tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-330274452024-03-08T07:43:08.923+08:00Taiwan Matters!A group blog on politics in TaiwanTim Maddoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16943522529132663780noreply@blogger.comBlogger493125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33027445.post-71902935089350525762016-02-28T00:00:00.000+08:002016-02-28T00:00:04.510+08:00228 Massacre redux<b>Words do mean things</b><br>
<br>
The language that people use to write about Taiwan is a touchy subject, and many people can't get it right. Or they <i>can</i>, but they <i>won't</i>. There are many examples, but I just want to talk about one today: The 228 Massacre.<br>
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I used to say "228 Incident" myself, but when someone corrected me in 2007 and pointed out that I should instead refer to the tragedy as a "massacre," I immediately changed, and I'll never use that term again. I can't count the times since then that I've come across writings about the massacre which refer to it as an "incident," and some recent encounters with the latter term made me want to write about it.<br>
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It's particularly disturbing that the <i>Taipei Times</i> has recently been avoiding use of the word "massacre." The paper <a href="https://www.google.com.tw/search?q=site:www.taipeitimes.com+%22228+massacre%22" title="Search for [site-taipeitimes.com ''228 massacre'']">previously</a> seemed to prefer the term to describe the historical event, but recently, there have been too many instances where <a href="https://www.google.com.tw/search?q=site%3Awww.taipeitimes.com+%22228+incident%22+-massacre&source=lnt&tbs=cdr%3A1%2Ccd_min%3A1%2F1%2F2016%2Ccd_max%3A2%2F29%2F2016&tbm=" title="Search for [site-taipeitimes.com ''228 incident'' -massacre]">the word "massacre" has been left out entirely</a>. So I have to wonder why. Are the editors asleep, or do they just not care anymore?<br>
<br>
When soldiers shoot down civilians in the streets with machine guns or collect large groups of people and bury them alive — when it happens to between 18,000 and 30,000 people (<a href="http://www.taiwandc.org/hst-1947.htm" title="''Formosa killings are put at 10,000 — Foreigners say the Chinese slaughtered demonstrators without provocation''">10,000 in just the first month</a>) — it's not a mere "incident," and describing it that way is unbelievably coldhearted.<br>
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I hope that you, the reader, will not fall prey to the bad habit of describing the horror of the 228 Massacre as a mere "incident" or just by the number "228," and I hope you can help to rectify the situation by teaching others to follow your example.<br>
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<b>Flashback</b><br>
Here are a couple of my older posts about the 228 Massacre.<br>
• February 28, 2011: <a href="http://taiwanmatters.blogspot.tw/2011/02/my-thoughts-on-february-28-2011.html" title="''Lest we forget the 228 Massacre (二二八大屠殺) of 1947''">My thoughts on February 28, 2011</a><br>
• February 28, 2007: <a href="http://taiwanmatters.blogspot.tw/2007/02/remembering-two-228-incidents.html" title="''First, the one less talked about''">Remembering two 228 [Massacres]</a><br>
<hr align="left" width="13%" size="1" color="silver"><font size="-1" face="Arial">Cross-posted at <a href="http://indiac.blogspot.com/2016/02/228-massacre-redux.html" title="Paying *close* attention to those behind the curtain!">It's Not Democracy, It's A Conspiracy!</a></font><div class="blogger-post-footer"><center><font face="arial" size="-1">* * *<br/><i><font color="#005500">Taiwan</font> is <b>not</b> a province of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. The PRC flag has <b>never</b> flown over Taiwan.</i><br/>Stick that in your clipboards and paste it, you so-called "<a href="http://rconversation.blogs.com/rconversation/2006/04/taiwan_blogs_br.html#comment-16275861" title="That's what Rebecca MacKinnon says you are!">lazy journalists</a>"!</font></center></div>Tim Maddoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16943522529132663780noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33027445.post-18374947185548684242011-08-03T03:21:00.000+08:002011-08-03T03:25:40.857+08:00Ma Ying-jeou government under fire again<b>As time moves forward, Ma's administration moves backward</b><br /><br />A group of 39 observers of Taiwanese politics from around the world -- many of whom were part of an earlier series of open letters on the erosion of justice in Taiwan under the Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) government -- is in the news yet again. This time, they're <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/print/2011/08/02/2003509715" title="Tue, Aug 02, 2011 - Page 8: ''Open letter to President Ma''">focusing on the indictment against former president Lee Teng-hui</a> (李登輝).<br /><br />Here's some of the main content [highlights mine]:<blockquote>Dear President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九),<br /><br /><span style="background-color:#FFFF10;">We the undersigned, international academics, analysts and writers from the US, Canada, Europe and Australia, have for many years been keen observers of political developments in Taiwan</span>. We were delighted when Taiwan made its transition to democracy in the late 1980s and early 1990s, and we continue to care deeply for the country and its future as a free and democratic nation-state.<br /><br />However, <span style="background-color:#FFFF10;">during the past three years, many of us have felt it necessary to address publicly our concerns to you about the erosion of justice and democracy in Taiwan</span>, most recently in April this year regarding the charges of the "36,000 missing documents" against a number of prominent former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) officials. <span style="background-color:#FFFF10;">We raised these issues as international supporters of Taiwan's democracy</span>.<br /><br />At this time we express our deep concern about the charges against former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝), often referred to as "the father of Taiwan's democracy," who was indicted on June 30 on charges of allegedly channeling US$7.8 million from secret diplomatic funds into the Taiwan Research Institute. <span style="background-color:#FFFF10;">These charges and their timing raise a number of questions that are related both to the case itself and the integrity of the judicial system in Taiwan</span>.</blockquote>After detailing the specific questions (which you can read at the link above) -- the first of which mentions that the charges stem from events which took place about 15 years ago -- the letter continues [highlights mine]:<blockquote>Mr President, as head of state you bear overall responsibility for the state of affairs in Taiwan. In democratic systems, proper checks and balances between the executive, legislative and judiciary branches are of the utmost importance. The executive and the legislative branches have a responsibility to exercise oversight and to balance activism in the judiciary, just as the judiciary serves a similar role with regard to the executive and legislative branches. Stating that your government abides by "judicial independence" is therefore not enough. <span style="background-color:#FFFF10;">It is essential that all participants in the judicial process — prosecutors, judges and lawyers — are fully imbued with the basic principle that the judiciary is scrupulously impartial and not given to any partisan preferences</span>.<br /><br /><span style="background-color:#FFFF10;">We</span>, as members of the international academic community, <span style="background-color:#FFFF10;">are left with the impression that the indictments and practices of the judiciary in Taiwan over the past three years reflect a judicial system that is increasingly influenced by political considerations</span>. There has been a regression in the accomplishments of Taiwan's momentous democratization of the 1990s and 2000s. As good friends of Taiwan, <span style="background-color:#FFFF10;">we are deeply unsettled by this. It undermines Taiwan's international image as a free and democratic nation</span>.<br /><br />Mr President, <span style="background-color:#FFFF10;">we therefore urge you and your government to ensure that the judicial system is held to the highest standards of objectivity and fairness</span>. Taiwan has many challenges ahead of it and it cannot afford the political divisions created by the use of the judicial system for political purposes.<br /><br />Respectfully yours,<br />[the undersigned]</blockquote>You can say that again (and they probably will)!<br /><br /><b>Some of the prequels</b><br />Don't forget the earlier parts of this long-running series, listed here in chronological order:<blockquote>* <b>November 6, 2008:</b> Scholars and writers from around the world publish an "<a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2008/11/06/2003427918" title="By scholars and writers from around the world">Open letter on erosion of justice in Taiwan</a>." The same letter -- <a href="http://www.thepetitionsite.com/10/--if-gte-mso-9xml-wworddocument-wviewnormalwview-wzoom0wzoom-wpunctuationkerning" title="You can, too!">as an online petition</a> -- was signed by more than 2,000 people. (The petition is now closed.)<br /><br />* <b>November 25, 2008:</b> Minister of Justice Wang Ching-feng (王清峰) <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2008/11/25/2003429508" title="Their actions, however, betray their words">calls the open letter "inaccurate."</a><br /><br />* <b>December 2, 2008:</b> "<a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2008/12/02/2003430120" title="The writers and scholars reply to Wang Ching-feng">Eroding justice: Open letter No. 2</a>" counters Wang Ching-feng's claims.<br /><br />* <b>January 8, 2009:</b> Over a month later, <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2009/01/08/2003433246" title="'Response No. 2 on justice'">Wang Ching-feng comes up with "clarif[ications]"</a> regarding the open-letter writers' so-called "misunderstandings."<br /><br />* <b>January 21, 2009:</b> "<a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2009/01/21/2003434326" title="The number of writers and scholars is growing">Eroding justice: Open letter No. 3</a>" is addressed to President Ma Ying-jeou.<br /><br />* <b>January 24, 2009:</b> Two more "<a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2009/01/24/2003434533" title="Randall Schriver and Michael Yahuda">US-based Taiwan experts add [their] names to open letter [No. 3]</a>."<br /><br />* <b>January 25, 2009:</b> President Ma <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2009/01/26/2003434660" title="We've come full circle, eh?">claims the public had gained confidence in the judiciary in 2008</a> -- the exact opposite of what <a href="http://www.etaiwannews.com/etn/news_content.php?id=832380&lang=eng_news&cate_rss=news_Politics_TAIWAN&pg=2" title="'Judicial group calls for reforms': ''According to recent surveys conducted by Academia Sinica and the Web site Yahoo! Kimo, over 50 percent of the people do not believe in Taiwan's judicial system and over 75 percent have no confidence that the Judicial Yuan will undertake judicial reform''">this <i>Taiwan News</i> article tells us they actually felt</a>:<blockquote>According to recent surveys conducted by Academia Sinica and the Web site Yahoo! Kimo, <span style="background-color:#FFFF10;">over 50 percent of the people do not believe in Taiwan's judicial system</span> and <span style="background-color:#FFFF10;">over 75 percent have no confidence that the Judicial Yuan will undertake judicial reform</span> [...]</blockquote>* <b>May 22, 2009:</b> An estimable group of scholars and writers -- 26 in all, and each one with a deep understanding of Taiwan and the surrounding facts -- has composed <a href="http://taiwanmatters.blogspot.com/2009/05/another-open-letter-for-president-ma.html" title="''Another open letter for President Ma: Justice and human rights continue to erode''">an open letter addressed directly to President Ma Ying-jeou</a> (馬英九). The letter addresses the ever-increasing problems with judicial fairness, press freedom, the lack of transparency in the Chinese Nationalist Party's (<abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">KMT</abbr>) rapprochement with China, the loss of Taiwan's sovereignty, and the loss of human rights. The argument the letter makes is rock solid. It is based on demonstrable facts.<br /><br />* <b>November 9, 2009:</b> Then there were 31. The <i>Taiwan News</i> publishes an "<a href="http://www.etaiwannews.com/etn/news_content.php?id=1105620&lang=eng_news&cate_img=140.jpg&cate_rss=news_Opinion" title="The number grows...">Open letter to President Ma Ying-jeou by 30 international scholars</a>" which reminds us that "a decrease of tension across the Taiwan Strait would indeed be welcome, but [...] that this should not be done at the expense of the hard-won democracy" and that "Taiwan should be more fully accepted by the international community as a full and equal partner." (Here's <a href="http://zen.sandiego.edu:8080/Jerome/1258042024" title=".''Ma's Poor Performance Draws Yet a 5th Letter of Protest from International Scholars''">a version with 31 names</a> on the web site of one of the signatories, Jerome F. Keating, Ph.D.)<br /><br />* <b>December 13, 2009:</b> Government Information Office (GIO) Minister Su Jun-pin (蘇俊賓) submits the "<a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2009/12/18/2003461189" title="Dude, you guys *don't* ''enjoy[] the firm support of [the] citizenry''">GIO response to Nov. [9] open letter</a>" to the <i>Taipei Times</i>.<br /><br />* <b>December 25, 2009:</b> Richard Kagan, professor emeritus at Hamline University in St Paul, Minnesota and one of the signatories of the November 2009 letter, replies to Su Jun-pin's silliness in "<a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2009/12/25/2003461780" title="''From a historical perspective, Su is engaging in the colonization of his country by an empire. No mater [sic] how pure the pearl is, when it lands in stomach of the predator, it no longer shines.''">GIO's response misses the point</a>"<br /><br />* <b>January 8, 2010:</b> Government Information Office (GIO) Minister Su Jun-pin (蘇俊賓) churns out <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2010/01/08/2003462956" title="Does Su see any ''misperceptions and specious claims'' when he looks in the mirror? Naaaaaaaah!">A GIO response to Richard Kagan</a> (one of the signatories of the November 9, 2009 "<a href="http://www.etaiwannews.com/etn/news_content.php?id=1105620&lang=eng_news&cate_img=140.jpg&cate_rss=news_Opinion" title="The number grows...">Open letter to President Ma Ying-jeou by 30 international scholars</a>") in which Su compares apples and oranges by imagining that other people don't know that <font color="#FF0000">China</font> wants to annex Taiwan while the Taiwanese people don't want to be part of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>, ignores what has happened to Hong Kong in the past 12 and a half years, talks about the "double-taxation" issue as if <font color="#FF0000">China</font> won't still get those taxes from Taiwanese businesses, pretends to forget that Taiwan's Straits [sic] Exchange Foundation (海峽交流基金會) chairman and Chinese Nationalist Party (<abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">KMT</abbr>) vice-chairman Chiang Pin-kung (江丙坤) referred to himself as a "<a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2009/12/31/2003462285" title="''[Chiang] told the legislative committees yesterday that he was just a 'rubber stamp' and that his job was only to sign the cross-strait agreements''">rubber stamp</a>," complains that his government has no control over anything, ignores the <abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">KMT</abbr>'s <a href="http://www.etaiwannews.com/etn/news_content.php?id=1149078&lang=eng_news&cate_img=logo_taiwan&cate_rss=TAIWAN_eng" title="''President Ma Ying-jeou's ruling right-wing Chinese Nationalist Party (Kuomintang) government appears to have finally succeeded in its drive to take control over the Taiwan's Public Television Service Foundation (PTSF), which manages the Taiwan Broadcasting System (TBS) on behalf of our nation's citizens.''">continued attempts to take over Taiwan's Public TV</a> (PTS, 公共電視), confuses gains in local elections with a balanced legislature and a president who listens to majority opinion without oppressing minorities or stupidly saying out loud that he "sees them as humans," and completely omits the fact that the talks regarding an Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA) -- which <font color="#FF0000">Chinese</font> officials say "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRcpCyfrlHw" title="DPP ECFA referendum ad - with English titles">will certainly bring about complete unification of the motherland [sic]</a> -- have been anything but transparent and have not been subject to legislative oversight. These things, Mr. Su, are clear signs of an erosion of both justice <i>and</i> democracy.<br /><br />* <b>February 9, 2010:</b> Michael Danielsen, one of the signatories of the <a href="http://www.etaiwannews.com/etn/news_content.php?id=1105620&lang=eng_news&cate_img=140.jpg&cate_rss=news_Opinion" title="The number grows...">Open letter to President Ma Ying-jeou</a> last November, rebuts Su Jun-pin's <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2010/01/08/2003462956" title="Does Su see any ''misperceptions and specious claims'' when he looks in the mirror? Naaaaaaaah!">response to Richard Kagan</a> last month by pointing out that <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2010/02/09/2003465527" title="''Su seems to have a different understanding of democratic involvement than others. Based on his words, cross-strait relations are only important to the legislature if they are related to law, and the public should only have involvement between elections via the media. However, the agreements involving China and Taiwan deal with the key issue of Taiwan's future and its existence as a free and democratic nation, and for that reason the agreements are always important to the legislature and the public because of tensions with China and that country's obvious threats to Taiwan.''">Democratic liberty is fundamental</a>, "look[ing] forward to actual steps [by Su and the Ma government] that go beyond mere words."<br /><br />* <b>April 11, 2011:</b> <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/print/2011/04/11/2003500429" title="''We the undersigned, academics and writers from the US, Canada, Europe and Australia, are writing to you to express our concerns about a recent new development: the charges by your government that 17 former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) officials violated the National Archives Act (國家檔案法) and two other laws by 'failing to return' about 36,000 documents during the DPP administration.''">Another open letter</a> criticizes the government's charges that 17 former <abbr title="Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party">DPP</abbr> officials are responsible for "'failing to return' about 36,000 documents during the DPP administration" which ended almost three years earlier.<br /><br />* <b>April 14, 2011:</b> In what is hard <i>not</i> to perceive as intimidation, <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/print/2011/04/14/2003500687" title="''The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is looking into a petition by 34 foreign academics and former government officials that criticized President Ma Ying-jeou's (馬英九) administration over government accusations that 17 former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) officials failed to return 36,000 official documents.''">the Foreign Ministry says it's going to probe this latest open letter</a>, with Ma officials implying along the way that some of the writers were not of sound mind.<br /><br />* <b>April 17, 2011:</b> The Chinese-language <i>Liberty Times</i> (自由時報) notices the intimidation factor: "<a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/print/2011/04/17/2003500940" title="''Hearing the tone of this statement, one would be excused for thinking that we have returned to the authoritarian era. […] This attitude is no different from the attitude of autocratic China. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) do not have even the most basic understanding of how democracy, liberty and human rights are universal values and not a domestic issue that foreigners are poking their nose into.''">The Liberty Times Editorial: KMT uses law as a political weapon</a>."<br /><br />* <b>April 22, 2011:</b> The <i>Taipei Times</i> draws a similar conclusion: "<a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/print/2011/04/22/2003501358" title="''[I]n its sharp response to the letter, the Presidential Office sounded no different from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Presidential Office spokesman Lo Chih-chiang (羅智強) called it 'unfair' for foreigners who knew little about the situation to 'recklessly interfere in and criticize' the legal means the Ma government is using to address the matter. Basically, Lo called Bellocchi, University of Miami professor June Teufel Dreyer, Stephen Yates, a former deputy assistant for national security to former US vice president Dick Cheney, and many other experts on Taiwan nothing but 'ignorant foreigners.' ''">EDITORIAL: Government starts to sound like PRC</a>."</blockquote>I can already imagine how the Ma government will respond the latest letter.<br /><br />How long can this continue? As long as Taiwanese allow the <abbr title="The *Chinese* Nationalist Party that 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr> to hold political power, it will just keep going and going and going.<br /><hr align="left" width="13%" size="1" color="silver"><font size="-1" face="Arial">Unsealing utensils: <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Taiwan" rel="tag" title="NOT part of China!">Taiwan</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/台灣" rel="tag" title="不是中國的!">台灣</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/open+letter" rel="tag" title="Dear Citizens of the World, read this, and open your eyes">open letter</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/公開信" rel="tag" title="open letter">公開信</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/erosion+of+justice" rel="tag" title="What happens when authoritarians use money and terror to obtain and hold power">erosion of justice</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/侵蝕司法" rel="tag" title="erosion of justice">侵蝕司法</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Ma+Ying+jeou" rel="tag" title="Wants KMT-tler Youth to 'produce another Hu Jintao'">Ma Ying-jeou</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/馬英九" rel="tag" title="Ma Ying-jeou">馬英九</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Chinese+Nationalist+Party" rel="tag" title="Lost China, but kept the name">Chinese Nationalist Party</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/中國國民黨" rel="tag" title="''I want my ROC!''">中國國民黨</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Kuomintang" rel="tag" title="The Nationalist Party of *China*">Kuomintang</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/KMT" rel="tag" title="'Killed Many Taiwanese'">KMT</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/國民黨" rel="tag" title="X is to Taiwan as Nazis were to Austria?">國民黨</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Lee+Teng-hua" rel="tag" title="Taiwan's first Taiwanese president, AKA 'Mr. Democracy'">Lee Teng-hui</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/TAG+NAME" rel="tag" title="Lee Teng-hui">李登輝</a><br /><br />Cross-posted at <a href="http://indiac.blogspot.com/2011/08/ma-ying-jeou-government-under-fire.html" title="Paying *close* attention to those behind the curtain!">It's Not Democracy, It's A Conspiracy!</a></font><div class="blogger-post-footer"><center><font face="arial" size="-1">* * *<br/><i><font color="#005500">Taiwan</font> is <b>not</b> a province of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. The PRC flag has <b>never</b> flown over Taiwan.</i><br/>Stick that in your clipboards and paste it, you so-called "<a href="http://rconversation.blogs.com/rconversation/2006/04/taiwan_blogs_br.html#comment-16275861" title="That's what Rebecca MacKinnon says you are!">lazy journalists</a>"!</font></center></div>Tim Maddoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16943522529132663780noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33027445.post-39303767032079543582011-04-14T01:45:00.001+08:002011-04-15T20:42:54.689+08:00What's wrong with Taiwan’s current electoral system<b>A lesson for Taiwan's swing voters about the importance of legislative elections</b><br /><br />Many people in Taiwan believe that as long as they have right to vote, then they live in a democratic society. Few people would further examine whether they are actually able to go to the polls under fair rules. Fair rules give election results that protect democracy while unfair rules put it in jeopardy.<br /><br />This post refers to a published academic paper and to the current ROC Constitution in order to demonstrate to readers some problems with the current electoral system in Taiwan, one which actually gives permanent advantages to the pan-blue coalition in elections for the Legislative Yuan (LY). Unless corrective measures are taken, Taiwan's political institution is heading towards an unhealthy direction, i.e. it either selects a KMT president with a "rubber-stamp" Legislative Yuan -- which allows unchecked KMT executive power -- or ensures a DPP lame duck president who cannot carry out policies s/he wishes to implement.<br /><br />For Taiwan's Legislative Election results see the links <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Legislative_Yuan_elections" title="Wikipedia article">here</a>.<br /><br />For info on how the 2008 Legislative Yuan electoral districts were determined, read "<a href="http://www.taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=23810&CtNode=427">Central Election Commission reclassifies electoral districts</a>."<br /><br />Many western countries conduct national census on population every 5 or 10 years (such as the <a href="http://2010.census.gov/2010census/pdf/2010_Questionnaire_Info.pdf" title="PDF file via census.gov">census short form of the US</a> or <a href="http://www.statcan.gc.ca/imdb-bmdi/instrument/3901_Q1_V3-eng.pdf" title="PDF via Canadian gov't source">Canada</a>) and through census it forms the basis for electoral district divisions. However, electoral district divisions in Taiwan are not based on a census, leaving room for problems such as votes of unequal value (over representation and under representation), and gerrymandering. <br /><br />For how the new LY seat distribution rule was changed in 2008, see Note 1 under the "References" section below.<br /><br />For data on voter turnout rates, see <a href="http://www.idea.int/vt/country_view.cfm?CountryCode=TW">this link</a>. <br /><br />After the most recent legislative election in January 2008 in which the KMT won seats by a landslide majority (following the first implementation of the 2005 reforms, see Note 1), no one studied the most important reason behind the DPP's disappointing outcome in details better than <a href="http://web.pacific.edu/School-of-International-Studies/Faculty-and-Staff/Daniel-ONeill.html">a scholar named Daniel C. O'Neill</a>. He presented <a href="http://oneill.wustl.edu/dpp.pdf" title="PDF file">a paper</a> at the 2009 Midwest Political Science Association Conference in which he carefully observed the effect of electoral rules on the Democratic Progressive Party's performance in the 2004 and 2008 Legislative Elections in Taiwan.<br /><br />In brief, the description about the DPP's poor performance in the 2008 LY election can be read starting from p.14 of the paper with illustration of table 4 and 5 on the percentages of vote share and seat share by the DPP and the pan-green coalition respectively. A slight drop of approximately 3 to 4 percentage points in vote share (from 43.5% in 2004 to 39.1% in 2008) for the pan-green coalition translates into a huge drop of 21 percentage-point share of legislative seats (from 44.9% in 2004 to 23.9% in 2008.)<br /><br />On p.19 of the paper, O'Neill observed that in the 2004 LY election held under an SNTV (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Single_non-transferable_vote" title="Wikipedia article">single non-transferable vote</a>) electoral system, the DPP won 42% of the district seats with 36% of the vote (note: the figures used here are slightly different from the tables mentioned in the immediately preceding paragraph because it excludes the aboriginal districts from calculation per his note 8). In contrast, in 2008 under the MMM (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mixed_Member_Majoritarian" title="Wikipedia article">mixed member majoritarian</a>) system , the DPP's district vote share of over 38.7% earned the party fewer than 24% of the legislative seats. In other words, the DPP had a slightly larger vote share in 2008 than in 2004, but it resulted in an approximately 17 percentage-point drop in its share of legislative seats.<br /><br />The KMT has a strong organizational base dating to the days of its authoritarian one-party rule of the island. Under the new MMM system, this organizational advantage has helped the party to achieve the plurality needed to win district elections. There are other "advantages" -- such as the KMT's asset-rich vote buying tactics and its connection to local criminal factions -- that facilitate KMT dominance in local elections.<br /><br />For a study of vote buying in Taiwan's elections, see "<a href="http://web.mit.edu/cis/pdf/Rigger.pdf" title="PDF file">Weighing a Shadow: Toward a Technique for Estimating the Effects of Vote-buying in Taiwan</a>."<br /><br />Seat determination in the LY is most troubled by the problem that each vote does not carry the same weight, meaning some districts are over-represented while other districts are under-represented. This is shown in table 6 on p. 22 of O'Neill's paper for the one-seat districts.<br /><br />For population in each county see <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Republic_of_China_counties_and_cities_by_population" title="Wikipedia article">this link</a>.<br /><br />At the over representation extreme, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matsu_Island" title="Wikipedia article">Lienchiang County</a> -- with a population of only 9,786 -- elects one legislator. Kinmen County and Penghu County, with populations of 79,884 and 91,942 respectively, also have one seat each. These low-density population districts -- i.e. offshore islands and east coast of Taiwan's mainland (Taitung County) -- traditionally KMT strongholds -- can elect legislators into the LY. On the other hand, the four one-seat districts with the greatest populations in Taiwan -- Hsinchu County, Yilan County, Hsinchu City, and Keelung City (475,928; 445,811; 395,239 and, 382,109 respectively) -- are examples of underrepresentation. There are also districts with the smallest population among the cities and counties with multiple seat representation, an example is Nantou County District 1 with 240,511 people, just 50.5% of the Hsinchu County district's population but with equal representation.<br /><br />Historically, in early 19th century England and Wales, we saw the representation problem of the "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rotten_borough" title="Wikipedia article">rotten boroughs</a>" after the industrial revolution moved the cluster of residents into the booming industrial towns, but the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reform_Act_1832" title="Wikipedia article">Reform Act of 1832</a> with later <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reform_Act" title="Wikipedia article">Reform Acts</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Representation_of_the_People_Act" title="Wikipedia article">Representation of the People Acts</a> corrected some of the problems.<br /><br /><center><a href="http://img197.imageshack.us/img197/3917/sixpointsofthepeoplesch.jpg" title="The six points of the People's Charter. This text is taken from a handbill handed out in the streets of Britain in 1838. -- hosted by ImageShack"><IMG SRC="http://img197.imageshack.us/img197/3917/sixpointsofthepeoplesch.jpg" WIDTH="480" HEIGHT="627" BORDER="0" ALT="The six points of the People's Charter. This text is taken from a handbill handed out in the streets of Britain in 1838."></a><br /><font size="-1" face="Arial">The six points of the People's Charter from a handbill handed out in the streets of Britain in 1838. Pay special attention to point five.<br />(From <i>Think History!: Modern Times 1750-1990</i>, by Caroline Beechener, Clive Griffiths, Amanda Jacob, ©2004, Pearson Education)</font></center><br />Now in the 21st century, Taiwan's democracy faces a similar issue of unequal representation. Isn't it time for a national census to determine the electoral districts? Drawing the electoral district borders should not be left until the last moment when strategic party planning for winning votes are hidden agenda for drawing the borders. Isn't it time for an effective <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delimitation" title="Wikipedia article">delimitation</a> to take place, one that is suitable for Taiwan's democracy to strive, before we even think about any elections and potential candidates and their policies?<br /><br /><b>The ROC Constitution on presidential recall and impeachment affecting election outcome</b><br /><br />The DPP's presidential candidate in 2008, Frank Hsieh, did not even stand a chance against the KMT's Ma Ying-jeou because of the KMT's overwhelming majority in the LY election outcome two months earlier and the ROC Constitution for the impeachment of president practically eliminated Hsieh's chances. If Frank Hsieh had won the presidential election, he would have faced a hostile KMT majority in the LY that could initiate an impeachment shortly after his inauguration.<br /><br />For details on presidential recall and impeachment read the excerpt in the "References" section below.