TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS: FULFILLING THE
DEMOCRATIC PROMISE
John F. Copper
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Chapter 1 Political Change and Elections: 1985-89 . . . . . . 3
Chapter 2 The 1985 Nationwide Local Elections......... 27
Chapter 3 The 1986 National Election. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Chapter 4 The 1989 National and Local Elections . . . . . . . 65
Chapter 5 Summary and Conclusions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Appendix I Public Officials Election and Recall Law . . . . . . 103
Appendix II Civic Organization Law (excerpts) . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Appendix III Statute on the Voluntary Retirement of Senior
Parliamentarians . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Appendix IV Election Statistics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
Selected Bibliography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
Index....................................................... 165
About the Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
PUBLISHER'S NOTE
Chapters 2, 3 and 4 of this work were taken from articles written
by the author and previously published in the following journals:
Chapter 2, Asian Affairs, Spring 1986, pp. 27-45
Chapter 3, Asian Thought and Society, July 1987, pp. 115-136
Chapter 4, Journal of Northeast Asian Studies, Spring 1990, pp. 22-40
The publisher wishes to thank these journals for permissions granted.
The articles were edited or shortened for use here.
PREFACE
In 1984, the author, with Professor George P. Chen, published
the book Taiwan's Elections: Political Development and Democratization
in the Republic of China. We assessed Taiwan's political system
as it related to election politics, early local elections, national supplementary
elections beginning in 1969, and the watershed competitive
national election in 1980--which inaugurated democratic politics in
Taiwan at the national level. That work also included a chapter on the
1983 national election, which proved to many observers that the 1980
election had not been just a show offered during an "election holiday"
or a temporary democratic event.
The present volume covers the elections since 1983. Included are
the nationwide national election in 1985, the first two-party election in
Taiwan's history (or for that matter ever in a Chinese nation) in 1986,
and the "dual" 1989 election-which many observers perceived to be
another breakthrough-perhaps the final step in routinizing a competitive
election process that will serve as the foundation for a fully democratic
system.
Hence, three different kinds of elections are assessed in this work:
an election of local officials, a national election of both of the major
elective bodies (the Legislative Yuan and the National Assembly), and
a "combination" election of the Legislative Yuan and local offices.
All, however, were national and of lasting influence.
During the period covered, a number of events occurred that
changed the electoral processes and profoundly influenced politics in
the Republic of China. Most were calculated; some were not. Several
were formalized in legislative acts. These changes are discussed in
Chapter 1.
It is almost axiomatic to say that elections have been a major
contributing force behind the democratization process in Taiwan. The
discussions in the chapters 2, 3, and 4 will so indicate. The analyses of
these elections reflect, in the opinion of the author, that the Republic
of China is a transformed nation: from authoritarianism to near or
perhaps even full democracy. That transition has been rapid. It may
have been faster than the democratization process in any nation in
recent history where violence and upheaval have not been a part of the
process. For that reason Taiwan may be a unique model of political
modernization.
(1)
2 CONTEMPORARY ASIAN STUDIES SERIES
The author wishes to thank Professor George P. Chen for sharing
his wisdom on both the issues and the elections themselves and June
T. Dreyer, who organized and led two of the election observer teams
in which I participated when I saw firsthand the 1986 and the 1989
elections. I also want to express my gratitude to the Pacific Cultural
Foundation for support that helped make possible the publishing of
this work. I will assume responsibility for any errors herein.
John F. Copper
Memphis, Tennessee
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCfiON
POLITICAL CHANGE AND TAIWAN'S ELECTIONS-
1985-89
Taiwan, or the Republic of China, is a nation that has clearly
experienced profound and broad political change in recent years. It
has probably experienced political modernization at a faster rate of
speed than any other nation in the world, at least among those that did
not self-destruct or fail in an effort to democratize. Certainly few
would disagree that political change in Taiwan has been phenomenal
and has changed electoral politics in that country.
However, this writer can only attempt in cursory fashion to relate
elections to political development in general. This was done in
some detail in the previous volume on Taiwan's elections.1
Suffice it to
say in the way of background that the two are intimately related, and
they are related not only by chance, but also by design: Sun Yat-sen,
the father of Republican China, put election politics in a central place
in his teachings about political modernization and democracy. His
plan, most would say, has been largely fulfilled; at least it is proceeding
quickly along that path.
In this work the author will discuss other more specific relationships:
between recent elections and past elections; the role of new
political parties, especially the Democratic Progressive Party; the impact
of terminating martial law; other important political reforms; the
effect of Chiang Ching-kuo's death; Nationalist Party or Kuomintang
(KMT) internal reform; efforts to retire elder parliamentary delegates;
a new election law; and finally, primary elections. These developments
or events have influenced electoral politics during the period when the
elections that are assessed below took place.
There is much to say about the importance of the elections of
1985, 1986, and 1989. This will be done in the next three chapters.
These elections reveal profound changes in electoral politics in Taiwan
and offer proof regarding how far the democratization process has
I. For a general discussion, see John F. Copper with George P. Chen, Taiwan's Elections:
Political Development and Democratization in the Republic of China (Baltimore:
University of Maryland School of Law, 1984.)
(3)
4 CONTEMPORARY ASIAN STUDIES SERIES
gone. Some estimates of the impact of these elections and the election
process itself will be made in the concluding chapter.
Prior Elections
Scholars who assess elections in any nation where elections are
meaningful political contests try to put any one election in perspective
by examining previous elections. There are always trends. There are
unresolved issues. Electoral politics evolve. Looking briefly at Taiwan's
elections from 1950 to 1983 will aid the reader in putting the
elections treated here in proper context and help them make sense.
Considering these earlier elections is especially useful in gaining an
understanding of several important trends: the development of a competitive
party system, the evolution of freer and more competitive elections,
and progressively refined election strategies and tactics.
The history of elections in Taiwan, if one defines elections as
something other than efforts to create some kind of barely representative
bodies under a colonial government, began in 1950. Only one
year after the Nationalists moved to Taiwan following their defeat on
the mainland, they held island-wide local elections. Nationalist leaders
realized that they had failed in the war with the Communists; that
they had to reform the Party and government of which they were a
part; and do a better job in putting Sun Yat-sen's teachings about
political development and democracy into practice.
So they engineered election politics in local government in Taiwan.
This did not overly upset those in the Nationalist government
who had an authoritarian bent and/or distrusted the local population.
Nor could they use the argument of an external threat to delay the
process. They had long contended that there needed to be a secure
environment before the democracy-building effort could proceed. A
secure environment was provided: the U.S. had neutralized the Taiwan
Strait in mid-1950, and Taiwan was protected from the threat of
Mao's army, which soon became involved in the Korean War
anyway.
They did not trust the local population. But Nationalist leaders
could, after a fashion, assume the role officials played in ancient China
and exert authority, even control, in local politics by serving as intermediaries.
Local politics in Taiwan was infused with centrifugal
forces; factional rivalries, in fact, threatened the fabric of local politics.
Taiwanese leaders have since denied that local politics was so factionalized
and contend that they knew how to practice democracy better
than the Nationalists. They have argued Taiwan would have democracy
from the "bottom up." As time passed this disagreement served
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 5
to cause the two to compete, but not in a hostile way, rather to make
democracy more functional and less an object of contention between
the two groups.2
Throughout the 1950s and 1960s there were meaningful local
elections in Taiwan. They served as the foundation for democratic
politics in Taiwan. Officials were chosen by the people. Many of these
democratically-elected officials subsequently rose to become national
figures. (In Taiwan, local office serves as a better stepping stone to
national politics than in most nations.)
Local officials early on felt that successful elections below the national
level proved that Taiwan would become democratic through a
"seeping up" process. But they also accepted the reality that ethnic
tensions between the Mainlander Chinese and the locally-born Chinese,
or Taiwanese, was an impediment to democracy from above.
Likewise they were cognizant of the fact that the U.S. and many other
nations in the international community espoused a one-China policy
(at first favoring Taipei but later Beijing); this meant that Taiwan
could not repudiate its claim to represent "greater China" justifying
systemic political links with a territory and people not under the government's
jurisdiction. That kept Taiwan's elected bodies of government
unrepresentative of the population actually under its control of
the government and hence not representative or democratic. Most
Taiwanese and the majority of advocates of faster democratization did
not like this. But at least they understood it.
In 1969 Taiwan held a "supplementary" national election. The
government increased the number of seats in the National Assembly
and the Legislative Yuan (both of which represented "greater China");
the new seats all represented Taiwan. In other words, Taiwan became
"overrepresented" in these bodies of government. Some observers
have seen this as the beginning of democracy in national politics in
Taiwan. Others say it was tokenism and was almost meaningless in
terms of putting democracy into practice. Still others contend it
marks the beginning or starting point of both the separation of Taiwan
from the mainland in terms of election politics and the beginning of
truly representative government and democracy in Taiwan. In any
case, there were subsequent supplementary elections in 1972, 1973,
and in 1975. In all of these elections districts in Taiwan was given
more seats. Subsequent elections were even more "supplementary."3
In 1978 a "watershed" election was scheduled. Taiwan "prov-
2. See Ibid, pp. 44-45.
3. See Ibid, chapter 4.
6 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
ince" was to be allocated even more seats. However, this election was
cancelled when President Jimmy Carter announced in December that
the United States would derecognize the Republic of China and would
establish formal diplomatic relations with the government of the People's
Republic of China. Taiwan was stunned, even though both its
leaders and its population had expected this to happen eventually.
There was no proximate warning. The U.S. decision seriously delegitimized
the government in the minds of the public, or at least a meaningful
segment thereof. It made Beijing's threats against Taiwan loom
much larger. Opponents of democracy became stronger and more unified,
but so did the proponents of democratization and immediate
political change. To the latter, democracy was a way of winning international
support for Taiwan, or so they argued.
Thus, 1979 was a year of tension between pro-democracy forces
and the government. Political polarization increased. Democracy advocates
were soon led (on the streets at least) by anti-government
forces, even though there was increasing pressure within the ruling
Nationalist Party and the government to reform the system and use
elections to promote democracy. Months of heated debate ended with
the Kaohsiung Incident in December 1979, when the two forces
collided.
Up to that time the public had generally favored the advocates of
democracy. Most felt the nation had to take decisive action in view of
the diplomatic crisis. However, when the advocates of quick democracy
provoked violent confrontation with the government, many began
to fear political instability and chaos. In any event, in 1980 the
two sides, both pressured by the public, worked out some of their differences.
A new election law was written. Compromises were made.
Gentlemen's agreements were reached.4
As a result, Taiwan had its first competitive election in 1980. Opposition
politicians organized. They became collectively known as
tangwai, or outside the party (meaning outside the Nationalist Party,
which was the only serious political party in Taiwan). They established
a campaign platform; they worked on strategy and tactics and
helped each other. They became in many respects a political partythough
forming new political parties was still illegal.5
Taiwan's citizenry was exposed to electioneering of the kind it
4. See John F. Copper, "Taiwan in 1980: Entering a New Decade," Asian Survey,
January 1981 for further details.
5. See John F. Copper, "Taiwan's Recent Election: Progress Toward a Democratic
System," Asian Survey, October 1981, pp. 1032-33.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 7
had never witnessed before. Many were flabbergasted at the charges
tangwai candidates levelled against the government and the Nationalist
Party or Kuomintang (KMT): corrupt, stupid (for not preventing
the crises caused by the loss of U.N. representation in 1971 and U.S.
diplomatic recognition in 1979), abuse of human rights, dictatorial,
inflexible, old-fashioned, etc. It seemed like a free-for-all; but it also
had the trappings of democracy. It was the first competitive national
election in Taiwan's history.
Still, many described the event afterwards as an "election holiday."
In other words, it was presumed to have been an election staged
for the benefit of the U.S. and other foreign countries and designed to
give the appearance of democracy. Or it was described as a one-time
affair. There had to be another, or perhaps several more, competitive
national elections to prove this was not true.6
The 1983 election proved that 1980 had not just been a fluke or
an election holiday granted by the government: Taiwan had a second
competitive national election. Still another election law had been written;
or the earlier law was revised thoroughly, depending upon one's
interpretation. The tangwai had more time to organize. Some new
election strategies and tactics were tested by both sides. Many began
to think in terms of a loyal opposition; in short, a two-party system
was evolving. The KMT began to think in terms of winning elections
in a system that allowed free and fair competition. Clearly a competitive
election system was being routinized.7
The Democratic Progressive Party
Taiwan's electoral politics have been strongly impacted in recent
years by the development of a new and real opposition party-the
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). In 1986, DPP competition with
the ruling Nationalist Party made the national election that year a
two-party contest-the first ever in a Chinese nation. At the time
some observers said that a two-party system had evolved. Others felt
this was probably an incorrect or at least premature statement. In any
event the same statement was heard later, in the wake of the 1989
election. Many have since credited the DPP with transforming Taiwan's
political system from a one-party dictatorship to a democracy.8
6. Ibid.
7. Copper with Chen, Taiwan's Elections, chapter 7.
8. See Hung-mao Tien, The Great Transition: Political and Social Change in the Republic
of China (Stanford: Hoover Institution Press, 1989)
8 CONTEMPORARY ASIAN STUDIES SERIES
Clearly the DPP has played a central role in creating genuine party
and electoral competition in Taiwan.
The Democratic Progressive Party was founded on September 28,
1986. President Chiang Ching-kuo had, a few months earlier, promised
that the ban on forming new political parties would be lifted.
However, before that was formally done, tangwai leaders held a meeting
at the Grand Hotel in Taipei and, after the gathering, announced
the formation of the DPP. Neither the KMT nor the government
took action to repress the new party. Both allowed the DPP to do
what political parties do in democratic nations, including organizing
and campaigning for its candidates in the national election three
months later. The DPP was thus christened!
What was the DPP? The DPP evolved out of new competitive
politics of the 1970s and the growing need for competitive, open democracy
resulting from Taiwan's two decades of miracle economic
growth and vast social change. In this context political participation
became more important and more desired. Democracy seemed to
many a sine qua non of further economic and social modernization. It
was also viewed as inevitable, something that the government had
promised, and a necessary progression to change Taiwan's image
abroad and strengthen its diplomacy.
As noted above, tangwai leaders were mostly "independent" politicians
who opposed the Nationalist Party's monopoly on political
power and disagreed with the ban against forming new parties. They
felt strongly that Taiwan needed a serious opposition party ifit were to
democratize. They called themselves tangwai, or outside the party,
emphasizing that they had no connection with the KMT. Thus, they
regarded themselves as an opposition. They also suggested that they
sought to win political power in democratic elections; in other words,
as democracy flowered so would they.
In the 1980s they began to behave more and more like a political
party. The 1980 election campaign was a catalyst. But, when they
were tested at the polls, they did not do very well. They had to learn
some valuable lessons. They found that they needed to avoid extreme
positions. They had to be more pragmatic and less ideological. Above
all, they discovered their need for better organization and discipline.
In 1982 they formed a "common political demand." In 1983 they
created a hou yuan hui, or campaign committee. More radical members
formed the Association of Tangwai Writers and Editors. In 1984
tangwai leaders formed the Association of Tangwai Elected Officials to
bridge some of the gaps, heal disagreements and foster unity. This
organization later became the Association of Public Policies Studies.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 9
In 1985 a Tangwai Election Campaign Committee was formed to
nominate official candidates. The label tangwai was openly used in the
1985 nationwide local elections. The government did not take any
legal action against the tangwai in spite of what was clearly a new
political "party" on the scene, campaigning in an election. (Forming a
new political party at this time was still illegal.) In fact, many KMT
leaders and candidates welcomed the competition.
In 1986 the tangwai began forming local branches. The tangwai,
in fact, seemed to be a political party in every respect except name.
Tangwai candidates, throughout the Spring and Summer, were preparing
a common "party" program or platform for the December
1986 national election. They were organizing to help each other.
