become.
Finally, there is the central role played by ordinary Taiwanese.
Among the sparse stories of the recall movement published in foreign media are reports that miss salient facts that justify the groundswell of grassroots dissatisfaction leading to the efforts, as was the case in the run-up to the events of 11 years ago. Some reported objectively, but others printed KMT talking points, such as “malicious recall,” the need to “oppose the green communists and fight against dictatorship” or the need to “keep channels of communication open” with China “to reduce tensions.”
Even with the quotation marks, and regardless of whether the points were reasonable or objectively true, the partial reporting and lack of context are unfortunate.
China has not been a top-tier issue for much of the second Trump administration. Instead, Trump has focused considerable energy on Ukraine, Israel, Iran, and defending America’s borders. At home, Trump has been busy passing an overhaul to America’s tax system, deporting unlawful immigrants, and targeting his political enemies. More recently, he has been consumed by the fallout of a political scandal involving his past relationship with a disgraced sex offender. When the administration has focused on China, there has not been a consistent throughline in its approach or its public statements. This lack of overarching narrative likely reflects a combination
Behind the gloating, the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) must be letting out a big sigh of relief. Its powerful party machine saved the day, but it took that much effort just to survive a challenge mounted by a humble group of active citizens, and in areas where the KMT is historically strong. On the other hand, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) must now realize how toxic a brand it has become to many voters. The campaigners’ amateurism is what made them feel valid and authentic, but when the DPP belatedly inserted itself into the campaign, it did more harm than good. The
For nearly eight decades, Taiwan has provided a home for, and shielded and nurtured, the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT). After losing the Chinese Civil War in 1949, the KMT fled to Taiwan, bringing with it hundreds of thousands of soldiers, along with people who would go on to become public servants and educators. The party settled and prospered in Taiwan, and it developed and governed the nation. Taiwan gave the party a second chance. It was Taiwanese who rebuilt order from the ruins of war, through their own sweat and tears. It was Taiwanese who joined forces with democratic activists
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) held a news conference to celebrate his party’s success in surviving Saturday’s mass recall vote, shortly after the final results were confirmed. While the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) would have much preferred a different result, it was not a defeat for the DPP in the same sense that it was a victory for the KMT: Only KMT legislators were facing recalls. That alone should have given Chu cause to reflect, acknowledge any fault, or perhaps even consider apologizing to his party and the nation. However, based on his speech, Chu showed
RSS