<br /><br />This important ROC Constitution governing presidential impeachment factor that had indeed affected the outcome of the 2008 presidential election was not mentioned by any of the foreign press at all. The mainstream media easily attributed Ma's win to Taiwanese welcoming his conciliatory China policy and to his promise to improve the economy. The media failed to observe that, on the contrary, Ma actually won the presidential campaign with the help of the LY election outcome earlier plus Ma's pre-election tactics of pretending to be a "true Taiwanese" -- growing up eating Taiwanese rice and speaking some Taiwanese to voters -- ready to defend Taiwan's interests and promising "no unification" during his term if elected. I believe the low turnout rate in the presidential election in 2008 can be attributed to this factor -- many pan green supporters simply didn't bother to vote because they thought if Hsieh could be impeached by the LY after winning, why should they bother to vote? <br /><br />Without the backing of a majority in the legislature, a DPP (or pan-green) president will face a hostile LY that blocks any policies that he wishes to execute. (Remember which party's fault it was for not passing the arms purchase bill and for consequently weakening Taiwan's defense capabilities?) And worse, s/he would be facing the constant threat of impeachment by the LY, not to mention how an elected president could carry out his day-to-day duties. He would be spending all his time dealing with a hostile legislature that could initiate countless impeachment proceedings anytime it sees an opportunity (since the 2005 reform package did not set a limit on how many times such proceedings can take place).<br /><br />The rules for impeachment of the ROC president say that it can only be initiated by the LY -- not by the people through a referendum. So even if half of the electorate in Taiwan wanted Ma to leave office after police mishandled protesters during Chen Yunlin's first visit to Taiwan and for his refusal of immediate foreign assistance during typhoon Morakot, as long as his party members occupied two-thirds of the LY seats, he'd be there to stay.<br /><br />Do you think it is fair for the KMT party to receive about 56% of the popular votes but gain about 75% of the legislative seats? Do you think it is fair for a president that receives about 58% of the votes to have a 75% rubber-stamping legislative army to back his unchecked policies?<br /><br />Isn't it time for the electoral system to undergo scrutiny so the supposedly democratic elections will one day become truly democratic?<br /><br />I would like to offer a tentative electoral system that may be improved further with an objective of achieving a ratio of vote share to seat share to be as near as possible to 1:1. I believe that the indigenous people should be autonomous, and there should be no non-resident foreign representation in the LY.<br /><br />1. Counties and cities are not to be divided into very small districts; the LY seats should be determined by proration according to the county or the city's population over the total population of Taiwan. And let the total number of legislators be 115 (just to be used for calculations in the following examples)<br /><br />2. Very dense areas are to be subdivided while very low density areas should be combined as one district.<br /><br />3. Multiple member first-past-the-post ballot should be implemented, the first number of candidates, in order of highest vote, corresponding to the number of positions to be filled are elected. If there are six vacancies in a district then the first six candidates with the highest vote are elected. A multiple selection ballot where more than one candidate can be voted for in which voters are allowed to cast a vote for as many candidates as there are vacant positions; the candidate(s) with the highest number of votes is elected.<br /><br />4. Here are a few examples to illustrate the points above.<br /><br />Example1:<br /><br />Changhua county electoral district<br /><br />1,312,491 / 23,164,457 x 115 = 6.51 rounding off to 7<br /><br />So the county of Changhua will elect 7 legislators.<br /><br />Voters in the Changhua county will have a multiple selection ballot where they can select any candidates they wish to represent Changhu in the LY up a maximum of 7.<br /><br />The first 7 candidates receiving the highest ballots will be elected.<br /><br />Example 2:<br /><br />Penghu, Kinmen, Lienchiang combined into 1 electoral district.<br /><br />200,549 / 23,164,457 x 115 = 0.996 rounding off to 1 (since the population is 96,387 + 94,205 + 10,002 = 200,549)<br /><br />So these 3 areas combined will elect 1 legislator.<br /><br />Voters in these 3 areas will have a ballot where they can select only 1 candidate they wish to represent them in the LY.<br /><br />The candidate receiving the highest ballot will be elected.<br /><br />Example 3:<br /><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Taipei" title="Wikipedia article">New Taipei City</a> will elect 3,876,070 / 23,164,457 x 115 = 19.243 rounding off to 19 legislators.<br /><br />New Taipei City can be subdivided into three electoral districts. Two of the districts can elect six legislators per district, and the other district can elect seven legislators as long as the division of the district is such that the ratio of the population to the number of legislators in each district is kept nearly the same.<br /><br />The division of districts in high density areas gives us the incentive that a simple-questionnaire population census every 10 years is crucial to the success of district divisions, and Taiwan should do it for itself, not "<a href="http://www.newsahead.com/preview/2010/11/01/china-1-nov-2010-china-conducts-sixth-national-census/index.php">China tries to do it for us</a>."<br /><br />Two factors comprise the main obstacles to our attempt to correct our problematic electoral system. One is the KMT's deliberate ignorance for revamping the electoral system after the 2008 election -- wanting to stay as permanent majority in the LY-- and second is the erroneous belief by politicians around the globe that a new constitution in Taiwan (for the sake of Taiwan's democracy, Taiwan does need a new constitution) is a challenge to the "status quo," thus indirectly restricting the people in Taiwan to voting under a flawed ROC system.<br /><br />If I have an old car that needs frequent maintenance and change of parts, I may as well dump the old car and buy a new one that works. This is the way I feel about what's wrong with our system after so many attempts to reform the ROC constitution that were initially imposed upon the Taiwanese people and continuously needs reviews and reforms but will never be amended well enough by the non-representative parliament. A parliament in which the KMT always held a majority cannot correctly amend the constitution -- they just go in circles! Our referendum law is but one example.<br /><br /><b>Voter turnout for LY election must improve</b><br /><br />Unless the pan-green wins a majority in the legislative election next year, any talk about a DPP candidate winning the presidential election is futile if the KMT retains its majority in the LY to control the passing of bad laws and delaying the passage of good laws. Voters must realize the importance of exercising their voting rights in the LY election and show a big turnout contrary to past trends. In the past, voter turnout for LY elections has been low -- under 60% -- while voter turnout for the presidential election has been much higher -- no lower than 75%, and peaking at 82.69% in the 2000 presidential election.<br /><br />Since the KMT-dominated LY will not initiate a review of the rules relating to elections, a review of our referendum rights is at task.<br /><br />No wonder Taiwan's former president, Lee Teng-hui has the wisdom to call upon scrapping the ROC Constitution. "<a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2011/03/22/2003498790" title="March 22, 2011, Taipei Times">Lee calls for ROC Constitution to be scrapped</a>"<br /><br />So, wake up Taiwan! Let's talk about fair rules before we even talk about going into the polls. Without fair rules, how can we uphold democracy?<br /><br />And, wake up politicians of the world! How can Taiwan's representation be subject to Beijing's approval for international presence (membership) when China's leaders (and therefore its representation) have not even been elected by its own people?<br /><br />Only democracy can protect Taiwan, and only democracy (not economic engagement) can change China for the better!<br /><br /><b>References:</b><br /><br />1. Note1: <a href="http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Additional_Articles_of_the_Constitution_of_the_Republic_of_China_(2005_Reform)" title="Wikisource">Additional Articles of the Constitution of the Republic of China (2005 Reform)</a>, Article 4 governs the rules on how LY seats are determined<br /><br />2. <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2008/01/16/2003397518" title="A letter to the editor in the Taipei Times">My own observations just after the 2008 LY Election</a><br /><br />3. <a href="http://www.ly.gov.tw/en/01_introduce/introView.action?id=8" title="Official government source">Rules on recall and impeachment of ROC president</a> -- the excerpt here is from a source in this link:<blockquote>Recall of the State President or the State Vice President shall be initiated upon the proposal of the Legislative Yuan and shall be passed by more than one half of the valid ballots in a vote in which more than one half of the electorate in the free area of the Republic of China participate. The Legislative Yuan shall initiate the recall upon the proposal of no less than one-fourth of all members of the Legislative Yuan, and present the proposal with a clearly stated reason for such a recall to the Procedure Committee to have it included in the agenda to be sent to the YuanSitting. The Yuan Sitting shall, with no discussion required, refer the proposal to the Committee of the Entire Yuan for the latter to finish deliberation within 15 days. Prior to the deliberation by the Committee of the Entire Yuan, the Legislative Yuan shall notify the recalled subject to submit a written defense within seven days before the deliberation. When the Legislative Yuan receives the written defense, it shall distribute the report to each member. Should the recalled subject fail to submit the written defense, the Committee of the Entire Yuan may still continue the deliberation. After the deliberation, the Committee of the Entire Yuan shall submit the proposal to the Yuan Sitting for registered voting. Such a recall of the State President or the State Vice President is passed with no less than two-thirds of all the Legislative Yuan members concurring in the registered voting. The Committee of the Entire Yuan shall promulgate and inform the recalled subject of the voting result.<br /><br />For the impeachment of the State President or the State Vice President, the Legislative Yuan must initiate it upon the proposal of more than half of the entire Yuan members; a written proposal with detailed reasons for such an impeachment must be referred to the Procedure Committee later to have it included in the agenda to be sent to the Yuan Sitting. No discussion is required, the Yuan Sitting shall refer the proposal to the Committee of the Entire Yuan for examination, during which the impeached subject may explain on the floor at the invitation of the Legislative Yuan. What follows the examination is an anonymous vote in the Yuan Sitting; should no less than two-thirds of all the Legislative Yuan members concur in the voting, an impeachment case then by resolution shall be submitted to the Grand Justices. Once the case is sustained at the Constitutional Court, the impeached subject shall forthwith resign.</blockquote>4. Taiwan's current population statistics are based on <a href="http://eng.stat.gov.tw/mp.asp?mp=5" title="Official government source">this link</a>.<br /><br />5. Another interesting observation about Taiwan's elections by Jerome Keating: "<a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2011/04/05/2003499936" title="A letter to the editor of the Taipei Times">The hidden face of Taiwan politics</a>"<br /><br />6. <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2011/04/09/2003500271" title="Good background from the editorial page of the Taipei Times">Understanding combined elections</a><br /><br />7. Announcement of investigation by the Control Yuan of some "missing documents" by former DPP officials including Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) just one day before he declared his candidacy in the DPP presidential primary, but 1,036 days after Ma took the presidential office. <i><a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2011/04/11/2003500429" title="''Open letter to Ma Ying-jeou's KMT government''">What is Ma's intention?</a></i><br /><br /><font size="-1">(<i>Some editing by Tim Maddog</i>)</font><div class="blogger-post-footer"><center><font face="arial" size="-1">* * *<br/><i><font color="#005500">Taiwan</font> is <b>not</b> a province of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. The PRC flag has <b>never</b> flown over Taiwan.</i><br/>Stick that in your clipboards and paste it, you so-called "<a href="http://rconversation.blogs.com/rconversation/2006/04/taiwan_blogs_br.html#comment-16275861" title="That's what Rebecca MacKinnon says you are!">lazy journalists</a>"!</font></center></div>Άλισονhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05409063245062952864noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33027445.post-2352795711418400832011-03-02T21:21:00.005+08:002011-03-19T18:40:15.127+08:00CrossroadsThe DPP is currently at a crossroads. Ahead are critical intra-party primaries for the party's candidates for the 2012 Presidential Election. How each candidate addresses the issue of the party's position on relations to China will likely heavily impact their appeal to the public. The leading candidates in this race are Chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌). Former Vice-President Annette Lu and Hsieh Chang-ting (謝長廷) have also announced their interest in, or intentions to, run. Today, two articles in the Taipei Times examined each of the candidates positions and came to two different conclusions:<br /><br />Editorial: <a href="http://taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2011/03/02/2003497131">The Meaning of Tsai's Formula</a><br />Chen Wen-hsien (陳文賢)(Professor at National Chengchi University’s Graduate Institute of History): <a href="http://taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2011/03/02/2003497133">DPP must make its sovereignty stance clear</a><br /><br />The editorial nicely summarises the positions of the leading contenders on China:<br /><blockquote><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文)</span></b> </blockquote><blockquote>She used the Chinese phrases he er butong<b> (和而不同)</b> and he er qiu tong <b>(和而求同)</b>. Tsai’s phrasing is inspired by the Confucian Analects. To be precise, Book 13, verse 23, in which Confucius says: “The true gentleman seeks harmony, but reserves the right to disagree (he er butong, 和而不同); the base person agrees without necessarily seeking harmony (tong er buhe, 同而不和).” When Tsai talks about seeking harmony, she is referring to the status quo, arguing that the discussion should start with recognizing Taiwan and its values, and from there seek to maintain and nurture relations with China. In this, she does not diverge from the DPP’s consistent position. The second phrase, he er qiu tong, means “seeking agreement in a spirit of conciliation,” which is basically an extension of the first idea. It is a recognition that Taiwan and China have shared responsibilities and interests and should be seeking peaceful and stable relations and fostering development, not focusing on unification or independence. Not only is this consistent with the DPP’s 1999 Resolution on Taiwan’s Future, it also leaves room for cross-strait relations to develop. </blockquote><blockquote><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌)</span></b> </blockquote><blockquote>Former premier Su Tseng-chang’s (蘇貞昌) “Taiwan consensus” (台灣共識) holds that, after four direct presidential elections, Taiwan should be considered a sovereign, independent country, does not belong to the People’s Republic of China, and, according to the Constitution, is currently called the Republic of China. Any change to that would require the consent of the entire country, although such a change already enjoys a majority consensus. Su’s formulation benefits from its clarity and is in line with the “status quo” and the spirit of the DPP platform. The phrase is clear, compared with the opacity of Tsai’s concepts, but it won’t find many advocates in Beijing. </blockquote><blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><b>Former Vice-President Annette Lu</b></span> </blockquote><blockquote>Lu’s “1996 consensus” says Taiwan became a sovereign nation when it held its first direct presidential election in 1996. Uncompromising in its stance, it appeals to the pro-independence faction, but has little chance of building a consensus outside the DPP. </blockquote><blockquote><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Hsieh Chang-ting (謝長廷)</span></b> </blockquote><blockquote>Former premier Frank Hsieh’s (謝長廷) “constitutional consensus” (憲法共識) emphasizes the differences that exist between the respective political and legal systems. The pan-green camp has its issues with this idea, however, as the Constitution still seeks unification.</blockquote>Chen's article more broadly covers what he thinks the DPP should do in the next few months if it wishes to appeal to a public he claims are ready for a broadly pro-Taiwan or 'proud of Taiwan' message:<br /><blockquote>The DPP should clearly state its support for Lee’s formula as representing Taiwan’s core interests. In so doing, it would be upholding the direction mapped out for Taiwan by these past Taiwan-oriented national leaders. </blockquote><blockquote>It is only to be expected that China would react with threats and saber rattling. However, in this age of globalization, countries and economies are interdependent. If China resorted to force just because the DPP said Taiwan is a country, it would only harm its own interests and its belligerence would find no international support. </blockquote><blockquote>So the key question is not what the DPP says about Taiwan’s national status; what matters is that the DPP should show greater wisdom and patience in communicating with countries that support Taiwan and in engaging with Beijing. </blockquote><blockquote>The right way for the DPP to respond to these developments would be to stress its willingness to cooperate with Chinese people and government, on the basis of equality, to maintain peace and prosperity and to support China’s development into a democratic state.<br />If the DPP keeps avoiding the issue of Taiwan’s national status, it will neither gain the support of the international community nor the support of local voters. </blockquote><blockquote>Apart from demanding that all DPP members and government officials should work and perform even better, the party needs to stick to its position that Taiwan is a democratic and just country that deserves to be respected by the international community. Such steadfastness would surely win the hearts of the public, so it can be voted back into office and ensure Taiwan’s survival.</blockquote>Lu's 1996 Consensus could potentially chime with the public as it places an emphasis on Presidential elections as evidence of an practiced independent statehood that everyone actively shares. The only problem is the person advocating it and her unpopularity both with the swing voters and light blues necessary for the DPP to win. It is more concrete than Su's Taiwan Consensus and is far more accessible as an idea to the public than Hsieh's Constitutional Consensus. However, Tsai's new approach, whilst vague, cautiously (and sensibly?) seeks a moderate ground for moderate voters - Tsai has chosen to play it safe and not bang the drum too loud. This is perhaps because she fears that if her campaign alienates too many big power players along the way to an election victory then she might also find herself, like President Chen, effectively unable to implement her policies, especially if voters return a strongly KMT controlled Legislative Yuan. <br /><br />Chen's article illustrates desire amongst some in the pan-green camp for maximising on the belittlement of Taiwan by the PRC and tapping into the latent Taiwan national identity balking at President Ma's fawning over China and his ideological fixation with all things Chinese. It does not however come over as practical strategic advice for the party at this stage. Reiterating that Taiwan is a democratic and just country is not a meme that would hurt Ma's campaign as he too has run on that platform before each of his elections. Ma can also claim to wish for democracy in China and <i>"willingness to cooperate with Chinese people and government, on the basis of equality, to maintain peace and prosperity". </i>That's exactly the smokescreen Ma and the KMT have used to mask their willingness to be subservient to the Chinese people and government, on the basis of the fictional '1992 Consensus' and equalities of political parties in negotiations to maintain peace (between parties) and prosperity (for the parties and sycophants that follow them).<br /><br />This leaves me with the conclusion that for now, I still find Tsai's approach and leadership to be trustworthy and intelligent. It's not perfect, may not even be excellent but it is the best the DPP have. The DPP above all need to have a clean and fair contest in the primaries and then complete party solidarity behind the winner, whoever that may be.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><center><font face="arial" size="-1">* * *<br/><i><font color="#005500">Taiwan</font> is <b>not</b> a province of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. The PRC flag has <b>never</b> flown over Taiwan.</i><br/>Stick that in your clipboards and paste it, you so-called "<a href="http://rconversation.blogs.com/rconversation/2006/04/taiwan_blogs_br.html#comment-16275861" title="That's what Rebecca MacKinnon says you are!">lazy journalists</a>"!</font></center></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33027445.post-78577798461767640702011-02-28T23:18:00.002+08:002011-03-01T01:00:14.003+08:00My thoughts on February 28, 2011<b>Lest we forget the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/228_Massacre" title="Estimates of the number of deaths vary from 10,000 to 30,000 or more. The Incident marked the beginning of the Kuomintang's White Terror period in Taiwan, in which thousands more inhabitants vanished, died, or were imprisoned.">228 Massacre</a> (二二八大屠殺) of <a href="http://www.taiwandc.org/hst-1947.htm" title="Formosa killings are put at 10,000 - Foreigners say the Chinese slaughtered demonstrators w/out provocation">1947</a></b><br /><br />What am I thinking about on this 64th anniversary of one of the most horrific events in Taiwan's history?<br /><br />I'm remembering with dismay that the Chinese Nationalist Party (<abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">KMT</abbr>) is still in power -- even after behaving as colonizers for over six decades -- because they still use illicit methods to get elected. Here are some examples:<blockquote>* Vote buying is rampant even <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/09/26/2003483786" title="''The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday elected 32 Central Standing Committee (CSC) members, calling back several former members who had their election status revoked last year because of bribery claims. Lee Chuan-chiao (李全教), one of those who lost his election status as a CSC member last year because of election bribery, received 1,079 votes and topped the election list.''">within their own party's Central Standing Committee</a>, but they keep putting the guilty ones right back in.<br /><br />* In the January 2010 legislative by-elections, "Two of the three seats up for grabs […] in Taoyuan, Taichung and Taitung counties were left vacant by former KMT legislators found guilty of vote-buying," reminding us of their <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/01/05/2003462704" title="''The Taoyuan County Second District spot became vacant in October after the KMT's Liao Cheng-ching (廖正井) lost his seat following a conviction on vote-buying charges. […]] The Taichung legislative by-election will fill the seat left vacant when former KMT legislator Chiang Lien-fu (江連福) lost his seat, also on vote-buying charges.''">"tradition of buying votes."</a><br /><br />* Lee Min-yung (李敏勇) reminds readers: "<a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2004/07/22/2003179952" title="Taipei Times - Thu, Jul 22, 2004 - Page 8: ''Vote-buying has roots in one-party dictatorship''">The roots of vote-buying</a> can be found in the Chinese Nationalist Party's (KMT) long hold on power and its system for distributing the spoils of government."<br /><br />* Laurence Eyton enlightens in a 2004 piece in the <i>Asia Times Online</i>: "[The <abbr title="The *Chinese* Nationalist Party that 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr>] has traditionally used its wealth to engage in what it calls <a href="http://www.atimes.com/atimes/China/FL01Ad03.html" title="''Taiwan's 'post-election stress syndrome'''">'traditional electoral practices', ie vote buying […]"</a></blockquote>I'm reminded that the <abbr title="The *Chinese* Nationalist Party that 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr> still uses thuggery to maintain their power. Here are some examples:<blockquote>* When disgraced former Toronto-based Government Information Office (GIO) official Kuo Kuan-ying (郭冠英) returned to Taiwan, he was picked up at airport and "assisted" by <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2009/04/01/2003439943" title="Taipei Times, Wed, Apr 01, 2009 - Page 1: ''Clashes, car chases dog Kuo's return''">thugs in black shirts assigned by Bamboo Union (竹聯幫) gang leader Chang An-le (張安樂)</a>.<br /><br />* <a href="http://taiwanmatters.blogspot.com/2009/05/tainan-police-turn-blind-eye-to-thug.html" title="Monday, May 04, 2009, Taiwan Matters: ''Tainan police turn blind eye to thug violence''">People wearing black T-shirts and vests bearing the name of the Matsu Temple</a> (大天后宮) physically remove college students from a protest against the Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) government's policies regarding students from China.<br /><br />* Despite denials by police, experience should tell you who <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2011/02/27/2003496893" title="''Dozens of young men dressed in black came out yesterday in support of Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait Chairman Chen Yunlin (陳雲林), closely following him as he made his way to a university in Yunlin County. Local politicians and some of the protesters at the scene said the young men, most of whom looked like high school or college students, were connected to local gangs, although the reports could not be confirmed.''">the guys in the black shirts helping to defend <font color="#FF0000">Chinese</font> envoy Chen Yunlin</a> (陳雲林) are.<br /><br />* Read <a href="http://taiwanmatters.blogspot.com/2010/08/formosa-betrayed-powerful-story.html" title="''* David Wu Da-wei + James Lee Shin-shen (the killers) = Chen Chi-li (陳啟禮) and others.''">my post about the movie "Formosa Betrayed,"</a> which dramatizes real incidents involving the <abbr title="The *Chinese* Nationalist Party that 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr>, including their use of gangsters to carry out the assassination of a political dissident on American soil.</blockquote>I'm reminded that the <abbr title="The *Chinese* Nationalist Party that 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr> is still distorting history. Here are some examples:<blockquote>* A <i>Taipei Times</i> editorial reminds readers about Ma's empty promises: "<a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2009/07/02/2003447611" title="Taipei Times - Thu, Jul 02, 2009 - Page 8: ''EDITORIAL: The memorial hall whitewash''">So much for saying that the memorial hall [renaming] issue was 'not a pressing matter.'</a>"<br /><br />* Here's a photo of a display from the renovated 228 Memorial Museum which <a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/twimitv6/20110218#5574955255116982130" title="Picasa photo album: ''獨立媒體TWIMI.NET - 2011.02.18 二二八紀念館重啟 歷史被竄改''">paints former dictator Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) as "recovering … order"</a> instead of as being the perpetrator of the massacre.<br /><br />* <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2011/02/20/2003496332" title="''What can our children learn about the tragic 228 Incident when all they see is a beautiful room filled with music, great photos of [former dictator] Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) and documents that portray the demonstrators as mobs?''">Exhibits at the newly-renovated museum</a> paint peaceful protesters as "mobs."<br /><br />* President Ma <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2011/02/21/2003496414/2" title="''Taking Germany as an example, Ma said Germans faced up to the history of the Nazis after World War II and changed the world's perception of the country. The German government -honestly dealt with its past, apologized to the victims and their families and admitted the mistake they made, he said. 'Frankly speaking, not many countries can do that,' he said. 'Some countries decide to erase their past rather than face it. The Republic of China government, however, chooses to face its past.' ''">pretends that the <abbr title="The *Chinese* Nationalist Party that 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr> has "dealt with its past"</a> to the same extent the government of Germany has done since World War II.<br /><br />* On the blog of Taipei City councilor Chien Yu-yen (簡余晏) you can read some of the details (Hanzi) and see photos (containing Hanzi text and a little bit of English) and video (Taiwanese and Mandarin audio, Hanzi text and a little bit of English) <a href="http://www.yuyen.tw/2011/02/blog-post_17.html" title="簡余晏部落格: 二二八歷史重新改寫,蔣介石英姿恢復台灣秩序">detailing some of the changes to the museum</a>.</blockquote>And I'm reminded that while <abbr title="The *Chinese* Nationalist Party that 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr> chairman Ma Ying-jeou -- elected as Taiwan's president in 2008 on a promise of "<a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2008/01/21/2003398185" title="''a clever spin-off of the People's Republic of China's (PRC) long-standing 'three noes' -- no Taiwan independence; no 'two Chinas' or 'one China, one Taiwan' and no Taiwan membership in organizations where statehood is required''">no unification, no independence and no use of force</a>" (不統、不獨、不武) -- has long <i>claimed</i> to support democracy, he <i>still</i> doesn't. Here are some examples:<blockquote>* Remember the days when <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/print/2004/01/29/2003096609" title="Taipei Times - Thu, Jan 29, 2004 - Page 3, ''Ma's democratic credentials queried''">Ma was publicly <i>against</i> direct presidential elections</a>.<br /><br />* Remember when the <abbr title="The *Chinese* Nationalist Party that 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr> <a href="http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/news/191821,taiwans-opposition-party-to-boycott-controversial-referendum.html" title="Earth Times - Wed, 12 Mar 2008, ''Taiwan's opposition party to boycott controversial referendum''">boycotted <i>their own</i> referendum</a> about Taiwan's participation in the United Nations.<br /><br />* The Executive Yuan's (行政院) Referendum Review Committee (公投審議委員會) <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2011/01/06/2003492788" title="''[C]ritics claim it is a trap by Beijing to lure Taiwan into an eventual political merger with China.''">turned down proposed referendums on the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA) with <font color="#FF0000">China</font> <i>three times</i></a>, despite (or perhaps <i>because of</i>) the fact that it had more than enough signatures and support in polls!<br /><br />* In mid-2009, the <a href="http://taiwanmatters.blogspot.com/2009/05/chinese-nationalist-party-hates-taiwans.html" title="Taiwan Matters! - Saturday, May 30, 2009 - ''The Chinese Nationalist Party hates Taiwan's democracy: Goodbye democracy, hello dead-dictator worship''">Ma government reverted the Taiwan Democracy Memorial Hall (臺灣民主紀念館) to its former name</a>: the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall (蔣中正紀念堂).</blockquote>And I wouldn't be able to forget, no matter how hard I tried, that while Ma is in office as president of <font color="#005500">Taiwan</font>, he primarily serves <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. Here are some very recent examples:<blockquote>* Ma wants people to <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2011/02/08/2003495360" title="''under the principle of 'one China […]'''">stop calling <font color="#FF0000">China</font> "China"</a> and to call it "the mainland" or "the other side."<br /><br />* A short time later, <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2011/02/24/2003496648" title="''Yang Yi (楊毅) said that Chinese officials had seen reports of Ma’s comment on the matter and they welcomed the move wholeheartedly.'' (And according to paragraph 8, Taiwan and Mongolia would be part of the same country. Ridiculous!)">Beijing "praises" Ma</a> for this.<br /><br />* The Philippine government deports 14 Taiwanese suspects to <font color="#FF0000">China</font>, basing the decision on a "one China" policy, yet <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2011/02/10/2003495504" title="''The Philippines' decision to send 14 Taiwanese fraud suspects to China for trial was made in observance of Manila's "one China" policy, Philippine Presidential Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr said yesterday.''">Ma places <i>zero</i> blame on <font color="#FF0000">China</font></a>.</blockquote>People of Taiwan, when are you going to stop this from ever happening again?<br /><br />If you have additional relevant examples to include in the topics above, please submit them in the comments below (use the HTML above the comment submission box for links) or via e-mail.<br /><br /><b>Further reading:</b><br />* <a href="http://www.wretch.cc/blog/liautiamding/1556724&page=3" title="''(置頂)二二八大屠殺死者名單照片大搜尋(無版權, 麻煩大家幫忙轉貼)''">Names and faces of some of the victims of the 228 Massacre</a> (Hanzi)<br /><br />* Wednesday, February 28, 2007 on <i>Taiwan Matters!</i>: <a href="http://taiwanmatters.blogspot.com/2007/02/remembering-two-228-incidents.html" title="''On February 28, 1980, while Lin Yi-hsiung (林義雄) was in prison on charges stemming from the Kaohsiung Incident, his seven-year old twin daughters and his mother were brutally murdered while their home was under 24-hour surveillance by secret police under the rule of Chiang Ching-kuo (蔣經國).''">Remembering two 228 Incidents</a> (written before someone pointed out the obvious: that it should be referred to as the "228 Massacre" instead)<br /><br />* Monday, March 1, 2004 on <i>It's Not Democracy, It's A Conspiracy!</i>: <a href="http://indiac.blogspot.com/2004/03/hand-in-hand-for-peace.html" title="''[U]up to 2 million people -- perhaps more -- joined hands forming a 500-kilometer long human chain to protest the [then-]496 Chinese missiles aimed at Taiwan and to urge the world to wake up and take notice of this sovereign country -- which is not a 'province of China.' Despite the international media's lack of coverage, I am quite proud to have been part of that chain.''">Hand-in-hand for peace</a> (about my participation in the "228 Hand-in-Hand Rally" at 2:28 PM on Saturday, February 28, 2004)<br /><br />* Monday, February 21, 2011 on <i>Strait Talk: It's Taiwan, not China... Tales from Formosa, The Beautiful Island</i>: "<a href="http://stephenanelson.blogspot.com/2011/02/formosa-displayed-formosa-betrayed.html" title="DESCRIPTION">Formosa Displayed, Formosa Betrayed: Taiwan's 228 Museum Rewriting History?</a>"<br /><hr align="left" width="13%" size="1" color="silver"><font size="-1" face="Arial">Dates with disaster: <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Taiwan" rel="tag" title="NOT part of China!">Taiwan</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/台灣" rel="tag" title="不是中國的!">台灣</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/228+Massacre" rel="tag" title="20,000 - 30,000 civilians killed is not *just* an ''incident''">228 Massacre</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/二二八大屠殺" rel="tag" title="The 228 Massacre of 1947">二二八大屠殺</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/228+Incident" rel="tag" title="KMT: ''But Mainlanders were killed, too''">228 Incident</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/二二八事件" rel="tag" title="The 228 ''Incident'' of 1947">二二八事件</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Ma+Ying+jeou" rel="tag" title="Wants KMT-tler Youth to 'produce another Hu Jintao'">Ma Ying-jeou</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/馬英九" rel="tag" title="Ma Ying-jeou">馬英九</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Chinese+Nationalist+Party" rel="tag" title="Lost China, but kept the name">Chinese Nationalist Party</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/中國國民黨" rel="tag" title="''I want my ROC!''">中國國民黨</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Kuomintang" rel="tag" title="The Nationalist Party of *China*">Kuomintang</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/KMT" rel="tag" title="'Killed Many Taiwanese'">KMT</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/國民黨" rel="tag" title="X is to Taiwan as Nazis were to Austria?">國民黨</a><br /><br />Cross-posted at <a href="http://indiac.blogspot.com/2011/02/my-thoughts-on-february-28-2011.html" title="Paying *close* attention to those behind the curtain!">It's Not Democracy, It's A Conspiracy!</a></font><div class="blogger-post-footer"><center><font face="arial" size="-1">* * *<br/><i><font color="#005500">Taiwan</font> is <b>not</b> a province of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. The PRC flag has <b>never</b> flown over Taiwan.</i><br/>Stick that in your clipboards and paste it, you so-called "<a href="http://rconversation.blogs.com/rconversation/2006/04/taiwan_blogs_br.html#comment-16275861" title="That's what Rebecca MacKinnon says you are!">lazy journalists</a>"!</font></center></div>Tim Maddoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16943522529132663780noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33027445.post-53374760019946656352011-02-11T20:31:00.004+08:002011-02-11T21:21:53.543+08:00The 2013 Cross-Strait Crisis: Day 18 - Speech by President Ma<div style="text-align: left;"><i>On Sunday the 17th of March 2013, President Ma Ying-jeou went on national television at 8pm in the evening to address the public and the approximately 7.5m protestors occupying the centers of Taipei, Taichung, Kaohsiung, Tainan, Hsinchu and over 20 other towns. </i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><br />