Thus, in the fall of 1986, when the tangwai became the DPP, it was
ready to compete in an election.9
On November 10, 1986, the DPP held its first party congress.
The party adopted a party constitution and a platform. It elected a
31-member Central Executive Committee and an eleven-member Central
Advisory Committee. Ironically, the DPP, which had been critical
of the KMT's Leninist organization, adopted the same control and
communication structure as the KMT.
The DPP's platform included calls for revamping and democratizing
Taiwan's political system, particularly through reforming the
elected bodies of government. In short, the DPP demanded faster
political change in the direction of democracy-though this was to be
accomplished within the framework of the constitution. The DPP in
fact became in some ways a stronger advocate than the KMT of constitutionality
(which to the DPP meant fulfilling the constitutional
provisions for democracy that were nullified by the "Temporary Provisions"
and martial law). Its economic and social policies were described
as socialist or at least liberal: more welfare, health care, social
services, etc. The platform also cited a more flexible foreign policy,
including efforts to regain membership in the United Nations.
Though its foreign policy pronouncements sounded good, few considered
them realistic.
The DPP had to deal with two controversial issues: communism
and Taiwan independence. DPP leaders were not sympathetic to communism,
nor were its supporters attracted to communism, either in
form or doctrine. However, DPP leaders did not want to be restricted
in the political ideas they might advocate. Moreover, they did not
want to copy the KMT's anti-communist position. After some debate
9. See Ibid, especially chapter 4, for further details.
10 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
the DPP put an anti-communist provision into its platform. Independence
was an issue even more difficult to deal with because many DPP
supporters felt so strongly about the issue. It was at once both a unifying
and a divisive issue. The party resolved its conundrum by calling
for self-determination-which was somewhat vague and not very
provocative.10
The DPP's less than stellar performance in the 1986 national
election seemed to indicate that it might not remain the only opposition
party in Taiwan. Several other political parties were formed. The
Labor Party was the most serious contender. Inaugurated in December
1987, it sought support from Taiwan's nearly eight million industrial
workers. In so doing it threatened to take a critical base of
support away from the DPP. Six other parties announced in 1987.
By the end of March 1989 twenty-five parties had registered. 11
The termination of martial law in June 1987 and the death of
President Chiang Ching-kuo also adversely affected DPP appeal. Terminating
martial law removed an issue. It also split the DPP. Some
members contended that martial law had not really ended, and, therefore,
the decision was not a meaningful one. Others said it had ended,
and, to generate enthusiasm, labelled the event significant and called
for efforts to realize a DPP-led "Taiwanese government."12
In 1989 it appeared to many that the DPP would not perform
very well in the national election in December. The party suffered
from factionalism over the Taiwan independence issue. Its leaders
seemed to be interested in their own careers more than the party's
fortune. The DPP had an image of attracting thugs and lower class
elements. It also had a reputation for leading demonstrations on the
street rather than talking sensibly about policy issues. Recruitment
was less successful than DPP leaders had hoped.
The party was not split as seriously as it seemed. Its hoodlum
image was to some degree replaced by an image of commonman politics.
The electorate demanded democracy, and many perceived that
support for the opposition was the way to promote democratization.
Then, during the 1989 election campaign the DPP cleverly used the
10. Some KMT leaders replied that self-determination meant nothing since the Republic
of China already possessed sovereignty and therefore self-determination was realized.
Some DPP politicians equated self-determination with ridding Taiwan of KMT rule; others
found it something to attract attention and never defined it.
11. These parties are named and discussed in more detail below. Also see mention of
them in Chapter 4.
12. See John F. Copper, "Ending Martial Law in Taiwan: Problems and Prospects,"
Journal ofNortheast Asian Studies, Summer 1988, pp. 3-19.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 11
Tiananmen Massacre issue to its advantage. Helping also were dramatic
changes in Eastern Europe-which made DPP demands for democracy,
formerly thought to be radical, seem quite moderate. As a
result, the DPP did so well that even the KMT called their performance
a victory.
Lifting Martial Law
The lifting of martial law in Taiwan and the adjacent islands (but
not Quemoy and Matsu) in July 1987, marked, to many observers, the
success of democratic politics and a turning point in Taiwan's political
history. The event has since been associated with the growth of mass
politics and an active political opposition. Certainly it had considerable
impact.
Martial law was declared in 1934, when the government of the
Republic of China ruled the mainland. Shortly after the Nationalists
fled to Taiwan in December 1949, the Executive Yuan designated Taiwan
a combat area, and in January 1950, President Chiang Kai-shek
issued an emergency decree that activated martial law. Martial law
was subsequently implemented, a decision that justified the imminent
threat of invasion by the People's Republic of China.13
However, the
U.S. military presence in the region after June 1950 when President
Truman ordered the 7th Fleet to protect Taiwan from an invasion and
the U.S.-Republic of China Defense Treaty signed in 1954 reduced the
seriousness of that threat.
Martial law gave the military extra-constitutional powers. In
1950, the Taiwan Garrison Command was created to enforce martial
law provisions. It was subsequently authorized to control travel
abroad; monitor entry into Taiwan; approve meetings, parades, and
rallies; and review and censor newspapers, magazines, books, movies,
and other forms of communications. Many thought of the Garrison
Command as an agency of repression. Most thought it at minimum
was a trapping of authoritarian government.
The Garrison Command, however, never used all of the powers
granted to it. And its powers, or use of them, declined long before
martial law was terminated. In August 1950 the government enacted
provisions to prevent unwarranted search and seizure, even though
this was allowed under martial law. Revisions of martial law power
were made in 1951, 1952, and 1953. Civilian courts were given jurisdiction
over all cases not involving the military except treason. Provi-
13. Ibid.
12 CONTEMPORARY ASIAN STUDIES SERIES
sions were made for habeas corpus and for providing legal assistance
for people who could not afford an attorney.
Martial law did not prohibit the formation of political parties as is
sometimes thought; that prohibition was in the Temporary Provisions,
which were added to the Constitution in 1948.14
Nevertheless, as democracy
began to evolve, martial law became the subject of debate and
often intense controversy. There were two sides to the issue. . .
Some (particularity the KMT and its supporters) argued that Taiwan
did not really have martial law: the term chieh yen fa, meaning
"stringent measures law," had been misinterpreted. The fact that Taiwan
had no curfew and civilian rule prevailed was evidence for this
view. They also argued that since opinion polls reflected that the public
did not object to "martial law" and even supported keeping it, it
would be undemocratic to abolish martial law. Also, martial law was
used by the police to keep a check on rising crime rates, and the public
supported this.
Others (notably the opposition), however, contended that it
blocked the full application of the constitution and had a negative psychological
effect upon the growth of democratic politics. They were
particularly critical of the use of military courts to try civilians and
were often incensed when the term "treason" was applied to political
actions that seemed part of the process of electoral politics. With martiallaw
in force, they said, party competition is stifled.15
In 1980 participants in the Kaohsiung Incident were tried on
charges of treason and given long jail sentences. This underscored
both the positive and negative sides of martial law. It could be used to
maintain political stability, and it could indeed prevent anarchy; but it
also stymied legitimate protest. Thus, it seemed to be a major obstacle
to democracy. In the eyes of the Western media, the Kaohsiung Incident
signified that Taiwan had made little progress in democratizing,
and it was frequently used to criticize the government of Taiwan.
In the spring of 1986, President Chiang Ching-kuo called for the
study of certain reforms, including the termination of martial law.
According to those close to him, he was most concerned about the
bad image created abroad and the psychological effects martial law
had on free and open party competition. It thus seemed to be only a
matter of time before martial law would be ended. In fact, President
14. See Han Lih-wu, Taiwan Today (Taipei: Cheng Chung Book Company, 1986), pp.
34-35.
15. See footnote #12.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 13
Chiang announced his intentions and for the next several months the
government made preparations to terminate martial law.
On July 15, 1987, when the government suspended the martial
law decree, the Western media hailed the decision and called it a
landmark move and a watershed event in Taiwan's evolution toward
democracy. But government officials were in a dilemma as to how to
speak about martial law. Many had long taken the view that Taiwan
did not have martial law and that the "emergency decree," as they
called it, was popular and should not be abolished. However, some
government agencies, especially the Government Information Office,
wanted to take advantage of the good publicity and concentrate on the
"fact" that Taiwan had taken a big step forward on the road to
democracy.
The opposition was also perplexed as to how to interpret the announcement
that martial law was gone. Some declared that martial
law was still in effect. They maintained that the new National Security
Law was simply martial law in disguise, or as they put it "old wine
in new bottles." Others wanted to rally support for their party by
saying that the end of martial law meant more freedom and that it
constituted an opportunity. Some DPP leaders hailed it as a chance to
recruit and called the party to action.
In terms of tangible effects, the lifting of martial law did several
things. It brought an end to the use of military courts in trying civilian
cases. It thus forced the development of a new and more independent
legal system and different modes of legal practice. This
effect, however, was not immediate; it was long-term. This aspect of
the termination of martial law, in fact, is still evolving.
Ending martial law also affected the politics of protest and demonstrations.
Control over marches and street protest was transferred
to local police. This transfer helped democratize the political process
by giving local governments jurisdiction. It did not, however, mark
the beginning of street politics. There were more than three hundred
protest demonstrations-more than two per day-in the first five
months of 1987. The DPP and other opposition parties were already
using demonstrations to attract attention and support. Ending martial
law simply formalized this a bit.
After martial law ended, press control became the responsibility
of the Government Information Office, which was more lenient and
democratic-minded than the Garrison Command. Things did not,
however, change that much-particulary as concerned electoral politics.
The opposition continued to complain of government and KMT
control of the media. Months later a new press law gave additional
14 CONTEMPORARY ASIAN STUDIES SERIES
freedoms to the newspapers, including the right for new newspapers to
open and for all newspapers to print more. This had a considerable
effect on democratic politics, particularly by helping the opposition
present its message.
The termination of martial law, on the other hand, also impacted
the organization of workers. Strikes were banned under the Temporary
Provisions, not martial law. But, workers were not able to organize
easily because of martial law, and, just as important, they perceived
martial law as intimidating. Moreover, the termination of martial law
coincided with public debate concerning ending restrictions on strikes
and other labor movements. At the time it seemed that ending martial
law might mark the beginning of a role for labor in politics, through
its own party or via support of an opposition party.16
As mentioned above, ending martial law did not legalize the formation
of new political parties; but both issues were discussed in tandem.
At that time, the ban on new parties was to be cancelled soon
and a new law regulating civic organizations was going to be written.
Thus, in the minds of many, the termination ofmartial law was seen as
a necessary prior action that was linked to the formation of new, legal
political parties. In fact, just before martial law was suspended, the
Chinese Liberty Party formed. Two months later the Democratic
Freedom Party was announced. Several other parties formed in the
ensuing months.
Nationalist Party Reform
One of the major, but less known, factors that has furthered the
cause of democracy in Taiwan is reform in (or of) the ruling Nationalist
Party or Kuomintang (KMT). As the ruling party and the majority
party, and what some believe will be the dominant political party in
Taiwan for some time, changes in rules and procedures to make the
KMT more democratic have had a positive effect on the political system,
electoral politics, and party competition. The significance of
changes, in fact, are quite instructive in terms of the evolution of democratic
politics in Taiwan.
The Nationalist Party underwent far-reaching reform when it
moved to Taiwan in 1949 after defeat on the mainland. Efforts were
made to make the party more efficient, to get rid of factions and substitute
party loyalty for personal loyalty, to eliminate corruption, and to
make the party popular. Only small efforts were made, however, to
democratize the party. Party leaders generally perceived that the
16. Ibid.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 15
party had to maintain discipline and deal with external threats; thus
democratic rules and procedures had to wait.17
Some also pointed out
that many political parties in Western democracies perceived they had
no obligation to operate by democratic rules, and many did not do so.
In the 1970s Chiang Ching-kuo made serious new efforts to reform
the KMT. Most of these efforts took the form of getting rid of
corruption and nepotism and bringing locally-born Chinese or
Taiwanese into the Party. Steps were also taken to make the KMT
more efficient in carrying out public policy. And Chiang Ching-kuo
endeavored to make the party responsive to public demands and
concerns.18
Chiang Ching-kuo's hopes to see the KMT compete democratically
were fulfilled to some degree as the party began to compete in
elections in the 1970s. A giant step forward was made during the 1980
campaign. KMT election strategists realized its candidates had to be
innovative and energetic-and democratic-minded. As a result,
younger, more progressive leaders were brought into positions of
power and importance. The strength of the opposition challenge during
subsequent elections compelled the KMT not to reverse these
changes. The KMT made reforms of rules and procedures and less
attention was paid to ideology. The party began polling more, and it
began to pay more attention to popular, critical issues. Problem solving
grew as a method of conducting business.
However, it was not until 1988, at the Party's 13th Congress, that
democratic rules as well as democratic thinking really "broke out"
inside the ruling Nationalist Party. Chiang Ching-kuo had just died.
In his will he had asked for continued reform- .including party reform.
Those in the KMT who respected him, including most party
leaders, sought to carry out his wishes. Meanwhile, more democratic
procedures had been adopted by local party organizations. By the
time the Congress convened, more than half (around 60 percent) of
the delegates were chosen by U.S.-style primaries and caucuses.19
At the Congress, these delegates, and many others in the name of
Chiang Ching-kuo, submitted a list of candidates for Party Central
17. See Richard L. Walker, "Taiwan's Movement into Political Modernity," in Paul
K.T. Sih (ed.) Taiwan in Modern Times (New York: St. John's University Press, 1973), pp.
367-70.
18. See Ralph N. Clough, Island China (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1978),
pp. 61-62.
19. See John F. Copper, "The KMT's 13th Party Congress: Reform, Renovation, New
Blood, New Policies," in Cynthia Chenault (ed.), Modernizing East Asia: Economic and
Cultural Dimensions of Political Change (New York: St. John's University Press, 1989)
16 CONTEMPORARY ASIAN STUDIES SERIES
Committee seats. They did not accept the leadership's list of candidates.
The results were : the average age of the new Central Committee
dropped by more than a decade, to 58.7 compared to 69.8 for the
previous Committee, sixty percent of the members were newly drafted;
forty percent were college or university graduates, nearly a fourth with
a PhD degree, and nearly 40 percent were Taiwanese.
The party leadership, pressed by popularly elected delegates, published
a list of the number of votes received by Central Committee
members, reflecting members' popularity. Knowing in advance that
this would happen, many party members engaged in strenuous efforts
to win delegates' support. This favored those with charisma and energy
and those who advocated democracy, both in the Party and for
the nation as a whole.
The Central Committee then selected a Standing Committee-the
powerful decision body of the party. It was a majority Taiwanese for
the first time. A woman was chosen for the first time. More important,
most of its members favored democratization at a faster pace.
Because of the new members and the pervasive desire to reform
the KMT, on the top of the agenda of the party's new policies to be
delineated at the meeting was democratic reform. The party vowed to
"continue the drive for democracy." More specifically, the KMT
pledged to make the elective bodies of government more representative.
No specific actions were taken in this respect because delegates
and leaders both deferred to President Lee Teng-hui, who had already
promised to seek measures to make the National Assembly, the Legislative
Yuan, and the Control Yuan represent only Taiwan. But the
party demonstrated that it supported democratic reform of the system
on this all-important issue of representation. In fact, it made commitments
to make the elected bodies of government more democratic that
were realized during 1989, and which impacted the December 1989
election.
