Taiwan Tati Cultural and Educational Foundation

When Taiwanese officials signed up to take part in next year’s Shanghai World Expo, there was always the probability that the Chinese would use Taipei’s participation to promote Taiwan as Chinese territory.

After all, this is the distorted view of reality that the Chinese government has relentlessly tried to impose on people in every corner of the globe over the last few decades.

The elections of December 5th are past and one marked result is the fact that the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has regained power in its former stronghold, Yilan County. Ma Ying-jeou as both President of the country and Chairman of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) had zealously and extensively campaigned there to prevent this, putting both his own reputation and the party's on the line. Despite this, the people voted in the DPP candidate. Whether this can be seen as an indication that the people of Taiwan are developing a growing mistrust of their president whom many are beginning to call the phony pony, is one matter. But there is another matter, that of Ma breaking the law in his campaigning.