</i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i>The protests had first begun over three core issues: widening wealth gap and uneven distribution of ECFA benefits, rising costs for energy, food and land, and the China friendly cross-strait policies of President Ma who had been reelected in 2012 on a platform of defending Taiwan's sovereignty and dignity and 'going to the world through the Mainland'. The slight improvement in economic conditions in 2011 combined with a poor Presidential ticket from the largest opposition party, the pro-Taiwan DPP, had convinced enough Taiwanese to give Ma a second term despite their misgivings over the nature of the closer relations between the ROC and PRC, which were led to a large part by the KMT. </i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><br />
</i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i>The influx of Chinese people and goods into the country and the impact on the economy (exacerbated by the administration's unwillingness to define a clear difference between Taiwanese and Chinese citizens and their rights) had left a sour taste in the mouths of many formerly independent, swing and light blue voters. On February 26th, Lin Chiu-wen was detained by Taipei police for waving an ROC flag at a visiting Chinese delegation. That night, he died in custody. Police refused to release the body or allow an independent autopsy. The following day, the homes of several prominent Taiwanese bloggers covering the case were raided by police and the blog authors put into indefinite detention. TV's experienced blackouts for extended periods whenever news stations tried to report on events. </i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><br />
</i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i>On February 28th, the Vice-President took visiting ARATS Chairman Chen Yunlin to pay homage at the shrine of the Chiang's in Taoyuan county, the resulting pictures of a smiling Chen angering a large swathe of the population. On March 3rd 2012, the President met with Chen Yunlin and 40 senior KMT and CCP officials to negotiate a peace treaty in which the ROC would on October 10th 2015 be transformed into the Republic of Greater China (SAR), officially designated as a state of a federated PRC, and the 2016 Presidential elections would be renamed Chief Executive Elections. Upon hearing the news, Taiwanese rallied en masse in the centers of their cities, demanding that the peace treaty be scrapped, that the President resign immediately, that a new constitution be written for Taiwan and Taiwanese and that the crack down on civil liberties cease immediately. </i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><br />
</i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i>When that happened, the PRC ordered Ma to stamp out the protests or risk facing Chinese military action. Within days of the first strikes and occupations, the PRC began an economic embargo of Taiwan followed a week later by threats to enforce order itself. By day 18 of the siege, President Ma finally addressed the nation. Here is the text of his speech:</i></div><blockquote>I am addressing the citizens of Republic of China today in Freedom Square and across the country. I am addressing you all from the heart, a father's dialogue with his sons and daughters. </blockquote><blockquote>I am proud of you as the new Republic of China generation calling for a change to the better, dreaming and making the future. </blockquote><blockquote>First and foremost, I am telling you that the blood of your martyrs and injured will not go in vain. I assure you that I will not relent in harshly punishing those responsible. I will hold those who persecuted our citizens accountable with the maximum deterrent sentences. </blockquote><blockquote>I tell the families of those innocent victims that I suffered plenty for them, as much as they did. My heart was in pain because of what happened to them, as much as it pained their hearts. </blockquote><blockquote>I am telling you that heeding to your voice, your message and demands is an irretraceable commitment. </blockquote><blockquote>I am determined to live up to my promises with all firmness and honesty and I am totally determined to implement (them), without hesitation or reconsideration. </blockquote><blockquote>This commitment springs from a strong conviction that your intentions are honest and pure and your action. Your demands are just and legitimate demands. </blockquote><blockquote>The mistakes can be made in any political system and in any state. But, the most important is to recognise them and correct them as soon as possible and bring to account those who have committed them. </blockquote><blockquote>I am telling you that as a president I find no shame in listening to my country's citizens and interacting with them. </blockquote><blockquote>The big shame and embarrassment, which I have not done and never will do, would be listening to foreign dictations whatever may be the source or pretext.<br />
'Defined vision' </blockquote><blockquote>My sons, the citizens of Republic of China, brother citizens, I have unequivocally declared that I will not run for president in the next elections, satisfied with what I've offered my country in over 60 years during war and peace. </blockquote><blockquote>I declared my commitment to that, as well as my equal commitment to carrying out my responsibility in protecting the constitution and the people's interests until power and responsibility are handed over to whoever is elected in next September, following free and candid elections with guarantees of freedom and candour. </blockquote><blockquote>This is the oath I took before the Father of the Nation and my country and one which I will keep until we take the Republic of China and its people to a safe harbour. </blockquote><blockquote>I have set a defined vision to come out of this crisis and to carry out what the citizens and the citizens have called for in a way which would respect the constitutional legitimacy and not undermine it. </blockquote><blockquote>It will be carried out in a way that would bring stability to our society and achieve the demands of its citizens, and, at the same time, propose an agreed-upon framework for a peaceful transfer of power through responsible dialogue with all factions of society and with utmost sincerity and transparency. </blockquote><blockquote>I presented this vision, committed to my responsibility in getting the nation out of these difficult times and continuing to achieve it first, hour by hour, anticipating the support and assistance of all those who are concerned about Republic of China and its people, so that we succeed in transforming it (the vision) into to a tangible reality, according to a broad and national agreement with a large base, with the courageous military forces guaranteeing its implementation. </blockquote><blockquote>We have started indeed building a constructive national dialogue, including the Republic of China citizenss who led the calls for change, and all political forces. This dialogue has resulted in a tentative agreement of opinions and positions, putting our feet at the start of the right track to get out of the crisis and must continue to take it from the broad lines on what has been agreed upon to a clear road map and with a fixed agenda. </blockquote><blockquote>From now to next September, day after day, we'll see the peaceful transition of power. </blockquote><blockquote><b>Constitutional reforms</b><br />
This national dialogue has focused on the setting up of a constitutional committee that will look into the required amendments of the constitution and the needed legislative reforms. </blockquote><blockquote>It (the dialogue) also met about the setting up of a follow-up committee expected to follow up the sincere implementation of the promises that I have made before the people. </blockquote><blockquote>I have made sure that the composition of the two committees is made of Republic of China figures that are known for their independence and experience, experts in constitutional law and judges. </blockquote><blockquote>In addition to that, the loss of the martyrs of the sons of Republic of China in sad and tragic events has hurt our hearts and shaken the homeland's conscience. </blockquote><blockquote>I immediately issued my instructions to complete the investigation about last week's events (the clashes between pro- and anti-Ma Ying-jeou demonstrators) and submit its results immediately to the general prosecutor for him to take the necessary legal deterrent measures. </blockquote><blockquote>Yesterday, I got the first report on the top priority constitutional amendments proposed by the committee of justice system and law experts and that I have set up to look into the required constitutional and legislative amendments. </blockquote><blockquote>In response to the proposals in the committee's report, and in compliance with the prerogatives of the president of the republic, in conformity with Article 189 of the constitution, I have submitted a request today asking for the amendment of six constitutional clauses: 76, 77, 88, 93 and 189, in addition to the annulment of clause 179. </blockquote><blockquote>Moreover, I am asserting my readiness to submit, at a later time, an (additional) request to change any other clauses referred to me by the constitutional committee, according to the needs and justifications it sees fit. </blockquote><blockquote>These top-priority amendments aim to ease the conditions for presidential nominations, and the fixing of limited terms of presidency to ensure the rotation of power, and the strengthening of the regulations of elections oversight to guarantee their freedom and fairness. </blockquote><blockquote>It is in the judiciary's prerogative to decide about the validity and membership of MPs and amend the conditions and measures on the amendment of the constitution. </blockquote><blockquote>The proposal to delete Article 179 from the constitution aims to achieve the required balance between the protection of the nation from the dangers of terrorism and safeguarding the civil rights and freedoms of the citizens which opens the door to the lifting of the emergency law following the return of calm and stability and the presence of suitable conditions to lift the state of emergency. </blockquote><blockquote><b>'In one trench'</b><br />
Brother citizens, the priority now is to bring back trust between Republic of China citizens, trust in our economy and our international reputation, and trust in protecting the change and movement that we have started from turning back or retreating. </blockquote><blockquote>The Republic of China is going through difficult times which it is not right for us to allow continuing, as it will continue to cause us and our economy harm and losses, day after day, which will end in circumstances which those citizens who called for change and reform will become the first to be harmed by. </blockquote><blockquote>The current moment is not to do with myself, it is not to do with Ma Ying-jeou, but is to do with Republic of China, its present and the future of its children. </blockquote><blockquote>All Republic of China citizens are in one trench now, and it is on us to continue the national dialogue which we have started, with a team spirit, not one of division, and far from disagreement and infighting so that we can get Republic of China past its current crisis, and to restore trust in our economy, and tranquillity and peace to our citizens, and return the Republic of China’s streets to normal everyday life. </blockquote><blockquote>I was as young as Republic of China's citizens today, when I learned the Republic of China military honour, allegiance and sacrifice for my country. </blockquote><blockquote>I have spent a lifetime defending its soil and sovereignty. I witnessed its wars, with its defeats and victories. </blockquote><blockquote>I lived the days of defeat and occupation, I also lived the days of the (retrocession) crossing, victory and liberation. </blockquote><blockquote>It was the happiest day of my life when I raised the flag of Republic of China over Taipei. </blockquote><blockquote>I faced death many times as a student, in America, and numerous other times. I never succumbed to foreign pressure or dictations. </blockquote><blockquote>I kept the peace. I worked towards the stability and security of Republic of China. I worked hard for its revival and for its people. </blockquote><blockquote>I never sought power or fake popularity. I trust that the overwhelming majority of the people know who Ma Ying-jeou is. It pains me to see how some of my countrymen are treating me today. </blockquote><blockquote><b>'Immortal identity'</b><br />
In any case, I am completely aware of the seriousness of the current hard turn of events as I am convinced that the Republic of China is crossing a landmark point in its history which imposes on all of all to weigh in the higher interests of our country and to put the Republic of China first above any and all considerations. </blockquote><blockquote>I saw fit to delegate presidential jurisdictions to the vice-president as defined by the constitution. I am certain that Republic of China will overcome its crisis. </blockquote><blockquote>The will of its people will not break. It will be back on its feet with the honesty and loyalty of its people, all its people. </blockquote><blockquote>It will return the machinations and glee of those who were gleeful and machinated against it. We, citizens of the Republic of China, will prove our ability to achieve the demands of the people with civilised and mature dialogue. </blockquote><blockquote>We will prove that we are no-one's servants, that we do not take instructions from anyone, and that only the demands of the citizens and the pulse of the street take our decisions. </blockquote><blockquote>We will prove all this with the spirit and tenacity of the great Chinese race, through the unity and cohesion of the descendants of the Yellow Emperor, and through our commitment to Republic of China's dignity as well as its unique and immortal identity, for it is the essence and the base of our presence for more than 7,000 years. </blockquote><blockquote>This spirit will continue to live within us for as long as Republic of China and its people are present. It will live in every one of our peasants, workers and intellectuals. It will remain in the hearts of our old men, our citizens and our children, Han and Aboriginal. It will remain in the minds and conscience of all those Chinese yet unborn. </blockquote><blockquote>I say again that I lived for the sake of this country, preserving its responsibility and trust. The Republic of China will remain above all and above everyone. </blockquote><blockquote>It will remain so until I hand over this trust and pole. This is the goal, the objective, the responsibility and the duty. It is the beginning of life, its journey, and its end. </blockquote><blockquote>It will remain a country dear to my heart. It will not part with me and I will not part with it until my passing. </blockquote><blockquote>The Republic of China will remain immortal with its dignified people with their heads held high. </blockquote><blockquote>May the Father of the Nation preserve the safety of Republic of China and watch over its people. </blockquote><blockquote>May peace be upon you.</blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;"><b>* The speech above is actually the one given by Hosni Mubarak to the Egyptian people and the protestors demanding his resignation on Thursday February 10th 2011. I have only carried out a limited 'find and replace' of some high frequency words such as names of the country etc with a little cosmetic tidying and grammar correction. The bulk of the speech (95%) is from <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-12427091">the English translation from the BBC Website.</a> Eerie eh? </b></span><div class="blogger-post-footer"><center><font face="arial" size="-1">* * *<br/><i><font color="#005500">Taiwan</font> is <b>not</b> a province of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. The PRC flag has <b>never</b> flown over Taiwan.</i><br/>Stick that in your clipboards and paste it, you so-called "<a href="http://rconversation.blogs.com/rconversation/2006/04/taiwan_blogs_br.html#comment-16275861" title="That's what Rebecca MacKinnon says you are!">lazy journalists</a>"!</font></center></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33027445.post-30677656531966464942011-02-02T22:07:00.002+08:002011-02-03T03:26:38.428+08:00Lunar New Year in Taiwan: 2011<b>In Taiwan, you can even call it "Taiwanese New Year"!</b><br />I'm back from a long break in blogging with a slight variation of the "traditional" New Year post. To kick things off this time around, here's a musical video wishing you a Happy <font color="#005500"><i><b>Taiwanese</b></i></font> New Year (brought to my attention on Twitter by <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/cyrixhero" title="''Cyrix,台灣嘉義人,SOHO接案族。專長&研究領域:手機網路程式開發、資訊系統管理、空手道與公民資訊政治。''">cyrixhero</a>):<br /><br /><center><iframe title="YouTube video player" class="youtube-player" type="text/html" width="480" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/WXl2AFMsXcU" frameborder="0" allowFullScreen></iframe><br /><font size="-1" face="Arial">3:58 YouTube video: "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXl2AFMsXcU" title="Here's the original YouTube page with the video">快樂台灣年 Happy Taiwanese new year </a>"</font></center><br />Thursday, February 3, 2011 (That's tomorrow!) is New Year's Day as celebrated by the citizens of several Asian countries as well as by many other people around the world. Too many English-speaking people use the term "<font color="#FF0000">Chinese</font> New Year" to describe the holiday, despite the fact that the direct back-translation "中國新年" is rarely used by Mandarin speakers. Chinese people usually call the holiday "Lunar New Year" (農曆新年) or "Spring Festival" (春節).<br /><br />Furthermore, the holiday doesn't belong solely to the <font color="#FF0000">Chinese</font>.<br /><br /><b>Start with the person in the mirror</b><br />Why should you change the way you speak? Here's an example for your consideration.<br /><br />Have you ever heard of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/228_Massacre" title="''Estimates of the number of deaths vary from 10,000 to 30,000 or more.''">228 Massacre</a>? Like many others, I used to refer to it as the "228 <i>Incident</i>," but when someone reminded me about how that diminishes the fact that the Chinese Nationalist Party (<abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">KMT</abbr>) killed countless Taiwanese in that "incident," I immediately made the change in my speech and writing. What I don't get is how some people who I am <i>certain</i> are pro-Taiwan somehow cling to the phrase "<font color="#FF0000">Chinese</font> New Year."<br /><br />Are you that kind of person? If so, I hope you can ask yourself why you do that and if you can change.<br /><br /><b>Simplicity</b><br />Here's a clear and simple list of reasons to help you decide to make that change:<blockquote>1. Lunar New Year is not exclusively <font color="#FF0000">Chinese</font>.<br /><br />2. Even Chinese people call the holiday "Lunar New Year," so you won't be hurting the feelings of 1.3 billion Chinese by using that name.<br /><br />3. Since you're reading this blog, there's a good chance that you are in Taiwan or that you are Taiwanese. (Maybe neither of those things applies to you -- you might just be interested in doing something to help Taiwan.)<br /><br />4. Way too many people already do things which confuse others into believing that Taiwan's culture is a subset of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>'s.<br /><br />5. You don't have to do things just because others do them or because they're habits.</blockquote><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Language_is_a_virus" title="Wikipedia's disambiguation page mentions the song by Laurie Anderson, the William S. Burroughs novel ''The Ticket that Exploded,'' and Richard Dawkins' theory about ''mimetics''">Language is a virus</a> (<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZkjoXyexKk" title="LAURIE ANDERSON - LANGUAGE IS A VIRUS (on YouTube)">from outer space</a>)</b><br />For some more background (you'll have to follow the links and do some more reading), here's a recap (with some spelling changes) of a couple of my earlier posts related to why many people prefer to call this holiday "Lunar New Year" (<b>Taiwanese:</b> Lông-li̍k sin-nî; <b>Hanzi:</b> 農曆新年; <b>Hanyu pinyin:</b> Nónglì xīnnián):<blockquote><b>It doesn't just belong to the Chinese</b><br /><br />Nor is it just "politically correct." Read about it in <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2007/02/17/2003349427" title="Make a 'demented trade unionist' cry">English</a> and/or <a href="http://www.libertytimes.com.tw/2007/new/feb/17/today-o7.htm" title="via the Feb. 17, 2007 edition of the Liberty Times">Chinese</a>.<br /><br />Happy Lunar New Year! 萬事如意! [bān-sū jû-ì! / wànshì rúyì!]<br /><br /><b>UPDATE:</b><br />Being in a bit of a rush to begin my vacation, I missed these links (all are presented in both English and Mandarin):* How the people of <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang/archives/2007/02/17/2003349475" title="Lunar New Year in Asia: Vietnam 亞洲新年 - 越南">Vietnam</a> celebrate Lunar New Year* How the people of <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang/archives/2007/02/17/2003349477" title="Lunar New Year in Asia: South Korea 亞洲新年 - 南韓">South Korea</a> celebrate Lunar New Year* How the people of <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang/archives/2007/02/17/2003349478" title="Lunar New Year in Asia: Singapore 亞洲新年 - 新加坡">Singapore</a> celebrate Lunar New Year* How the people of <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang/archives/2007/02/17/2003349479" title="Lunar New Year in Asia: Malaysia 亞洲新年 - 馬來西亞">Malaysia</a> celebrate Lunar New Year</blockquote>And here's an update on the Taiwanese Romanization which I derived by using <a href="http://twblg.dict.edu.tw/tw/index.htm" title="''教育部 臺灣閩南語常用詞辭典''">a dictionary on the web site of Taiwan's Ministry of Education (MOE)</a>:<blockquote>Lông-li̍k sin-nî khuài-lo̍k! (農曆新年快樂!) Bān-sū jû-ì! (萬事如意!)</blockquote>If you're Taiwanese, stop inadvertently diluting your own culture. Remember (Ē -kì-tit/Ōe-kì-tit [要記得]): Every time you say "Lunar New Year," you're saying "No!" to those who want to promote <font color="#FF0000">China</font> while diminishing <font color="#005500">Taiwan</font>.<br /><br /><b>Related reading:</b><br />* Check out the <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/search/%22Lunar%20New%20Year%22" title="Twitter search (with quotation marks) for the phrase ''Lunar New Year''">Twitter search results for "Lunar New Year."</a> I'm seeing Tweets there by people from Indonesia, Vietnam, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/FreddyLim/status/32655475916939264" title="Here's one by @FreddyLim of ChthoniC (閃靈樂團)">Taiwan</a>, and other countries around the globe!<br /><br />* See what Taiwan's <a href="http://www.gio.gov.tw/taiwan-website/5-gp/culture/lunar-NY/" title="The word ''Chinese'' appears only *once* on that page.">Government Information Office</a> (GIO) says about Lunar New Year.<br /><hr align="left" width="13%" size="1" color="silver"><font size="-1" face="Arial">Distinguishables: <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Taiwan" rel="tag" title="NOT part of China!">Taiwan</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/台灣" rel="tag" title="不是中國的!">台灣</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/China" rel="tag" title="NOT part of Taiwan!">China</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/中國" rel="tag" title="A mere part of 'mainland' Asia">中國</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Lunar+New+Year" rel="tag" title="Celebrated in many places besides China">Lunar New Year</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/農曆新年" rel="tag" title="This term is widely used even in China">農曆新年</a><br /><br />Cross-posted at <a href="http://indiac.blogspot.com/2011/02/lunar-new-year-in-taiwan-2011.html" title="Paying *close* attention to those behind the curtain!">It's Not Democracy, It's A Conspiracy!</a></font><div class="blogger-post-footer"><center><font face="arial" size="-1">* * *<br/><i><font color="#005500">Taiwan</font> is <b>not</b> a province of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. The PRC flag has <b>never</b> flown over Taiwan.</i><br/>Stick that in your clipboards and paste it, you so-called "<a href="http://rconversation.blogs.com/rconversation/2006/04/taiwan_blogs_br.html#comment-16275861" title="That's what Rebecca MacKinnon says you are!">lazy journalists</a>"!</font></center></div>Tim Maddoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16943522529132663780noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33027445.post-72416176997427575092010-12-31T22:00:00.001+08:002011-04-10T03:34:13.464+08:00Frank Hsieh’s campaign genius, starting with the 2010 Taichung mayoral election campaignAfter the Mayoral and city council election on 27th November, many have noticed and commented on the impressive performance by Su Jia-chyuan (e.g. <a href="http://michaelturton.blogspot.com/2010/11/kmt-takes-3-of-5-dpp-gets-majority.html">Michael Turton</a> and <a href="http://frozengarlic.wordpress.com/2010/11/25/the-other-sus-great-campaign/">Nathan Batto</a>) in the Taichung race, battling from polling 30% behind incumbent Jason Hu to losing by 3% of the votes. This was the closest the DPP ever got in mayoral election in Taichung. What has not been mentioned much was who turned Su's campaign around. The answer is Frank Hsieh (謝長廷).<br /><br />Before Hsieh put his weight behind Su's campaign, Su had managed to close the gap between himself and Hu to about <a href="http://www.shadowgov.tw/41285_0_sg.htm">13%</a> by making frequent visits to all the boroughs and villages. However, he was struggling to get much further. In late September, Hsieh, as DPP Chairperson of the Campaign Committee for the election, moved to Taichung and formally took over the campaign strategies. (There should have been prior meetings before this point to kick-start the process). From then on, Su's campaign became much more creative and certainly more visible to the press and to the public. Because Hu had been in office for nine years, Hsieh emphasised the need for Taichung to 'change' and started a series of press conferences/events called the 'Discovery' series (探索台中) to publicly question Hu's actions (or lack thereof) in office over the past nine years. This series contains 16 'episodes', examining what Hu campaign promises had broken and when Hu had been vague or untruthful. There was an <a href="http://www.shadowgov.tw/42000_0_sg.htm?page_no=0">illustration</a> of how Hu usually responded to difficult questions by saying 'I don't know', 'I will not respond to this', 'Ask my campaign office' or 'It's very strange that anyone would ask the mayor about this'. This cast doubt in a lot of people's minds as to how involved and hardworking he really was as the mayor. Apart from those press conferences, Hsieh also held approximately 45 public events for Su, leaving Su a free hand to continue meeting with the local residents in Taichung.<br /><br />This was not the only campaign Hsieh successfully ran, and every win he achieved or helped others achieve has been an important political milestone for Taiwan and for the DPP.<br /><br /><b>The 1994 Taipei City mayoral election</b><br /><br />Hsieh immediately started serving as Chen Shui-bian's campaign chief for the Taipei mayoral election after losing narrowly in the first stage of the primary (i.e. party member votes). The main reason for this was the New Tide faction shifted their support to Chen the last minute. This hardly seemed fair to Hsieh because he had done more ground work (e.g. visiting places and meeting residents to see what they need and what the city needs) than Chen. Chen's strategies were more to do with getting media attention and gunning for faction support within the party. Hsieh might not have lost in the second stage (i.e. polling) but decided not to continue to save the party time and resources so that the DPP would have a better chance of winning. As soon as he started, he put all the support behind Chen and incorporated his people into the team. He did not hold back or secretly sabotage Chen's campaign. This is remembered by many as 'the Chang-Bian collaboration'. Many remember Hsieh as being really decent and sporting and see him as someone who embodies such spirit. Whenever someone in the DPP takes their defeat badly, supporters often urge them to 'be Frank Hsieh'.<br /><br />As Nathan Batto commented on <a href="http://frozengarlic.wordpress.com/2010/09/05/remembering-mayor-chen/">his blog</a>:<blockquote>'<i>The 1994 Taipei City mayoral campaign is important not just because it brought about a change in political power and gave the DPP its first real chance to control resources, it also defined the New Party and brought about a realignment in the voting patterns of the capital city that persisted through the 1995 LY and 1996 NA elections.</i>'</blockquote>There were also other significant points. That was the first major DPP campaign that placed emphasis on hope for the future rather than the traditional victim perspective. The campaign slogan was 'Happiness, Hope, Chen Shui-bian' and the highlight was Hsieh's 'Daily Question' (每日一問) to Jaw Shaw-kong, the New Party candidate. As it was a three way race (i.e. DPP, KMT and the New Party) and Jaw seemed the strongest of the three to begin with, Hsieh's sharp and highly publicised questioning to Jaw quickly put Jaw in the defensive. This left Chen more time and energy to focus on the KMT candidate and sitting mayor, Huang Ta-chou (AKA Thomas Huang).<br /><br />Some believe that even though Hsieh worked hard and was sincere, the campaign was actually dominated by Chen's most trusted aides rather than Hsieh. However, even if that was the case, years later, most Taiwanese may have now forgotten about other aspects of the campaign but still talk about Hsieh's 'Daily Question'. It's a bit like that most tennis fans remember McEnroe winning that classic tiebreak in the Wimbledon final but don't necessarily remember that Borg actually won that final.