Taiwan’s ruling party needs to double down on democracy

Taiwan's current ruling party, the Democratic People's Party (DP), could have done that. win the victory A closely contested presidential election will be held on Saturday, but it is still too early to celebrate victory. The close margin of victory and the defeat of the majority in the Legislative Yuan may suggest that the Democratic Progressive Party has lost the heart and soul of many Taiwanese people.

Although the Democratic Progressive Party received 40.05% of the total votes, about 7 points more than the opposition Kuomintang Party (KMT), it was unable to secure an absolute majority of 113 seats. The Kuomintang won the most seats here, winning 52 seats, one more than the Democratic Progressive Party. Voter turnout was also the second lowest since his 1996 election, with only 71.9 percent of eligible voters voting. Preliminary figures From the Taiwan Central Election Commission.

The Democratic Progressive Party's failure to win a majority is perhaps a sign of its inability to inspire or resonate with the broader Taiwanese population, especially amid corruption scandals and #MeToo allegations.

This does not undermine the achievements of the Taiwanese government during President Tsai Ing-wen's tenure. In fact, she and the Democratic Progressive Party achieved many landmark victories, from legalizing same-sex marriage to strengthening international diplomacy and elevating Taiwan on the world stage. (Remember)'s incendiary 2022 visit to Taiwan). She also harshly asserted the party's position on Taiwan independence. said There is no need for a formal declaration of independence as it is “already independent”.

Despite this success, new President Lai Kiyotoku has been given the job he deserves. The close margin and tumultuous battle to secure the Democratic Party's victory make it clear that the party can no longer ride on its predecessor's backing.

In the run-up to the election, Ms. Tsai and Ms. Lai were famously photographed sitting together in front of a car in campaign advertisements. In the ad, Tsai says, To tell: “Taiwan has not been an easy car to drive. We have faced many difficulties…but we are firmly on the road.” But the Democratic Progressive Party has steadily I'm not satisfied with just moving forward. Mr. Lai needs to lead the party on a stronger hard line, rather than slipping into a boring and uninspiring centrist path. He said he could do that by taking a tougher stance on China, rather than wavering in his position, and is now taking a pragmatic approach to Taiwan's independence, saying, “I love Taiwan.'' “I feel as close to China as I do to China.”

The Democratic Party itself also stalled along the way, especially on that point. friendship Seeking diplomatic relations with authoritarian regimes.

Taiwan has always been hailed as a pioneer of democracy, with the exception of the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) truism that democracy is not for Chinese-speaking countries. We need to embrace that heritage in an open and unabashed manner. There is no longer any need for wishful thinking about Taiwan independence. We no longer need friendships with authoritarian “friends” that Chinese money can buy. Let's stop trying to appease a giant that won't back down.

The party needs to differentiate itself from the pro-Beijing Nationalist Party, which has succeeded in deceiving some Taiwanese citizens into believing that they can placate an aggressive power like China by being kind. However, this is not the case with dictatorships. Authoritarian governments never remain in place, especially when the desired territory is of material or strategic importance.with russia Venezuela is a notable example.

This does not mean that the Democratic Progressive Party needs to go on the offensive and unduly provoke China. Rather, we will double down on the core values ​​of democracy by opening channels of economic partnership and communication with other democratic partners, strengthen civil society so that foreign NGOs can gain a foothold in Asia, and strengthen civil society so that activists and democracies can gain a foothold in Asia. We need to support our advocates. Stay in a neighboring authoritarian state through educational scholarships and visit opportunities.

Being a role model for democracy means more than being a role model for others, from initiating political dialogue to channeling economic support to foster the emergence of new democracies in the region. requires active leadership.

Joyce Ho is a policy director at the Human Rights Foundation.