The KMT's platform also cited a need for stability and law and
order as a milieu in which democracy could grow. Many KMT leaders
believed too much democracy was dangerous because it engendered
chaos. Thus, there was a need for balance. The platform
discussed policies toward the mainland that reflected the notion that
Taiwan was going to be a beacon or model of democracy for Chinese
there and around the world. This, according to some observers, put
the move for democratic reforms in perspective and made it transcend
Taiwan's shores while it answered the call by the KMT's opposition
parties regarding Taiwan independence. Party reform was explained
as something to help all Chinese, thus giving it a universal character.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 17
Other tenets of policy that were discussed and put into the platform
reflected both national needs and public opinion. Many issues
were translated into specific agenda items. Most of the party goals or
objectives cited might have been campaign issues. Clearly the party
seemed to be preparing for an election.
Most party leaders, when asked about the scope of democratization,
answered that the KMT expected to be the ruling party in Taiwan
for some time, and for that reason it had to democratize in order
to make the nation democratic. Many also mentioned that the Taiwan
government, including the party in power, had to be a model for
China. Some noted, even boasted, that KMT rules and procedures
were democratized beyond those of many, perhaps most, political parties
in Western democracies. The party evinced an attitude of accomplishment
in the reforms-many noting that it helped make Taiwan a
model of democratic political change which other nations might
emulate.
The mood of the Congress also reflected confidence that the
KMT could compete in a fair election with an "even playing field." In
short, the Nationalist Party was getting ready for the election in 1989
and planned to win in a truly fair and open competitive contest. Observers
both at this time and later referred to the 13th Party Congress
as a watershed event in the democratization process of Taiwan. The
mode of conducting business in the nation's ruling party previously
had not been affected much by democratization; now it was. Clearly
the decisions made at this Congress paved the way for moves to have
party primaries and to revise the election laws so as to rejuvenate the
elected bodies of government, as happened in coming months.
A New Election Law
In 1980, preparatory to the December election, the government
invited scholars, lawyers, elder statesmen, and representatives of the
Nationalist Party and opposition groups to participate in drafting a
new election law. The Election and Recall Law of 1980 laid the
groundwork for the competitive election that year. For the most part
the law worked quite well; there were, however, certain defects. In
ensuing years both the Nationalist Party and the opposition (after
1986, mainly the Democratic Progressive Party) complained about
these defects.20
These complaints were heard during the 1983 election campaign
and the 1986 campaign. The most frequently voiced criticisms from
20. See Copper and Chen, footnote 1, for further details.
18 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
the opposition were that the campaign period was too short and that
too many restrictions hampered the activities of candidates, especially
during the second half of the campaign when rallies were sponsored by
the government. They also protested that political advertisements
were not allowed on television. The reply was: Taiwan has more elections
than most countries and for that reason the election campaigns
have to be shorter in duration and restricted, and that public opinion
polls reflected strong support for keeping political advertisements off
of television.
Another complaint about the Election and Recall Law was that it
failed to control "money politics." Numerous proposals were made to
resolve this problem, but due to Taiwan's prosperity the role money
played in elections seemed difficult to change. It was generally perceived
that laws could be enforced to check blatant vote-buying but
that other uses of money could not be stopped. Opposition politicians
criticized KMT candidates for spending so much money that they
were in effect buying elective office. Yet opposition spending was also
a problem, and it was growing considerably faster than the spending of
Nationalist Party candidates.
In 1986 the Election and Recall Law was amended to change the
procedure for electing members of the Control Yuan-the oversight
branch of government in Taiwan. Neither the KMT nor the DPP,
however, pushed strongly for further change. More far-reaching
changes in the law were discussed in 1988. And in early 1989, knowing
of the coming December election, both sides took up the issue
again. There was considerable public debate. Officials and politicians
bickered; they also compromised.
In January 1989, the Legislative Yuan enacted a new Law of
Election and Recall of Public Officials, though it was in reality a revision
of the previous law. (See Appendix I) This updated law took into
account the end of martial law and the transfer of controls over election
campaigns from military to civilian organizations. It also reflected
the passage of the Civic Organizations Law. Finally, it sought
to accomodate expanded political participation, while giving government
officials more authority to crack down on certain abuses of the
electoral system, especially in the area of vote fraud.
The KMT viewed the new law as liberalizing the rules of
campaigning, thus making elections more competitive. In other
words, it created a "level playing field." KMT leaders did not view
the new law as advantageous to their party. Some KMT hardliners
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 19
opposed the new law, characterizing it as unnecessary.21
The DPP described most of the revisions or new provisions in the
law as concessions. However, DPP leaders note that it added more
restrictions in some realms, and most important, maintained a host of
laws handicapping any opposition party. DPP spokespersons complained
that limits on the number of campaign meetings, campaign
assistants, offices, and sound trucks remained almost unchanged.
They remonstrated about many regulations: the prohibition on joint
headquarters, restrictions on parades, and limits on places where campaign
speeches could be given. The law against students serving as
campaign aides, guidelines on placing campaign posters (too limiting),
and the requirement that only registered helpers could speak for a candidate
(while barring other workers from saying anything for a candidate
or even presenting video or audio tapes) were also condemned.
DPP officials regarded all of these regulations as discriminating
against the opposition while benefitting the KMT.
DPP leaders blasted provisions in the law banning political advertising
on television. They characterized this restriction as an unveiled
effort to give the KMT monopoly-control over political advertising of
an important kind, since the KMT owned or controlled the television
networks. They did not accept the argument that public opinion
surveys reflected majority support for the ban or that it kept campaign
costs down. Opposition candidates also universally attacked the limited
campaign period and the Election Commission's constraining
hold over campaigning during the last days of the campaign period.
They further protested that only a few campaign activities were legal
and that campaign spending was too limited. KMT candidates said
little about most of these issues, but did agree with the DPP that campaign
spending was too restricted.
Other provisions in the new law were controversial but did not
seem to favor the KMT or the DPP. These included a lowering of the
filing fee by fifty percent for party candidates (to discourage "whimsical
candidates" (meaning independent or non-party candidates) and a
change allowing united campaign headquarters. Both hurt independent
candidates and discouraged candidates from running without
party approval, thereby favoring a two-party system.
A public financing provision in the revised law was new. Candidates
receiving three-fourths or more of the vote needed to win would
receive N.T.$10 (39 cents) per vote under the new law. Campaign
donations were also made tax deductible, but were limited to
21. See Chapter 3 for further discussion of this point.
20 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
N.T.$20,000 for a candidate and N.T.$200,000 for a party per individual
(not to exceed twenty percent of that person's pre-tax income), and
N.T.$300,000 and N.T.$3,000,000 respectively for businesses.22
This
was intended to reduce the growing problem of "money politics,"
though many observers thought it would have little effect. Moreover,
it seemed likely to increase the problem of interest group politics.
Finally the new election law limited the membership of the Central
Election Commission so that no more than half of the Commissions
could come from one political party. By election time, however,
the DPP had not nominated a representative to the Commission.
Changes in the law also reduced the number of votes members of the
Taiwan Provincial Assembly and the Taipei and Kaohsiung city councils
could cast for Control Yuan seats from one-half to one-third of the
seats. The DPP agreed with this change. DPP legislators, on the
other hand, protested a change that shortened from two years to six
months the period between electoral rezonings. While they agreed
with rezoning to accommodate population shifts, they accused the
KMT of trying to gerrymander and make changes too close to election
time.
Legalizing New Political Parties
The Republic of China, technically speaking, had a multi-party
system before the formation of the Democratic Progressive Party. The
Young China Party, formed in 1923, moved to Taiwan in 1949 and
sponsored candidates for various elections after that. In 1946, prior to
the 1948 election when the government of the Republic of China governed
both sides of the Taiwan Strait, the China Democratic Socialist
Party formed to promote a platform supporting constitutional government.
This party also moved to Taiwan and fielded candidates in
subsequent elections. However, both parties were regarded by most as
something between loyal opposition parties and adjuncts of the KMT,
but closer to the latter. Neither were considered serious contenders
for political power. Neither helped make electoral politics
competitive.
Some observers had thought these two parties might change and
win broad support in a milieu of promised party competition. They
were already legal and had an edge. But this was not to be the case.
Meanwhile, critics of the government and the ruling party in Taiwan
and supporters of democratic reform had complained that Taiwan
did not have a true opposition party and the reason for this was
22. See Chapter 4 for further details.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 21
that the formation of new political parties was prohibited by the Temporary
Provisions of the Constitution. Opposition politicians contended,
in fact, that this made democratization in any genuine sense
impossible. Many Nationalist Party members agreed.
As noted above, the formation of the tangwai in the 1970s rectified
this situation to some extent, but it was not a completely successful
palliative. More was needed. In 1986, President Chiang Chingkuo
announced that the ban on new parties would be lifted, constituting
another major step in the development of a two-party or multiparty
system. Subsequently the Democratic Progressive Party announced
its formation, and Taiwan had a genuine opposition party.
The DPP, however, had to compete in the 1986 election without being
technically a legal party. This, critics contended, was a handicap.
Others argued that it was simply a matter of time before that situation
would be rectified and that the DPP was treated during and after the
election campaign as a political party.
However, at this juncture it was unclear whether the DPP would
become the sole or major opposition party, or whether there would be
many contending new parties. The pundits were uncertain.
The lifting of martial law in July 1987 served as a signal for new
political parties to form. By the end of March of the next year nine
new political parties had announced: the China Liberty Party in July
1987; the Democratic Liberty Party and the Labor Party in September
1987; the China Democratic Justice Party in October; the China People's
Party and the Neo-Socialist Party in November; the United Democratic
Party, the Chinese Republican Party, and the China
Unification Party in March 1988. These parties were of various political
stripe, right and left on the political spectrum. Three other parties
were in the process of organizing: the China Patriotic Party, the Women's
Party, and the Fanners' Party.
By late 1988 it appeared that the formation of so many political
parties might fragment the opposition and sap the Democratic Progressive
Party's base of support. The Labor Party seemed to be a special
threat to the DPP's dominant status as the opposition. The
chairman of the Labor Party had been a member of the DPP and was
elected to the Legislative Yuan. He appeared to have considerable
union respect and a base of support among Taiwan's nearly nine million
industrial workers. The Labor Party was at odds with the DPP
over labor reform, the independence issue, and a number of other
22 CONTEMPORARY ASIAN STUDIES SERIES
matters.23
Meanwhile the DPP declined to register with the government and
remained split over the issue of Taiwan independence. Throughout
1988, three Democratic Progressive Party factions struggled over independence
and related issues. The Kang Ning-hsiang faction advocated
democratic reform as its main objective. The New Tide group
advocated independence. The Formosa Faction opposed making the
independence issue a part of the DPP's platform. The DPP seemed
able to raise funds; yet membership, by mid-1988, had increased only
from seven thousand to ten thousand-far short of its goal.24
On January 20, 1989, the Legislative Yuan passed into law the
revised Civic Organization Law. (See Appendix II) This law in essence
formalized what already existed: party competition. However,
it also encouraged still more new parties to form, and by mid-year
Taiwan had over thirty political parties. A multi-party system seemed
to be evolving, or at least many observers so speculated. Others
opined that most, perhaps all, of the new parties would have little or
no impact on the election and that party competition would involve
the KMT and the DPP only-in essence a two-party election.25
Taiwan's
party system seemed to be in the process of evolving in an uncertain
direction.
Besides encouraging new political parties to form and legalizing
the DPP, the new law restated provisions in the National Security
Law that political parties must not violate the constitution, advocate
communism, or advocate secessionism. The law also declared that
parties must organize and function in accordance with democratic
principles. This implied both, that the KMT must continue the internal
reform launched in the summer of 1988 at the KMT 13th Party
Congress, and that the DPP must focus on electoral politics instead of
protest politics.
DPP leaders did not like references in the law to the 1987 National
Security Law. The New Tide faction of the DPP, which was
more radical and more vocal, promised to keep the independence issue
(which could be construed to mean secessionism) issue in their platform
and vowed to talk about it during the campaign. The Formosa
Faction disagreed. The issue threatened to cause the DPP to split.
23. Shim Jae Hoon, "Clarion Call to Workers," Far Eastern Economic Review, January
21, 1988, pp. 18 -19.
24. Shim Jae Hoon, "Divided But Growing," Far Eastern Economic Review, June 23,
1988, p. 33.
25. See John F. Copper, "The Evolution of Political Parties in Taiwan," Asian Affairs,
Spring 1989, pp. 3-12.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 23
KMT leaders, or at least most of them, did not like the provision in
the law which gave equal access to the media for all political parties
and did not give any sign of willingly abandoning their advantages in
this regard. Some complained of the law's mandate to continue to
democratize the KMT from within. They felt democracy had already
influenced the party's mode of carrying on business enough.
Looking beyond the complaints, the new law changed Taiwan's
political system from a one-party system (if one recognizes that the
two older minor parties were not competing parties) to a multiparty
system. It made fully legal the formation of not only parties, but
party-related organizations. It also set guidelines for and formalized
political party activity. This, of course, had a major impact on Taiwan:
polity and on the democratization process.
Furthermore, the new law made the 1989 election a genuine and
legal multiparty contest, the first ever in Taiwan. Because new political
parties were legal, the scope of their activities increased, as did their
prestige, based on a new and important legitimacy. However, the effect
of this on electoral politics remained to be seen even after the 1989
election.
The Voluntary Retirement of Senior Parliamentarians
Inasmuch as the government of the Republic of China on Taiwan
claims jurisdiction over the mainland of China as well as Taiwan and
its official policy is to recapture the mainland, it is a kind of government-in-exile.
This explains (among other reasons) why it has kept in
office members of those governmental bodies elected when the government
ruled the mainland.
As years have passed this has meant that a large number of the
representatives of the elected organs of government-the democratically
chosen ones-became seen as holdovers from a past era. They
represented a dream of reconquering the mainland, a dream that had
faded. Opposition politicians and supporters of democracy alike complained
that the aging parliamentarians did not represent an electorate
in Taiwan and were thus an obstacle to democracy. They also mocked
them for their inability to do legislative work and for their resistance
to change.
In 1969, through supplementary elections, seats were added to
represent Taiwan. More followed. In addition, the system became
more representative of the electorate under the jurisdiction of the government,
and, therefore, more democratic, because of the attrition of
the older parliamentarians. In fact, this seemed to be solving the problem.
Many observers looked at the actuarial charts which indicated
24 CONTEMPORARY ASIAN STUDIES SERIES
that the elder parliamentarians' influence would soon be a thing of the
past and argued that nothing needed to be done: time would solve the
problem.
However, the speed of democratization in Taiwan was so fast that
attrition was not enough and something had to be done to solve the
problem. The "old guard" had become seen as the last bastion of an
autocratic system. The unelected (in Taiwan) parliamentarians thus
became the focus of opposition attacks on the system, and an embarrassment
to the country because the issue was so frequently cited by
the Western media. As a result, in 1986 President Chiang Ching-kuo
included resolving this situation among his recommended (or promised)
"important reforms."
The promise of reforms raised expectations. Subsequently the issue
became more controversial and opposition politicians, particularly
DPP leaders, began to criticize the government and the ruling KMT
even more harshly on this matter. The issue became very contentious
and polarizing.
The KMT responded: offering a plan, later approved by the National
Security Council, to give the three elected bodies of government
a membership of 579: 375 for the National Assembly, 150 for the Legislative
Yuan, 54 for the Control Yuan. All would be locally elected,
or chosen to represent professional groups or the Overseas Chinese.
The National Assembly would be so constituted after the 1989 election.
The Legislative Yuan would reach 150 in 1992, after growing
from 98 to 130 following the December 1989 election. The Control
Yuan would reach its maximum size after the 1992 election. This proposal
assumed, of course, a bill to retire senior parliamentarians.26
Supporters of the KMT's approach to the problem of getting rid
of officials elected when the government was in China, and those appointed
as replacements for these officials, said that phasing out the
older representatives was the only proper way to handle the issue
given the Chinese respect for age. They also argued it was the constitutional
way because the older delegates were elected (though they
were later frozen in office) or had legally replaced an elected representative.
