Taiwan Tati Cultural and Educational Foundation

Tsai not learning from mistakes

Taipei Times Editorial

“I am the one who needs to change the most,” President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) wrote on Facebook on Nov. 25, one day after she stepped down as Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) chairperson following the party’s electoral losses. Regrettably, the events of the past three weeks suggest that more thorough introspection is needed by Tsai, who apparently has yet to grasp why voters turned their backs on the DPP on Nov. 24.

Case in point one: Tsai has launched so-called “hallway chats,” addressing the media in a hallway of the Presidential Office Building — an idea clearly inspired by US president Franklin D. Roosevelt’s “fireside chats” and styled after the press talks US presidents give in the corridors of the White House.

NGOs urged to avoid ‘Chinese Taipei’

Taipei Times

A man holds up a scarf at a rally in Kaohsiung on April 7.
Photo: EPA-EFE / DAVID CHANG

Groups participating in international events should avoid using the name “Chinese Taipei,” which could be twisted to mean that Taipei is a part of China, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.

President Tsai must resign over poor record

Cheng Tien-chu 鄭天助

President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Nov. 24 announced that she is stepping down as Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) chairperson after the party suffered a string of stinging defeats in the nine-in-one elections. She did so amid a public outcry over her poor and inadequate leadership.

The public trusted and chose Tsai, gave DPP candidates an overwhelming majority in the Legislative Yuan and rejected the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) in the 2016 presidential and legislative and 2014 local elections. No more than three years later, Tsai has sown despair and dissatisfaction with her government in the hearts of the public.

Final sovereignty transfer needed

HoonTing 雲程

Taiwan is a successful example of transformation from authoritarian rule to democracy, but the nation still lacks the foundation for implementing true rule of law. Due to the confusion resulting from the Republic of China’s (ROC) Constitution, the consolidation of Taiwanese democracy has encountered problems that are hard to solve, and the nation is constantly bullied by China without being able to fight back.

In terms of its content, the Constitution was originally intended for China, which makes it inappropriate for Taiwan. Rendered ineffective for decades by the Temporary Provisions Effective During the Period of National Mobilization for Suppression of the Communist Rebellion (動員戡亂時期臨時條款), which served the needs of the military government, the Constitution was — absurdly — only restored after Taiwan’s democratization.

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