The government issued a tepid response to the founding of a “revolutionary communist” organization, saying the group had not formally registered as a political party and appeared to be more of an intellectual society or “book club.”
The group, known as the Revolutionary Communist Party of Taiwan, announced its formation on social media on Thursday last week, days after holding a “founding party congress” on Jan. 17 and Jan. 18.
“Nearly 20” supporters attended the founding event in Taipei, the Revolutionary Communist International said in a separate article on its Web site.
Photo: Screen grab from the Revolutionary Communist Party of Taiwan’s Facebook page
Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said the group appear to be followers of the ideas of Russian revolutionary Leon Trotsky.
Trotskyists adhere to “original Marxist ideals and humanism,” to the point of being “somewhat naive,” and have been regarded as troublesome by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) throughout its history, subject to purges and arrests, Liang said.
The group is unlikely to become collaborators with the CCP, because such local collaborators “have been driven by self-interest, not ideology,” he said.
According to the Ministry of the Interior, the group has not formally registered as a political party, and, given its revolutionary goals, was unlikely to do so, Liang said.
“I think we can view [this organization] as an intellectual society, or even a book club,” he said. “As long as they don’t engage in any illegal behavior, of course they can continue to exist.”
According to Constitutional Court Interpretation No. 644, issued in 2008, political parties in Taiwan can advocate for communism, Liang said.
Realistically, however, taking communism too seriously is also “intolerable” to the CCP, he added.
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