Similarly they contended that the changes cited above would
create bodies of government of optimum size to be effective in the
functions for which they are responsible. (Scholars had long maintained
that the Legislative Yuan was too large to carry out intelligent
debate.) Finally, KMT leaders asserted that change should be gradual
so as not to give the impression that Taipei was adopting a two-China
26. See Chapter 4.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 25
policy, which might provoke Beijing to take military action against
Taiwan. (Proposals were also made to retain some token mainland
representatives, though this was not given much consideration inasmuch
as this might be accomplished through the Overseas Chinese
representation at a later time.)
While the DPP basically agreed with the plan, most DPP and
other opposition leaders remained critical, in fact highly critical.
They also saw it as an issue which allowed them to make political
capital. Thus, they demanded that all of the old parliamentarians step
down immediately. They also denounced the size of the severance pay
proposed by the KMT, which they said was outrageous considering
the size of military retirement pay and the fact the delegates had done
very little work.
In March 1988, the DPP organized a demonstration parade in the
suburban city of Neihu, where many of the elder parliamentarians
lived. The DPP hoped to get some of the members of the Legislative
Yuan to retire before the December 1989 election so as to bring up for
election more seats for which the DPP might compete. Led by Ju
Gao-jeng, the DPP's "Rambo," the march became violent and several
people were injured. Ju subsequently published a list of the telephone
numbers of the elder parliamentarians, which he called the "old
thieves," and called on the public to telephone them and ask them to
step down from office so that democracy might prevail. Many senior
legislators reported receiving large numbers of harassing telephone
calls as a result.
At the end of 1988, at the time legislation was being debated in
the Legislative Yuan to deal with this problem, the average age of the
non-Taiwan representatives was 80. They held two-thirds of the seats
of the Legislative Yuan and the Control Yuan. They held an even
larger percentage of the National Assembly, which elects the President.
Yet they were dying or becoming inactive at the rate of nearly
one a week.
But the DPP could not wait. Its delegates in the Legislative Yuan
tried to filibuster to force legislation which would deal with the problem
immediately, and DPP spokesmen demanded that all seats be
elected from Taiwan only. The DPP perceived that the public supported
their cause and kept up the pressure. Violence in the Legislative
Yuan ensued. Finally the bill got through the committees.27
In February 1989 the Voluntary Retirement of Senior Parliamen-
27. See "Taiwan" in Asia 1990 Yearbook (Hong Kong: Far Eastern Economic Review,
Ltd., 1989), p.227.
26 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
tarians Act was passed by the Legislative Yuan. (See Appendix III)
The KMT (though not many hardliners) and the DPP supported the
Act. The KMT said it would make the system truly democratic. DPP
politicians, however, noted that, because of the presence of the old
parliamentarians, they still could not rule the country even if their
party won a landslide election. The problem was not yet resolved and
would not be resolved before the December 1989 election.
CHAPTER 2
TAIWAN'S 1985 NATIONWIDE LOCAL ELECTIONS
Background
On November 16, 1985, voters in Taiwan went to the polls to
elect candidates to four categories of local office: 21 city mayors and
county magistrates (5 and 16, respectively), 77 members of the Taiwan
Provincial Assembly, 51 members of the Taipei City Council, and 42
members of the Kaohsiung City Council-a total of 191 posts.1
Elections
to these positions have regularly been held every four years since
1951 or before. It was the tenth election for the Taiwan Provincial
Assembly and the eleventh for the other offices.
This series of local elections was also the second of its type since
the "watershed" election of 1980 (to elect the National Assembly and
the Legislative Yuan, or the legislative branch of government) when
party competition between the Nationalist party, or Kuomintang, and
the nonparty, or tangwai, candidates reflected marked political
change, democratization, and what some perceived as an evolving twoparty
system in the Republic of China. These elections were also conducted
with participants cognizant of the fact that violence had
erupted during elections eight years before. Finally, this series of elections
was held in the context of what some regarded as a "crisis of
confidence" for the Kuomintang, due to a number of unfortunate
events and scandals over the previous year or two that had hurt its
image. In addition, the opposition was viewed as factionalized and
unable to overcome internal strife.2
This series of local elections is important to the political process
in Taiwan for a number of reasons.3
First, the elections are not really
local inasmuch as the entire nation goes to the polls at the same time.
Hence they might properly be called unified, or nationwide, local elections.
Furthermore, the elections are national in the sense that the
I. For background on Taiwan's previous elections, see John F. Copper, with George
P. Chen (1984), Taiwan's Elections: Democratization and Political Development in theRepublic
of China (Baltimore: Univ. of Maryland School of Law, 1984).
2. See C. Goldstein "Testing Confidence: The KMT Seeks a New Mandate After a
Year of Scandals," Far Eastern Economic Review, November 21, 1985, p. 20.
3. See Copper, note I pp. 77-78.
(27)
28 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
Republic of China is now seen by many as synonymous or coterminous
with Taiwan plus some small outlying islands under its control,
and all its territory and citizens were involved in these elections. The
Taiwan Provincial Assembly is a national organ of government in that
it represents all the citizens of the nation. Moreover, the entire Provincial
Assembly is elected every election, making it more sensitive to
changes in public opinion than the National Assembly and the Legislative
Yuan.
Second, the Taiwan Provincial Assembly has legislative power
(although it is not considerable) that in some ways is vital to the political
process in Taiwan; while the magistrates, mayors, and city councils
have both considerable legislative and executive power at the local
level. Candidates elected to the latter offices control substantial budgets
and render decisions on important administrative matters that affect
their district as well as the nation as a whole.
Third, unlike Japan and some other countries in the region, those
elected to positions of local government in Taiwan are the future leaders
ofthe country. As they have in the past, they will inevitably rise to
assume important positions in the national government.
Fourth, prior to this election the Republic of China's election
laws had been revamped, and changes in them needed to be tried and
tested. The previous laws had proven faulty in a number of ways, and
their intent (and in some senses their legality) had been tested and
questioned in the elections four years before. Thus the new set of laws
would be tested in this election.
Finally, many observers pondered what kind of strategy the Kuomintang
would adopt in this election in light of a number of mistakes
and examples of poor leadership to which critics pointed and could
cite as evidence of needed changes. On the other hand, many others
were uncertain as to whether the Kuomintang's mistakes could be defined
(in the minds of the electorate) as incompetence or poor performance,
as opposed to circumstances or bad luck. Similarly, observers
wondered if the opposition, which seemed to be fragmented and unable
to offer a credible alternative agenda, could do any better than it
had in the past. The opposition candidates seemed to have the opportunity;
but could they capitalize on it?
The Campaign and Its Issues
Included in the Election and Recall Law was a provision (unchanged
from the old laws) which limited the duration of the campaign
to ten days prior to the election. The campaign was held in two
parts: first, a five day privately managed campaign period, followed by
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 29
a public period that lasted another five days and was run by the Election
Commission. Though the campaign period is short by most standards,
it is almost identical to the way elections have been run in the
past and resembles those conducted in a number of parliamentary systems.
(Taiwan's political system is both parliamentary and
presidential.)
New provisions in the Election and Recall Law restricted each
candidate from holding more than six forums per day during the private
campaign period; none of these forums could last more than two
hours. As in the past, candidates were not allowed to use radio and
television advertisements, even though many had complained about
this ban. Many compared Taiwan's polity in this regard to the political
systems of Western democracies throughout the world. Opposition
candidates also charged it was a much greater disadvantage for them
than for Kuomintang candidates, though in view of the costs involved
and the number of KMT candidates, many say that this is not true.4
In any event, the Election Commission had the support of public opinion
on this issue and would not rescind its ban. Tighter restrictions
were also placed on the use of campaign vehicles or sound trucks (each
candidate allowed only three), campaign posters (which were not allowed
in public places except those designated), campaign handouts
(restricted in size and in some other ways), and campaign spending
(limited, though few had any confidence that this rule could be
enforced).
Those critical of the new election rules argued that they would
reduce public interest, participation in the campaign, and voter turnout.
Many candidates complained that certain restrictions singled
them out and did not hurt their opposition-though these charges were
made by so many candidates from both sides that unfairness was not,
in the final analysis, a very credible charge. Those who favored the
stricter new election rules said that they made the campaign more orderly
and less disruptive of life during the campaign period. They also
contended that the rules reduced the chances of people being hurt during
the elections by firecrackers (which were banned) and rowdiness,
and reflected the "maturing" of democracy in Taiwan.
Positions to be filled by the choice of the electorate totaled 191,
with 357 candidates entering the race-including 157 Kuomintang candidates
(18 for mayors and magistrates, 60 for Provincial Assembly
4. SeeM. Shao, "Taiwan Voting May Highlight KMT's Setbacks,"Asian Wall Street
Journal, November 6, 1989: p 1; C. Goldstein, "Chipping Away at the KMT," Far Eastern
Economic Review, November 28, 1989: pp. 13-14.
30 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
seats, 44 for Taipei City Council and 35 for Kaohsiung City Council),
45 "unauthorized" Kuomintang candidates, 2 Young China Party
candidates, 44 tangwai candidates (7 for mayors and magistrates, 18
for Provincial Assembly, 11 for Taipei City Council, and 8 for Kaohsiung
City Council), and over 100 "others" or independents. The
number of candidates declined slightly before the election as several
candidates dropped out. The number of candidates per elective position
was down slightly, at less than two candidates per post.5
In August a core of tangwai candidates met and formed the Candidates
Aid Group. In September this organization produced a slate
of unified candidates and endeavored to write a party platform. The
Candidate Aid Group also attempted to find an acceptable way of
choosing among competing tangwai candidates in each election district
so that they would not compete with each other and waste voting
strength, as had happened in past elections.6
Tangwai leaders and official
candidates also sought to avoid the polarization between radical
and moderate groups which had occurred in the last election, resulting
in a less effective appeal to the electorate.
Tangwai and other opposition politicians harped on a number of
issues that related to Kuomintang mistakes or "misgovernance" and a
higher level of uncertainty about the future of the country; these issues
collectively produced what they said was a crisis of confidence.
Among the charges of mishandling governmental affairs, the opposition
frequently cited the case of Henry Liu. Henry Liu was a San
Francisco-based writer and businessman who had been killed by the
Bamboo Union gang at the behest of the head of Military Intelligence
in Taiwan. The incident strained relations with the United States and
provoked a subsequent Congressional inquiry that linked the murder
to continued U.S. arms sales to Taiwan. Also mentioned were 1)the
scandal concerning the Tenth Credit Cooperative (a credit society that
collapsed, resulting in individual financial losses reportedly in the billions
of dollars that affected the economic stability of the country);
2)two serious coal mine disasters; 3)a case of poisoned wine marketed
by the government wine and tobacco monopoly; and 4)the arrest of a
Los Angeles-based newspaper owner and a naturalized U.S. citizen on
S. See "The ROC's Local Elections Draw 357 Registered candidates,'' Free China
Journal, October 21-27,1985, p.l.
6. The tangwai originally planned to field 62 candidates, but decided on a lower
number in order to prevent their candidates from competing with each other. SeeP. Liu,
"Candidates Vie for Hearts of Electorate, Work Long Hours Visiting Constituents," Free
China Journal, October 21-27, 1985, p. 2.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 31
sedition charges for publishing pro-Communist propaganda.7
Related to these problems was the fact that there was no apparent
successor to the president, although according to the Constitution
Vice President Lee Teng-hui would become president in the event of
the death or disability of the president. Vice President Lee, however,
was new in his job, and his rank in the party suggested that others
would make important decisions if he were to become president. Perhaps
even more important than the president's age was talk about Premier
Yu Kuo-hua's alleged inability to serve in that important office
and his involvement in the Tenth Credit Union affair. In short, the
issue of succession at the top had never existed before; nor had it troubled
so many people.
Opposition candidates also blamed the government and the ruling
party for the downturn in the economy and the increased rate of unemployment.
(Economic growth in the fourth quarter was 4.1 percent,
compared to 10.5 percent in 1984. Unemployment was slightly
higher: 2.46 percent in the second quarter, compared to 2.44 percent
in 1985.)8
The opposition related these two problems to the previously
mentioned issues.
The opposition also complained that the Kuomintang was an "official"
party in a system where political parties were banned, and they
made the connection in terms of government malfeasance and mistakes.
Similarly, they remonstrated that opposition candidates were
not allowed to form a political party and were thus at a serious disadvantage
in the campaign.9
Related to the latter complaint, tangwai
candidates charged that the Kuomintang had control of the media and
used it to its advantage in the campaign, while almost all tangwai publications
were banned by the government. They similarly railed
against the system that allowed the appointment-rather than the election-of
the mayors of Taipei and Kaohsiung, and the governor of Taiwan,
as well as a number of other important posts.
The Kuomintang's rebuttal was that the Henry Liu case occurred
because of the actions of two or three overzealous government officials,
such actions could and did take place in every government in the
world, and such behavior should not discredit either the government
or the Nationalist party. As far as the Tenth Credit Cooperative scan-
7. See Goldstein, note 2; and Shao, note 4.
8. For these and other recent economic statistics on Taiwan, see Free China Journal
October 21-27, 1985, p. 4. '
9. While it is true that the formation of "new" political parties is forbidden by Jaw in
Taiwan, according to most observers the tangwai is a political party or has all the trappings.
It had a "party" platform. a campaign, a flag, and a budget.
32 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
dal was concerned, it had ended in the punishment of responsible officials:
both the Minister of Finance and the Minister of Economic
Affairs had stepped down. Off the record, they averred that such
problems occur in a free market economy, that there is no public support
for any other economic system, and that Kuomintang management
of the economy had been excellent in the past according to some
accounts, based on GNP growth, the best in the world in 1984. The
coal mine disasters, the wine poisoning, and the Los Angeles newspaper
owner's arrest were called minor accidents or mistakes.
Regarding the precipitous drop in economic growth and the rise
in unemployment, Kuomintang candidates said that Taiwan's economic
problems were a product of "fundamental" problems in the
world economy and that Taiwan was doing better economically than
most other nations, notwithstanding the slump. They pointed out that
Singapore, a nation frequently likened to Taiwan as one of the miraclegrowth
nations and one that had also experienced outstanding economic
performance in 1984, had in recent months experienced an economic
decline much more serious than Taiwan's. The KMT
maintained that the rise in unemployment was negligible, and unemployment
was in any event extremely low by world standards.
Kuomintang party officials and candidates alike sought to stress
their record of achievement in terms of economic growth and political
stability. They also boasted of political development and democracy
and defended Taiwan's political system as one that had been markedly
improved and was supported by the large majority of the population in
its present form. Informally, they countered the opposition charges of
control of the media and the use of the government agencies for party
purposes, saying that opposition publications were banned because
tangwai owners of these publications wanted them banned so as to
make a charge of censorship. They also pointed out that despite bans
they were readily available to anyone who wanted to read them.10
Regarding
government-Kuomintang complicity, they replied that the
government had the right to publicize its accomplishments and that
the Kuomintang's so-called media blitz was simply a well-organized
campaign effort that used Taiwan's successes as the basis of campaign
slogans and the publicizing of Kuomintang candidates' records.
It is doubtful whether these contentions were really major issues
in terms of affecting the voters' decisions regarding different candi-
10. This writer was in Taiwan during the campaign and the election and was able to
purchase banned tangwai publications simply by asking for them. In some cases they were
openly displayed in bookstores. In fact, the author was unaware at the time that the
magazines had been banned.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 33
dates. In late October 1985, less than a month before the election, the
China Times (one of Taiwan's largest newspapers) conducted a survey
of candidates' views on election issues. This poll indicated that the
major concerns of the electorate (as viewed by the candidates) varied
significantly from the Jist of errors and mismanagement attributed to
the Kuomintang by the opposition cited above.11
At the top of the list
of issues was improving traffic. In fact, this was the leading issue as
seen by the candidates overall as well as in all categories of candidates
except those running for Taipei and Kaohsiung City Council seats. In
Taipei the major issue was strengthening the national police force and
keeping public order, and in Kaohsiung it was eliminating public
hazards. In all categories of candidates, preventing public hazards
and strengthening the national police while keeping social order were
number two and three in terms of popularity. Other popular issues in
a descending order of rank were administrative renovation; administrative
efficiency; labor rights and welfare; tourism; increased pay for
military personnel, government workers, and schoolteachers; better
education; and stronger social welfare.