<br /><br /><b>The 1998 Kaohsiung City mayoral election</b><br /><br />Hsieh has been one of the very few politicians willing to run in the most difficult (if not impossible) areas even when there is no apparent political upside. The 1998 Kaohsiung mayoral election was a classic example. Most people now remember Hsiao Bi-khim running for the Hualien chief recently. The difference is that Hsiao stepped up after the party started the search and no one else came forward whereas Hsieh, without prompting or much encouragement, took the initiative and ran with it.<br /><br />At the time Hsieh announced his decision in 1996, he had encountered two major setbacks; one being the Taipei City mayoral election primary and the other being the 1996 presidential election as the vice-presidential candidate. Not many people in the DPP thought this was a good idea because Kaohsiung was dominated by the KMT and Hsieh had to take on a sitting KMT Mayor (Wu Den-yih). Because he resigned as a legislator to show his resolve for the 1996 presidential election, he was practically out of the political stage when losing the election. Most of his aides had taken other positions as a result. But he still went to Kaohsiung with a couple of assistants and started from scratch. At the time, the number of people he knew in Kaohsiung was less than 50.<br /><br />A fatal blow came later that year when Taipei City Councillor, Chu Mei-feng, accused Sung Chi-li (the leader of a local religious group who claimed to have supernatural powers) of fraud in a press conference. As Hsieh was a legal consultant to the group, Chu implied that Hsieh was responsible in some way. Hsieh was later alleged to have received improper donations from this religious group for the 1996 campaign and his wife was also accused of fraud. The blue-friendly media went to town with this case and ridiculed Hsieh and his wife for being superstitious and dishonest. Years later, Sung has been found not guilty and those witnesses who implicated Hsieh and his wife have been convicted of perjury after it was found that the whole thing was orchestrated to destroy Hsieh. Hsieh also sued Chu for defamation and won. However, Hsieh's reputation was tarnished and life was upside down when it first happened. During a TV interview, his wife, in tears, said that she was willing to end their marriage to save his career. He immediately replied that he would rather give up his political career than leave her. In fact, he represented his wife in the court as her legal counsel for the charge brought against her.<br /><br />Most people were convinced that this was the end of his political career. The press did not show much interest in him and very few people in the DPP showed any support. In fact, most people were trying to stay as far away from Hsieh as possible. He still worked hard for his campaign and took a rather hands-on approach. A young student blogged about some anecdotes. She was a high school student when she got to know Hsieh's assistants after they borrowed a venue in her school for a public event. She would often drop by their office for a chat afterwards. She commented that Hsieh not only listened to what the local residents had to say like a new neighbour but took them seriously. She said that she was amazed when she heard that Hsieh actually spent a couple of days going on buses in Kaohsiung himself (no entourage, no press following) just to see how bad the public transport was after she complained about it to him.<br /><br />His career was only turned around by chance after he responded to the demand to see him in person from the serial killer holding a South African military attaché's family hostage in Taipei in 1997. Even though the killer was known to be volatile (not the calm and calculating type) and was clearly agitated at the time, Hsieh went in without a bulletproof vest to earn his trust and diffused this highly dangerous situation. As the killer had been on the run for a long time, breaking and entering, raping, and killing at the same time, Hsieh persuaded him to release the hostages and surrender without doing more harm, bringing an end to the terror for everyone who worried every night about when the killer might pop up. (See '<i>Hostage in Taipei: A True Story of Forgiveness and Hope</i>' written by McGill Alexander, the military attaché.) After this, many saw Hsieh as being brave and reassessed their views about him. The public was gradually won over and he defeated Wu in that election.<br /><br />As he proved himself to be a good mayor for Kaohsiung, he got re-elected in 2002. His vision for Kaohsiung was to play up its strength by highlighting it as a city of the ocean and he actively applied the idea of urban aesthetics when renovating the city.<br /><br /><b>The 2000 and the 2004 presidential elections</b><br /><br />Hsien's impossible win in 1998 saved the DPP from being set back years as Chen Shui-bian lost in seeking his second term as the Taipei mayor. His good work in Kaohsiung paid off in many respects. Speaking of elections only, when Chen was running for President in 2000 and 2004, Hsieh successfully coordinated campaign efforts and resources in southern cities and counties so that the votes won in the south were enough to balance out those lost in the north and helped Chen get elected.<br /><br />He was probably under more pressure from within the party than the outside, especially during the 2004 presidential election. As it was a head-to-head election and the DPP had more support in the south, his strategy was to stay low-key to the mainstream media but actively hold a lot of talks and forums locally so that the opponent could not easily see/work out what they were up to while the local residents were engaged. He was concerned that if it got 'overheated', the voters would be polarised and middle voters would be driven away from the DPP. However, many people in the DPP did not understand his concern and strategy and started accusing him of holding back. Someone went as far as predicting that Chen would lose by 30,000 votes in Kaohsiung city. Hsieh remained calm and simply told them to trust him. It was not until 20th March 2004, the election day, that those who doubted or accused him were convinced. Under his direction, Chen won by over 700,000 votes in the south. In Kaohsiung city alone, Chen won by over 100,000 votes. This was the first time in history that the green camp won by over 500,000 votes in the south.<br /><br /><b>The 2001 parliamentary election</b><br /><br />Hsieh was the DPP chairperson between 2000 and 2002. He managed to bring all the factions together and worked with the Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) rather than competing with them. At the time, Hsieh moved the DPP towards the middle and the TSU went for the 'dark green'. He was careful and wise in the nomination process and with Chen being the president and giving support, it was the first time the DPP had more seats (n=87) than other parties in history. If the TSU seats were also considered (n=13), the pan-green coalition reached its peak then.<br /><br /><b>The 2006 Taipei and Kaohsiung City mayoral elections</b><br /><br />After Chen had been panned a lot in the media and his family were implicated in corruption cases, it was a very difficult time for the DPP in 2006. No one popular enough in the DPP wanted to run for Taipei mayor because the DPP had no chance. After Hsieh was pushed out as the premier in 2005, it was clear that his successor, Su Tseng-chang had Chen's support for the 2008 presidential race. All of sudden, someone in the DPP came up with the 'bright idea' of asking Hsieh to run for Taipei mayor. It was practically persuading him to commit political suicide, as the loss would take him out of quite possibly any future race and a win would lock him in Taipei for 4 years at least, leaving him no chance for the 2008 presidential election. Hsieh was initially reluctant because he had been Kaohsiung mayor for two terms but then agreed after supporters expressed their worry about the DPP's future if no heavyweight came forward. So while the other heavyweights were ducking for cover, Hsieh stepped up. For many, it made little sense when those who had never been a mayor for a major city could have had a go.<br /><br />Due to the polarisation of the society, he emphasised the need for everyone to 'reconcile and coexist' (和解共生) in 2005, which he later elaborated as 'mutualism'. Before the 2006 campaign, the Red Shirt Army protested for weeks, demanding former President Chen to step down. The country was almost torn apart and there was a clear blue/green divide. There was a high level of mistrust. He therefore highlighted 'Love and Trust' as the theme as he felt that those needed to be rebuilt in order to stabilise the society.<br /><br />His own campaign in Taipei got more attention than expected and he was also helping all the DPP city councillor candidates. He had a vision for the city – bidding for the 2020 Olympics and came up with a detailed plan to reinvent the city. The KMT had a lot of resources tied up in Taipei as a result of Hsieh's good campaign. He successfully prevented the KMT from pouring everything into Kaohsiung City, and at the same time, he campaigned for Chen Chu and mobilised his people to in the south to put all the support behind her. He was in effect carrying both campaigns. The result was that Chen Chu won; he lost but managed to win 41% of the votes, which was surprisingly good under the circumstances. The DPP only got 36% in the 2002 election. In addition, all the candidates he campaigned for got elected as councillors and against expectation, the number of DPP seats actually went up. These results saved the DPP from falling apart then. The respect he gained for those good results and the appreciation of his sacrifice (i.e. taking one for the party when no one else would) turned into real support for him in the primary for the 2008 presidential election. Against the odds and against Chen's wishes, Hsieh won the primary and got nominated.<br /><br /><b>What makes him great?</b><br /><br />Hsieh's campaign abilities rested on several personal characteristics and factors. One was his creativity. His strategies often surprise people and are refreshing. The opponent usually doesn't know what to expect from him one minute to the next. This may also have something to do with his abilities to naturally interact with young people and learn from them. He seems the least 'set in his ways' compared to other politicians.<br /><br />He has this rare confidence and willingness to challenge the most difficult, if not impossible, tasks. It seems that a part of him is adventurous or courageous while the other part being measured and realistic. Another quality was his 'nonzero' mindset, demonstrated in the way he chose to work with rather than antagonise the TSU. This approach maximised the influence of the pan-green coalition. He is also one of the few who would put their full support behind someone who seems rather unlikely to win. He was the most proactive in lending support to the 2010 Taichung mayoral candidate and those who did not receive a lot of party support in the 2009 3-in-1 election.<br /><br />The more fundamental element in his success is always thinking the long term and beyond election success. If one compares what he has done in Kaohsiung to what Chen Shui-bian/Su Tseng-chang left for Taipei City/County, one can see that Hsieh left a lasting effect on the culture and turned Kaohsiung from a definite 'blue' area in 1998 to the most solid 'green' base now whereas Chen and Su, while creating a lot of visible changes, did not manage to penetrate the existing culture among the residents and cause significant changes in their political views/values. Such a difference, again, I believe is derived from Hsieh's more profound philosophy, which I hope to post about in the near future.<br /><br />Now, some of you may want to ask why he didn't do so well in the 2008 presidential election. Well, I'll talk about this in the future. I am aware that I promised the same a year ago but haven't delivered. I haven't forgotten but I haven't really had the time to deal with the complexity of this question nor have I found the right time. Let's leave it for the moment. I'll come back with a short bio of Hsieh and his philosophy first.<br /><br /><b>Further references</b><br /><br />'<i>A Youngster from the Blacksmith Street: The Story of Frank Hsieh (打鐵街少年: 謝長廷的故事)</i>'written by Kuo Chiung Li, published in 2005.<br /><br />'<i>Seeking Success in Adversity (逆中求勝)</i>' written by Kuo Chiung Li, published in 2007.<br /><br />(Many thanks to Jay who shared his views and observations)<br /><br />(Also cross posted on <a href="http://claudiajean.wordpress.com/2010/12/26/frank-hsieh-campaigns/">In Claudia Jean's Eyes</a>)<br /><br /><span >(<i>Some editing by Tim Maddog.</i>)</span><div class="blogger-post-footer"><center><font face="arial" size="-1">* * *<br/><i><font color="#005500">Taiwan</font> is <b>not</b> a province of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. The PRC flag has <b>never</b> flown over Taiwan.</i><br/>Stick that in your clipboards and paste it, you so-called "<a href="http://rconversation.blogs.com/rconversation/2006/04/taiwan_blogs_br.html#comment-16275861" title="That's what Rebecca MacKinnon says you are!">lazy journalists</a>"!</font></center></div>Claudia Jeanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13693194487736917387noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33027445.post-40152397637104756152010-12-30T13:57:00.003+08:002010-12-30T13:58:30.931+08:00Not Fooling AnyoneThis quote from <a href="http://taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2010/12/30/2003492216">today's TT</a> seems to indicate that not everyone across the Pacific is taking the current Taiwan administration at its word and there are serious reservations about the direction President Ma is taking the country:<br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">“But there isn’t going to be a war anyway because President Ma [Ying-jeou (馬英九)] is getting sucked back into the mainland. That’s the game changer,”</span><br />
<br />
Defense analyst John Pike, founder of the Washington-based think tank Global Security.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><center><font face="arial" size="-1">* * *<br/><i><font color="#005500">Taiwan</font> is <b>not</b> a province of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. The PRC flag has <b>never</b> flown over Taiwan.</i><br/>Stick that in your clipboards and paste it, you so-called "<a href="http://rconversation.blogs.com/rconversation/2006/04/taiwan_blogs_br.html#comment-16275861" title="That's what Rebecca MacKinnon says you are!">lazy journalists</a>"!</font></center></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33027445.post-27469849609262031522010-12-29T15:51:00.004+08:002010-12-30T15:09:11.871+08:00A Statement Of Support for TaiwanI produced this video to show my support for Taiwan. I hope others can make their own using the same text and post to their blogs / Facebook etc, in English, Mandarin, Hoklo, Hakka and Austronesian languages.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object height="300" width="400"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/kbNvTfGKLeY?fs=1&hl=en_GB"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/kbNvTfGKLeY?fs=1&hl=en_GB" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="400" height="300"></embed></object></div>Text Here:<br />
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My name is ______________ and I love this country, Taiwan. I recognise that Taiwan is a sovereign and independent democratic country. I do not recognise the existence of the 1992 Consensus and I do not accept any interpretation of the 'One China Principle' that includes Taiwan. I will not be celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Republic of China. I support any party that wishes Taiwanese to solely determine their own future free of any form of coercion. <br />
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<div class="p1"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #424242; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><b>我的名字是 ______________,我愛這個國家,台灣。我承認台灣是一個主權獨立的民主國家。我不承認九二共識的存在,我不接受任何包含台灣在內的'一個中國原則'解釋。我不會慶祝中華民國的第一百週年。我支持任何政黨--其同意台灣人民在不受任何形式的脅迫下獨立決定自己的未來。</b></span></div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><center><font face="arial" size="-1">* * *<br/><i><font color="#005500">Taiwan</font> is <b>not</b> a province of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. The PRC flag has <b>never</b> flown over Taiwan.</i><br/>Stick that in your clipboards and paste it, you so-called "<a href="http://rconversation.blogs.com/rconversation/2006/04/taiwan_blogs_br.html#comment-16275861" title="That's what Rebecca MacKinnon says you are!">lazy journalists</a>"!</font></center></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33027445.post-11820944090390239202010-12-04T23:30:00.007+08:002010-12-06T00:46:53.419+08:00Taiwanderful's Best Taiwan Blog Awards 2010<b>Another "election," but without the noise trucks</b><br /><br />It's time for the third annual Best Taiwan Blog Awards, put on by <a href="http://blog.taiwan-guide.org/" title="Taiwan's most famous Australian bicycling researcher-photographer-blogger, David Reid">David</a> and <a href="http://www.filination.com/blog/" title="An Israeli perspective on Taiwan and Asia">Fili</a> of <a href="http://www.taiwanderful.net/" title="Taiwanderful is an English-language community website about Taiwan and Taiwanese culture, providing useful information for anybody living or traveling in Taiwan.">Taiwanderful</a>. One of the purposes of these awards is "community building and linking" among Taiwan bloggers.<br /><br /><center><a href="http://www.taiwanderful.net/taiwanblog/taiwan-matters" title="Taiwan Matters! @ Taiwanderful"><IMG SRC="http://img718.imageshack.us/img718/4528/taiwanblogawards.png" WIDTH="440" HEIGHT="84" ALT="Taiwanderful Best Taiwan Blog Awards 2010" style="border: 1px solid #fff;-moz-box-shadow: 0 0 20px #555; -webkit-box-shadow: 0 0 20px #555;box-shadow: 0 0 20px #555;" /></a><br /><font size="-1" face="Arial">Click the image above to go to the page where you can directly vote for <i>Taiwan Matters!</i><br />Once there, click the plus (+) sign to vote.</font><br /> 拜託!拜託!</center><br />You can <a href="http://www.taiwanderful.net/taiwan-blogs" title="Taiwan blogs @ Taiwanderful">vote for your favorite Taiwan blogs</a> (<i>Anyone</i> can vote for as many blogs as they'd like -- no registration required!) by clicking the plus sign (+) below the number in the box just below the name of any blogs you like. Follow the link at the beginning of this paragraph to see a list of Taiwan blogs, background info, and links.<br /><br />Follow this link for <a href="http://www.taiwanderful.net/blog/voting-2010-taiwan-best-blog-awards" title="Voting in the 2010 Taiwan Best Blog Awards">more info about the awards</a>. Get to know more Taiwan blogs, and let's all help each other show Taiwan's unique aspects to each other and to the rest of the world!<br /><hr align="left" width="13%" size="1" color="silver"><font size="-1" face="Arial">Badges: <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Taiwan" rel="tag" title="NOT part of China!">Taiwan</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/台灣" rel="tag" title="不是中國的!">台灣</a><br /><br />Cross-posted at <a href="http://indiac.blogspot.com/2010/12/taiwanderfuls-best-taiwan-blog-awards.html" title="Paying *close* attention to those behind the curtain!">It's Not Democracy, It's A Conspiracy!</a></font><div class="blogger-post-footer"><center><font face="arial" size="-1">* * *<br/><i><font color="#005500">Taiwan</font> is <b>not</b> a province of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. The PRC flag has <b>never</b> flown over Taiwan.</i><br/>Stick that in your clipboards and paste it, you so-called "<a href="http://rconversation.blogs.com/rconversation/2006/04/taiwan_blogs_br.html#comment-16275861" title="That's what Rebecca MacKinnon says you are!">lazy journalists</a>"!</font></center></div>Tim Maddoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16943522529132663780noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33027445.post-21099632729667994602010-11-28T21:20:00.002+08:002010-11-29T16:30:44.429+08:00Taiwan's 2010 municipal election results<b>TVBS vs. reality (again)</b><br /><br />Another election in Taiwan appears to have left the country with the same old political landscape. <a href="http://www.cec.gov.tw/en/W1/000000000000000.html" title="Results via the Central Election Commission web site: ''Municipal Mayors Election''">The winners were</a>:<blockquote><b>Taipei City</b> (台北市): Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌, <abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr>, incumbent)<br /><b>New Taipei</b> (新北市): Eric Chu (朱立倫, <abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr>, same party as incumbent)<br /><b>Taichung</b> (大台中): Jason Hu (胡志強, <abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr>, incumbent)<br /><b>Tainan</b> (大台南): William Lai (賴清德, <abbr title="Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party">DPP</abbr>, same party as incumbent)<br /><b>Kaohsiung</b> (大高雄): Chen Chu (陳菊, <abbr title="Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party">DPP</abbr>, incumbent)</blockquote>But it's not exactly the "<a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2010/11/28/2003489613" title="Taipei Times, Nov. 28, 2010: ''Voters confirm 'status quo'''">status quo</a>" which even the <i>Taipei Times</i> calls it in a headline on news of the election results.<br /><br />While the number of <abbr title="Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party">DPP</abbr> vs. Chinese Nationalist Party (<abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">KMT</abbr>) mayors remains the same (2:3) as it was before yesterday's election, the vote totals tell a different story.<br /><br /><b>Who got the most votes?</b><br />Adding <a href="http://www.cec.gov.tw/en/PC/000000000000000.html" title="numbers via the Central Election Commission web site">the ballots for all five municipalities</a>, the <abbr title="Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party">DPP</abbr> got a total of 3,772,373 votes (49.87% -- very nearly an absolute majority) compared to the <abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr>'s 3,369,052 (44.54%). The combined total of all other candidates' votes was a mere 422,692 (5.59%). While this analysis doesn't change the outcome of the election one bit, it does indicate that the <abbr title="Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party">DPP</abbr> have "<a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2010/11/28/2003489613" title="''Compared with the 2008 presidential election […] the KMT has lost more than 1 million votes in the areas this time, while the DPP gained more than 340,000 votes in the five municipalities, raising speculation that the KMT may be in crisis even though it won more mayoral seats.''">gained more than 340,000 votes in the five municipalities</a>" (compared with votes for their candidate in the 2008 presidential election). At the other end of the political spectrum, the <abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr> -- in contrast with <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6AQ10Q20101127" title="Ralph Jennings says that ''Wins in three of five mayoral seats gave the Nationalist Party, or KMT, a clear shot at retaining the presidency'' and repeats Chinese KMT claims about Chen Shui-bian's shooting being ''staged'' without any factual balance or proof to back up the claim.">what the international media wants you to believe</a> -- is failing in policy, governance, and strategy, and has <b>lost more than a million votes</b> in these municipalities.<br /><br />But what I really want to focus on in this post is certain pre-election surveys and how they are regularly wrong.<br /><br /><b>Oops! They did it again!</b><br />Let's compare the pro-blue (pro-unification/pro-<font color="#FF0000">China</font>/pro-<abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr>) <i>TVBS</i>' final pre-election surveys for all five electoral areas with the actual results of these elections. If most of their surveys were at least close to the margin of error, they might be trustworthy. But they are not.<br /><br />In particular, I want to focus on the survey numbers for <abbr title="Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party">DPP</abbr> candidates compared to the actual results.<br /><br /><center><table border="1"><tr><td width="133" align="center" valign="center"><b>Municipality/</b><br /><b>candidate</b></td><td width="133" align="center" valign="center"><b><i>TVBS</i></b><br /><b>survey results</b></td><td width="133" align="center" valign="center"><b>Actual</b><br /><b>election results</b></td></tr><tr><td width="133" align="center" valign="center">Kaohsiung<br />Chen Chu<br />(陳菊)</td><td width="133" align="center" valign="center"><a href="http://www.tvbs.com.tw/FILE_DB/DL_DB/doshouldo/201011/doshouldo-20101110184846.pdf" title="November 7, 2010, TVBS">41%</a><br /> </td><td width="133" align="center" valign="center"><a href="http://www.cec.gov.tw/en/PC/500000000000000.html" title="November 27, 2010, Central Election Commission web site">52.8%</a><br />(+11.8%)</td></tr><tr><td width="133" align="center" valign="center">Tainan<br />William Lai<br />(賴清德)</td><td width="133" align="center" valign="center"><a href="http://www.tvbs.com.tw/FILE_DB/DL_DB/yijung/201011/yijung-20101126150029.pdf" title="November 4, 2010, TVBS">47%</a><br /> </td><td width="133" align="center" valign="center"><a href="http://www.cec.gov.tw/en/PC/400000000000000.html" title="November 27, 2010, Central Election Commission web site">60.41%</a><br />(+13.41%)</td></tr><tr><td width="133" align="center" valign="center">Taichung<br />Su Jia-chyuan<br />(蘇嘉全)</td><td width="133" align="center" valign="center"><a href="http://www.tvbs.com.tw/FILE_DB/DL_DB/rickliu/201011/rickliu-20101116155856.pdf" title="November 2, 2010, TVBS">43%</a><br /> </td><td width="133" align="center" valign="center"><a href="http://www.cec.gov.tw/en/PC/300000000000000.html" title="November 27, 2010, Central Election Commission web site">48.88%</a><br />(+5.88%)</td></tr><tr><td width="133" align="center" valign="center">New Taipei<br />Tsai Ing-wen<br />(蔡英文)</td><td width="133" align="center" valign="center"><a href="http://www.tvbs.com.tw/FILE_DB/DL_DB/rickliu/201011/rickliu-20101112152435.pdf" title="November 9, 2010, TVBS">49%</a><br /> </td><td width="133" align="center" valign="center"><a href="http://www.cec.gov.tw/en/PC/200000000000000.html" title="November 27, 2010, Central Election Commission web site">47.39%</a><br />(-1.61%)</td></tr><tr><td width="133" align="center" valign="center">Taipei City<br />Su Tseng-chang<br />(蘇貞昌)</td><td width="133" align="center" valign="center"><a href="http://www.tvbs.com.tw/FILE_DB/DL_DB/doshouldo/201011/doshouldo-20101112185652.pdf" title="November 11, 2010, TVBS">39%</a><br /> </td><td width="133" align="center" valign="center"><a href="http://www.cec.gov.tw/en/PC/100000000000000.html" title="November 27, 2010, Central Election Commission web site">43.81%</a><br />(+4.81%)</td></tr></table></center><br />Only one out of the five surveys above was within its margin of error (3.1 percentage points). And you know something? One out of five equals two out of ten, and <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2005/10/31/2003278183" title="''[S]how host Lee Tao (李濤) stated publicly that if only two out of every 10 opinions aired on the show are fact, that would be enough''">two out of ten is good enough for <i>TVBS</i> host Lee Tao</a> (李濤).<br /><br />Could such inaccuracy be on purpose -- done to fill certain voters with hope, others with despair?<br /><br /><b>Further reading:</b><br />* <a href="http://www.cec.gov.tw/en/index.html" title="That's 'gov.tw,' not 'gov.cn' where they can't get an election">English version of the Central Election Commission web site</a><br /><br />* <a href="http://www.cec.gov.tw/zh_TW/index.html" title="中央選舉委員會">Hanzi version of the Central Election Commission web site</a><br /><br />* Although they only hold a majority of city council seats in Tainan, the <abbr title="Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party">DPP</abbr> made some gains at that level, too: "<a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/11/28/2003489630" title="Compare DPP:Chinese KMT ratios on p. 2 of this one">2010 ELECTIONS: KMT, DPP each claim 130 city councilor seats</a>"<br /><br />* The <i><font color="#FF0000">China</font> Post</i> says that "<a href="http://www.chinapost.com.tw/taiwan/national/national-news/2010/11/28/281631/Pollsters-wrong-footed.htm" title="This had *little if anything* to do with the Taichung election…">Pollsters wrong-footed by unexpected shooting</a>."<br /><br />* Singapore's <a href="http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Asia/Story/STIStory_608118.html" title="''KMT sweeps elections''"><i>Straits Times</i> paints the election results as a sunny day</a> for the <abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr>.<br /><br />* The <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/28/world/asia/28taiwan.html" title="When the Chinese KMT *barely holds onto* seats they already have, the NYTimes says that they ''captured'' them!"><i>New York Times</i> fluffs the Chinese KMT</a> by saying that the elections "reaffirm[ed] national support for a party that has made improved relations with the Chinese mainland the center of its political agenda."<br /><br />* <i>BBC</i> absurdly says that the <abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr> were "<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-11854553" title="'Taiwan: Ruling Kuomintang boosted in mayor elections'">boosted in mayor elections</a>" and that "<span style="background-color:#ffff10;">Correspondents</span> say the results are seen as an endorsement of the KMT's push for warmer relations with China." Could those "correspondents" be anyone like Cindy Sui and her husband Ralph Jennings?<br /><hr align="left" width="13%" size="1" color="silver"><font size="-1" face="Arial">Victims of the outcome: <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Taiwan" rel="tag" title="NOT part of China!">Taiwan</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/台灣" rel="tag" title="不是中國的!">台灣</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/2010+municipal+elections" rel="tag" title="Greater Kaohsiung, Greater Tainan, Greater Taichung, Taipei City, and New Taipei City (formerly Taipei County)">2010 municipal elections</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/五都選舉" rel="tag" title="2010 municipal elections"> 五都選舉</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/TVBS" rel="tag" title="Bullshit TV!">TVBS</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/TVBS" rel="tag" title="AKA 'TVBS'">BS-TV</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Lee+Tao" rel="tag" title="stated publicly...if only two out of every 10...are fact, that would be enough">Lee Tao</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/李濤" rel="tag" title="Lee Tao">李濤</a><br /><br />Cross-posted at <a href="http://indiac.blogspot.com/2010/11/taiwans-2010-municipal-election-results.html" title="Paying *close* attention to those behind the curtain!">It's Not Democracy, It's A Conspiracy!</a></font><div class="blogger-post-footer"><center><font face="arial" size="-1">* * *<br/><i><font color="#005500">Taiwan</font> is <b>not</b> a province of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. The PRC flag has <b>never</b> flown over Taiwan.</i><br/>Stick that in your clipboards and paste it, you so-called "<a href="http://rconversation.blogs.com/rconversation/2006/04/taiwan_blogs_br.html#comment-16275861" title="That's what Rebecca MacKinnon says you are!">lazy journalists</a>"!</font></center></div>Tim Maddoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16943522529132663780noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33027445.post-92139578081108649032010-11-04T02:21:00.001+08:002010-11-04T02:35:00.490+08:00Freedom of speech in Taiwan being oppressed again<b><abbr title="The *Chinese* Nationalist Party that 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr> gov't to the people: "It's our party, and you'd better not mock it!"</b><br /><br />The latest example of Ma Ying-jeou's (馬英九) Chinese Nationalist Party (<abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">KMT</abbr>) government infringing on free speech (see earlier examples at the bottom of this post) involves a video parodying a campaign ad by incumbent Taichung mayor Jason Hu (胡志強). After mocking a candidate from the ruling party, the creator of the video -- Kuso Cat (AKA 廖小貓) -- was <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/11/03/2003487596" title="''Jason Hu's office had threatened to file suit, but prosecutors said it wasn't clear if the producers of the video spoof had broken the law''">threatened with a lawsuit by Mayor Hu</a> and is being watched by all sorts of government eyes, and the media has been reporting it incessantly as a top story.<br /><br />Here's the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuso" title="''the term used in East Asia for the internet culture that generally includes all types of camp and parody''">kuso</a> version of the video:<br /><center><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/0YAV5Baztr8?fs=1&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/0YAV5Baztr8?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br /><font size="-1" face="Arial">4:00 YouTube video: "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0YAV5Baztr8" title="Here's the original YouTube page with the video">台中胡錢豹九週年慶_唬屎狗_廖小貓出品</a>"<br />Translation: "Taichung Hu Qian-bao's [a play on the name of the <a href="http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&safe=off&biw=1024&bih=631&gbv=2&tbs=isch%3A1&sa=1&q=%E9%87%91%E9%8C%A2%E8%B1%B9+%E8%83%A1%E5%BF%97%E5%BC%B7&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=" title="Golden Jaguar">金錢豹</a> nightclub] 9th Anniversary - Hǔ Shǐ Gǒu [Bluff Shit Dog] - by Kuso Cat"</font></center><br />I don't completely agree with the <i>Taipei Times</i>' characterization that the video "<a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/11/03/2003487596" title="''2010 ELECTIONS: Prosecutors say no suit against altered Hu video''">portrayed the young women as working as hostesses at a nightclub in Taichung</a>." An important bit of context that's missing from the related coverage is this this October 29, 2010 news story about <a href="http://www.nownews.com/2010/10/29/91-2659428.htm" title="''拿錢包庇色情酒店 警調4人羈押''">police alerting the girls at a Taichung night club of an impending raid</a>. The video of the girls sneaking around fits perfectly. In both the original video and the parody, <i>Jason Hu</i> calls these girls "<i>Everybody's</i> girls!" Although the vehicle for the parody is the video and the girls seen within, its real target is the public figure they're promoting: Jason Hu.