Taiwan Tati Cultural and Educational Foundation

On New Year’s Day, it is customary to reflect on what the coming year might bring and how the past has brought about the current juncture.

Just as Taiwan is preparing itself for what US president-elect Donald Trump’s second term would mean for its economy, national security and the cross-strait “status quo” this year, the passing of former US president Jimmy Carter on Monday at the age of 100 brought back painful memories of his 1978 decision to stop recognizing the Republic of China as the seat of China in favor of the People’s Republic of China.

It is an understatement to say that Taiwan has had a complicated relationship with Carter’s decision. It is also true that Taiwan today is a stronger, freer and more prosperous country than it was then, and it has transformed itself from being governed by an autocratic regime into a vibrant democracy.

The present POLITICAL chaos in Taiwan stems from the Legislative Yuan, as it does not accurately reflect the will of the majority. Rather, Taiwanese find themselves in a doomsday scenario where a minority of legislators are bullying the majority of citizens. However, why does the legislature not accurately reflect majority public opinion?

First, the legislative election contravened the fundamental human right of equal voting power. Compared with other legislators, how many votes did independent Legislator May Chin (高金素梅) have? What about Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Chen Yu-jen (陳玉珍)? The value of votes is clearly not equal, yet voting rights are treated as equal. That practice is incorrect, as it contravenes the fundamental human rights of the majority. It must be corrected — otherwise, it would be impossible for the results of votes in the Legislative Yuan to truly reflect public opinion.