According to this same survey, candidates from metropolitan areas
reflected concerns quite different from candidates in rural areas:
metropolitan candidates stressed social welfare and local (economic)
development; rural candidates focused on ideology and administrative
change, principles of self-government, political prisoners, and temporary
emergency laws.
Another discrepancy existed between voters' concerns and the
content of campaign speeches in that candidates did not focus on the
issues the polls said the voters were most concerned about; instead
campaign speeches focused much more on environmental problems,
sanitation, and water control. In fact, these three topics seemed to be
on the minds of almost all candidates, Kuomintang and tangwai alike,
judging from campaign speeches during the Election Commissionsponsored
debates.12
In short, there was a big difference between what
both the KMT and the opposition candidates said in their platforms
and how they perceived issues and felt they could get elected. As is
true in all democratic elections, this had characterized Taiwan's past
elections. The gap, however, seemed a bit larger this time.
According to law, candidates could not advocate communism or
independence-i.e., abandoning the One China ideal. Everything else
11. Cited in Donegal's Yu-ching, "Traffic Problems Listed Top Campaign Issue," Free
China Journal, November 2-9, 1985, p 2.
12. This is based on personal observations as well as those of another observer of the
elections and the answers given when a number of other observers were queried about this.
34 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
seemed to be within bounds. Since communism has almost no appeal
in Taiwan to any segment of the electorate, few candidates even
touched on the issue in any way. Those who did seemed to do so only
as a means of attracting attention, after which they dropped the issue
or clarified their anti-communist position. A large number of opposition
candidates, however, spoke of self-determination, which many
government officials and Kuomintang candidates interpreted to mean
Taiwanese independence and therefore cried foul. 13
In this sense the
election laws and gentlemen's agreements that had been hammered
out before the election failed to work during the campaign. Nevertheless,
government officials chose not to push the issue, while Kuomintang
candidates tried to defuse it by claiming that self-determination
applies only to people who do not have a nation. Some even targetted
the independence issue, announcing that they did not advocate it inasmuch
as the country (meaning the Republic of China) was already
sovereign and, therefore, independent; or some simply made a joke of
the issue.
Some opposition candidates brought up foreign policy problems,
especially the government's failure to maintain diplomatic relations
with a larger number of nations and with important international organizations,
and Taiwan's hackneyed responses to Beijing's overture
to negotiate reunification. Some broached the matter of martial law
and extraconstitutional provisions that validate or rationalize special
security measures. However, these issues were not very effective in
winning voter attention or support.
During the campaign, opposition candidates claimed government
harassment in the form of videotaping candidates' speeches and
photographing audiences at campaign rallies and the like. The Election
Commission claimed that this was the same right or freedom that
the media or any individual might exercise, though it admitted that
tapes and photographs would be used after the election as legal evidence
in the event that election law violations resulted in charges being
brought against any candidate. While there were accusations back
and forth about this during the election, it seemed fairly clear that it
would not escalate into a serious controversy.
Campaign activities, while noisy and boisterous, were somewhat
more subdued than in the past. This was especially true in Taipei.
The campaign, however, was not lacking in antics and sensationalism.
One candidate campaigned on horseback. Another wore a surgical
13. According to one observer, self-determination was mentioned less frequently than
in past elections. See Shao, note 4.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 35
mask and military equipment, trying to underscore his major campaign
issue-the battle against pollution. Another was carried to several
rallies and sometimes to the podium on a stretcher, claiming he
had been poisoned by his opponents.14
While making campaign
promises, a number of candidates decapitated chickens (an ancient
Buddhist ritual somewhat comparable to the Western practice of taking
an oath with one hand on the Bible). Many made speeches in
Buddhist temples concerning vital issues on their agenda. Most
charged other candidates with mudslinging, and several threatened to
sue for slander.15
Both sides fielded candidates with name recognition
and public appeal: the Kuomintang ran a basketball player, a TV host,
and a computer wizard (who programmed his responses to a number
of campaign issues); the tangwai used film stars and singers both on
their ticket and as helpers in their campaign.
The campaign was conducted in a more orderly fashion than
usual-though it is uncertain how much of this should be attributed to
new election rules as opposed to the maturing of the democratic
processes in Taiwan. There was some tension in the air between Kuomintang
candidates and tangwai candidates; yet it was obvious that
the former had come to accept the latter as legitimate opponents (even
though forming a new party remained technically illegal), and the latter
regarded themselves as a loyal opposition and the conscience of the
ruling party. When Kuomintang candidates and government officials
were asked about the illegal status of the tangwai, their general response
was that the tangwai's technical status does not reflect its true
situation. They further stated that it was perhaps wise that it remain
formally illegal, inasmuch as something unexpected might occur and
the law might need to be enforced-though they did not seem to think
such an event was very likely. When asked if they wanted to unseat
the Kuomintang, opposition candidates spoke more of themselves as
being a check on the power of the Kuomintang, promoters of democracy,
and winners of an election in the distant future.
Several months prior to November many observers had predicted
that the Kuomintang would do poorly at the polls. A poor performance
had been anticipated because of the crisis of confidence and the
fact that the KMT supposedly could not match its performance in
previous elections from the point of view of superior strategy (not only
because its leaders had been innovative in past elections, but also be-
14. This charge was made by a tangwai candidate against the KMT. He was later
examined and found in good health. See D. Southerland, "Taiwan's Ruling Party Wins in
Local Elections," Washington Post, November 17,1985, p. A-20.
15. See "Election Tidbits," China Post, November 15, 1985, p. 4.
36 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
cause the tangwai had either copied the KMT's campaign tactics or
had acted to offset them). As the election grew closer, it looked more
and more as if the Kuomintang would not do badly, perhaps even
matching its performance four years earlier.
The Election and Its Results
Voting took place on Saturday, November 16, without any major
problems or incidents. Tangwai campaign workers published what
they said was proof that some ballots were available before election
day, suggesting that either government officials or the Kuomintang
candidates had tried to fix the election in one district.16
But little was
made of this as the ballots were counted, either because the vote tallying
did not substantiate the charge or because those with the evidence
chose to take the issue to court later. Thinking that the election might
have been rigged, tangwai supporters in the city of Chung Li turned
over a car and threw rocks when they learned that their candidate had
lost by a very narrow margin. The candidate, however, asked his supporters
not to engage in violence, advising them that a recount would
settle the matter. In the vicinity of Taipei a candidate was threatened
with a knife during his victory parade, but he instructed his supporters
not to attempt retaliation, thereby defusing that incident. 17
Notwithstanding some light showers on election day and a predicted
lower turnout because of more stringent election laws that
somewhat dampened the carnival atmosphere of earlier elections,
voter turnout was higher than usual and higher than in the unified
local elections four years previous. Ballots were cast by 71.7 percent
(8.1 million) of the eligible voters. As usual the turnout was higher in
the countryside than in the cities, with the lowest turnout in Taipei.
(The turnout for the Taiwan Provincial Assembly was 72.8 percent,
slightly higher than in 1981. For the Taipei and Kaohsiung City
Council it was 65.5 percent and 75.7 percent, respectively-both lower
than in 1981.)18
Overall, voter turnover was not only up; it actually reversed a
decade-long slow decline. Observers, in fact, were puzzled by the
higher turnout. More debate about issues directly relevant to the
16. This observer received a copy of the tangwai documentation of the alleged vote
fraud. According to several tangwai supporters, it consisted of a xeroxed copy of a ballot
that had been available to military personnel before the election.
17. China Post, November 15, 1985, p. 8.
18. "Kuomintang Remains in Firm Control of Local Politics," China News, November
17' 1985, p. 8.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 37
voter, good election strategies on both sides, and an increased awareness
of party competition are probably the best explanations.
Kuomintang candidates won 146 ofthe 191 contested seats (76.84
percent), including 59 seats (out of 77) in the Provincial Assembly, 17
(out of 21) mayor and magistrate races, 38 seats (out of 51) on the
Taipei City Council, and 32 seats (out of 42) on the Kaohsiung City
Council.19
Considering the expectation that Kuomintang candidates
would not fare well due to problems the party faced during the year
and the crisis of confidence in government attributed to party leadership,
the Kuomintang could claim a major, or at least unexpected,
victory.
On the basis of electing 26 of its 44 candidates (winning 13.61
percent of the open seats) and winning some major races, the tangwai
also claimed victory. (Ten independent candidates won the rest of the
seats, except one winner from the Young China party-which supports
the KMT.) Although it still suffered from considerable factionalism
locally, the tangwai had clearly put in office a good percentage of its
candidates and had campaigned without splitting its ranks. Compared
to 1981, when 19 of 31 "official" candidates won elective office, the
tangwai's performance was much improved, having profited from its
previous experience.
On the basis of the total number of seats won in the previous
election, the election was inconclusive in terms of analysts trying to
proclaim a victor. The Kuomintang ended up with one more seat,
though there were two more seats contested. The percentage of the
popular vote won by the Kuomintang (71 percent) and the opposition
(29 percent) was virtually the same as in the 1981 election. In terms of
leadership changes at the top, the word was "keep the incumbent": the
speaker of the Provincial Assembly, the speaker of the Taipei City
Council, and the speaker of the Kaohsiung City Council all won.
Overall, incumbents did better than in past elections, which suggests
that the electorate was generally happy with the conditions of the
country and the performance of the government.
In the mayoral and magistrate races, the Kuomintang won 17 of
21 races for a gain of one seat over the previous election total. Offsetting
this gain, Tsai Ming-yao, the incumbent Kuomintang county
chief in Kaohsiung, lost to Mrs. Yu Chen Yue-ying-one of the most
vocal and well-known tangwai candidates. This was a hotly contested
election, and according to some observers the defeat embarrassed the
19. "KMT Scores High in 1985 Local Elections," Free China Journal, November 10-
17, 1985, p. 1.
38 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
KMT.20
Yu had lost the election to Tsai in 1981 by only 3,000 votes,
or one-half of one percent of those ballots cast. This time she won by
28,000 votes.21
The fact that the KMT won the magistracy race in
nearby Pingtung County, however, suggests this was more a personal
victory for Mrs. Yu than a KMT problem in the Kaohsiung area.
This view is further substantiated by the fact that Yu did not have
close ties with other tangwai candidates, and many of them criticized
her "personal" campaign.
In the Kaohsiung City Council race the KMT gained one seat,
winning 38 of 51 seats in contention-or 74.5 percent of the seats.22
Moreover, the Speaker, a Kuomintang candidate, won against a very
vocal opposition candidate who had sued the Speaker before the election
and had lost the suit.
In terms of change or unexpected results, the Taipei City Council
race was the biggest. Although KMT Speaker Clement Chang was reelected,
all eleven tangwai candidates won. Two independent candidates
also won. In all, the Kuomintang lost three seats. Moreover,
most of the winning tangwai candidates were either adamant critics of
the Kuomintang and the government or were controversial figures, or
in some cases were both.
For example, one of the winners was Lan Mei-chi, wife of Huang
Tien-fu, a highly vocal opponent of the government widely known as
the brother of one of the activists jailed following the Kaohsiung riots
in 1979. One of the biggest vote getters was Hsieh Chang-ting, a
young lawyer who built a reputation for opposing martial law and supporting
consumer rights. Another successful candidate was Li Tingchung,
the wife of Lei Yu-chi, who was in jail over a libel suit against a
high Kuomintang official.23
It thus seemed that for the next four years
the opposition would have a significant voice on this 51-member council
that runs the nation's capital city.
The Taipei City Council race has still other implications. If one
accepts the position that "as the capital goes, so goes the nation," then
the Taipei City Council race should be considered portentous for the
Kuomintang. Some observers credited the opposition's victory in
Taipei to the voters' higher level of education and political awareness
and a significant number of younger voters. A more studied interpre-
20. "Nationalists Sweep Taiwan Polls, But Lose Key Area,'' Japan Times, November
18, 1985, p. 4.
21. Goldstein, note 4, p.14.
22. China News Agency, November 18, 1985 in Foreign Broadcasting Information Services,
November 21, 1985, p. 2.
23. For a complete list of names of winners and their "party" affiliations, see ibid.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 39
tation suggests that the voters were more strongly influenced than the
rest of the country by Kuomintang problems and the crisis of confidence.
For all intents and purposes, the collapse of the Tenth Credit
Cooperative affected the residents of the Taipei area; the scandal had
hardly any impact elsewhere. The voters of Taipei were also much
more aware of a leadership vacuum in regard to President Chiang
Ching-kuo's successor; and they were more concerned about problems
the nation faced in dealing with Beijing, the United States, and other
foreign policy issues.
An alternative explanation is that the tangwai was much better
organized in Taipei than elsewhere and it managed to formulate a better
campaign strategy (especially to prevent its candidates from competing
against each other) than in the past. How much it accounts for
the tangwai victory in Taipei is difficult to say. In any case, the KMT
had cause for concern.
On the other hand, the KMT lost only 3 seats. The party, moreover,
fielded 38 successful candidates out of 49. This is a 77.5 percent
record of winning candidates, better than the KMT did elsewhere.24
Also, the percentage of votes for the KMT in Taipei equaled its record
elsewhere. In short, KMT organizers ostensibly were familiar with
the situation in Taipei, and the outcome was not a surprise. In fact, it
may have been in part facilitated by the fact that the KMT diverted its
energies elsewhere, knowing its limitations in Taipei and predicting
defeat. This being the case, the KMT could be expected to recoup its
losses in the next election.
The Kuomintang's defeat in Taipei may also suggest that its strategy
of nominating younger, better-educated candidates, not only to
project an image of a party keeping up with the trends but also to
offset charges of "money politics," did not work. Before the election
the party boasted that the average age of its candidates in the Taipei
race was slightly over forty-three years. It claimed that more than 68
percent had completed university education-over 20 percent of them
had graduate degrees-and around 25 percent were new (with an average
age of thirty-five). During the campaign many candidates were
described as being specialists in law, the media, public administration,
etc. The public seemed to be less concerned about qualifications than
they had been in the past. It is more probable that the KMT's policy
of advertising candidates' qualifications, especially educational and
professional, did not have the impact the party anticipated because the
24. Ibid.
40 CoNTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
public did not regard it as novel, having been exposed to it in the previous
election. Furthermore, this time the opposition used it as well.
The perception of the Kuomintang's performance outside Taipei
was certainly better. The Tenth Credit Cooperative scandal was not a
big issue outside Taipei, and the Henry Liu case and foreign policy
issues generally seemed of less concern to voters in areas distant from
the capital. In the countryside, KMT candidates appealed to conservative
voters more effectively and showed a better understanding of
local issues than their competition. Similarly, outside Taipei the Kuomintang
was able to split the opposition and/or exploit factionalism
within opposition ranks with considerable ease.
Unlike the Taipei City Council contest, the Taipei county magistrate
race was not a case ofthe KMT faltering or losing. You Ching-a
German-trained lawyer and an outspoken critic of the KMT who
earned national fame for defending several of the best known defendants
in the Kaohsiung riot trials in 1980-lost to KMT-incumbent Lin
Feng-cheng by more than 250,000 votes out of one million cast. Analysts
said that his slogan of "recovering Taipei county" (which satirized
the government's policy of recovering the mainland) and his talk
of self-determination and the need to form a new political party-both
considered illegal or on the fringes-seemed to do little to ingratiate him
with the electorate. Tangwai supporters, however, said that You's
performance showed that the tangwai had made inroads into an area
that was formerly KMT turf. Thus they claimed his defeat should not
necessarily be seen as a loss.25
Plainly, it was one of the most visible
and controversial contests.