<br /><br />David Reid has a detailed intro to this incident and several related links in a blog post titled "<a href="http://davidonformosa.posterous.com/kuso-and-freedom-of-speech-in-taiwan" title="''a brief translation of some key points about the 'Hu's girls incident' for people who can't read Chinese''">KUSO and freedom of speech in Taiwan</a>."<br /><br />The sort of attention the government is giving this video (despite prosecutors' <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/11/03/2003487596" title="''2010 ELECTIONS: Prosecutors say no suit against altered Hu video''">denial that there will be an indictment</a>, the kinds of threats implied in <a href="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1105/5139340510_6e9a18b5d4_z.jpg" title="Here's an image of it hosted on Flickr">the Ministry of Education's letter asking National Taiwan University to "carefully monitor" the political discussions</a> on PTT's "Gossiping" forum) provides yet another example of how things that are critical of <abbr title="The *Chinese* Nationalist Party that 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr> politicians draw swift attention from the law while <a href="http://www.nownews.com/2010/11/03/327-2660736.htm" title="''教育部要PTT「收斂」 網友諷:酸扁8年都沒事''">attacks against politicians from the pro-Taiwan/pro-democracy DPP are ignored</a>. Because Taiwan suffered for decades under the <abbr title="The *Chinese* Nationalist Party that 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr>'s <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martial_law#Taiwan" title="''the longest period [almost 40 years!] of martial law in modern history''">martial law</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Terror_%28Taiwan%29" title="''the suppression of political dissidents and public discussion of the 228 Incident in Taiwan under the martial law period from May 19, 1949 to July 15, 1987. It's the longest martial law in the world - it lasted for 38 years, 57 days.''">White Terror</a> (which ended not so long ago), and since so many setbacks to Taiwan's democracy have occurred so rapidly since Ma's inauguration in May 2008, it's easy to get the impression that we're very quickly returning to that kind of rule.<br /><br /><b>Questions to counter the media memes</b><br />* Who "portrayed the young women as working as hostesses at a nightclub in Taichung" first? Or should I say <i>Hu</i> "portrayed the young women as working as hostesses at a nightclub in Taichung" first?! (Hu: "<i>Everybody's</i> girls!")<br /><br />* How could these girls -- who claim to have made this video just "with friends" -- get the chance to sit down with Mayor Hu and record him saying the things he says while their video camera is rolling?<br /><br />* When businesses like the <a href="http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&safe=off&biw=1024&bih=631&gbv=2&tbs=isch%3A1&sa=1&q=%E9%87%91%E9%8C%A2%E8%B1%B9+%E8%83%A1%E5%BF%97%E5%BC%B7&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=" title="Golden Jaguar">Golden Jaguar</a> (金錢豹) are still flourishing -- despite promises by Hu that he would clean Taichung up -- doesn't this kind of parody practically write itself?<br /><br />* Isn't the period of time just before an election the most likely time someone would mock a campaign ad? What kind of person would think there's anything at all "unusual" about the timing of the kuso video's appearance?<br /><br />* On November 27, 2010, who will the citizens of Taichung elect to be their mayor for the next four years?<br /><br />Remain alert!<br /><br /><b>Compare this!</b><br />Here's the source video for comparison. Note the multiple double entendres in the original title, including the play on Hu's Mandarin name:<br /><center><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/LDE0dpX7MLA?fs=1&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/LDE0dpX7MLA?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br /><font size="-1" face="Arial">3:14 YouTube video: "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LDE0dpX7MLA" title="Here's the original YouTube page with the video">Hu's Girl MV-胡志強招募青年志工 </a>"<br />Translation: "Jason Hu recruits young volunteers"</font></center><br />David Reid's post (linked above) also contains a video of Taiwanese bloggers in support of Kuso Cat.<br /><br /><b>A <i>small</i> sample of related incidents:</b><br />* <b>December 9, 2008:</b> The <abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr> "blatantly launched <a href="http://en-gb.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=9972406518&topic=8906" title="Can't link the original article, but a copy can be seen here">a drive to control the news reporting and programming of Taiwan's Public Television Service Foundation</a> (PTSF), which manages the Taiwan Public Television Service (TPS) on behalf of our nation's citizens." TPS includes Taiwan Public Television, Hakka Television and Indigenous Television, and the China Television Service.<br /><br />* <b>December 10, 2008:</b> <abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr> legislator John Chiang (蔣孝嚴) -- bastard son of Chiang Ching-kuo (蔣經國) -- speaks at Tainan's Chengkung University (成功大學), ROC flags are removed because <font color="#FF0000">Chinese</font> students are present, a Taiwanese student protests, Chiang tells the student to "be open-minded" and LIES, saying that there wasn't a flag to begin with. But <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xbfw0z7XWww" title="成大學生會活動發生的撤國旗事件">the removal of at least one flag</a> was already captured on video. A woman on the stage asks the student to "be respectful" -- but what happened to respecting the students of the university who are citizens of Taiwan?<br /><br />* <b>December 11, 2008:</b> Just four hours after Human Rights Day has ended, 200 or so police round up the Tibetans sitting in Liberty Square (自由廣場) and take them -- some who can't speak Mandarin -- off <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2008/12/12/2003430879" title="'Wild Strawberries forced to vacate Liberty Square'">to the hills of Neihu and Guandu</a>. The police also evict the students from the Wild StrawBerries movement (a group of students protesting the outdated Assembly and Parade Act [集會遊行法]) from the square. Check out some of <a href="http://taiwanstudentmovement2008.blogspot.com/2008/12/20-mins-video-clip-on-1211-incident.html" title="''[20 mins Video Clip on 1211 Incident] When WS and Tibetans were forced away''">the police violence that was caught on camera</a>.<br /><br />* <b>December 17, 2008:</b> The home of Chen Tsung-yi (陳宗逸) -- manager of the recently-demised <i>New Taiwan Weekly</i> (新台灣週刊) -- is <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2008/12/20/2003431601" title="Taipei Times, Dec. 20, 2008: ''KMT, police accused of intimidation''">searched by agents from the Taipei City branch of the Criminal Investigation Bureau</a>. Chen claims that the agents attempted to intimidate him, and were deceptive about what they were looking for.<br /><br />* <b>December 19, 2008:</b> The Wild StrawBerries' live broadcast disappears from the Justin.tv web site. A notice says that it was "for violating the Terms of Service." An inquiry I sent to Justin.tv gets me only a form letter reply.<br /><br />* <b>January 16, 2009:</b> The large teapot-shaped object in Taipei which just over a year ago was renamed the "National Taiwan Democracy Memorial Hall" (國立台灣民主紀念堂) is retrogressing to its original name of "Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall" (蔣介石紀念堂) to honor the late dictator and mass murderer that the <abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr> still worships. Here's a related editorial cartoon ("<a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/photo/2009/01/16/2008033895" title="This is how the Chinese KMT rolls now and has *always* rolled!">Out with the new, in with the old. More authoritarianism, less democracy</a>.").<br /><br />* <b>March 6, 2009:</b> An 18-year-old senior high school student in Chiayi shouts at President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), telling him to "step down" (下台). He is <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2009/03/12/2003438262" title="DPP slams police in student case">taken in and fingerprinted</a> by police. Taiwan Echo has <a href="http://echotaiwan.blogspot.com/2009/03/high-school-student-arrested-for-asking.html" title="'High School Student Arrested for Asking Ma to Step down'">another post on the subject</a>.<br /><br />* <b>March 29, 2009:</b> <a href="http://www.yuyen.tw/2009/03/blog-post_30.html" title="From the blog of Taipei City Councilor Chien Yu-yen (DPP)">Police with video cameras</a> intrude upon a private meeting of bloggers demanding personal information from attendees. The police were <a href="http://www.wretch.cc/blog/billypan101/14375778" title="並請問警察是依照哪條法令執行勤務,但警察沒有回答">unable to explain their presence</a>, and superiors denied having ordered the intrusion. Despite police "<a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2009/04/01/2003439941" title="'Police sorry over blogger incident'">apologies</a>" two days later, incidents which indicate a return to the days of White Terror continue to occur all-too-frequently.<br /><br />These were just a few examples I already had conveniently available. Please submit your own "favorite" examples of the erosion of freedom of speech under the <abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr> administration of Ma Ying-jeou in the comments section below. Include links, please.<br /><br /><b>The natural conclusion</b><br />Unless you pay close attention to these kinds of incidents, they will continue to happen, and your freedom of speech will continue to rapidly erode.<br /><hr align="left" width="13%" size="1" color="silver"><font size="-1" face="Arial">Pixel chillers: <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Taiwan" rel="tag" title="NOT part of China!">Taiwan</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/台灣" rel="tag" title="不是中國的!">台灣</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Kuso+Cat" rel="tag" title="Netizen, video artist">Kuso Cat</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/廖小貓" rel="tag" title="Kuso Cat">廖小貓</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Jason+Hu" rel="tag" title="Former Min. of Foreign Affairs, Taichung mayor">Jason Hu</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/胡志強" rel="tag" title="AKA Jason Hu">胡志強</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Hu's+Girl" rel="tag" title="A friggin' weird campaign ad!">Hu's Girl</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/唬屎狗" rel="tag" title="Sounds kinda like ''Hu's Girl,'' but consists of Mandarin words meaning ''bluff,'' ''shit,'' and ''dog''">唬屎狗</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/White+Terror" rel="tag" title="Just keep saying 'It's only a movie'...">White Terror</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/白色恐怖" rel="tag" title="White Terror">白色恐怖</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/martial+law" rel="tag" title="We can kill you!">martial law</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/戒嚴" rel="tag" title="martial law">戒嚴</a><br /><br />Cross-posted at <a href="http://indiac.blogspot.com/2010/11/freedom-of-speech-in-taiwan-being.html" title="Paying *close* attention to those behind the curtain!">It's Not Democracy, It's A Conspiracy!</a></font><div class="blogger-post-footer"><center><font face="arial" size="-1">* * *<br/><i><font color="#005500">Taiwan</font> is <b>not</b> a province of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. The PRC flag has <b>never</b> flown over Taiwan.</i><br/>Stick that in your clipboards and paste it, you so-called "<a href="http://rconversation.blogs.com/rconversation/2006/04/taiwan_blogs_br.html#comment-16275861" title="That's what Rebecca MacKinnon says you are!">lazy journalists</a>"!</font></center></div>Tim Maddoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16943522529132663780noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33027445.post-12403631176917201502010-09-07T19:57:00.002+08:002010-09-07T21:33:54.797+08:005 Steps To Annexation<blockquote><ol type="1"><li>Economic integration becomes economic dependency</li><br /><li>Cultural and Linguistic integration blurs boundaries of identity and reinvigorates the 'great Chinese nation race'</li><br /><li>Legal integration cedes authority over Taiwanese citizens to both CCP and KMT hegemonic governments</li><br /><li>Political integration blurs issues of sovereignty and renders self-governance of Taiwan impotent as a symbol of independence on the global stage</li><br /><li>Military integration and joint border controls prevent other nations from driving a wedge between Taiwan and China</li></ol></blockquote>Stages 1-2 are well under way. If Ma or a KMT President gets elected in 2012 expect rapid (though ambiguously worded) advancement of stages 3-5.<br /><br />Above all, this is not quantum mechanics but simple politics of nationalism, fear & insecurity, economic dominance and naval / military superiority. The writing is very clearly on the wall. Those who choose to ignore it out of 'pragmatism', defending the (shifting) 'status-quo', seeking win-win or refusing to believe it is happening will have a lot of explaining to do in the near future. What will the middle generation tell their kids I wonder? - "Sorry son, we gave up on Taiwan because we didn't have the courage of our fathers and mothers to fight for something we didn't know the value of" ....<div class="blogger-post-footer"><center><font face="arial" size="-1">* * *<br/><i><font color="#005500">Taiwan</font> is <b>not</b> a province of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. The PRC flag has <b>never</b> flown over Taiwan.</i><br/>Stick that in your clipboards and paste it, you so-called "<a href="http://rconversation.blogs.com/rconversation/2006/04/taiwan_blogs_br.html#comment-16275861" title="That's what Rebecca MacKinnon says you are!">lazy journalists</a>"!</font></center></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33027445.post-20780844583975575182010-08-08T23:20:00.001+08:002010-08-10T15:30:43.572+08:00Formosa Betrayed, a powerful story<b>This can't possibly be the same film Ian Bartholemew reviewed Friday</b><br /><br />The film <i>Formosa Betrayed</i>, whose screenplay amalgamates the tales of the 1980s murders of Carnegie Mellon University professor <a href="http://www.twhistory.org.tw/20010702.htm" title="真相‧緝兇‧追思: 陳文成事件二十週年祭 Truth, finding the perpetrator, and recollection: The 20th anniversary of the Chen Wen-chen incident">Chen Wen-chen</a> (陳文成) and writer <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Liu" title="Via Wikipedia: ''[Liu] was most famous for writing an unauthorized biography of Chiang Ching-kuo […] On 15 October, 1984, Liu was shot to death in the garage of his home in Daly City, California.[1] His killers fled the country, returning to Taiwan. They did not face trial until the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation discovered a tape made by chief hitman Chen Chi-li implicating Republic of China military intelligence in the killing, whereupon they began to pressure the government to bring Liu's killers to trial.[2] According to Chen's testimony at his trial in Taipei, Wang Hsi-ling of Kuomintang intelligence ordered the assassination.[3] A month after his conviction, Chen retracted this statement. However, Tung Kuei-sen, another one of the killers, corroborated this fact at his own trial in the United States in 1988, stating that the order for Liu's death had been given by the Taiwanese government. Tung (who had previously been cleared of racketeering charges related to the assassination) was convicted.[1][4][5] The assassination became a major political scandal in Taiwan and American officials were critical of the Kuomintang for orchestrating an assassination on United States soil.''">Henry Liu</a> (劉宜良, AKA Chiang Nan [江南]), has been <a href="http://www.chinatownconnection.com/william-tiao-formosa-betrayed.htm" title="From Nov. 12, 2006: ''The film's storyline concerns the murder of a Taiwanese professor in 1982, and the subsequent investigation by a US detective. As the detective pursues the case, he finds that the killing was part of conspiracy that goes all the way to the top of the US and Taiwanese governments.''">discussed publicly for almost four years</a>, and it finally made it to general release at cinemas in Taiwan on Friday, August 6, 2010.<br /><br />Yet <i>Taipei Times</i> movie critic <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/feat/archives/2010/08/06/2003479708" title="Did Ian Bartholemew even watch the film, or was he paid *extra* to write this crap?: ''Formosa Betrayed is loosely inspired by the book of the same title published in 1965 by George H. Kerr, a US Foreign Service staff officer in Taipei at the time of the 228 Incident in 1947. The book is a mixture of history and memoir that examines the events around the retrocession of Taiwan to Chinese rule and America's not altogether honorable role in the process.''">Ian Bartholemew seems to think it was based upon the George Kerr book</a> of the same name (it was <i>not</i>), that it was about the events surrounding the <a href="http://www.knowledgerush.com/kr/encyclopedia/228_Massacre/" title="''[KMT troops] attacked Taiwan massacring nearly 30,000 Taiwanese and imprisoning thousands of others. The killings were both random and premeditated as local elites or educated Taiwanese were sought out and disposed of.">228 Massacre</a> (二二八大屠殺) of 1947 (even though that event -- which happened 36 years prior to our story -- is mentioned within, it's <i>not</i> part of the plot of this movie), and that "Retrocession" [sic] is the proper term for the occupation of Taiwan by the Chinese Nationalist Party (<abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">KMT</abbr>) (it is <i>not</i>).<br /><br /><center><a href="http://a.imageshack.us/img444/7030/formosabetrayedposteratg.jpg" title="Formosa Betrayed movie poster outside of Taichung's Tiger City -- hosted by ImageShack"><IMG SRC="http://a.imageshack.us/img444/5844/formosabetrayedposterat.jpg" WIDTH="480" HEIGHT="360" BORDER="0" ALT="Formosa Betrayed movie poster outside of Taichung's Tiger City"></a><br /><font size="-1" face="Arial"><i>Formosa Betrayed</i> movie poster<br />outside of Taichung's Tiger City<br />Photo by Tim Maddog<br />(Click to enlarge)</font></center><br />I had awaited this film's arrival in Taiwan for such a long time, and having seen so many previews, reviews, and interviews, I was a little bit worried that there wouldn't be very much left for me to experience anew when I saw it in a movie theater. Fortunately, I was wrong.<br /><br />Before I get to anything involving spoilers, let me tell you a few things about the movie in general.<br /><br /><b>It is what it is</b><br />So, what is <i>Formosa Betrayed</i>? The story centers around FBI Agent Jake Kelly (played by James van der Beek) and his search for the two gangsters who murder Taiwanese-American professor Henry Wen. The evidence brings Jake to Taiwan, where he meets waiter/independence activist Ming (明, played by Will Tiao [刁毓能], who also co-wrote and produced the movie) and uncovers more truth than his superiors ever wanted him to. The events take place in 1983, during the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Terror_%28Taiwan%29" title="''The White Terror describes the suppression of political dissidents and public discussion of the 228 Incident in Republic of China (Taiwan) under the martial law period from May 19, 1949 to July 15, 1987. It's the longest martial law in the world - it lasted for 38 years, 57 days. It takes its roots in the anti-Communist White Terror in mainland China and the 228 Incident in 1947. During the White Terror, around 140,000 Taiwanese were imprisoned or executed for their real or perceived opposition to the Kuomintang Party (KMT, Chinese Nationalist Party) government led by Chiang Kai-shek, according to a recent report by the Executive Yuan of Taiwan.''">White Terror</a> period and four years before the lifting of the <abbr title="The *Chinese* Nationalist Party that 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr>'s 38-year-long imposition of martial law on Taiwan.<br /><br /><b>This is thriller</b><br />Beyond the film's historical implications (being <a href="http://taiwaneseamerican.org/ta/2010/02/24/a-message-from-will-tiao-producer-of-formosa-betrayed/" title="''Formosa Betrayed is the first American film to ever deal with US-Taiwan relations and explore the issues of democracy, identity, and justice during the White Terror period in Taiwan.''">the first American film to deal with Taiwan-US relations</a>"), we are propelled through the story by our concern for the protagonists, Jake and Ming, by their struggles against bureaucracies, gangsters, police agencies, and even military officials, and by the hope that they will succeed and survive. It shouldn't matter if you are American, Taiwanese, or neither -- unless you hate one or both of those countries, you'll probably care for both characters, and you will feel their pain as you watch horrific events unfold.<br /><br />The antagonists are everywhere. Watch the movie and see how almost every time Jake tries to do the right thing, someone delays him, finds his "target" before he does, or tries to bring him great harm. You might not even realize whether some characters are the good guys or the bad guys until near the end of the flick.<br /><br /><b>Production values</b><br />The film -- directed by Adam Kane (<i>Heroes</i>) and photographed by Irek Hartowicz -- has a gritty, desaturated look throughout much of it, creating an atmosphere appropriate to both the period and the content. The first image we see -- Jake's blood-splattered face in very shallow depth of field -- sets the tone for what's to follow.<br /><br />The score didn't draw much attention to itself, remaining mostly way in the background except in some especially tense scenes. Two or three times during the film, I got quite a jolt from the audio-visual-story combo -- an excellent reason to see the film in a theater.<br /><br />Other reviewers' complaints about the film being shot in Thailand instead of Taiwan drive me nuts. <a href="http://asiapacificarts.usc.edu/w_apa/showarticle.aspx?articleID=14706&AspxAutoDetectCookieSupport=1" title="''Taiwan has developed so much since 1983, that it doesn't look like it did back then. So it was easier to take parts of Bangkok and make it look like Taiwan used to. The second reason is budgetary, because of the exchange rate and the fact we were told that [if we shot in Taiwan], we'd have to import equipment from either China, Hong Kong, or Australia, and that would of doubled or tripled our cost right there.''">The reasons for it happening have been explained again and again</a>, and even more detail has come out quite recently <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/07/31/2003479274" title="The movie studio had turned to the National Development Fund (NDF), a Cabinet agency, for funding, a process that started in 2007, one year before shooting began and when Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) of the Democratic Progressive Party was still in power. […] While in Taiwan, studio representatives, including Tiao, gave a closed-door presentation to the NDF. At that point, a little more than US$5 million had been raised for the production. […] The producers' hope was that the NDF would almost match the money already raised. 'We were tentatively approved,' Tiao said. 'We were very excited about the fact that we would be able to shoot in Taiwan.' However, while studio representatives were in Thailand, which they had included as a backup, they learned that although the proceedings of the NDF presentation were supposedly confidential, a staffer who was present had contacted ***a Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislator*** and 'told him what had happened in the room.' The ***KMT legislator***, whose identity Tiao would not reveal, then allegedly contacted the Chinese-language ***United Daily News***, which printed a story about the movie and the application with the NDF. […] 'When we came back to Taiwan after scouting in Thailand, we were told flat out that our budget was being held,' Tiao said. Without that money, Taiwan no longer was an option.">about the <abbr title="The *Chinese* Nationalist Party that 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr>'s involvement</a>. My wife -- Have I mentioned that she's Taiwanese? -- didn't have any complaints about the locations not looking enough like Taiwan in the eighties, so I have a hard time accepting that particular gripe.<br /><br />Some of these complainers may merely wish to discredit <i>Formosa Betrayed</i>. Others may have unthinkingly been influenced by such thoughts and are repeating them. Whatever their reasons, it's as if everyone suddenly forgot how to suspend their disbelief for this particular motion picture. (Pssssst! You're actually sitting in a chair in an air-conditioned theater in the year 2010 in a city which may or may not be Taipei!) With the budget limitations, I would guess that telling the story took priority over adding a CGI recreation of Taipei.<br /><br />So, while it may not be a state-of-the-art spectacle, it does a great job of doing what people go to the movies for: it tells a powerful story.<br /><br /><b>It ain't what it's not</b><br /><i>Formosa Betrayed</i> is not an allegory. It's basically a straight-up dramatization of events related to Taiwan's history -- a story which has needed to be told for a very long time. And Will Tiao, Adam Kane, and the rest of the cast and crew have done a formidable job of it.<br /><br /><b>What will I learn?</b><br />* The <abbr title="The *Chinese* Nationalist Party that 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr> is <i>not</i> protecting Taiwan from <font color="#FF0000">Commie</font> bandits, and they never have.<br />* The United States' cooperation with the <abbr title="The *Chinese* Nationalist Party that 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr> ignores/involves lots and lots of evil.<br />* Good people standing up for basic human rights get called "gangsters" and "terrorists" by those responsible for mass murder of innocent civilians.<br />* Taiwan is <i>not</i> <font color="#FF0000">China</font>, and despite frequent claims about the matter, Taiwanese are <i>not</i> treated like "brothers" by the <font color="#FF0000">Chinese</font>.<br />* Others' admonitions which are supposedly "for your own good" are often ways for them to hold onto power while keeping you down.<br /><br /><b>Who should see this film?</b><br />Every single Taiwanese should see this film, whether they already know about this history or not. Anyone who has ever supported the <abbr title="The *Chinese* Nationalist Party that 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr> should see this film and open their eyes widely. Americans should see this film to understand what their government has done (and continues to do) to Taiwan.<br /><br />If you enjoy thrillers, you should see <i>Formosa Betrayed</i> because it's an exciting story which, as <a href="http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100317/REVIEWS/100319985/1023" title="''We realize, somewhat to our surprise, that ''Formosa Betrayed'' is a thriller that's actually about something. Most thrillers are about the good guy trying to outshoot and outrun the bad guys, and their settings are incidental. This one has a bone to chew. One of the script writers is Will Tiao, who also plays Ming, the film's Taiwanese hero, an underground activist committed to regaining control of the island for its original Formosans.''">Roger Ebert says</a>, is "actually about something."<br /><br />If you don't like mainstream Hollywood flicks, see it for its independent style.<br /><br />If you don't fall into any of those categories, make like a Nike ad, and <i>just see it</i>!<br /><br /><b>Where to see it</b><br />I saw it at Tiger City in Taichung. Here's the page where you can <a href="http://www.vscinemas.com.tw/visInternetTicketing3/visChooseSession.aspx?visLang=1" title="in English">find showtimes for all Vieshow Cinemas</a> (威秀影城) in Taiwan. See it soon, as it probably won't be here for long.<br /><br /><b>Fiction vs. reality (SPOILERS)</b><br />Some people have said that the people and events portrayed in <i>Formosa Betrayed</i> are <i>entirely</i> imaginary. Those people are either lying or they're ignorant -- perhaps both. Here is a short list of some people/things in the film and the people/things they correspond to (or not) in real life:<br /><br />* Wen Ming-hua (溫明華, AKA Henry Wen, the murder victim) = Chen Wen-chen + Henry Liu.<br />* Guy with camera at student protest = Student spies funded by the <abbr title="The *Chinese* Nationalist Party that 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr>.<br />* David Wu Da-wei + James Lee Shin-shen (the killers) = <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chen_Chi-li" title="Wiki article, with sources: ''[Chen,] nicknamed King Duck, was a gangster from Taiwan, best known for heading the United Bamboo Gang.[1][3] His murder of dissident journalist Henry Liu in Daly City, California, USA, in 1984 has been described as 'the most prominent example of the [Kuomintang]'s co-operation with gangsters in upholding its dictatorship.' ''">Chen Chi-li</a> (陳啟禮) and others.<br />* Ming's sister, Maysing (美星): "Don't use your phone. They're listening." = Government phone tapping of political opponents/dissidents/competitors -- something which still happens quite frequently.<br />* The protest in Kaohsiung = The <a href="http://www.taiwandc.org/hst-1979.htm" title="provocation...exaggeration...coertion">Kaohsiung Incident</a> of 1979. (Note: Just a few months after <i>Formosa Betrayed</i> had completed filming, similar things happened during the protests against visiting <font color="#FF0000">Chinese</font> envoy, Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait Chairman Chen Yunlin [陳雲林]. including <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsVJdYoUdU4" title="YouTube video: ''馬英久執政期間.鎮暴警毆媒體! 民視記者傷''">the brutal beating of an <i>FTV</i> [民視] reporter</a>. Also watch <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1XyLbx8K_qM&feature=PlayList&p=61EE9B7AF7997450&index=0&playnext=1" title="with English subtitles"><i>Red Caution</i></a> to see what happened to Taiwan in the first few months Ma Ying-jeou [馬英九] was in office as president.)<br />* The murder of Ming's wife and daughter in their home = <a href="http://zen.sandiego.edu:8080/Jerome/1236085555/index_html" title="Who could it be, now?">The murder of Lin I-hsiung's (Lîm Gī-hiông, 林義雄) family</a> while their home was under 24-hour police surveillance.<br />* The way Ming's father was killed = The way many people were killed in the 228 Massacre: shot in the head and/or dumped in a river. (Others were <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=asGKt2RcVDU&mode=related&search" title="English subtitled version of ''Taiwan 228 Massacre 60 Years On: 1947-2007 (紀念康阿裕)''">buried alive</a>.)<br />* Professor Wen and Ming being called "gangsters" and "terrorists" = A common tactic used by the gangster-affiliated <abbr title="The *Chinese* Nationalist Party that 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr>.<br />* 健康 (Health[y] brand cigarettes = The ironically-named <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgARYYI0eI4ZAzPFwQx5pUl2TwlIb047hLX25dowuHvKY09uQYiy0WW4UoB3rQsX7xGIeL5GQaKZpPsllcBxpcQdx777v23NySOQ06eoicFUE9atdLENaORqyhaIECBHaydKFKjcA/s1600-h/%E9%95%B7%E5%A3%BD%E7%85%99-%E9%BB%83%E9%95%B72.jpg" title="Here's an image">Long Life</a> (長壽) brand of cigarettes.<br />* The movie ≠ The book by George Kerr. Although it's got the same title, and it's about the same country and the same party-state, it's a different story.<br /><br /><b>Other interesting tidbits (minor SPOILERS)</b><br />* Jake is assigned Room <b>228</b> (a reference to the <a href="http://www.knowledgerush.com/kr/encyclopedia/228_Massacre/" title="''[KMT troops] attacked Taiwan massacring nearly 30,000 Taiwanese and imprisoning thousands of others. The killings were both random and premeditated as local elites or educated Taiwanese were sought out and disposed of.">228 Massacre of 1947</a>) in his Taipei hotel.<br />* When Jake is at the airport leaving Taiwan, a voice is heard on the airport intercom announcing in English "China Airline[s] flight <b>1947</b> from Taipei to New York is now boarding…"<br /><br /><b>Just one thing…</b><br />As <a href="http://michaelturton.blogspot.com/2010/07/gospel-according-to-will-formosa.html" title="'' Simply end with something like: 'Today no nation on earth recognizes Taiwan as an independent state.' ''">Michael Turton pointed out previously</a>, that onscreen title at the end… it's wrong, and it should be fixed because it undermines the message the rest of the film tries so hard to get across. It says [highlight mine]:<blockquote>Currently there are 23 countries that recognize <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">Taiwan</span> as an independent nation.<br /><br />The United States is not one of them.</blockquote>The problem is that the countries which have official relations with "Taiwan" recognize Taiwan as the "Republic of China" and its associated claim to represent -- y'know -- <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. Because of the "one-China" policies of both the <abbr title="The ''People's'' Republic of China"><font color="#FF0000">PRC</font></abbr> and the <abbr title="Republic of China [or] Rat-bastards of Corruption"><font color="#0000CC">ROC</font></abbr>, <i>not a single one</i> of those countries recognize Taiwan's independence the way they should -- and <i>that right there</i> is the problem!<br /><br /><b>A whole spectrum of other reviews</b><br />* David Reid's review: "<a href="http://blog.taiwan-guide.org/2010/08/formosa-betrayed-movie-review/" title="''the focus should really be on the story of how an American FBI agent discovers the truth about the true nature of the ROC regime on Taiwan […] [T]his process of discovery […] forms the central part of the story''">Formosa Betrayed: a quest for truth and justice</a>."<br />* Jerome F. Keaton's review: "<a href="http://zen.sandiego.edu:8080/Jerome/1281002489/index_html" title="''Can one imagine deprivation if one has only known plenty? Can one imagine oppression if one has only known democracy? Can one imagine a one-party state violating people's rights unless one has experienced it? This is what Formosa Betrayed is about and these are some of the questions it raises for Taiwan's youth.''">The Film 'Formosa Betrayed' Though Different from 'Cape No. 7' is Important for Taiwan Youth</a>."<br />* Michael Turton's review: "<a href="http://michaelturton.blogspot.com/2010/07/gospel-according-to-will-formosa.html" title="''Like Agent Jake Kelly, the viewer has to immerse herself in the tale for a while before she finds a foothold in it. And like Agent Kelly, the viewer will find that much has been learned before the exit is reached.''">The Gospel According to Will: Formosa Betrayed</a>."<br />* Sheri Linden wrote <a href="http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/film-reviews/formosa-betrayed-film-review-1004070537.story" title="''more informative than cinematic […] refreshingly doesn't make the American's personal redemption more important than wide-ranging political revelations […] an eye-opening history lesson more than an atmospheric thriller. It's nonetheless chilling as it exposes the machinations between countries with no official relationship''">a fair-even-if-not-entirely-postive review</a> in <i>The Hollywood Reporter</i>.<br />* Despite the number of stars he gave it, <a href="http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100317/REVIEWS/100319985/1023" title="''We realize, somewhat to our surprise, that ''Formosa Betrayed'' is a thriller that's actually about something. Most thrillers are about the good guy trying to outshoot and outrun the bad guys, and their settings are incidental. This one has a bone to chew. One of the script writers is Will Tiao, who also plays Ming, the film's Taiwanese hero, an underground activist committed to regaining control of the island for its original Formosans.''">Roger Ebert seems to have liked it</a>.<br />* Ian Bartholemew wrote what could be <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/feat/archives/2010/08/06/2003479708" title="Did Ian Bartholemew even watch the film, or was he paid *extra* to write this crap?: ''even given the time lapse of 50 years […] Retrocession […] the book''">the most uninformed movie review I've ever read</a>.<br />* Does Vancouver's Katherine Monk think that watching <i>Formosa Betrayed</i> is as bad as being colonized and placed under nearly four decades of martial law? Her excessively negative review is titled: "<a href="http://www.vancouversun.com/business/Viewers+ones+betrayed/2782024/story.html?id=2782024" title="''*supposedly* based on actual events […] for most movie fans looking for some action on the Far East front, Formosa Betrayed will feel all too quiet''">Viewers are ones who are betrayed</a>."<br /><hr align="left" width="13%" size="1" color="silver"><font size="-1" face="Arial">MacGuffins: <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Taiwan" rel="tag" title="NOT part of China!">Taiwan</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/台灣" rel="tag" title="不是中國的!">台灣</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Formosa+Betrayed" rel="tag" title="The movie">Formosa Betrayed</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/被出賣的台灣" rel="tag" title="Formosa Betrayed, the movie">被出賣的台灣</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/movie" rel="tag" title="Flickering images that move the mind, the body, and occasionally, the spirit">movie</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/電影" rel="tag" title="movie(s)">電影</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Will+Tiao" rel="tag" title="Formosa Betrayed actor-producer-writer">Will Tiao</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/刁毓能" rel="tag" title="Will Tiao">刁毓能</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/White+Terror" rel="tag" title="Just keep saying 'It's only a movie'...">White Terror</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/白色恐怖" rel="tag" title="White Terror">白色恐怖</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/martial+law" rel="tag" title="We can kill you!">martial law</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/戒嚴" rel="tag" title="martial law">戒嚴</a><br /><br />Cross-posted at <a href="http://indiac.blogspot.com/2010/08/formosa-betrayed-powerful-story.html" title="Paying *close* attention to those behind the curtain!">It's Not Democracy, It's A Conspiracy!</a></font><div class="blogger-post-footer"><center><font face="arial" size="-1">* * *<br/><i><font color="#005500">Taiwan</font> is <b>not</b> a province of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. The PRC flag has <b>never</b> flown over Taiwan.</i><br/>Stick that in your clipboards and paste it, you so-called "<a href="http://rconversation.blogs.com/rconversation/2006/04/taiwan_blogs_br.html#comment-16275861" title="That's what Rebecca MacKinnon says you are!">lazy journalists</a>"!</font></center></div>Tim Maddoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16943522529132663780noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33027445.post-6372449242100806502010-07-31T23:51:00.004+08:002010-08-01T02:07:01.239+08:00Taiwan round-up, July 2010; plus Ma Ying-jeou's nonsense<b>First, a bit of catching up is necessary</b><br /><br />A lot has been going on in July -- and I'm not just talking about the extra work that I get during this time of the year. Here are just a few of the more prominent news items I should have been writing about in more detail over the past month:<blockquote>* Despite not being in possession of the land titles, the Chinese Nationalist Party-led (<abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">KMT</abbr>) Miaoli County government <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/07/01/2003476829" title="''Miaoli farmers plead for action''">destroyed the rice paddies of several farmers</a> in the Jhunan Township (竹南) borough of Dapu (大埔) and carted off the rich soil, replacing it with junk-filled dirt. Despite knowing that the current Land Expropriation Act (土地徵收條例) is unfair, the Ministry of the Interior vowed to <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/07/21/2003478471" title="''The Ministry of the Interior (MOI) yesterday dismissed the possibility of the government suspending all planned land seizures before relevant laws are amended.''">continue destroying these farmers' lives and property</a> with their right hand until their left hand is good and ready to change the law. As I've said many times, the <abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr> doesn't follow the law -- the law follows the <abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr>.<br /><br />* Michael Turton blogged on the protests in Taipei on July 17, 2010 which were related to the above land grabs: "<a href="http://michaelturton.blogspot.com/2010/07/miaoli-county-land-seizure-sparks.html" title="with plenty more links…">Miaoli County Land Seizure Sparks Farmer Protests</a>"<br /><br />* In Yunlin County, <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2010/07/27/2003478945" title="''The fire did not cause a toxic chemical release,'' said Hsieh Yein-rui (謝燕儒), director of Environmental Protection Administration's (EPA) Air Quality Protection and Noise Control Department">a fire</a> (<a href="http://news.chinatimes.com/politics/0,5244,50204157x132010073001472,00.html" title="People have been denying that there was an explosion, saying it was ''just a fire,'' but even the pro-Chinese KMT China Times mentions ''explosion'' in this headline">explosion</a>?) on July 25, 2010 at Formosa Petrochemical Group's (FPG, 台塑石化) naphtha cracker No. 6 is followed by the appearance of <a href="http://udn.com/NEWS/NATIONAL/NAT2/5751646.shtml" title="Hanzi report (with video) by United Daily News">dead ducks</a>, <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2010/07/30/2003479156" title="''protesters…threw dead fish and clams that had been found days after a fire broke out in a residual desulphurizer at Formosa Petrochemical Corp's petrochemical complex on Sunday night''">fish, and clams</a> in the vicinity. (Yo, EPA! Is there an alternate explanation for what could have killed all these animals at this particular time?! If so, we'd all like to hear it!) An earlier <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/biz/archives/2010/07/08/2003477392" title="''Formosa shuts down facility after fire hits No. 1 ethylene plant''">blaze had occurred at FPG's naphtha cracker No. 1 on July 7, 2010</a>. It took six days after the second conflagration within a month -- plus large protests by Mailiao residents -- before Premier Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) paid a visit to the site and said they would <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2010/07/31/2003479254" title="Promises, promises…">temporarily suspend operations at the plant</a>. (How long do you think it'll be before that promise gets broken?) Oh, and there's the horrific tale of a dead runaway foreign laborer (who had been poisoned by unsafe working conditions) <a href="http://tw.nextmedia.com/applenews/article/art_id/32700653/IssueID/20100730" title="Hanzi: A prosecutor writes a letter to the Apple Daily">whose body was left outside the plant's perimeter after a much earlier incident</a> in an apparent attempt to… make the original situation even worse? (See this last item <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0t3MsP9FQk4" title="大話新聞0730-12 ">discussed on the July 30, 2010 edition of <i>Talking Show</i></a> [大話新聞].)<br /><br />* Premier Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) tries to do his own verbal "detour" after saying that already-endangered <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/07/14/2003477840" title="Wu Dumb-yih: ''It is well known that dolphins know how to detour when necessary. If not, dolphins kept in ocean parks would often run into the walls of the pool they're kept in.''">Taiwanese pink dolphins would "make a detour"</a> (轉彎) to avoid the planned Kuokuang Petrochemical plant scheduled to be built on coastal wetlands near the mouth of the Jhuoshuei River (濁水溪) in Dacheng Township (大城), Changhua County.<br /><br />* Remember that the most important thing about the following story has to do with the people making the accusation: Chen Chih-chung (陳致中), the son of former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) who is currently running for a city council seat in Kaohsiung, is accused by Next Weekly (壹週刊) of <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/07/22/2003478553" title="Read the details, and try to tell me it's not a setup…">soliciting a prostitute</a>, despite the lack of any hard evidence. While his car was photographed at the scene of the alleged crime, Chen Chih-chung himself was not. Politically motivated, y'think?<br /><br />* Taichung Mayor Jason Hu (胡志強) was placed among "<a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/07/29/2003479098" title="''Ten Urban Leaders — Mayors Rethinking the Way Cities Expand, Move, Compete and Breathe''">the world's top [10] urban leaders</a>" by Monocle Magazine. Although some people say <a href="http://www.libertytimes.com.tw/2010/new/jul/30/today-center18.htm" title="市政英雄?市府改口">the title of the piece makes the "honor" facetious</a>, <a href="http://pfge-pfge.blogspot.com/2010/07/blog-post_27.html" title="See the entire content here -- while it lasts…">the content -- which appears 100% serious as well as positive</a> -- tells me otherwise.<br /><br />* You may notice that the four links at the top of the blogroll in the <i>Taiwan Matters</i> sidebar -- the links to <i>Talking Show</i> (大話新聞) videos -- have been crossed out. That's because YouTube suspended all four of those accounts. Fortunately, someone new has dutifully taken over uploading the shows. Take a look at <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/555victory555#p/u" title="Gimme five!">the uploads on user 555victory555's channel</a>.<br /><br />* After all that stuff <strike>President</strike> <strike>Regional Administrator</strike> (cough, cough) <i>Mr.</i> Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) told us about the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA) signed with <font color="#FF0000">China</font> being purely economic and having nothing to do with unification, the legislature's Organic Laws and Statutes Bureau tells us -- in a report whose release people had complained since at least June 23, 2010 (nearly a week before the ECFA was signed) was being delayed (for over a month now) because it might give a negative impression of the ECFA -- that <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2010/07/29/2003479086" title="''China would likely offer preferential treatment in a bid to make a good impression on the Taiwanese and 'eventually force our government to begin cross-strait political negotiations under public pressure in a bid to realize its strategic goal of forcing [Taiwan] to accept unification'''">what Ma said was, uh, not true</a>.<br /><br />* On July 24, 2010, the U.S. Navy posted <a href="http://www.navy.mil/view_single.asp?id=89349" title="Official Website of the UNITED STATES NAVY">a photo taken during Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) 2010</a> captioned [highlight mine]: "The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan leads a formation of ships from Korea, <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">Taiwan</span>, Japan, Singapore, France, Canada, Australia and the U.S." A week later, that photo isn't showing up, but <a href="http://www.navy.mil/view_single.asp?id=89348" title="''Description: Ships from Korea, Taiwan, Japan, Singapore, France, Canada, Australia and the U.S. are underway in formation during Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) 2010.''">another photo with the same caption</a> can still be viewed.<br /><br />* Formosa Betrayed (the movie) will be showing in Taiwan in less than one week. With the domestic premier taking place Friday, August 6, 2010, producer/actor Will Tiao (刁毓能) is in town, and he reveals in an interview with the <i>Taipei Times</i> how <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/07/31/2003479274" title="''while studio representatives were in Thailand, which they had included as a backup, they learned that although the proceedings of the NDF presentation were supposedly confidential, a staffer who was present had contacted a Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislator and 'told him what had happened in the room.' The KMT legislator, whose identity Tiao would not reveal, then allegedly contacted the Chinese-language United Daily News, which printed a story about the movie and the application with the NDF. How the fund uses its money must be approved by the legislature, which back then, as now, was controlled by the KMT. 'When we came back to Taiwan after scouting in Thailand, we were told flat out that our budget was being held,' Tiao said.">the <abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr> interfered with the filming process</a>. Jerome F. Keating, PhD also has a piece about the film: "<a href="http://zen.sandiego.edu:8080/Jerome/1280565129/index_html" title="Censorship still exists in Taiwan">Still Not Free of KMT Bias, Taiwan Prepares for the Film, 'Formosa Betrayed.'</a>" In that post, he also links to an image of <a href="http://albums.tomoro.net/Jerome/protest_art/html/comic_f.html" title="Starring: Popeye as CKS; Swee'Pea as CCK">the famous comic strip by Bo Yang</a> (柏楊) which got the artist nine years in prison.<br /><br />* … and like I said, much more than I've been able to keep up with in great detail. I've probably missed a few important ones, but those are pretty much off the top of my head. <a href="http://twitter.com/TimMaddog" title="Bio: Taiwan blogger, counterpropagandist, and supporter of Taiwan's existing independence.">Follow me on Twitter</a> to see what I'm writing about in real time.</blockquote><b>No-brainer</b><br />Since Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) so frequently spouts nonsense which should get him laughed off the world's stage, I made a little video showing how audiences should react to such things:<br /><br /><center><object width="480" height="390"><param name="movie" value="http://www.xtranormal.com/site_media/players/jwplayer.swf"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><param name="flashvars"value="height=390&width=480&file=http://newvideos.xtranormal.com/web_final_hi/7e2aacbe-9340-11df-a2e2-003048d6740d_24_web_final_hi_web_finalhi-flv.flv&image=http://newvideos.xtranormal.com/web_final_hi/7e2aacbe-9340-11df-a2e2-003048d6740d_24_web_final_hi_poster.jpg&link=http://www.xtranormal.com/watch/6810597&searchbar=false&autostart=false"/><embed src="http://www.xtranormal.com/site_media/players/jwplayer.swf" width="480" height="390" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" flashvars="height=390&width=480&file=http://newvideos.xtranormal.com/web_final_hi/7e2aacbe-9340-11df-a2e2-003048d6740d_24_web_final_hi_web_finalhi-flv.flv&image=http://newvideos.xtranormal.com/web_final_hi/7e2aacbe-9340-11df-a2e2-003048d6740d_24_web_final_hi_poster.jpg&link=http://www.xtranormal.com/watch/6810597&searchbar=false&autostart=false"></embed></object><object width="480" height="390"><param name="movie" value="http://www.xtranormal.com/site_media/players/embedded-xnl-stats.swf"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.xtranormal.com/site_media/players/embedded-xnl-stats.swf" width="1" height="1" allowscriptaccess="always"></embed></object><br /><font size="-1" face="Arial">2:05 Xtranormal video: "<a href="http://www.xtranormal.com/watch/6810597/" title="Here's the original Xtranormal page with the video">The audience sees through Ma Ying-jeou's nonsense</a>"<br /></font></center><br />Here's the text spoken by Superzero Ma in the video:<blockquote>Hi, I'm Ma Ying-jeou, president of the Republic of China, here in Taiwan Province. As you can see, no one is pulling my strings. That's because Foxconn made a special long distance remote control for Hu Jintao to use on me! But since I am the president of the Republic of China, I am actually Hu Jintao's leader. And as president of the ROC, I am, therefore, also the president of Mongolia! Let me explain. Back in March 2008, after I made a campaign promise to the people of Taiwan saying "no unification," 7.6 million people there voted for me, making me the democratically-elected leader of the "unified" Republic of China's 1.3 billion people, right? Does that not make perfect sense to you? Okay, how about this? Without using your brain too much, see if you can repeat after me: "We are all part of the non-barbarian Zhonghua minzu family, blah blah blah." "The other side of the Taiwan Strait is our mainland region, blah blah blah." Or how about this? "I love Taiwan!" That one works best in the months before important elections. Do you have a question? I'm sorry. I can't hear you. Thank you for your comment. I must be going.<br /></blockquote><hr align="left" width="13%" size="1" color="silver"><font size="-1" face="Arial">Precipitates: <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Taiwan" rel="tag" title="NOT part of China!">Taiwan</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/台灣" rel="tag" title="不是中國的!">台灣</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Dapu" rel="tag" title="A borough in Miaoli County where the farmers stood up against Liu Cheng-hung's illegal land grabs">Dapu</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/大埔" rel="tag" title="Dapu">大埔</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Formosa+Petrochemical+Company" rel="tag" title="''Progress'' at great cost to the environment of the beautiful island nation -- ''Ilha Formosa''">Formosa Petrochemical Co.</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/台塑石化" rel="tag" title="Formosa Petrochemical Co.">台塑石化</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Wu+Den+yih" rel="tag" title="Former KMT Secretary-General, now Premier">Wu Den-yih</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/吳敦義" rel="tag" title="Wu Den-yih">吳敦義</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Chen+Chih-chung" rel="tag" title="Former president Chen Shui-bian's son">Chen Chih-chung</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/陳致中" rel="tag" title="Chen Chih-chung">陳致中</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Jason+Hu" rel="tag" title="Former Min. of Foreign Affairs, Taichung mayor">Jason Hu</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/胡志強" rel="tag" title="AKA Jason Hu">胡志強</a><br /><br />Cross-posted at <a href="http://indiac.blogspot.com/2010/07/taiwan-round-up-july-2010-plus-ma-ying.html" title="Paying *close* attention to those behind the curtain!">It's Not Democracy, It's A Conspiracy!</a></font><div class="blogger-post-footer"><center><font face="arial" size="-1">* * *<br/><i><font color="#005500">Taiwan</font> is <b>not</b> a province of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. The PRC flag has <b>never</b> flown over Taiwan.</i><br/>Stick that in your clipboards and paste it, you so-called "<a href="http://rconversation.blogs.com/rconversation/2006/04/taiwan_blogs_br.html#comment-16275861" title="That's what Rebecca MacKinnon says you are!">lazy journalists</a>"!</font></center></div>Tim Maddoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16943522529132663780noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33027445.post-48620824995804442532010-06-30T01:19:00.000+08:002010-06-30T01:20:32.874+08:00DPP Adverts warn of ECFA dangers to TaiwaneseThe DPP have produced these two videos below as criticism of the ECFA trade agreement and what they argue are its likely effects on Taiwanese. In the first we see a new well qualified graduate lose a job to a competitor from China and in the second we overhear a conversation by two businessmen celebrating ECFA's benefits for them. Interestingly, given recent discussion on the Taiwan blogsphere about the use of 'Dalu' or mainland by Taiwanese (indicating their internalisation of China as a bigger part of their own country), both videos below use the phrase repeatedly. I feel it might more benefit the DPP if they were more careful to use the word Chung-guo rather than Dalu where possible in future.<br /><br />有ECFA真好?- ECFA哪裡好三部曲之二 <br /><br /><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/oW3g3m7t_DY&hl=en_GB&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/oW3g3m7t_DY&hl=en_GB&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br /><br /><br />早收清單---ECFA哪裡好? <br /><br /><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/HiUguZ-WlAI&hl=en_GB&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/HiUguZ-WlAI&hl=en_GB&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><div class="blogger-post-footer"><center><font face="arial" size="-1">* * *<br/><i><font color="#005500">Taiwan</font> is <b>not</b> a province of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. The PRC flag has <b>never</b> flown over Taiwan.</i><br/>Stick that in your clipboards and paste it, you so-called "<a href="http://rconversation.blogs.com/rconversation/2006/04/taiwan_blogs_br.html#comment-16275861" title="That's what Rebecca MacKinnon says you are!">lazy journalists</a>"!</font></center></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33027445.post-54132494863796826762010-06-25T03:53:00.000+08:002010-06-25T03:58:48.070+08:006/26 protest to demand referendum on ECFA<b>Be there if you can!</b><br /><br />The Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) government is <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/06/25/2003476352" title="''SEF says ECFA to be signed on June 29''">planning to sign an Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement</a> (ECFA, 經濟合作架構協議) with Taiwan's untrustworthy authoritarian neighbor <font color="#FF0000">China</font> on June 29. That's next Tuesday, despite the fact that <i>even polls by media which favors Ma and his party</i> show that <a href="http://taiwanmatters.blogspot.com/2010/06/ralph-jennings-misreports-on-taiwan.html" title="''Should the government sign an ECFA with China?'' 42% say ''Yes'' while 44% say ''No.''">a majority of Taiwanese oppose the agreement</a> and that people of all political stripes support holding a referendum on the issue.<br /><br />Ten or twenty years from now, when you reflect back on tomorrow's rally to show the Ma government -- and especially the rest of the world -- what the people of Taiwan really think of this deal, will you be able to say "I was there!" or will you say "I was too busy/tired/apathetic, so I didn't go"? Think hard before you choose the latter.<br /><br /><center><a href="http://img535.imageshack.us/img535/2439/626g.jpg" title="Citizens demand a referendum on ECFA, oppose 'one-China' market -- hosted by ImageShack"><IMG SRC="http://img686.imageshack.us/img686/1361/626small.jpg" WIDTH="480" HEIGHT="235" BORDER="0" ALT="Citizens demand a referendum on ECFA, oppose 'one-China' market"></a><br /><font size="-1" face="Arial">Citizens demand a referendum [on ECFA] and oppose the "one-China" market<br />June 26 [2010], gather at 3 PM @ Wanhua Station and Dinghao Plaza<br />(Click to slightly enlarge)</font></center><br />Wednesday's <i>Taipei Times</i> has <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/06/22/2003476091" title="''DPP expects 100,000 to take part in Saturday's rally''">the important details about the 626 protest</a> in English:<blockquote>The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday that 100,000 people are expected to take to the streets of Taipei on Saturday to demand that the government put its proposed plan to sign an economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) with China to a referendum.<br /><br />[...]<br /><br />The party said demonstrators would be split into two groups — an "anti-'one China' market" group and a "referendum on an ECFA" group.<br /><br />The "anti-'one China' market" route will start at Dinghao Plaza and travel along Zhongxiao E Road, Linsen S Road and Renai Road Sec 1.<br /><br />The "referendum on an ECFA" march, meanwhile, will begin at Wanhua Station and proceed along Monga Boulevard, Heping W Road Sec 2, Fuzhou Street, Roosevelt Road Sec 1 and Zhongshan S Road.<br /><br />Both marches will start at 4pm and converge on Ketagalan Boulevard in front of the Presidential Office at 5pm, where a number of DPP officials are expected to make speeches.<br /><br />The protest is scheduled to finish at 7pm, the party said.</blockquote>How 'bout we make it 200,000?<br /><br />Remember to take pictures, record videos, and post them online so that when the media underreports the numbers or claims that the crowds were violent, people will be able to find out for themselves what really happened.<br /><br /><b>Lest ye forget!</b><br />And I want to remind readers once again what <font color="#FF0000">Chinese</font> Premier Wen Jiabao (溫家寶) said about ECFA being one step toward "complete unification of the motherland [sic]":<br /><center><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/rRcpCyfrlHw&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/rRcpCyfrlHw&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br /><font size="-1" face="Arial">0:35 YouTube video: "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRcpCyfrlHw" title="Here's the original YouTube page with the video">DPP ECFA referendum ad - with English titles</a>"</font></center><hr align="left" width="13%" size="1" color="silver"><font size="-1" face="Arial">Posters: <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Taiwan" rel="tag" title="NOT part of China!">Taiwan</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/台灣" rel="tag" title="不是中國的!">台灣</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/protest" rel="tag" title="Part of democracy">protest</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/抗議" rel="tag" title="Protest">抗議</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/ECFA" rel="tag" title="Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement">ECFA</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/經濟合作架構協議" rel="tag" title="Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement">經濟合作架構協議</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/referendum" rel="tag" title="The people say...">referendum</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/公投" rel="tag" title="referendum">公投</a><br /><br />Cross-posted at <a href="http://indiac.blogspot.com/2010/06/626-protest-to-demand-referendum-on.html" title="Paying *close* attention to those behind the curtain!">It's Not Democracy, It's A Conspiracy!</a></font><div class="blogger-post-footer"><center><font face="arial" size="-1">* * *<br/><i><font color="#005500">Taiwan</font> is <b>not</b> a province of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. The PRC flag has <b>never</b> flown over Taiwan.</i><br/>Stick that in your clipboards and paste it, you so-called "<a href="http://rconversation.blogs.com/rconversation/2006/04/taiwan_blogs_br.html#comment-16275861" title="That's what Rebecca MacKinnon says you are!">lazy journalists</a>"!</font></center></div>Tim Maddoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16943522529132663780noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33027445.post-4988802378093604592010-06-20T22:37:00.003+08:002016-02-13T17:38:56.979+08:00"Mainland"? Which "mainland"?<b>An obvious symptom of brainwashing in Taiwan (and elsewhere)</b><br /><br />Because of the Chinese Nationalist Party (<abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">KMT</abbr>), for most of the past six decades, Taiwan's educational system has indoctrinated students with the concept that "my country" (我國/本國) includes Taiwan, the territory now controlled by the <font color="#FF0000">People's Republic of China</font> (<font color="#FF0000">PRC</font>), and Mongolia. As a result, certain words used by Taiwanese reveal how deeply this indoctrination has penetrated.<br /><br /><center><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjknc0ePUAGCaTTfK9A5WWTXEUJHm0JBaPFWcSuldgcDyOn1huRQEBrdy7sN_8W6Elnip2brOetZumiPlE-7pK_zCbXo9j2Dch-GRhS6XvvlIAMYk9Oc9HqJJgzqKJAvyEf4k-XFQ/s1600/benguodilithumb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjknc0ePUAGCaTTfK9A5WWTXEUJHm0JBaPFWcSuldgcDyOn1huRQEBrdy7sN_8W6Elnip2brOetZumiPlE-7pK_zCbXo9j2Dch-GRhS6XvvlIAMYk9Oc9HqJJgzqKJAvyEf4k-XFQ/s1600/benguodilithumb.jpg" /></a></div><br /><font size="-1" face="Arial">An old Geography textbook used in Taiwan<br />Tim Maddog photo<br />(Click to enlarge)</font></center><br />While most elementary school students these days will state "Taiwan" (台灣) as the name of their country, and only an incredibly small minority will say they are from the "ROC" (中華民國), there's still a lot of deep-set confusion. As Professor Lee Hsiao-feng (李筱峰, AKA Jim Lee, of National Taipei University's Graduate School of Taiwanese Culture) explains in the piece I will translate below, the words we are exposed to on a daily basis affect our ability to see clearly and even to clearly form our own identity.<br /><br />Here it is, 「大陸」「大陸」,哪個大陸? ("<a href="http://www.jimlee.org.tw/article.jsp?b_id=100989&menu_id=4" title="- by Prof. Jim Lee">'Mainland,' 'mainland,' which mainland?</a>") [translations, text coloration mine]:<blockquote>俗話說「什麼人玩什麼鳥」,同樣的,「什麼人說什麼話」。在當前國家認同錯雜混亂的台灣,從每個人使用的不同用詞,就可以判斷他的國家認同和政治立場的差異。<br /><br />People say, "This kind of person plays with this kind of bird" and "This kind of person uses these kinds of words" [both meaning: "A person is defined by the words they use"]. In the past, Taiwan's national identity has been a jumbled mess. From the different words that people use, you can spot the differences in people's sense of national identity and political affiliation.<br /><br />記得蔡英文與馬英九進行電視辯論的時候,凡是對「中華人民共和國」的稱呼,馬英九一律把它改稱「大陸」,但是蔡英文則清清楚楚叫它為「中國」。全世界都知道,「中國」指的就是那個全名叫做「中華人民共和國」的國家。但是「大陸」呢?全世界沒有一個國家叫做「大陸」,倒是在地理上,有歐亞大陸、非洲大陸、美洲大陸。「大陸」,指的是哪一個大陸?馬英九不稱中國為「中國」,而稱「大陸」,為什麼?因為他所認同的國家就是中國,而且台灣是中國的一部分,如果他將對岸稱為「中國」,等於是將台灣置於中國之外,這是他無法容忍的。稱中國為「大陸」,表示兩邊都屬中國,而有「大陸地區」和「台灣地區」之分。所以將中國稱為「大陸」,其實是對台灣的矮化,是對台灣的貶損! <br /><br />Think back to the televised debate between Tsai Ing-wen and Ma Ying-jeou. Each time the <font color="#FF0000">PRC</font> came up, Ma consistently referred to it as the "mainland" while Tsai referred to it more clearly as "<font color="#FF0000">China</font>." The whole world knows that "<font color="#FF0000">China</font>" refers to the country whose full name is the "<font color="#FF0000">People's Republic of China</font>." But what about "mainland"? There is no country on Earth called "Mainland" [<b>Maddog note:</b> Though I've capitalized it here (as if it were the name of a country), it shouldn't actually be capitalized unless it's the first word in a sentence.] -- it's merely a geographic term which could variously refer to the Eurasian continent, the African continent, or the North and South American continents. So why say "mainland"? Because Ma identifies with <font color="#FF0000">China</font> and considers Taiwan to be part of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. If he were to call the other side "<font color="#FF0000">China</font>," it would mean that Taiwan is something separate -- something Ma could never admit. By calling <font color="#FF0000">China</font> the "mainland," he means that the two sides belong to <font color="#FF0000">China</font> and that the "mainland area" and "Taiwan area" are both part of that <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. This actually belittles and disparages Taiwan.<br /><br />中國人馬英九稱中國為「大陸」,一點都不奇怪。奇怪的是,竟然也有自以為是獨派的人士,也習而不察,跟著人家把中國稱為「大陸」,這就自我矛盾了。 <br /><br />For Ma-the-<font color="#FF0000">Chinese</font> to call <font color="#FF0000">China</font> the "mainland" isn't strange at all. What is strange is when supporters of Taiwan's independence use the word out of sheer habit, following others' use of "mainland" when they mean "<font color="#FF0000">China</font>" -- this is a contradiction of their own principles.<br /><br />最近台灣出現了一個名詞叫做「陸生」,其實也有一樣的意涵。所謂「陸生」,就是「大陸學生」的簡稱。把中國來台的留學生稱為「陸生」,和稱中國為「大陸」一樣是對台灣的矮化。中國來的留學生,當然簡稱「中生」,怎麼變成「陸生」? <br /><br />The word "<i>lùshēng</i>" has recently entered Taiwan's vocabulary. This contains a similar meaning. "<i>Lùshēng</i>" is merely a short form of ""<i>dàlùxuéshēng</i>" ("mainland students"). To call <font color="#FF0000">Chinese</font> students "<i>lùshēng</i>" is just as belittling and disparaging of Taiwan as using the word "mainland" instead of "<font color="#FF0000">China</font>." A more natural short form would be "<i>Zhōngshēng</i>." How did that become "<i>lùshēng</i>"?<br /><br />再者,近年來出現了一個不三不四的名詞叫做「阿六仔」。許多人把中國人稱為「阿六仔」,所謂「六」,當然是大「陸」的轉音。