In contrast to the above, most of the contests for Taiwan Provincial
Assembly seats were not hotly or strongly contested. A partial
explanation is that the tangwai saw better opportunities elsewhere for
winning or taking positions whereby they could proclaim their views,
even though the Provincial Assembly has traditionally been dominated
by Taiwanese and some have perceived that it could eventually
be controlled by the opposition. In short, the Taiwan Provincial Assembly
contest was the least exciting part of the election. Furthermore,
the results were less meaningful in terms of either proclaiming a
victory for one side or the other or in terms of assessing the nation's
political future.
Vote buying was, as always, a serious problem, but not noticeably
worse than in previous elections. The major cause was Taiwan's prosperity-certainly
not to be condemned. Perhaps vote buying can be
25. See Goldstein, note 4.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 41
kept in check through legal means and by publicizing campaign spending.
No one seemed to have a better solution.
Compared with previous elections, there were noticeably fewer
voters influenced by candidates who appealed to their sympathies.
This must be regarded as a positive factor, reflecting a more educated
and objective electorate. The elected candidates' age and level of education
and experience clearly reflect the rational choices made by Taiwan's
electorate. The winning candidates, younger and better
educated than ever, could boast of more experience in government or
in positions related to the offices they sought. They also boasted of
sufficient energy to do the job, and the electorate listened. More than
half of the winning candidates (51.8 percent) were in their forties.
Only 13 victorious candidates were over sixty; three were in their
twenties.
As far as education is concerned, 68.6 percent were college educated,
73.2 percent if military institutes are counted. No victorious
candidate had less than a high-school education. All new mayors and
magistrates bad a college education. Of special note is the large
number of female candidates elected: 9 of 51(17.6 percent) winners of
seats on the Taipei City Council; 6 of 42 (14.3 percent) victors in the
Kaohsiung City Council race; and 13 of 77 (16.9 percent) elected to
the Taiwan Provincial Assembly. On the other hand, female candidates
did not do exceedingly well in the magistrate and mayoral races,
where only two women were elected.26
Conclusions
The obvious conclusion to draw from the November 1985 "national"
local elections is that Taiwan continued to experience significant
and meaningful political development of a democratic kind. One
might say that this election offered more proof of democracy than
most, since it was conducted in the context of problems and adversity.
Because of these difficulties it would have been easy for the Kuomintang
to resort to authoritarian practices and induce the government to
prohibit many of the opposition's activities. On the contrary, the
KMT demonstrated more tolerance and patience toward the opposition
than in previous elections. Similarly, the opposition could have
26. "Backgrounds of Elected Mayors (1985), Magistrates, Provincial Assemblymen
and City Councilmen," China Post, November 18, 1985, p. 2. Even the percentage of women
(10 percent plus) who won in mayor and magistrate races is high compared to elections
in most Western countries. Of the victorious female candidates 9, 6, and 13,
respectively, were KMT. The two victorious women in mayor and magistrate races were
independents.
42 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
been harder on the KMT during the campaign for its failures and
could have been much more critical than they were.
In terms of concluding who won the election, the only reasonable
bottom line is that both sides won, that the country won, and that the
process of political development won. In terms of a contest between
the KMT and tangwai, the results plainly suggest a draw. In one
sense, it is possible to say that both won. There were fewer defectors
from either camp. Moreover, moderation generally prevailed in both
camps in terms of views and election campaigning.
If one wants to argue that the KMT won the election, the figures
do suggest that conclusion-even though it was the narrowest of victories
(one seat). The KMT also "won" in view of the predictions that it
would lose. Several months before the campaign, most newspaper editorials
were pessimistic about the fate of the KMT at the polls. The
ruling party seemed to be in considerable trouble because of the various
problems mentioned above. The KMT in some senses suffered a
crisis of confidence. Knowing that the fate of political parties tends to
wax and wane, with victories often resulting in overconfidence and
defeats making the opposition work even harder, the KMT should
have expected losses, even significant losses, in this election. But it did
not.
The tangwai could certainly celebrate and even claim victory because
of the fact that the "party" suffered less from factionalism than
it had in the past. It was also less split along ideological lines, and its
election strategy was much improved. Tangwai candidates gained
savvy from previous elections and used it in this election. One might
also cite the fact that the tangwai did better in the most strongly contested
races-for mayors and magistrates. Tangwai leaders could in
particular rejoice in the Taipei City Council victory and even claim
that it was a bellwether. It is no doubt significant that in Taipei more
than half of the electorate was under the age of thirty, and m.ost of
them did not identify with the KMT in terms of party affiliation.
There was clearly a message here regarding the tangwai's potential in
terms of election opportunities.
On the other hand, during this election the tangwai said much
less than was expected about its future as a political party-even though
it behaved more like a party than it had in the past. It rarely complained
that it was not allowed to become a legal party. One might
conclude that the tangwai had become resigned to the fact that this
was not going to happen. In other words, the KMT would not allow
it to happen. More likely, tangwai leaders realized that it would matter
very little, since the tangwai was still too divided for party status to
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 43
benefit its candidates. Thus, tangwai leaders looked more toward the
distant future when they considered a legal party and a two-party system
evolving.
The system would likely be a one-party-dominant one for the immediate
future. The tangwai would play the role of a pressure group
or the conscience of the KMT and the advocates of democracy rather
than a true opposition party in a two-party system. Alternatively, the
tangwai was already so much a political party-a fact both it and the
KMT perceived-that there was little reason for discussion.
Similarly, tangwai candidates said much less of substance about
self-determination than in the past, using the issue only to draw attention
to their campaign. Whereas the polls showed it was not a good
campaign issue, this had also been true in previous elections. Apparently
less was said about self-determination because it was taken for
granted or because the candidates themselves, possibly influenced by
their perception of the electorate's view, did not want to antagonize
top officials in the national government. Holding an election itself was
proof of national sovereignty, and KMT candidates were saying much
the same thing about independence as the tangwai (the KMT simply
used different logic: that Taiwan is synonymous with the Republic of
China and that it is sovereign and will remain sovereign).
The fact that there was less identification among the voters with
ethnic differences was a good sign. As in past local elections, the large
majority of KMT candidates were Taiwanese. In this sense the KMT
had become a Taiwanese party. In contrast, the tangwai, which some
saw as evolving into a Taiwanese party some years ago, was not a
Taiwanese party, or at least did not seem so in this election. Ethnic
differences were less important than in previous elections and less a
factor than many observers expected.
Based on this election, labeling the KMT as a conservative party
and the tangwai as a liberal or progressive party was not easy to defend.
It seemed to be more accurate to call the KMT a progressiveconservative
party. The tangwai's platform entitled the progressive
adjective, but liberalism was not a party theme (perhaps because so
few in Taiwan understand its meaning or because liberals have not
done well in the United States or Japan, where the populace of Taiwan
looks for political lessons). The same is true of capitalism (KMT) and
socialism (tangwai). This dichotomy was much more blurred in this
election. Taiwan's capitalistic development strategy had worked so
well that it could not be challenged, and the KMT had been so aggressive
in adopting social welfare programs that the tangwai could not
make this a good campaign issue. In the past their candidates talked a
44 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
lot about equality and poverty. A number of tangwai candidates, in
fact, advocated lower taxes and a more capitalistic economic system.
Thus, there was some switching sides on economic issues.
Some observers have argued that Taiwan has had too many elections
and that the electorate had become bored, thus explaining the
declining voter turnout. This seems to have been disproved by the
results of this election. In fact, Taiwan in 1985 witnessed a reversal in
the decline of voter turnout during several of the last elections. Moreover,
an even lower turnout had been predicted. Apparently the
bored-voter thesis or the voter-alienation theory was wrong. Voter
turnout was apparently higher because more voters perceived that it
was their duty to vote and more could identify issues as affecting them
directly. One might also say that democracy had matured in Taiwan,
and the individual voter felt more a participant inasmuch as he or she
had become accustomed to the democratic process of electing politicians
who actually represent the people in governing.
One may conclude that this election was competitive and interesting
and that if the future was to be predicted on the basis of this election,
future contests would be even more instrumental in the
operation of Taiwan's political system. Its system would then continue
to become democratic at a high rate of speed, without the difficulties
many nations have experienced in institutionalizing democracy.
In that sense, Taiwan is a model.
CHAPTER 3
TAIWAN'S 1986 NATIONAL ELECI'ION: TRANSITION
TO DEMOCRACY
Introduction
On December 6, 1986 voters went to the polls throughout Taiwan
in what many have since called a watershed election. Some said it
pushed forward the political modernization process in this island republic
by perhaps a decade or more. Other observers declared the
election was proof that Taiwan had made the transition from an authoritarian
political system to a democracy. Clearly politics, especially
electoral politics, changed as a result of this election and its
campaign.
This was the 68th major election held in Taiwan over the past
three decades. It was the first, however, in which the competition was
organized in the form of a legally constituted party-even though this
was still partly unfinished business. The newly formed Democratic
Progressive Party (DPP) nominated candidates that ran as "party"
candidates, while their predecessors ran as a group of non-party or
independent opposition candidates. They carried green and white
"party" flags. The media and the electorate referred to the DPP as a
political party. Hence this election was dubbed the first two-party
election in Chinese history.
The 1986 election must also be seen in relation to events during
1986, particularly announcements by President Chiang Ching-Kuo
that the government in the not-too-distant future would end martial
law and allow the formation of new political parties. 1986 was clearly
a time of significant political change in Taiwan. This was especially
true of the few months preceding December 6, 1986.1
The Political Context of the Election
During the early half to two-thirds of 1985 the government and
the ruling Party in Taiwan passed through what might be called a
period of malaise. A number of trends were less than positive-including
economic growth (compared to the past) and unemployment
1. For further details, see John F. Copper "Political Developments in Taiwan in
1986," China News Analysis, January 15, 1987, pp. 1-9.
(45)
46 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
(increasing, though still low compared to other countries). The country
also faced some rather serious problems or crises. Early in the year
the Henry Liu case (the murder of a San Francisco businessman)
broke, implicating top political intelligence officials in Taipei. The foreign
media interpreted the case as one of the .KMT killing a U.S. citizen
because he had written something uncomplimentary about
Taiwan's government, and in particular about President Chiang
Ching-kuo. A number of U.S. newspapers harshly criticized the government
and implicated other officials by association. The subcommittee
on Asia of the House Foreign Affairs Committee of the U.S.
Congress held hearings during which several noted Congressmen
sought to use the event as a reason to end arms sales to Taiwan.2
The collapse of the Tenth Credit Union, the second largest financial
conglomerate in Taiwan, further undermined the credibility of the
government and the ruling KMT. It was monumental in terms of its
size and the number of businesses and investors affected-involving
more than 100 companies collectively worth more than 3.5 billion U.S.
dollars. The collapse gave the impression that the government was not
properly managing the economy and that corruption and malfeasance
were serious problems.
On top of these problems the country witnessed a number of
highly publicized accidents that many blamed on the governmenttwo
coal mine disasters and poisoned wine (from the government's
wine and tobacco monopoly) that was sold to consumers. And there
was unfavorable press over the arrest of a Taiwan-born (but with U.S.
citizenship) Los Angeles newspaper owner. There were also rumors
about President Chiang Ching-kuo's health and increased speculation
about the problem of his successor. Some, especially opposition politicians,
opined that he did not have a successor.
Mid-year 1986 the KMT seemed to be heading for an election
defeat in November. However, past problems and crises were not as
important as they appeared, or were handled deftly. In any case, an
election loss was averted. The Henry Liu case by this time was seen
by most of Taiwan's voters as a case of one or two officials acting on
their own against a double or triple agent (who had done intelligence
work for Washington, Taipei and Beijing). The Tenth Credit scandal
was in part put to rest by officials, including two cabinet members,
stepping down and taking responsibility. That issue also became seen
as one resulting from insufficient government regulation rather than
2. For details, see John F. Copper, "Taiwan: New Challenges to Development," Current
History, April 1986, pp.l68-171.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 47
corruption. The public, moreover, was unsure it wanted more regulation
in view of the fact that a free and open market (although maybe
too free) had given Taiwan its miracle economic development. The
other problems as well seemed to pass so that, by November, they
were no longer seen as terribly important. The nation's most serious
"problem" was its growing foreign exchange position, resultant of a
huge trade surplus. Some observers commenting about the problem
said that it was one that most developing nations wish they had.3
The ruling Nationalist Party also appeared to be taking the coming
elections seriously and showed its willingness to adjust to new
political realities in order to help its candidates to electoral victory. In
March the KMT held its third plenary session of the Party's 12th Central
Committee. At that meeting several new members were appointed
to the important and powerful Central Standing Committee. The new
appointments mirrored progressive changes in the direction of
Taiwanization, democratization, and a younger leadership of the
Party. Some even speculated that the older, less flexible and more authoritarian-minded
leaders of the Party no longer held the balance of
power in top Party decision making bodies.4
A few months later President Chiang Ching-kuo (also Chairman
of the KMT) ordered the formation of a twelve-member committee to
study the status of martial law and the ban on the formation of new
parties; the committee was also to examine the problem of an aging
National Assembly and means of improving local government. The
first two "tasks" were by far the most important. What was meant by
"studying" martial law and the ban of new parties was, in essence,
finding a way to get rid of both and figure out how the system could
best be pushed ahead on the road to further democratization without
evoking political chaos or instability.
On the subject of legalizing new parties, tangwai leaders proposed
that they be allowed to have permanent offices countrywide in the
form of their Tangwai Research Association for Public Policy
(TRAPP). TRAPP would serve as a permanent national "party" organization
that could coordinate "party" activities during periods
when elections were not pending. This would help give the tangwai
3. See John F. Copper, "Taiwan in 1986: Back on Top Again," Asian Survey, January
1987, pp.89-90.
4. See "ROC Sets a Model for All Chinese, Chiang Says,'' Free China Journal,
March 31, 1986, p. 1. For a comparison with the previous Central Standing Comittee, see
Edwin A. Winckler, "After the Chiangs: The Coming Political Succession on Taiwan" in
Richard C. Bush (ed.), China Briefing, 1982 (Boulder CO: Westview Press, 1983), pp. 103-
121.
48 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
the status of a real political party-even though it had been so labeled
during previous election campaigns. It did have a platform, "party"
funds, and a unified campaign. In May, the government, upon the
recommendation and support of President Chiang, decided in the
affirmative.
Additional meetings (that included tangwai officials as well as
scholars and others) were held to discuss the proposals to abolish martial
law and allow (formally) new political parties to form. The issue
was not whether to carry out these decisions; that was seen as inevitable.
Nor were there any really intractable issues between the two sides
relative to implementing the proposals.
The substance of national security legislation that would replace
martial law was an issue, but not a divisive one. The public did not
consider martial law offensive or bothersome (according to public
opinion polls), but it did see the abolishment of martial law as necessary
to fulfilling the goal of democratizing the system. Notwithstanding
the public's support of martial law, on May 19 (the 38th
anniversary of its enactment) demonstrators organized to protest
what they considered "unfair and undemocratic impediments to freedoms
guaranteed in the Constitution."5
The formation of new parties was not as hot an issue as some
thought because the tangwai was already in most respects a political
party. Older KMT officials opposed giving it legal status for various
reasons, including the fact that allowing the tangwai to operate as a
party, but one without legal status, seemed to be the most cautious
means of allowing party competition to develop. Moreover, a significant
number of tangwai and opposition politicians were not enthusiastic
about the offer of legal status-since the tangwai was in large part a
protest party and winning legal status, some perceived, would be a
liability rather than an asset in the coming election campaign. The
tangwai lacked a base of support in the sense parties in Western countries
can identify a region, social class, or other segment of the population
that supports the party and renders it various kinds of help; thus
the protest vote was viewed as crucial.