「阿六仔」這個名詞,本身帶有輕蔑的語氣,殊不知用這種輕蔑的名詞形容對方,其實是矮化了台灣,貶損了自己而不自知。 <br /><br />Another strange word which has appeared in recent years is "a-la̍k-á" [<b>Maddog note:</b> The pronunciation of that term is invariably Taiwanese, not Mandarin]. Many people call <font color="#FF0000">Chinese</font> (people) "a-la̍k-á" with the middle word "la̍k" ["six"] having the same pronunciation in Taiwanese as the "lù" in "dàlù." "A-la̍k-á" itself bears a pejorative tone, but actually one may not realize that using this kind of tone to describe others can also belittle Taiwan, disparage the user, and show self-unawareness.<br /><br />這種矮化台灣、貶低台灣的用詞還有很多,例如,將孫文(孫逸仙)先生稱為「國父」就是。所謂「國父」是哪一「國」的「國父」?當然是指「中華民國」的國父。不要說連孫文本人都不知道他被國民黨稱為中華民國「國父」,孫文如果知道台灣人竟然也稱他為「國父」,一定詫異萬分。因為孫文在過世前一年曾經呼籲日本應該讓「朝鮮和台灣兩民族」獨立自治,而台灣人竟然還在叫他「國父」,真是蠢蛋! <br /><br />There are many more words used to belittle and disparage Taiwan. For example, calling Sun Yat-sen the "nation's founding father." Which "nation" is he the "founding father" of? Of course that would be the "Republic of China [ROC]." Don't say that even Sun himself didn't know he was called "the nation's founding father" by the Chinese KMT, but if he could know that some Taiwanese still call him the "nation's founding father," he'd be completely amazed because a year before he died, Sun appealed to Japan to allow Korea and Taiwan to become independent. For Taiwanese to call him the "nation's founding father," they must really be morons!<br /><br />至於那些遊走對岸淘金的藝人,也跟著中國人將中華人民共和國稱為「內地」,那就不只是「蠢蛋」兩字所能形容了!日本殖民統治時代,台灣人稱日本本土為「內地」,清帝國時代則稱中國本土為「內地」,現在台灣不屬中華人民共和國,卻也稱呼人家「內地」。台灣人,你要自我作踐到幾時? <br /><br />As for entertainers who wander off to <font color="#FF0000">China</font> in search of money and who refer to the <font color="#FF0000">PRC</font> as the "heartland," not even the word "moron" can describe what they are! When Taiwan was a Japanese colony, Taiwanese referred to Japan as the "heartland." However, during the Qing Dynasty, [what we now call] <font color="#FF0000">China</font> was the "heartland." Present-day Taiwan doesn't belong to the <font color="#FF0000">PRC</font>, yet people still use the term "heartland." People of Taiwan: How long will you humiliate yourselves like this?</blockquote>One "mainland" which Professor Lee left out was Australia's. People in Tasmania will refer to the non-Tasmanian part of Australia as the "mainland" while people in New Zealand never do so -- because it's <i>a whole other country</i>. It's a good example to use with people who don't seem to "get it."<br /><br /><b>Related:</b><br />* <a href="http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000687608695" title="莊哲">A guy I met later on Facebook</a> called in to <i>New Taiwan Go Go Go</i> (新台灣加油) to complain about so-called pro-Taiwan TV stations using the word "mainland." I posted the video on YouTube:<br /><center><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/JX561z2Phxs&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/JX561z2Phxs&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br /><font size="-1" face="Arial">1:23 YouTube video: "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JX561z2Phxs&feature=channel_page" title="Here's the original YouTube page with the video">Mr. Chuang wants green media to stop saying "mainland"</a>"</font></center><br />* Hena (Taiwanese for erhu, 二胡) player Kenny Wen is one of those who sold his soul to Beijing and was "forced" to call <font color="#FF0000">China</font> the "heartland" (內地):<br /><center><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/R7aJToYzldM&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/R7aJToYzldM&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br /><font size="-1" face="Arial">9:00 YouTube video: "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7aJToYzldM" title="Here's the original YouTube page with the video">Kenny Wen Teaches: How to sell your soul to the demons in Beijing</a>"</font></center><br />* A <i>Taiwan Matters</i> post with links to videos of the entire debate referred to in Lee's piece: "<a href="http://taiwanmatters.blogspot.com/2010/04/ralph-jennings-pushes-anti-taiwan-pro.html" title="Hurry! The debate's over! How can I kiss Ma's pigu?!">Ralph Jennings pushes anti-Taiwan, pro-Ma propaganda</a>"<br /><br />* If you need help with the videos linked in the post at the link above, the <i>Taipei Times</i> translated the entire debate between Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) into English:<br />- <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/04/26/2003471543" title="Tsai: '' You never persist in Taiwan's sovereignty and always refer to Taiwan and China as the 'Taiwan region' and 'the Mainland region.' ''">Part One: Ma, Tsai lock horns in ECFA debate</a><br />- <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/04/27/2003471594" title="I count at least 14 instances of ''mainland'' used by Ma -- Tsai uses the term only in the title of the ''Mainland Affairs Council''">Part Two: Tsai questions Ma on job losses from signing ECFA</a><br /><hr align="left" width="13%" size="1" color="silver"><font size="-1" face="Arial">Words which mean things: <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Taiwan" rel="tag" title="NOT part of China!">Taiwan</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/台灣" rel="tag" title="不是中國的!">台灣</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/propaganda" rel="tag" title="(usu. neg.) ''info., ideas, or rumors deliberately spread widely to help or harm''">propaganda</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/宣傳" rel="tag" title="propaganda">宣傳</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/brainwashing" rel="tag" title="From the Mandarin ''xǐnǎo''">brainwashing</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/洗腦" rel="tag" title="brainwashing">洗腦</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Lee+Hsiao-feng" rel="tag" title="Professor at National Taipei University's Graduate School of Taiwanese Culture">Lee Hsiao-feng</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/李筱峰" rel="tag" title="Lee Hsiao-feng, AKA Jim Lee">李筱峰</a><br /><br />Cross-posted at <a href="http://indiac.blogspot.com/2010/06/mainland-which-mainland.html" title="Paying *close* attention to those behind the curtain!">It's Not Democracy, It's A Conspiracy!</a></font><div class="blogger-post-footer"><center><font face="arial" size="-1">* * *<br/><i><font color="#005500">Taiwan</font> is <b>not</b> a province of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. The PRC flag has <b>never</b> flown over Taiwan.</i><br/>Stick that in your clipboards and paste it, you so-called "<a href="http://rconversation.blogs.com/rconversation/2006/04/taiwan_blogs_br.html#comment-16275861" title="That's what Rebecca MacKinnon says you are!">lazy journalists</a>"!</font></center></div>Tim Maddoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16943522529132663780noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33027445.post-37902487664520843082010-06-16T19:06:00.001+08:002010-06-21T22:51:48.500+08:00UPDATED: KMT Miaoli County Magistrate Liu Cheng-hung Destroys Crops to Requisition Land Without Permission<span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;">UPDATE: </span>Click on <a href="http://dailywhatevers.blogspot.com/2010/06/foxconns-terry-guo-brutal.html">THIS LINK </a>to get another report on this destructive land grab by Terry Gou<br /><br />On June 9th 2010, caterpillar excavators moved into a track of land owned by local Miaoli farmers to destroy their crops against their wishes. These crops were two months away from harvest. They did this on the orders of KMT Miaoli County Magistrate <b>劉政鴻</b>(<b>Liu, Cheng-Hung)</b> whilst negotiations were underway between the County Government and local residents over a fair price for the Government requisition of land. This was despite the fact that the Miaoli County Council passed a resolution stating that the Government could buy the land but only at a fair price agreed to by the owners of the land. Not only were negotiations unfinished but residents were prevented from stopping the caterpillar excavators from continuing their work by hundreds of police who were called in to the scene. These police also prevented the local KMT Legislator 康世儒 from entering the site <span style="font-style: italic;">(5:21 on the video below)</span>. Here is the location:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL81UVQxLSLG4DsJhAyajwK2zRyktSqQtVZXxBPumpYfiZfWl4hcgIgZw8OPJUxdYxRUL1KoRiSIeuxBipemxiNWQomO053PY6cHD1yEhKOsrgHOkSubl_yPqs6SrRMDkoCtZ7QQ/s1600/Screen+shot+2010-06-16+at+00.30.08.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 269px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL81UVQxLSLG4DsJhAyajwK2zRyktSqQtVZXxBPumpYfiZfWl4hcgIgZw8OPJUxdYxRUL1KoRiSIeuxBipemxiNWQomO053PY6cHD1yEhKOsrgHOkSubl_yPqs6SrRMDkoCtZ7QQ/s400/Screen+shot+2010-06-16+at+00.30.08.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5483038751131023346" border="0" /></a>The County Magistrate responsible, <b>劉政鴻</b>(<b>Liu, Cheng-Hung),</b> is this man here: <a href="http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh/%E5%8A%89%E6%94%BF%E9%B4%BB">(From Wikipedia)</a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c1/Liu_Cheng-Hung-P1000399.JPG/482px-Liu_Cheng-Hung-P1000399.JPG"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: left; cursor: pointer; width: 250px; height: 300px;" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c1/Liu_Cheng-Hung-P1000399.JPG/482px-Liu_Cheng-Hung-P1000399.JPG" alt="" border="0" /></a><br />Here is a video of the incident in question with feedback from local residents:<br /><br /><object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" data="http://media.peopo.org/Player_PTV.swf?v=53db2fcd" height="350" width="400"> <param name="movie" value="http://media.peopo.org/Player_PTV.swf?v=53db2fcd"> <param name="wmode" value="transparent"> <param name="allowScriptAccess" value="sameDomain"> <param name="quality" value="best"> <param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF"> <param name="scale" value="noScale"> <param name="salign" value="TL"> <param name="FlashVars" value="playerMode=embedded"> <embed quality="high" src="http://media.peopo.org/Player_PTV.swf?v=53db2fcd" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="350" width="400"></embed></object><br /><br />This story came from the <a href="http://www.peopo.org/portal.php?op=viewPost&articleId=57987">Peopo site</a> - media by citizen journalists. WE WOULD VERY MUCH APPRECIATE ANY HELP YOU CAN PROVIDE IN FINDING OUT THE REASONS WHY THE MIAOLI COUNTY GOVERNMENT ARE SO IN NEED OF THIS LAND. Please leave your informed ideas in the comments section.<br /><br />Here is a report of events in Mandarin:<br /><br />2010.6.9,相信對苗栗竹南大埔的居民絕對是個永難忘懷的日子。<p>6.8下午,縣府運來水泥拒馬阻斷大埔地區通外道路,並施行交 通管制,當地居民發覺後,緊急連絡立委、議員前來協調,縣府態度強硬不予理會,直到傍晚才開放一條通道供民眾出入。</p><p>6.9凌晨三點多,警備 車載來二百多名員警,同時到來的是二十多輛怪手、鏟土車,還有救護車,帶頭者按圖索驥,四處佈置警力與怪手,時間一到同時出動,令不及防備的居民手足無 措,無法相互支援,接到訊息的媒體在外圍即被擋下不得進入。</p><p>怪手直接開進休耕或再一個多月就可收割的稻田,或開挖或推土,甚至只是在稻田裡 繞幾圈就開走,部份居民隱忍不敢阻止,按耐不住的居民責罵員警和工程人員,招致而來的是稻禾被鏟除得更徹底,及與員警在稻田旁追逐後,立即被優勢警力制服 受傷,一位憤怒的農民提言要放火燒怪手,換來的是稻田被鏟成平地,幾乎看不到還站立著的稻禾。</p>一位婦人孤身站在怪手旁不肯離開,遭十幾位 男、女員警包圍,僵持一陣後即被拉走,旁邊一台攝影機持續記錄整個過程,搜證員警好奇地問:「她是你的誰?」,只聽到一句男孩子微弱的聲音:「我母親!」<div class="blogger-post-footer"><center><font face="arial" size="-1">* * *<br/><i><font color="#005500">Taiwan</font> is <b>not</b> a province of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. The PRC flag has <b>never</b> flown over Taiwan.</i><br/>Stick that in your clipboards and paste it, you so-called "<a href="http://rconversation.blogs.com/rconversation/2006/04/taiwan_blogs_br.html#comment-16275861" title="That's what Rebecca MacKinnon says you are!">lazy journalists</a>"!</font></center></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33027445.post-18959571929115962952010-06-07T00:39:00.000+08:002010-06-07T00:42:20.237+08:00Ralph Jennings misreports on Taiwan again<b>Completely unacceptable</b><br /><br />On my Facebook wall, <a href="http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1624797429#!/profile.php?id=1624797429&v=wall&story_fbid=134514303225717&ref=mf" title="''More BS from the notorious Ralph Jennings [...]''">Alex Raymond alerted me</a> to a Ralph Jennings piece from Saturday titled "<a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE65426720100605?type=politicsNews" title="Ralph Jennings - Taipei - Sat Jun 5, 2010 11:57am EDT">Taiwanese show guarded acceptance of China pact</a>."<br /><br />Do Taiwanese "accept" this so-called Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA) at all?<br /><br />Take a look this particular paragraph of Jennings' article [emphasis mine]:<blockquote><span style="background-color:#ffff10;">Political analysts said the size of the protest,</span> <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">a month after</span> a sit-in in Taipei attracted <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">only a few hundred</span>, <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">was an indication that Taiwan's public accepted the deal</span>, wanted to know more details or believed the government was deaf to protests.</blockquote>The first problem there is that Jennings quotes unnamed "political analysts." Would it make a difference if these "analysts" were close to President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and the party he chairs, the Chinese Nationalist Party (<abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">KMT</abbr>)? Yes, it would. (See an earlier example of <a href="http://taiwanmatters.blogspot.com/2009/12/media-mendacity-on-taiwan-december-24.html" title="''Jennings fails to answer some essential questions for the readers: [...]''">Jennings' use of similar tactics</a>.)<br /><br />The next problem is the simple lack of deductive logic. The first paragraph of the article claims that the size of Saturday's protest was "10,000" (and Jennings has <a href="http://taiwanmatters.blogspot.com/2007/09/915-un-for-taiwan-i-was-there.html" title="Play close attention to the subsection titled ''The numbers game''">greatly underestimated the number of attendees</a> at previous protests by pro-Taiwan groups) and then tells readers of a sit-in that happened "a month" ago (which, in reality, was a 3-day protest which <a href="http://taiwanmatters.blogspot.com/2010/05/taiwanese-demand-referendum-on-ecfa.html" title="''Taiwanese demand a referendum on ECFA''">ended just 15 days ago</a>) and which "attracted only a few hundred." Gee, according to <i>my</i> math, "10,000" is a much larger number, and 15 days is only <i>half</i> a month.<br /><br />While it may be correct to say that Taiwanese "believed the government was deaf to protests," note how it's not the single possibility which was placed in the headline. Despite the addition of the word "guarded," the one which does appear there (and <i>in</i> the article minus the qualifier) is the one which is the easiest to disprove.<br /><br /><b>Just what <i>do</i> Taiwanese think about this ECFA?</b><br />Let's look at <a href="http://www.tvbs.com.tw/FILE_DB/DL_DB/doshouldo/201006/doshouldo-20100601201132.pdf" title="104 kb PDF file: ECFA公投民調">a poll from the pro-<abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr> <i>TVBS</i> which was released just this past Monday</a> (May 31, 2010) [104 kb PDF file] for some indications [translations, emphasis mine]:<blockquote>公投題目<span style="background-color:#ffff10;">「是否同意政府與中國簽ECFA?」</span>:同意42% v.s.<span style="background-color:#ffff10;">不同意44%</span><br /><br />Voting on a referendum which asks: <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">"Should the government sign an ECFA with China?"</span> 42% say "Yes" while <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">44% say "No."</span><br /><br />[...] 15%未表示意見。<br /><br />[...] 15% expressed no opinion.<br /><br />[...]<br /><br />辦 ECFA<span style="background-color:#ffff10;">公投</span>?<span style="background-color:#ffff10;">民眾贊成的比例上升至55%</span>,不贊成則下滑到 30%<br /><br />Hold a <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">referendum</span> on ECFA? <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">Public support increases to 55%</span>, opposition slips to 30%<br /><br />[...]<br /><br />若辦公投,六成(59%)民眾說會去投票 [...]<br /><br />If there is a referendum, 59% of the public says they will vote [...]</blockquote><b>Bias!</b><br />I don't trust <i>TVBS</i>, but remember that if there's any bias in their poll, it will be in favor of those pushing this ECFA with <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. So, I must wonder: Does Ralph Jennings hate Taiwan and the truth, or will he write <i>just anything</i> -- <a href="http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/u/uptonsincl138285.html" title="''It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it.''">as long as he keeps getting paid to do so</a>?<br /><br />Don't just accept what you read, especially not when it's written by "pros" who repeatedly provide you with information that is as easily disputed as the stuff Jennings keeps shoveling.<br /><br /><b>Bonus</b><br />Check out how Reuters dissembles even more by using an image (with a caption that only appears as a pop-up) of <a href="http://in.reuters.com/article/idINIndia-49073220100605?feedType=RSS&feedName=everything&virtualBrandChannel=11709" title="''Activists wave flags during a protest ***against*** the economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) trade deal with China, in Kaohsiung June 5, 2010. Credit: Reuters/Stringer''">cheering Taiwanese atop this version of the article</a>.<br /><hr align="left" width="13%" size="1" color="silver"><font size="-1" face="Arial">Counterpoints: <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Taiwan" rel="tag" title="NOT part of China!">Taiwan</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/台灣" rel="tag" title="不是中國的!">台灣</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/ECFA" rel="tag" title="Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement">ECFA</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/經濟合作架構協議" rel="tag" title="Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement">經濟合作架構協議</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Ralph+Jennings" rel="tag" title="Reuters' professional prevaricator">Ralph Jennings</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/唐甯思" rel="tag" title="AKA 'Ralph Jennings">唐甯思</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/media" rel="tag" title="I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to take it anymore!">media</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/媒體" rel="tag" title="media">媒體</a><br /><br />Cross-posted at <a href="http://indiac.blogspot.com/2010/06/ralph-jennings-misreports-on-taiwan.html" title="Paying *close* attention to those behind the curtain!">It's Not Democracy, It's A Conspiracy!</a></font><div class="blogger-post-footer"><center><font face="arial" size="-1">* * *<br/><i><font color="#005500">Taiwan</font> is <b>not</b> a province of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. The PRC flag has <b>never</b> flown over Taiwan.</i><br/>Stick that in your clipboards and paste it, you so-called "<a href="http://rconversation.blogs.com/rconversation/2006/04/taiwan_blogs_br.html#comment-16275861" title="That's what Rebecca MacKinnon says you are!">lazy journalists</a>"!</font></center></div>Tim Maddoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16943522529132663780noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33027445.post-74501555905233984822010-06-05T23:32:00.003+08:002010-06-09T04:09:34.739+08:00Taiwan under Ma Ying-jeou is a mess<b>Gangsters and police hand-in-hand -- and so much more!</b><br /><br /><div style="margin: 0pt 0px 7px 9px; float: right; text-align:center;"><a href="http://img266.imageshack.us/img266/4182/sunmoonbiotechgangshoot.jpg" title="Sun Moon Biotech -- the scene of the May 28, 2010 shooting that took place in broad daylight in Taichung City, Taiwan in the presence of four police officers"><IMG SRC="http://img9.imageshack.us/img9/102/sunmoonbiotechgangthumb.jpg" WIDTH="275" HEIGHT="323" BORDER="0" ALT="Sun Moon Biotech -- the scene of the May 28, 2010 shooting that took place in broad daylight in Taichung City, Taiwan in the presence of four police officers"></a><br /><font size="-1">Sun Moon Biotech -- the scene of the<br />May 28, 2010 shooting that took place<br />in broad daylight in Taichung City, Taiwan<br />in the presence of four police officers<br />Photo by Tim Maddog<br />(click to enlarge)</font></div>On Friday, May 28, 2010, the shooting murder of gang leader Weng Chi-nan (翁奇楠) which took place in broad daylight <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2010/06/04/2003474577" title="''Four police officers were present at the scene of Friday's killing of gang leader Weng Chi-nan (翁奇楠), and during the three minutes and five seconds it took the killer to commit his crime, they hid under a table. Afterward, they did not behave like hardened police officers, but instead rushed to flee the scene.''">in the presence of (at least) four police officers</a> in Chinese Nationalist Party (<abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">KMT</abbr>)-led Taichung City pulled back the curtain on so much of what is wrong in Taiwan today.<br /><br />The two senior officers on the scene were Taichung City Police Traffic Chief Lin Chi-you (林啟右) and Criminal Investigation Corps' Third Division head Lin Wen-wu (林文武). The two lower-ranking officers there were Shih Chang-hsing (石長興) and Sergeant Tai Chih-hung (戴志宏).<br /><br />Surveillance video from the interior of the crime scene exists, but over a week later, not only has this video footage <i>not</i> been shown to the public to help identify and capture the shooter -- it is said to have already been <a href="http://news.chinatimes.com/realtime/0,5255,110101x112010060201269,00.html" title="Hanzi report in China Times Online ''還說錄影帶部分內容被消磁''">partially erased</a>. <b>UPDATE:</b> That page has ironically disappeared, but I fortunately saved <a href="http://img710.imageshack.us/img710/8500/newsabouterasedvideoera.png" title="''還說錄影帶部分內容被消磁''">an image of the web page</a>. [/update]<br /><br />Could somebody be hiding something, y'think? Can you say "accessories to the crime"?<br /><br />Were the police officers there simply "drinking tea," as has been reported, were they "<a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/06/05/2003474724" title="''They were reportedly playing mahjong and hid under a table when Weng Chi-nan (翁奇楠) was shot.''">playing mahjong</a>," or is such speculation just a distraction from what was really going on? So far, we can only rely on the testimony of seemingly untrustworthy sources. Right away all four officers on the scene <a href="http://news.chinatimes.com/focus/0,5243,50105529x112010060200099,00.html" title="''四名官警昨天口徑一致表示不認識翁奇楠''">claimed that they "didn't know" Wang</a>.<br /><br />But just days later, the story changes slightly. Also at the scene was retired officer Chen Wen-hsiung (陳文雄, the one you may have seen on TV yelling about people making "groundless accusations"), who <a href="http://news.chinatimes.com/focus/0,5243,50105543x112010060300180,00.html" title="''翁奇楠遭槍擊案在場的前台中市警局少年隊副隊長陳文雄,昨天出面否認插股領薪。他說,三個月到翁奇楠處九次,純泡茶,絕無打麻將。他承認認識翁奇楠,但無深交,不滿名嘴稱他和黑道角頭泡茶,被說成十惡不赦,痛罵名嘴IQ低,「阿達馬空固力」(腦袋裝水泥),再汙蔑他就提告。''">now admits that <i>he</i> knew Wang</a>, though he claims he "didn't know him well," and he <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2010/06/03/2003474539" title="''Commandos arrive in Taichung''">says he invited the other four</a> to the location. Tsk, tsk!<br /><br />How long will it be before the story changes again?<br /><br />Taichung Police Commissioner <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/06/04/2003474637" title="Taichung police commissioner offers resignation">Hu Mu-yuan (胡木源) has already resigned</a> as a result of this scandal. However, the re-election campaign of Taichung Mayor Jason Hu (胡志強) -- a <abbr title="The *Chinese* Nationalist Party that 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr> politician who has already held office since 2002 (thus having had plenty of time to do something about public order) -- is sure to suffer as a result of the constant attention being given to this matter.<br /><br />Mayor Hu has <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/06/02/2003474479" title="''Taichung deploys SWAT to fight crime''">repeatedly "declared war" on gangs</a>, yet according to the National Police Agency (警政署), <a href="http://www.libertytimes.com.tw/2010/new/jun/1/today-fo4.htm" title="''警政署「犯罪指標犯罪率」統計顯示,台中市在全國所有縣市中,每十萬人口犯罪指標犯罪率,從九十二年起曾連續六年治安狀況吊車尾,直到九十八年才晉升一名,成為倒數第二。''">Taichung's crime rate has been the highest in the nation</a> during the past six years.<br /><br />This sure doesn't look anything like the "clean" <abbr title="The *Chinese* Nationalist Party that 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr> promised by Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) in his 2008 presidential election campaign.<br /><br /><b>The undemocratic Referendum <strike>Review</strike> <i>Rejection</i> Committee</b><br />In news about Taiwan's disappearing democracy, <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2010/06/05/2003474716" title="''Although it sparked an angry response on Thursday night, the Executive Yuan's Referendum Review Committee's decision to turn down a proposal by the Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) for a referendum on an economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) with China wasn't exactly a surprise. ¶ In fact, months ago members of the Alliance of Referendum for Taiwan were telling this newspaper that they did not expect the referendum proposal would be accepted, even if it was perfectly legal and met all relevant benchmarks.">to no one's surprise</a>, the Referendum Review Committee <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2010/06/04/2003474657" title="ECFA referendum proposal rejected">rejected the second proposal</a> for a referendum on the current government's plan to sign an Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA) with <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. Even a poll by the deep-blue <i>TVBS</i> tells us that <a href="http://www.tvbs.com.tw/FILE_DB/DL_DB/doshouldo/201006/doshouldo-20100601201132.pdf" title="104 kb PDF: ECFA公投民調: ''相較於去年3月的調查結果,贊成的比例明顯上升7個百分點(48%:55%)[...]''">support for such a referendum increased from 48% to 55%</a> [104 kb PDF file] since March 2009.<br /><br />So why can't Taiwanese have a say in this matter? Referendum <strike>Review</strike> Rejection Committee chairman Chao Yung-mau (趙永茂) is claiming that "<a href="http://www.taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=105784&CtNode=414" title="Taiwan Today: ''ECFA referendum proposal thrown out''">The TSU's proposal does not meet the qualification of 'approving a government policy' as stated in the Referendum Act</a>."<br /><br />This is just another of the <abbr title="The *Chinese* Nationalist Party that 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr>'s word games which treat the Taiwanese as idiots.<br /><br />The Ma government claims that the public supports ECFA, yet hundreds of thousands of signatures had been collected in support of this proposal. Could that number be the very reason the committee voted 12:4 to reject public opinion on something that could affect not only the economy but also Taiwan's sovereignty?<br /><br /><b>Radical (and mendacious) anti-Taiwan media</b><br />In a report on the latest rejected referendum, the <a href="http://www.google.com/webhp?hl=en#hl=en&safe=off&q=AFP+Taiwan+China+%22split+in+1949+at+the+end+of+a+civil+war%22&fp=4b3bef2a60bd6aab" title="Google search for [AFP Taiwan China ''split in 1949 at the end of a civil war'']">frequently-mendacious</a> news agency <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agence_France-Presse" title="Wikipedia article">Agence France Presse</a> (AFP) refers to the Taiwan Solidarity Union (<abbr title="Taiwan Solidarity Union Party">TSU</abbr>) -- whose "spiritual leader" is former president (then-<abbr title="The *Chinese* Nationalist Party that 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr>) Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) -- as "<a href="http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5i-Jx-WqX8fLqfiMNBCH7FiDrMELQ" title="What's so ''radical'' about the status quo?">a radical pro-independence party</a>." More word games.<br /><br />While I have previously complained about the <abbr title="Taiwan Solidarity Union Party">TSU</abbr> being <a href="http://michaelturton.blogspot.com/2008/04/pro-independence-politician-to-head-mac.html#comment-3903862128024376402" title="Commenting on Michael Turton's blog, ''The View from Taiwan''">infiltrated by Shih Ming-teh's (施明德) redshirts</a>, there are only two groups which would consider the party itself to be "radical," and those groups would be <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/photo/2010/06/05/2008046941" title="This Taipei Times editorial cartoon agrees…">the <abbr title="The *Chinese* Nationalist Party that 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr> and the <abbr title="The *Chinese* Communist Party that wants Taiwan to submit to their evil will"><font color="#FF0000">CCP</font></abbr></a>.<br /><br />Why isn't anyone in the media referring to those two parties as "radical"?<br /><br /><b>China proves Ma to be a liar (How will he explain <i>this</i> away?)</b><br />After <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/01/23/2003464220" title="Ma: ''Once we ink an ECFA with the mainland, ASEAN countries will not reject the idea of talking with us.''">Ma's repeated claims</a> that signing an ECFA with <font color="#FF0000">China</font> <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/04/28/2003471681" title="''Other countries, which [Ma] did not name, have reportedly told his administration they would be willing to consider FTAs with Taiwan, but recommended he sign an ECFA with China first.''">would open the door</a> for Taiwan to sign free trade agreements (FTAs) with other countries, <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTOE65104X20100602" title="''Reporting by Faith Hung; Editing by Ken Wills''"><font color="#FF0000">Chinese</font> officials are ironically the ones who have been more forthcoming</a>:<blockquote>On the China trade issue, Taiwan protested on Wednesday after a mainland foreign ministry spokesman said <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">Beijing "resolutely opposed" official contact between its diplomatic allies and Taiwan</span>.</blockquote>Does it matter what <font color="#FF0000">Chinese</font> officials say about this? Will that stop other countries from signing FTAs with Taiwan? Read what Franck Varga says about that below.<br /><br /><b>US Congress listens to Ma's critics, not to Ma<br />(and Ma listens to no one but China)</b><br />A recent report by Congressional Research Services (CRS) titled "Democratic Reforms in Taiwan" has <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2010/06/04/2003474655" title="''CRS report notes concern over Ma administration''">expressed "concern" over "the prolonged detention of former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁)</a> as a result of complaints by writers and scholars whose open letters (see link below) have been previously covered on this blog.<br /><br />An article in the June 4, 2010 edition of the <i>Taipei Times</i> also has this to say about the report [highlights mine]:<blockquote>"A number of professors, writers, activists and ex-officials primarily in the United States have signed open letters on what they called the 'erosion of justice' in Taiwan," the report says.<br /><br />[...]<br /><br />The US Congress has also helped, the report says, "by pressing the KMT [Chinese Nationalist Party] regime to end authoritarian abuses of power in favor of <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">freedoms for all the people in Taiwan, including the majority Taiwanese</span>."<br /><br />The report says that a sustainable democracy helps Taiwan to <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">guard against "undue" Chinese influence as cross-strait engagement has intensified under Ma</span>.</blockquote>Whenever people criticize things about the Ma government that anyone can see with their own eyes, the Ma government will have a response that treats you like you're imagining things (or perhaps that you're "not Chinese, so you couldn't <i>possibly</i> understand"), but their logic doesn't hold up to the facts. That doesn't seem to bother them in the least.<br /><br />But remember this: When the <abbr title="The *Chinese* Nationalist Party that 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr> says "up," you should think "down" -- <i>way</i> down -- and check things out for yourself.<br /><br /><b>Related reading:</b><br />* David Reid of <i>David on Formosa</i> blogs: "<a href="http://blog.taiwan-guide.org/2010/06/ecfa-referendum-rejected/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+DavidOnFormosa+%28David+on+Formosa%29&utm_content=Twitter" title="David on Formosa">Rejection of referendum is a denial of democratic rights</a>"<br /><br />* Ben Goren blogs on <i>Letters from Taiwan</i>: "<a href="http://lettersfromtaiwan.blogspot.com/2010/06/pants-on-fire.html" title="''You know how Taiwan's President has been claiming that signing the ECFA with China will lead to FTAs with other countries? Turns out either he was a hopeless optimist or once again he lied''">Pants on Fire</a>"<br /><br />* Franck Varga blogs about <a href="http://fvarga.wordpress.com/2010/06/04/its-not-a-donkey-its-a-horse/" title="''It's Not a Donkey. It's a Horse!''">gangsters, <abbr title="The *Chinese* Nationalist Party that 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">Chinese KMT</abbr> hypocrisy, and more</a>. As Franck points out, "They [the Ma government] want to let the Taiwanese believe that other countries will not be afraid of the Chinese reaction…"<br /><br />* Michael Turton blogs on <i>The View from Taiwan</i> about <a href="http://michaelturton.blogspot.com/2010/06/ma-we-need-ecfa-for-other-ftas-beijing.html" title="''Ma: We need ECFA for Other FTAs Beijing: What are you talking about?''">Beijing slapping Ma in the face</a>, noting Bonnie Glaser's <i>Nineteen Eighty-Four</i>-like "logic."<br /><br />* Look back at <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/local/archives/2001/08/14/98471/" title="''Elections 2001: Hu takes leap into Taichung politics''">what Jason Hu told the <i>Taipei Times</i> back in 2001</a> when he was running for mayor.<br /><br />* Taiwan Echo writes about the return to days of dictatorship -- <i>and beyond</i>: <a href="http://echotaiwan.blogspot.com/2010/06/ma-to-send-more-military-instructors-to.html" title="Taiwan Echo @ Echo Taiwan">Ma to Send More Military Instructors to Campus -- Elementary Schools Included</a><br /><br />* Part 13 of my series of posts on "<a href="http://taiwanmatters.blogspot.com/2010/02/debate-on-erosion-of-justice-in-taiwan.html" title="''Debate on erosion of justice in Taiwan continues: Part XIII''">the erosion of justice in Taiwan</a>" contains links to all the open letters, the responses, and my earlier comments.<br /><hr align="left" width="13%" size="1" color="silver"><font size="-1" face="Arial">Facially-tattooed tears: <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Taiwan" rel="tag" title="NOT part of China!">Taiwan</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/台灣" rel="tag" title="不是中國的!">台灣</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Ma+Ying+jeou" rel="tag" title="Wants KMT-tler Youth to 'produce another Hu Jintao'">Ma Ying-jeou</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/馬英九" rel="tag" title="Ma Ying-jeou">馬英九</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Taichung" rel="tag" title="Taiwan's 3rd largest city, located near the west coast of central Taiwan">Taichung City</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/台中市" rel="tag" title="Taichung">台中市</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Jason+Hu" rel="tag" title="Former Min. of Foreign Affairs, Taichung mayor">Jason Hu</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/胡志強" rel="tag" title="AKA Jason Hu">胡志強</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/gangs" rel="tag" title="Groups who use violence and threats thereof to control markets, earn profits, and play ''god''">gangs</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/黑道" rel="tag" title="gangs">黑道</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/police" rel="tag" title="Supposedly on the ''right'' side of the law">police</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/警察" rel="tag" title="police">警察</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/ECFA" rel="tag" title="Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement">ECFA</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/經濟合作架構協議" rel="tag" title="Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement">經濟合作架構協議</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/referendum" rel="tag" title="The people say...">referendum</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/公投" rel="tag" title="referendum">公投</a><br /><br />Cross-posted at <a href="http://indiac.blogspot.com/2010/06/taiwan-under-ma-ying-jeou-is-mess.html" title="Paying *close* attention to those behind the curtain!">It's Not Democracy, It's A Conspiracy!</a></font><div class="blogger-post-footer"><center><font face="arial" size="-1">* * *<br/><i><font color="#005500">Taiwan</font> is <b>not</b> a province of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. The PRC flag has <b>never</b> flown over Taiwan.</i><br/>Stick that in your clipboards and paste it, you so-called "<a href="http://rconversation.blogs.com/rconversation/2006/04/taiwan_blogs_br.html#comment-16275861" title="That's what Rebecca MacKinnon says you are!">lazy journalists</a>"!</font></center></div>Tim Maddoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16943522529132663780noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33027445.post-57511937040779563302010-05-20T21:47:00.001+08:002010-05-20T22:28:41.973+08:00Taiwanese demand a referendum on ECFA<b>Be there, or watch it live</b><br /><br /><a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/05/19/2003473352" title="''About 60 percent of the respondents said a referendum should be held to decide whether the accord should be signed, against 33.3 percent who said it was unnecessary.''">Approximately 60% of Taiwanese of all political stripes support a referendum</a> on the so-called "cross-Strait" [sic -- it should be between two <i>countries</i>] Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA, 經濟合作架構協議) which President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) insists will be signed in June.<br /><br />If you can't be there either today (Thursday, May 20, 2010), tomorrow, or Saturday, you can watch the protest live via Ustream:<br /><center><object classid="clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000" width="400" height="320" id="utv710946"><param name="flashvars" value="autoplay=false&brand=embed&cid=4179564&locale=en_US"/><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true"/><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"/><param name="movie" value="http://www.ustream.tv/flash/live/1/4179564"/><embed flashvars="autoplay=false&brand=embed&cid=4179564&locale=en_US" width="400" height="320" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" id="utv710946" name="utv_n_399277" src="http://www.ustream.tv/flash/live/1/4179564" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" /></object><a href="http://www.ustream.tv/" style="padding: 2px 0px 4px; width: 400px; background: #ffffff; display: block; color: #000000; font-weight: normal; font-size: 10px; text-decoration: underline; text-align: center;" target="_blank">Online video chat by Ustream</a></embed></center><br />For more info visit the <a href="http://www.ecfareferendum.tw/" title="Hanzi">ECFA Referendum Alliance</a> (ECFA 公投行動聯盟) site directly.<br /><br />And never forget what <font color="#FF0000">Chinese</font> Premier Wen Jiabao (溫家寶) said about ECFA being one step toward "complete unification of the motherland [sic]":<br /><center><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/rRcpCyfrlHw&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/rRcpCyfrlHw&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br /><font size="-1" face="Arial">0:35 YouTube video: "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRcpCyfrlHw" title="Here's the original YouTube page with the video">DPP ECFA referendum ad - with English titles</a>"</font></center><hr align="left" width="13%" size="1" color="silver"><font size="-1" face="Arial">Ballots: <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Taiwan" rel="tag" title="NOT part of China!">Taiwan</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/台灣" rel="tag" title="不是中國的!">台灣</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Economic+Cooperation+Framework+Agreement" rel="tag" title="Set to sell Taiwan up the Yellow River">Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/經濟合作架構協議" rel="tag" title="Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement">經濟合作架構協議</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/ECFA" rel="tag" title="Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement">ECFA</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/referendum" rel="tag" title="The people say...">referendum</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/公投" rel="tag" title="referendum">公投</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/protest" rel="tag" title="Part of democracy">protest</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/抗議" rel="tag" title="Protest">抗議</a><br /><br />Cross-posted at <a href="http://indiac.blogspot.com/2010/05/taiwanese-demand-referendum-on-ecfa.html" title="Paying *close* attention to those behind the curtain!">It's Not Democracy, It's A Conspiracy!</a></font><div class="blogger-post-footer"><center><font face="arial" size="-1">* * *<br/><i><font color="#005500">Taiwan</font> is <b>not</b> a province of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. The PRC flag has <b>never</b> flown over Taiwan.</i><br/>Stick that in your clipboards and paste it, you so-called "<a href="http://rconversation.blogs.com/rconversation/2006/04/taiwan_blogs_br.html#comment-16275861" title="That's what Rebecca MacKinnon says you are!">lazy journalists</a>"!</font></center></div>Tim Maddoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16943522529132663780noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33027445.post-56181482336289656912010-05-15T02:17:00.002+08:002010-05-15T02:37:23.222+08:00Clarifying distortions about Taiwan's relations with China<b>Nat Bellocchi puts things in focus</b><br /><br /><div style="margin: 0pt 0px 7px 9px; float: right; text-align:center;"><IMG SRC="http://img232.imageshack.us/img232/9364/natbellocchi.jpg" WIDTH="200" HEIGHT="200" BORDER="0" ALT="Nat Bellocchi"><br /><font size="-1">Voice of America image of<br/>Nat Bellocchi via <a href="http://www.ntdtv.com/xtr/b5/2009/11/13/a378579.html" title="國際學者專家致馬英九關注臺灣司法公正">NTDTV</a></font></div>Former American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Chairman Nat Bellocchi had an editorial piece titled "<a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2010/05/14/2003472895" title="Friday, May 14, 2010, Page 8">The myth about reducing tension</a>" in Friday's <i>Taipei Times</i>. In the eye-opening piece, Bellocchi deconstructs the illusion of the "reduction of tension" between Taiwan and China.<br /><br />It deserves to be read in full, so here's the whole piece [highlights mine]:<blockquote>In a world filled with political tension, cutthroat economic competition and even open warfare, many people long for a reduction of tension, leading to more peace and stability among nations. As such, it was no surprise that when the newly elected Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) government started its policy of rapprochement with China in the spring of 2008, the US welcomed the "reduction of tension" across the Taiwan Strait.<br /><br /><span style="background-color:#ffff10;">The question is whether there really has been a long-term "reduction of tension"</span> and whether that means long-running disagreements might be resolved.<br /><br />It is a fact that <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">for the past two years the People's Republic of China (PRC) has been less bellicose than it was during the eight years of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) administration</span>. However, <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">that is only true because China sees "Taiwan" as moving in its direction, increasing the likelihood that in due time it will be able to force Taiwan — through economic and political means — into some kind of political unification</span>. [<b>Maddog note:</b> While the Chinese Nationalist Party (<abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">KMT</abbr>) is moving in <font color="#FF0000">China</font>'s direction, the people of <font color="#005500">Taiwan</font> are not.]<br /><br />The present "reduction of tension" is thus <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">artificial in nature</span> as it is <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">predicated on Taiwan capitulating under duress to China</span> in the long run. That is <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">tantamount to saying that law-abiding people giving in to mafia threats reduces tension</span>, when <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">in reality the underlying tension is caused by the aggressor</span>. Now, what will happen <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">if the Taiwanese decide</span> — for whatever reasons — <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">to not re-elect President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) in 2012</span> and a DPP government returns to power? <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">Such a government would want to maintain peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, but at the same time retain Taiwan's hard-won freedom, democracy and independence</span>.<br /><br />It is easy to predict that <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">such a new policy would be labeled as "increasing tension" by the defeated KMT as well as by the PRC itself</span>. It is thus an ironic contradiction that <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">attempts to consolidate Taiwan's democracy and its acceptance by the international community may be seen in some quarters as "increasing tension."</span><br /><br />For those who study Taiwan and observe it closely, there are other seeming contradictions: Shirley Kan of the Congressional Research Service in Washington mentioned three of them during a recent seminar at George Washington University: one, if you want consensus, don't call it a consensus (referring to the so-called "1992 consensus" which has been a divisive issue in Taiwan); two, if you want independence, don't say so; and three, if the US wants to reduce the threat of conflict in the Taiwan Strait, it has to sell arms to Taiwan.<br /><br />Against this background, <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">what should the US say or do? For one, it should be more careful in referring to the present trend as "reducing tension."</span><br /><br /><span style="background-color:#ffff10;">There can only be a true reduction of tension if China moves in the direction of accepting Taiwan for what it is — a lively democracy that wants to chart its own course and determine its own future without undue pressure from the Chinese side</span>.<br /><br />There is no evidence that China accepts or will ever accept this point. It continues its military buildup, has hardly moved on giving Taiwan international space and continues its attempts to lock Taiwan into a position of dependence through economic means.<br /><br /><span style="background-color:#ffff10;">The US thus needs to be more insistent on reducing the Chinese military threat against Taiwan and on the issue of increasing international space for Taiwan</span>.<br /><br /><span style="background-color:#ffff10;">A good start would be for the US to fully support Taiwan's membership in international organizations as stipulated in the Taiwan Relations Act and to refrain from anachronistic statements that it only support membership in organizations "that do not require statehood."</span><br /><br />The US also needs to <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">do better at creating an atmosphere wherein efforts by Taiwan's government to consolidate democracy and increase its international presence are seen as enhancing long-term peace and stability</span> in the Strait — <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">in spite of possible objections from a still quite repressive government in Beijing</span>.<br /><br />The basic idea is that — <span style="background-color:#ffff10;">instead of Taiwan moving in the direction of Beijing — the PRC should move in the direction of freedom and democracy. Only then can there be any substantive "reduction of tension."</span></blockquote><b>Further reading:</b><br />* <a href="http://www.taiwandocuments.org/tra01.htm" title="(United States Code Title 22 Chapter 48 Sections 3301 - 3316) via the Taiwan Documents Project">Full text of the Taiwan Relations Act</a> (TRA)<br /><br />* September 3, 2007: <a href="http://taiwanmatters.blogspot.com/2007/09/ma-ying-jeou-seriously-misrepresents.html" title="''[...] having terminated governmental relations between the United States and the governing authorities on Taiwan recognized by the United States as the Republic of China prior to January 1, 1979 [...]''">Ma Ying-jeou seriously misrepresents Taiwan Relations Act</a><br /><br />* April 12, 2009: <a href="http://michaelturton.blogspot.com/2009/04/taiwan-relations-act-at-30.html" title="''the US is not obligated to defend Taiwan by law [...] although the TRA includes language designed to discourage the use of force by the PRC against Taiwan, the TRA only obligates the US to consider arms sales under certain circumstances, period''">Taiwan Relations Act at 30</a> (Michael Turton points out a common misconception about the US' "obligations" related to the TRA.)<br /><hr align="left" width="13%" size="1" color="silver"><font size="-1" face="Arial">Wiseguys: <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Taiwan" rel="tag" title="NOT part of China!">Taiwan</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/台灣" rel="tag" title="不是中國的!">台灣</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/Nat+Bellocchi" rel="tag" title="Former chairman of American Institute in Taiwan, special advisor to Liberty Times Group">Nat Bellocchi</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/白樂崎" rel="tag" title="Nat Bellocchi">白樂崎</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/memes" rel="tag" title="'Virulent' ideas which leap 'from brain to brain'">memes</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/大腦模仿病毒" rel="tag" title="memes">大腦模仿病毒</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/China" rel="tag" title="Hao zhan di Zhongguo">China</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/中國" rel="tag" title="A mere part of 'mainland' Asia">中國</a>, <a href="http://technorati.com/tag/People%27s+Republic+of+China" rel="tag" title="NEVER controlled Taiwan -- not for a single day!">People's Republic of China</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/中華人民共和國" rel="tag" title="PRC">中華人民共和國</a>, <a href="http://www.technorati.com/tag/PRC" rel="tag" title="The 'People's Republic' of China">PRC</a><br /><br />Cross-posted at <a href="http://indiac.blogspot.com/2010/05/clarifying-distortions-about-taiwans.html" title="Paying *close* attention to those behind the curtain!">It's Not Democracy, It's A Conspiracy!</a></font><div class="blogger-post-footer"><center><font face="arial" size="-1">* * *<br/><i><font color="#005500">Taiwan</font> is <b>not</b> a province of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. The PRC flag has <b>never</b> flown over Taiwan.</i><br/>Stick that in your clipboards and paste it, you so-called "<a href="http://rconversation.blogs.com/rconversation/2006/04/taiwan_blogs_br.html#comment-16275861" title="That's what Rebecca MacKinnon says you are!">lazy journalists</a>"!</font></center></div>Tim Maddoghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16943522529132663780noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33027445.post-35071088537892516032010-05-01T04:48:00.000+08:002010-05-02T04:49:10.705+08:00How the ISO helps China change Taiwan's status quo<b>A harmful <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memes" title="''A meme (pronounced /miːm/, rhyming with 'cream') is a postulated unit of cultural ideas, symbols or practices, which can be transmitted from one mind to another through writing, speech, gestures, rituals or other imitable phenomena. (The etymology of the term relates to the Greek word μιμητισμός ([mɪmetɪsmos]) for 'something imitated'.) Supporters of the concept regard memes as cultural analogues to genes, in that ***they self-replicate and respond to selective pressures***.''">meme</a> which replicates itself with ease</b><br />Many organizations, corporations, governments <a href="http://lettersfromtaiwan.blogspot.com/2010/03/gallup-toes-party-line.html">claim that they are "apolitical"</a> and that they simply use the "standard" <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_3166-1_alpha-2">International Organization for Standardization (ISO) country codes</a> as a guide to determine how they list Taiwan.<br /><br />The problem with this is that in <a href="http://www.iso.org/iso/english_country_names_and_code_elements#t.." title="''English country names and code elements''">the ISO country names and code elements</a> list, Taiwan's "short form" is given as "Taiwan, Province of China." <b>This name is neither short nor does it reflect Taiwan's de facto independent status.</b><br /><br />However, it does function as a "meme" or "verbal virus."<br /><br /><b>Furthermore, the ISO has also <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_3166-2:CN">listed Taiwan as China's Region 7</a>, basically ignoring Taiwan's de facto status and annexing the smaller country to the larger one.</b><br /><br />This is outrageous!<br /><br />No, it's not enough for <a href="http://tktw.blogspot.com/2010/04/chinas-freelance-internet-propagandists.html" title="Talk Taiwan: ''China's Freelance Internet Propagandists''">the 50 Cent Army</a> to dominate the Internet with pro-CCP/China/anti-Taiwan propaganda -- now the ISO is helping China to annex Taiwan by spreading the standardized-coding "virus" around the globe.<br /><br />This "virus" created by the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Statistics_Division">UN Statistical Division</a> (which is under the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Department_of_Economic_and_Social_Affairs">UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs</a> [UNDESA] has been headed by Chinese official <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sha_Zukang">Sha Zukang</a> since July 1, 2007) was designed to annex Taiwan by using the convenient excuse of ISO "standardization" codes, which are used by many businesses. On <a href="http://scubathugsteve.blogspot.com/2010/02/university-of-washington-taiwan.html" title="a post about this problem—includes a related image from a university website">many university advertisements</a> for recruiting international students on the Internet, Taiwan has been erroneously listed as a "province of China" most likely due to this ISO country code "virus."<br /><br /><b>Background</b><br />Readers who are unfamiliar with the following subjects might want to take a look at the links below before continuing:<br />* <a href="http://www.iso.org/iso/country_codes/iso_3166-faqs/iso_3166_faqs_specific.htm">ISO 3166 FAQs</a><br />* <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_3166-1">ISO 3166-1</a> (scroll down to "Criteria for inclusion")<br />* <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISO_3166-3">ISO 3166-3</a><br />* <a href="http://unstats.un.org/unsd/geoinfo/gegn23wp16.pdf">UN Report of the Working Group on Country Names</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/24/world/asia/24iht-taiwan.1.6799766.html">Since Taiwan's application to enter the United Nations was rejected by UN</a> in July 2007, not being a UN member, Taiwan is not listed in the United Nations Bulletin <i>Country Names</i>.<br /><br />The UN Terminology Section is the current authority on country names in all of the official languages of the UN, and it does not have Taiwan listed.<br /><br />The list of names in Country and Region Codes for Statistical Use of the UN Statistics Division is based on the Bulletin Country Names and other UN sources, the name "Taiwan, Province of China" has obviously come from "other UN sources."<br /><br />What are these so-called "other UN sources"?<br /><br />The UN always cites <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Resolution-2758.png" title="Here's the full text">UN Resolution 2758</a> as "proof" that Taiwanese people should not have their own seat at the UN because it interprets this resolution as meaning that "Taiwan is a province of China" and that Taiwanese people should therefore be represented by the Chinese government -- a government that has never governed Taiwan and has not even been chosen by its own people to represent China through democratic elections.<br /><br /><b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_General_Assembly_Resolution_2758">UN Resolution 2758</a> actually resolves the question of who should represent China, but it mentions nothing about who should represent the 23 million people of Taiwan.</b><br /><br />On the contrary, the <a href="http://unstats.un.org/unsd/methods/m49/m49.htm">Standard country or area codes and geographical regions for statistical use</a> has included this:<blockquote>The designations employed and the presentation of material at this site do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Secretariat of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.</blockquote>Read that again: The designations <i>do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever</i> concerning the <i>legal status</i> or <i>delineation of frontiers or boundaries</i> of <i>any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities</i>. The UN terribly contradicts itself by doing those very things when it wrongly interprets Taiwan's status as being part of China (citing UN Resolution 2758 as the authoritative source), but the UN Secretariat also declares that it has no opinion on the legal status of any country.<br /><br />How ridiculous!<br /><br /><b>The freedom to speak the truth</b><br /><a href="http://geography.about.com/b/2007/05/10/taiwan-is-a-country.htm">But Taiwan <i>is</i> a country</a>, says <a href="http://geography.about.com/bio/Matt-Rosenberg-268.htm">a geographic expert</a> who does not work for any UN organizations and who can therefore speak the truth. There is no doubt whatsoever that Taiwan fulfills all the criteria for a country. The only reason Taiwan isn't a member in the UN is the political pressure from China, a country which frequently reminds the world that it doesn't rule out the use of force in order to annex Taiwan as one of its provinces.<br /><br /><b>Logical breakdown</b><br />Many countries existed long before the creation of the UN. If a country decides not to join the UN as a member, <a href="http://geography.about.com/b/2007/05/10/taiwan-is-a-country.htm#comment-9" title="See comment number 9 by Wazza">it does not mean this country doesn't exist</a>. (See also: <a href="http://lettersfromtaiwan.blogspot.com/2010/03/gallup-toes-party-line.html?showComment=1270476622072#c6917944436778739954" title="''I have a question for Gallup. Maybe an informal poll. Raise your hand if you think there were nations before the UN was there to create them. If so, then where did they come from? ''">this comment by Andrew Kerslake</a>.) In other words, it's not up to the UN to determine whether a territory is indeed a country. It can only decide whether it wishes to accept the application of a country which decides to join and either welcome them or not.<br /><br />Many countries represented in the UN are led by authoritarian governments which have not gained their rule via any democratic elections at home. Consequently, the UN has many problems, and its original mission of promoting world peace has not been fulfilled.<br /><br />The UN has no rights (see reference number 2 below, regarding MOU) to sign any memo against a non-member state (such as <a href="http://taiwanmatters.blogspot.com/2009/05/ma-ying-jeous-spokesman-deviates-from.html" title="See: ''Implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding between the WHO Secretariat and China''">the WHO's secret MOU with China</a> which says that communications between the WHO and Taiwan be routed through China), nor to arbitrarily change a country's name because of pressure from another bullying state.<br /><br />The Taiwanese people had a Chinese Nationalist Party (<abbr title="KMT = Kuomintang, or 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">KMT</abbr>) administration <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Order_No._1" title="General Order No. 1">imposed</a> upon them. They've experienced the <abbr title="The *Chinese* Nationalist Party that 'Killed Many Taiwanese'">KMT</abbr>'s 228 Massacre, and they've suffered under the suppression of White Terror and the longest period of martial law in modern history. Taiwan's gradual transition to democracy requires further support from strong democratic nations.<br /><br />Taiwan's people want a new Taiwan constitution to replace the flawed ROC constitution (promulgated 63 years ago in a foreign country) so that the occupying administrator's rules of law can be declared obsolete, and its legislature can function normally through fair elections. Otherwise, committees such as the Legislative Yuan's Procedural Committee (because of this pan-blue dominated committee's arbitrary prioritization of proposed bills, <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2006/03/19/2003298117" title="The Chinese KMT eventually blocked the arms bill more than 70 times, claiming the $ amount was too high (before eventually passing it [under Ma] at a higher price)!">certain important bills</a> are <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2010/04/21/2003471125" title="''the sixth time the proposal [about holding a referendum on the proposed ECFA] has been blocked''">purposely delayed or blocked completely</a> from being included in the agenda for discussion), the Executive Yuan's <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/02/27/2003466745" title="''<br />The Executive Yuan's Committee of Appeal has upheld the Referendum Review Committee's denial of a request from the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) to put the government's planned economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) with China to a referendum. ''">Referendum Review Committee</a>, the <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2006/07/22/2003319823" title="''unduly influenced by partisan concerns''">unconstitutional National Communications Commission</a> (NCC), <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2010/04/09/2003470147" title="''Capitalizing on their numerical advantage, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) members of the legislature's Internal Administration Committee voted four to two against the DPP proposal demanding that the government drop plans to ink an ECFA if Beijing refused to promise in writing not to obstruct other countries from signing FTAs with Taiwan.''">and others</a> will continue to hinder Taiwan's full democratic reform.<br /><br />The controversies of a rising undemocratic China and the business opportunities there have put Taiwan's democracy in jeopardy. Once Taiwan is <strike>taken into the sphere</strike> sucked into the black hole of an authoritarian China, the rest of the neighboring region will be in danger.<br /><br />The UN's geographic "experts" have simply ignored Taiwan's de facto status and have helped their Chinese chief of UNDESA to achieve his country's agenda by spreading the ISO country code "virus" around the global business community, using this so called "standard" code to shift the status quo towards China's favor. This calls their professional ethics and expertise into question.<br /><br />If the UN is serious about the promotion of human rights and human dignity, its geographic "experts" should be investigated for giving in to "pressure" from above, and the UNDESA head, Sha Zukang, should be probed for "incompetence" and for his role in helping the spread of the Taiwan ISO country code "virus" around the globe.<br /><br /><b>Suggested actions</b><br />Since the ROC has never been recognized as having taken over Formosa's sovereignty, any Taiwanese organization(s) with sufficient financial resources should sue the ISO. If the ISO is as innocent as it claims to be and merely updates their records by "default" (i.e., transferring UN "expert advise"), then there is no need for the ISO to exist at all. Since the ISO's mission is to standardize things, they shouldn't just follow orders from other "experts" without judging or adding its own input; otherwise, they are no experts themselves.<br /><br />Since freedom of expression should be encouraged in universities, Taiwanese studying abroad or planning to do so can also help out when discovering errors about how Taiwan is listed. Write (politely) to school officials letting them know that such errors are offensive, and ask them to label your home country in a way which reflects Taiwan's de facto status.<br /><br /><b>USCIS: preserving the truth, setting the right "standard"</b><br />The US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is not ambiguous about Taiwan's status. It is a US executive branch that honors Taiwanese people's right to call their country "Taiwan." In <a href="http://www.uscis.gov/files/nativedocuments/Taiwain_1dec2008.pdf" title="link to 62 kb PDF file">an official memorandum dated December 1, 2008</a> [62 KB PDF], it states that for purposes of the United States immigration law, Taiwan is to be considered a separate independent country despite the Department of State's "one-China" policy.<br /><br />Consequently, a United States passport may not be issued showing its owner's place of birth as "Taiwan, China," "Taiwan, Republic of China," or "Taiwan ROC." For post-WWII immigrants to Taiwan who were born in China, it should show "People's Republic of China" as their country of birth; however, their country of nationality (on application form N-400) should still be listed as "Taiwan" as explained below.<br /><br />Here's an excerpt from the memo:<blockquote>The adjudicator must not require an applicant to list "Taiwan, PRC," "Taiwan, China," "Taiwan, Republic of China," "Taiwan, ROC," or "People's Republic of China" as the country of birth or nationality on Form N-400 if the applicant has indicated "Taiwan" and the documentary evidence submitted supports their claim.<br /><br />[...]<br /><br />Note that some applicants may have been born in the PRC but currently hold a<br />Taiwan passport because they moved from the mainland (PRC) to Taiwan long ago.<br />For those applicants, the country of birth should be listed as "People's Republic of<br />China" and the country of nationality should be listed as "Taiwan" on their<br />Form N-400.</blockquote><b>Reference:</b><br />1. The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) - an agency affiliated with the US Department of Commerce, after consulting with the American Institute in Taiwan, <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2010/04/11/2003470303" title="''its *proper* name''">has stopped referring to Taiwan as "Chinese Taipei"</a> and refers to Taiwan simply by its proper name: Taiwan.<br /><br />2. A <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memorandum_of_understanding">Memorandum of Understanding</a> (MOU) should involve the mutual benefits of the signing parties only. It should contain nothing about a third party -- that is, it shouldn't involve anyone outside of the negotiation process.<br /><br />3. <a href="http://taiwanmatters.blogspot.com/2009/02/when-it-comes-to-taiwan-national.html" title="See how a ''trusted'' publication can't be trusted when it comes to Taiwan.">When it comes to Taiwan, National Geographic is "NG"</a>.<br /><br /><font size="-1">(<i>Tim Maddog edited this post</i>)</font><div class="blogger-post-footer"><center><font face="arial" size="-1">* * *<br/><i><font color="#005500">Taiwan</font> is <b>not</b> a province of <font color="#FF0000">China</font>. The PRC flag has <b>never</b> flown over Taiwan.</i><br/>Stick that in your clipboards and paste it, you so-called "<a href="http://rconversation.blogs.com/rconversation/2006/04/taiwan_blogs_br.html#comment-16275861" title="That's what Rebecca MacKinnon says you are!">lazy journalists</a>"!</font></center></div>Άλισονhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05409063245062952864noreply@blogger.com1