In early June four members of the opposition were jailed for libel.
Opposition leaders viewed the court action as an attempt to prevent
their candidates from running in the December election, charging that
the decision was influenced by the KMT. On June 9th 5,000 demonstrators
protested the eight-month sentence meted out to one tangwai
politician (for libeling a university professor in an article in Neo-For-
5. Facts on File, October 24, 1986, p.799.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 49
mosa magazine). It was described as the largest demonstration since
the 1979 "Kaohsiung Incident."6
In August TRAPP organized a rally at an elementary school in
Taipei, attracting 50,000 participants and onlookers. The gathering
was attended by the executive director of the U.S. National Democratic
Institute for International Affairs, giving the impression that the
U.S. supported TRAPP and an end to the ban on political parties. In
fact, some perceived this as a sign of U.S. pressure on the government
to "open up" the coming election.7
In early September, Taipei City Councilman Lin Cheng-chieh
(also publisher of the opposition magazine Progress Monthly) was sentenced
to eighteen months in jail on the same charge as the others:
libel. Lin somehow evaded the police for a while. He then appeared
at the steps of the Presidential Office Building, and in front of a large
crowd, smashed a clock (the word for clock being a homonym of end
or final)-signifying his "had it" attitude with the government. This
provoked (or at least became the cause of) several days of protest
demonstrations in Taipei and other large cities in Taiwan that attracted
large numbers (thousands at times) of people.8
On September 9 protestors in Taipei formed a large street
march-the first led by the opposition since the "Kaohsiung Incident"
several years earlier. The march attracted even more participants and
spectators and seemed to inject both unity and enthusiasm into the
opposition movement. It also appeared to enhance public support for
tangwai politicians. Meanwhile, the government's contention that the
court decisions against tangwai notables were not influenced by any
other branch of the government or the ruling Nationalist Party,
though true, was not very convincing.9
This fueled "demonstration
fever." On September 28-without further consultations with the
KMT, the government, or Chiang Ching-kuo's committee--135
tangwai politicians, after a meeting at the Grand Hotel in Taipei, announced
that they had decided to form the Democratic Progressive
Party. The announcement was provocative inasmuch as it was still
illegal to form a new political party. Yet it seemed apparent to almost
everyone that the ban on new parties would be lifted and that the
DPP's "crime" was one of simply acting prematurely-which was not
6. Ibid.
7. Agency France Press, August 15, 1986 in Foreign Broadcasting Information Service,
August 18, 1986, p.V2.
8. Paul Mooney, "Opposition in the Streets," Far Eastern Economic Review, September
25, 1986, p.l8.
9. Ibid.
50 CoNTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
very serious. It was also obvious that the tangwai made this move
(rather than continuing discussions with the committee) in order to
avoid the perception that it was a creation of the KMT or was born
out of tangwai -KMT cooperation.
A few days later President Chiang, in a meeting with Katherine
Graham, owner of the Washington Post, affirmed that martial law
would be lifted and that new political parties would be allowed to
form. Judging from the tone of the President's statement and considering
the person to whom the announcement was made (causing it to
be reported with some fanfare in the Post) it was a promise to be taken
seriously.10
This was subsequently underscored when the President
blocked action by the Ministry of Interior to file charges against the
DPP for violating the prohibition against new political parties.
In mid-October the KMT approved a proposal whereby martial
law would be replaced by national security legislation patterned after
the U.S. and other Western democracies. While it was assumed that
this would take some time to be formalized by the Legislative Yuan,
most thought that the legislation passed because the KMT held the
majority vote in that body. In the meantime, martial law for all intents
and purposes was held in abeyance. Certainly DPP leaders made
this assumption. Hence, to the DPP, the elections would not be held
under the constraints of martial law or the ban on forming new political
parties.
On November 8, You Ching, one of the most visible leaders of the
DPP, told Japanese reporters that the DPP had a membership of
2,500 and expected to grow to 100,000 in less than a year.11
He declared
the DPP's objective was to "break KMT one-party monopoly
rule and build a welfare society after the Western European model."
He also said that the DPP stands for "self-determination" and wanted
Taiwan to be readmitted into the United Nations (though he did not
say how this might be accomplished or if he meant that the country's
name should be changed).
On November 10 the DPP announced its "party" organization
and leadership. Oddly, the DPP was structured after Leninist organizational
principles. Opposition politicians had long pointed out KMT
"hypocrisy" because of structuring the ruling party after these "communist"
tenets of party organization. Apparently they were not im-
10. See Daniel Southerland, "Taiwan President to Propose End to Island's Martial
Law," Washington Post, October 8, 1986, p. 3.
II. See Carl Goldstein, "The Opposition Party," Far Eastern Economic Review, No·
vember 20, 1986, p.36.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 51
pressed with the organizational structures of the Western political
parties. They had studied various party structures (including those in
the U.S.) but ostensibly considered unity and party discipline too important
to adopt the organizational structure of any of them.
Chiang P'eng-chien, a relatively little-known member of the Legislative
Yuan, was elected chairman of the DPP in what appeared to
be a close and divisive vote. You Ching and several others were in
contention. Inside observers said the decision was a compromise and
that the DPP's most well-known and most charismatic leader (meaning
You Ching) was not picked to head the DPP because of factional
infighting. Many called Chiang's appointment a mistake. Subsequently
P'an Li-fu, a DPP Standing Committee member representing
activists from the south of Taiwan, threatened to resign and take representatives
of Pingtung county with him. A serious party split
seemed in the offing.12
Because those involved realized that party unity was a sine qua
non to compete successfully in the December election, a formal split
was avoided, and party unity, at least on the surface, was restored.
Obviously something had been learned from the tangwai's performances
in past elections. Moreover, the DPP had to maintain party
unity if there was to be a two-party election-which the polls showed
the public wanted. Individually, DPP leaders had to consider public
opinion not only for the sake of the party but also, in most cases, for
the sake offurthering their own candidacies-since most of them were
running for office in December.
President Chiang meanwhile announced that, to become a legal
party, three conditions must be met: agree to abide by the Constitution
(meaning among other things foreswearing violence), renounce
communism, and deny supporting independence. These conditions
did not seem onerous. The opposition had long supported the Constitution;
it had even criticized the KMT for not upholding it, especially
in its original form. Few tangwai politicians had even hinted at supporting
communism; there was certainly no support among the electorate.
The DPP had been critical of Taiwanese Independence
Movement activities in the U.S. and Japan and eschewed direct contacts
with the Movement in either place.13
The DPP, however, refused to accept the President's three condi-
12. See Ramon H. Meyers, "Political Change and Democratization in the Republic of
China 1986," Free China Journal, December 1, 1986, p. 2.
13. DPP leaders made such statements at the time the party was formed. For further
details, see John F. Copper, "Political Developments in Taiwan 1986," China News Analysis,
January 15, 1987, pp. 1-9.
52 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
tions, ostensibly because the new party did not want to give the impression
it was colluding, or even cooperating, with the KMT. DPP
leaders, in fact, sought to accentuate differences between their party
and the KMT. The DPP openly challenged the KMT's policy of
reconquering the Mainland and instead called for separation from the
People's Republic of China. The DPP charter even contained a
"plank" which stated that the future of Taiwan should be "decided by
the residents of Taiwan..." Many interpreted this to mean advocating
self-determination and/or ties with the Taiwanese Independence
Movement. DPP officials pointed out that the two were not the same.
Meanwhile a nationwide opinion poll was conducted (and published
in one of Taiwan's largest newspapers) which reflected public
support for the President's decision to lift martial law and to allow
new parties to form. However, more detailed public opinion queries
reflected that the public had not changed its view about martial law
but rather remained supportive of it. The poll also indicated public
disapproval of the formation of the DPP.14
In light of this poll, the
President's actions apparently represented a commitment to a wholly
democratic system-therefore the public supported him. Martial law,
even if supported by the public, had to go in order to realize the bigger
objective: democracy. The DPP's suddenness in forming and violation
of the law apparently alienated a sizable portion of the public.
Alternatively, the DPP's stated tenets on a number of issues had this
effect.
In any event, the lines were being drawn between the KMT and
the DPP on several important issues. Polarization was not so serious,
however, as to make the election process unworkable. Most wanted
the system to work. Moreover, it was clear the DPP was going to
participate in the election as a party, even though legal status was yet
to be granted. Blocking its participation would have hurt Taiwan's
political development and sent the wrong signals domestically and
internationally.
The Election Campaign
On November 14, a week before the campaign began, seven U.S.based
dissidents returned to Taiwan to support the DPP and "democratize
the elections." The leader of the group, Lin Shui-chuan (who
had been in the U.S. since 1982 after finishing a prison term in Taiwan)
was refused entry because he presented no travel documents.
Some of the other members of the group also failed to show passports;
14. See "Gearing up for Elections,'· Asia Bulletin, November 1986, p.35.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 53
the rest declined entry when Lin was detained. The group started a
scuffie with police before they left-causing a scene that soon became
a campaign issue for the DPP.15
DPP candidates, looking for an election
issue to rally their supporters, charged the government and the
ruling KMT with supporting police brutality, oppression, and with
subverting democracy.
With this introduction, the campaign began on November 21
with individually (candidate)-sponsored forums and speeches. This
lasted for eight days. Prior to the onset of the campaign period, a
number of candidates held "teas" and other "parties" as a way of
starting their campaigning early-in violation of the Election and Recall
Law.16
KMT candidates generally observed the election rules in
this regard. During the period of candidate-sponsored forums, over
500 individually-sponsored meetings were held. Moderate DPP candidate
Kang Ning-hsiang held the most-43. Opposition DPP candidates
Hsiao Yu-chen and Chou Ching-yu held 37 and 36
respectivelyY Candidates generally attracted good crowds, but according
to several observers (in agreement with this writer's perception)
these crowds were not as large as in the past two elections. There
also seemed to be a larger discrepancy in the size of the audiences
attracted to different candidates.
Following the period of private campaigning, public forums sponsored
and arranged by the Election Commission were held for seven
days. There were 721 such meetings throughout the country. By assigning
the place, order of speakers, and time of presentation, the public
forums in some ways resembled debates between political
candidates in the U.S. and in other Western democracies. This was
certainly the case inasmuch as the electorate was able to compare candidates'
views and presentations.
According to opinion polls conducted both before and during the
campaign, the issues the electorate perceived as important differed
markedly from those the candidates thought were the central issues.
Voters surveyed in Taipei indicated traffic, air pollution, and public
safety as their biggest concerns. They ranked the formation of new
political parties below a dozen other issues in importance. In Kaohsiung,
voters rated public safety as their first concern, followed by traffic
15. See footnote 13.
16. This had been a problem in previous elections. Candidates could circumvent the
Election and Recall Law by holding private birthday parties and teas, that were in reality
political meetings. No solutions to this problem had been found.
17. "By-Election Campaigning to Enter 2nd Stage Today," China Post, November 29,
1986, p. 3.
54 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
and air pollution. The formation of new parties was not even among
their top twenty priority concerns. In contrast, candidates in Taipei
replied that social welfare, foreign relations, and national security and
human rights were their foremost concerns. They put the top three
issues as ranked by the voters below fourteen other issues. Candidates
in Kaohsiung stated that social welfare, economic freedom, foreign relations,
and national security were the most important campaign
issues.18
The discrepancies (which also existed in previous elections) may
be explained by the fact that none of the issues the voters regarded as
the most important, with the possible exception of the crime issue
(part of the public safety problem), were issues that could be sensationalized
or used to attract attention. Certainly they were not issues
that could be used to excite listeners at rallies. Candidates thought
that they had to attract a devoted and committed group of supporters
(to enlist as campaign workers and activists) first. They also perceived
that they needed to attract public attention to get their campaign
started well; without this they would be viewed as boring and could
not build momentum.
Many candidates seemed to believe they could ignore the issues
the voters considered important early in the campaign and address
these issues only when asked or when other candidates did so. Some
said they could bring up these issues during the "less interesting" government-sponsored
forums. Many candidates, furthermore, pointed
out that nearly all candidates took an identical position on these issues,
i.e. favoring more orderly traffic, getting rid of air pollution, and
reducing crime. Even specific means of handling these problems or
solutions did not differ among candidates very much, at least sufficiently
enough to build candidate identification or image based on positions
on these issues.
During the campaign, KMT candidates in general espoused more
conservative positions while DPP candidates took more liberal views.
However, few candidates presented themselves as ideologues, inasmuch
as this was not a mark of success in previous elections. Hence,
liberal and conservative views on many issues were not very clear
much of the time. Finally, there was considerable disparity of views
within each party, blurring differences between the parties.
Still, the two parties were different enough that party identification
was not difficult. DPP candidates fairly consistently favored
18. "Poll: Citizens, Candidates Differ on Election Issues," China Post, November 12,
1986, p. 3.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 55
more press freedom and freedom of speech and advocated increased
civil and political freedoms. DPP candidates were in general agreement
that campaign regulations were too restrictive, that the campaign
period needed to be lengthened, and that limits on campaign
spending needed to be broadened or lifted (notwithstanding public
concern about "money politics" and a serious problem of vote buying
in previous elections). KMT candidates were usually stronger advocates
of law and order and reducing crime. As a rule, they favored
keeping the present election rules or changing them only slightly (even
though the election laws were not working very well). KMT candidates
as a group expressed satisfaction with the nation's progress in
broadening civil and political liberties.
DPP candidates supported increased social welfare and made this
a major issue in the campaign, just as the tangwai had in previous
campaigns. KMT candidates took credit for the nation's economic
prosperity, and they boasted ofsuccessful social welfare legislation and
work done by the KMT in this area. KMT candidates also claimed
credit for low unemployment and the nation's low disparity of income
that made social security less necessary than in other countries.
DPP candidates advocated a more aggressive foreign policy, in
particular arguing for policies that would get the country back into the
United Nations and other international organizations. They did not,
however, cite any specific means for doing this and appeared to lack
any feasible plan. They did, on the other hand, have concrete proposals
regarding the Asian Development Bank: Remain in! KMT candidates,
when they talked about foreign policy issues, stressed the
government's successful economic and cultural diplomacy and defined
past "diplomatic failures" as inevitable, not as mistakes.
DPP candidates criticized the government's "three no's" policy
and suggested "contacts while maintaining separation" with the People's
Republic of China. As with most foreign policy issues, they did
not elaborate on this issue. They criticized the nation's large defense
budget and suggested that more money should be spent on social programs,
unemployment insurance, etc. KMT candidates generally espoused
the line of not trusting, and therefore not negotiating with, the
communists. They were critical of "unrealistic" DPP foreign policy
proposals, though they generally avoided talking about the issue of
retaking the mainland, which the DPP labeled as unrealistic. For the
most part, KMT candidates supported current defense spending.
Foreign trade issues were rarely discussed. Likewise, Taiwan's
large trade surplus with the U.S. and currency revaluation were not
important election issues. This was so in spite of growing tensions
56 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
with the U.S. over trade and rapidly growing foreign currency reserves
that threatened to touch off inflation.
The DPP talked about democracy and the need for greater freedoms
for candidates to say and do as they desired in order for the
political system to become truly democratic. They charged that the
KMT monopoly of the media and the country's one-party system precluded
real democracy. They continued to indict the KMT for not
allowing genuinely free elections and for lack of fairness in the election
system, especially the system's favoring the ruling party. KMT candidates
spoke of the need for political and social stability as a precondition
for democracy and accused DPP candidates of naivete in this
regard. They also accused the opposition of "reckless" and unrealistic
talk about democracy, which KMT officials labeled foolish and dangerous
since it would "play into the hands of the communists."
The most emotionally-laden or sensitive issues were self-determination
and DPP street politics, labeled by the KMT as lawless and
leading to anarchy. Views on both issues polarized during the campaign.
Some KMT candidates charged that DPP candidates advocated
independence, which was treason. Others said the DPP played
into the hands of the Taiwanese Independence Movement and the
Communists. Many argued that the DPP's advocacy of self-determination
was either already realized, since Taiwan had a legally constituted
government, or was an unnecessary provocation. The People's
Republic of China underscored the latter point when a press spokesman
for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs publicly assailed the DPP's
advocacy of self-determination during the middle of the
campaigning.19
KMT and DPP differences on the touchy issues were amplified
when dissident Hsu Hsin-liang tried to return to Taiwan from the
United States. Hsu had left Taiwan under indictment for treason
before the "Kaohsiung Incident" in 1979. He subsequently applied
for and was granted political asylum in the U.S. Not having been an
important official or opposition spokesman at the time (a county magistrate),
he was not able to win much of a following in the U.S. or
much support back home--though his name was remembered through
his brother, who was running for office from his home district. However,
Hsu became better known immediately before the campaign as
he became intensely critical of the government and after he claimed to
represent the DPP in the U.S. and vowed to return to Taiwan as an
19. For further details on Peking's attitude, remarks, and threats, see "The Peking
Factor," Asiaweek, December 21-28, 1986, p.29.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 57
"Aquino."20
DPP leaders repudiated Hsu's claim to represent the party in the
U.S. They underscored this when his advocacy of terrorism and terrorist
tactics were documented in Taiwan's newspapers at the time,
some in rather lurid detail.21
This embarrassed the DPP and caused
many in the opposition to distance themselves from Hsu and the
Taiwanese Independence Movement. Still, DPP leaders perceived
Hsu's return as an opportunity to rally their forces and win public
sympathy and support for their cause. Demonstrations and rallies
during the spring and summer had had that effect; why not now?
Thus the DPP prepared for Hsu's rumored arrival on November 20th.
DPP leaders were also plainly aware of the fact that the government
had ordered the police and other authorities to behave with the
utmost restraint and leniency in order to prevent anything from happening
during the campaign which would be construed by the foreign
press as sullying an otherwise fair election or oppressing democracy.
Thus, the DPP assumed they could organize demonstrations at the
airport without fear of retaliation. So they joined in mass to meet Hsu.
Many KMT candidates meanwhile opposed the government's
"excessively lenient policy" toward protest demonstrations. They saw
it as creating a situation in which the DPP was given carte blanche to
advocate radical policies, undermine government authority, and create
a situation verging on a breakdown of law and order. Others, however,
opined that the fear of anarchy would work to the KMT's advantages.
They saw a repeat of the Kaohsiung Incident of 1979, when the
opposition alienated the population by creating political instability
which threatened to escalate into chaos.
In any event, 20,000 demonstrators gathered at the airport when
Hsu was rumored to arrive. They turned over and burned police cars,
threw rocks, and hit, kicked, and insulted police officers-including
women officers. One reporter videotaped a scene of a demonstrator in
a shoving fracas with police, after which he doused his head with
animal blood or paint from a sack in his pocket, then claimed that he
had been beaten by police. This was reported by several large newspapers
and the T.V. networks. It clearly damaged the image and reputation
of the DPP. So did the fact that the opposition was seen to have
20. Carl Goldstein, "Barricaded Tarmac," Far Eastern Economic Review, December
ll,l986,p.l6f.
21. See "Dissident Enters Illegally Flying Under False Colors," Free China Journal
December 8, 1986, p. 2. Several of Taiwan's major newspapers carried stories citing Hsu'~
advocacy of violence and reprinted some of his writings on the use of terrorism during the
campaign.
58 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
started the violence and the widespread belief that police acted with
restraint. One public opinion poll recorded an immediate 3 percent
drop in voter support for the DPP.22
The DPP cried foul play and officially repudiated the violence,
perceiving that it was creating a serious backlash. In order to effect
damage control, the DPP showed their own tapes at their campaign
offices and elsewhere in public. These tapes showed only the police
throwing rocks and using water cannons and tear gas. One tape they
played repeatedly showed the demonstrators being pushed away by
police; they dubbed this "movie" "the ugly cop." DPP leaders also
decried media reports on the incident that allegedly unfairly favored
the KMT. On one occasion, DPP supporters held a rally to burn copies
of the United Daily News-one of Taiwan's largest papers-which
had reported that the violence was started by DPP supporters and was
organized by the party.23
Hsu later managed to get to Taipei from the Philippines. But he
was discovered before disembarking at Taipei International Airport,
and the plane carrying him was forced to leave before it was widely
known that he had arrived. Subsequent repeated efforts by Hsu to get
to Taiwan failed. His campaign to play the spoiler role or become
"Taiwan's Aquino" ultimately proved anti-climatical.
Besides the "Hsu incident," the campaign was full of antics and
tricks. Even before the campaigning started a number of candidates
publicly accused their opponents of sexual and financial misconduct.
Several filed suits against opposing candidates prior to and during the
campaign. Organized rumormongering was common. Candidates frequently
hired audiences to support their speeches and forums and to
disrupt their opponents, using firecrackers car horns and other noise
makers. A number of DPP candidates had their workers cut the electricity
during their speeches; they could then blame the disruption on
KMT "operatives."
Some campaign workers printed counterfeit ballots and placed
them in their opponents' offices, after which they telephoned election
officials. Campaign workers also called voters during the night, using
opposing candidates' names. Phony handbills were printed to misrepresent
opposing candidates. Campaign dirty tricks were widespread;
some were reportedly learned from studying election campaigns in
Western democracies.
Candidates and their workers and supporters regularly violated
22. "The People Spoke Their Minds," Asiaweek, December 21-28, 1986, p.25.
23. Ibid.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 59
election laws by using too many handbills, larger posters than prescribed
by law, and by campaigning in places that were restricted. "Illegal"
marches were commonplace. Political advertisements were put
in the newspapers in violation of the Election and Recall Law. Some
did television commercials to get more exposure, in violation of the
spirit of the election law. In short, election rules were blatantly and
frequently flaunted.24
Yet there was little violence. Nor was there frequent breaking of
important election rules or laws. DPP politicians burned KMT flags,
but did not bum any national flags. DPP candidates used unflattering
terms (such as "pig" on some occasions) to describe the President, but
when this seemed likely to create a backlash they refrained from any
mention of the President or other high officials. KMT candidates accused
the DPP of disregard for social stability and of lawlessness; they
did not accuse them (or at least very rarely) of treason or sedition.
Some DPP candidates talked about "revolution." Several
claimed to be "Corazons"-making reference to President Aquino of
the Philippines. Yet few opposition candidates' statements could be
construed as preaching or advocating revolution. Many DPP candidates
referred obliquely to self-determination; few mentioned the
Taiwanese Independence Movement. Fewer still made any mention of
Beijing or communism. The People's Republic of China assailed the
advocacy of self-determination by DPP candidates, but the latter did
not reply.
In short, the election was full of technically illegal actions on the
part of numerous candidates. But most knew that the law would not
be rigidly enforced. This made many of the campaign regulations almost
meaningless. Some even opined that the Election and Recall
Law was not, in fact, working and that it should be regarded as defunct.
Still, the system worked. In fact, some said the system was
strengthened because it was able to work "under stress."
The Election Results
306 candidates had registered to compete for 73 seats in the Legislative
Yuan and 84 seats in the National Assembly-a total of 157
seats. There were 169 candidates for National Assembly seats and 137
for Legislative Yuan seats. Of the 306 candidates, 179 represented the
Nationalist Party or Kuomintang; 44 represented the newly formed
24. See, for example, "Videotaping Questioned," "Nonpartisans Insulting Head of
State, Newspapers Say," "Nonpartisans Get Warnings for Street Demonstrations," China
Post, November 27, 1986, p. 12.
60 CONTEMPORARY ASIAN STUDIES SERIES
Democratic Progressive Party. The rest were independents or representatives
of the two minor parties.
The KMT won 59 seats in the Legislative Yuan and 68 in the
National Assembly. Translated into a margin of victory, the ruling
party captured 80.8 percent and 80.95 percent respectively of the seats
contested in these two elected bodies of government. In popular vote
the KMT won 66.3 percent and 60.2 percent respectively in the two
contests. On the basis of these figures the ruling party could claim a
victory. And its leaders did.25
The KMT also performed well on the basis of electing a high
proportion of the candidates it nominated. In fact, no KMT candidate
that did not have the Party's official endorsement won in the election.
Party discipline, in short, was maintained, which had not been the case
in previous elections. Finally, many KMT candidates claimed to be at
a disadvantage because DPP candidates were freer to engage in tricks
and antics, while the KMT restrained its candidates and acted to prevent
or minimize violations of the Election and Recall Law. Thus,
their performance must be judged in view of a serious handicap during
the campaign.
The KMT may be proclaimed the victor in another sense. It was
due for a defeat in the sense that electorates tend to be fickle and
change their minds about political participants whether they are performing
well or not. The KMT had won the two previous national
elections (in 1980 and 1983) and won (according to most observers)
the nationwide local election in 1985. In popular vote as well as in
seats, the KMT did better in these elections than in major elections
during the 1970s. Additionally, the fact that the public wanted twoparty
competition seemed to indicate that the KMT was destined to
lose.
Another factor was the KMT's election strategy. The KMT's
strategy in this election (unlike previous elections) was not clearly superior
to that of the opposition. In other words, the ruling party lost
this advantage. Some observers even contended that the KMT had
become complacent. In at least one case the KMT did not calculate
the electorate correctly. The Party's military candidate, retired Air
Force Chief of Staff Chen Hung-chuan, lost because of a diluting or
splitting of the vote in his district. This reflected bad planning. The
KMT also showed signs of some disagreement among its candidates
25. See, "Voting Heavy, Smooth-Running in Apparent Landslide for KMT," China
Post, December 7, 1986, p. 3.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 61
concerning how to cope with the DPP-whether to take a hard line or
not.
Finally, the KMT did well in spite of the fact the DPP had the
momentum. Rallies and demonstrations in the months preceding the
election gave the opposition both unity and a spirit of cooperation, not
to mention a feeling that they were making democracy work. Many, if
not most, opposition politicians perceived their cause to have historical
significance. Events during the campaign focused attention on the
new party and its candidates. Just before the election DPP leaders
boasted they would win thirty percent of the popular vote. They did
not win that much.
The DPP also claimed victory. In several respects its claims were
more credible than the KMT's. The DPP won 12 and 11 seats respectively-double
the figure they (meaning the tangwai ) won in the previous
election for the Legislative Yuan and an increase of four over the
previous National Assembly contest. They won 16.4 and 13.1 percent
of the seats contested in the elective bodies, which was impressive
when compared to the opposition's past record. Over half of the DPP
candidates were elected-23 of 44. The DPP's popular vote was also
several percentage points above that attained by the tangwai in previous
elections: 22.2% in the Legislative Yuan election and 18.9% in
the National Assembly contest.
The DPP, moreover, did not suffer from factionalism. The
tangwai had. No DPP candidate won who was not officially endorsed
by the DPP leadership. There were no "unofficial" DPP candidates.
None left the party or refused to follow the party platform at least
nominally. In fact, DPP party unity reduced the number of independent
candidates drastically. Seven joined the DPP before the election.
Only two seats in the Legislative Yuan and four in the National Assembly
were taken by candidates not officially nominated by the KMT
or the DPP. One Democratic Socialist Party candidate won (in the
National Assembly race). The China Youth Party, with two and three
candidates in Legislative Yuan and the National Assembly races respectively,
failed to elect a candidate. In short, the election seemed to
be much more a contest between the KMT and the opposition, which
in this case coalesced to become the DPP, than in previous elections.
The DPP also had the big vote getters: the top four DPP candidates
for the Legislative Yuan contest-Hsu Chung-shu, Hong Chichang,
You Ching, and Hsu Kuo-ta-won the largest number of popular
votes. DPP candidates were the top vote getters in five of the
eight electoral districts in this part of the election. The DPP also had
62 CoNTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
big winners in the National Assembly contest: the biggest vote getters
in four districts.
The DPP fared especially well in the capital city and in Taiwan's
second largest city, Kaohsiung, capturing over 30 percent of the popular
vote in both. Since some consider the big cities, especially Taipei,
bellwethers, the DPP could look ahead to an even better performance
in future elections.26
It also had another plus from a strong showing
in the capital city: some psychological advantage in terms of its impact
on the legislation process.
The DPP also performed well in spite of the fact that economic
growth projections published just before the election made the government
and the KMT look good. The electorate was looking at an economic
growth of 10.7% for the year. Clearly the public was pleased
with the KMT's performance in economic growth terms. The announcements
that martial law and the ban on new political parties
would be rescinded likewise should have helped the KMT. That the
KMT had nominated a slate of candidates that was generally young,
reform-oriented, and Western-educated also made the KMT attractive
to the voter.27
The bottom line: Most observers felt the election results suggested
more a victory for the DPP than for the KMT. Clearly the
DPP's performance as measured against its past record was astoundingly
better. The KMT's was not; it gained seats in the National Assembly
but lost in the Legislative Yuan. The DPP had the biggest
winners. In terms of the popular vote, perhaps the best indicator of
success, the DPP did better; and the KMT did worse.
An assessment of the results of the election suggest still other
conclusions. Most important, the political development process
won--democracy won. It is no doubt accurate to say that the nation
and political modernization were bigger winners than either party or
any candidate. Clearly the voters wanted a more competitive party
system to advance democracy, and they got it.
Reflecting the electorate's feeling toward the electoral process in
this election, the voter turnout in this election was higher; 65.4 percent-compared
to 63.17 percent in the previous comparable election.
There had been a gradual decline in voter turnout in elections in Taiwan
until the 1985 nationwide local election. However, because it was
a local election, some considered the better turnout a fluke, not a signal
of a reversal of the downward trend. The higher turnout in this
26. "The People Spoke Their Minds,'' Asiaweek, December 21-28, 1986, p.2S.
27. Ibid.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 63
election could thus be seen as a positive sign and perhaps as sufficient
proof that voter alienation or cynicism about the political process had
not grown.
Female candidates did well in the election-winning six seats in
the Legislative Yuan and nine in the National Assembly. In other
words, women captured just under ten percent of the seats in the Legislative
Yuan and over ten percent in the National Assembly race.
The largest vote getter in the Legislative Yuan race was a woman.
The performance of female candidates in this election, though it was
not markedly different than several past elections, compares very favorably
to most Western democracies, better than most.28
The education level of winning candidates was also high. Only
four winners in Legislative Yuan contests and twelve for seats in the
National Assembly did not have an education level beyond high
school. 23 and 15 candidates respectively in the two races had graduate
education. Over 31 percent of winning candidates for Legislative
Yuan seats had graduate education-a very good mark compared to
the Western democracies. Nearly 95 percent were college educated or
had an equivalent degree. 23 candidates with PhD degrees ran;
twenty (or 86.95%) won.29
The age of victorious candidates is also instructive: 46.5 average.
The average age of winning candidates in the Legislative Yuan was
45.9; in the National Assembly contest it was 47.2. The majority of
winning candidates in both elections were in their forties. In neither
race did a candidate over 69 win.30
This suggests that the voters
wanted representatives with both experience and sufficient energy to
serve in the jobs for which they were chosen.
A number of less quantifiable indicators also reflect positive signals.
As in past elections, candidates emphasizing ideology did not
fare well. Radical candidates also did poorly, particularly compared
to previous elections, and this was especially true among non-KMT
candidates. Several that talked about revolution during the campaign
did not win. Kang Ning-hsiang, a well known opposition candidate
who lost in the previous Legislative Yuan election (many say because
of his moderate position) won big in this election. The KMT's biggest
winners were moderates or progressives: Chao Shao-kang in Taipei
and Hung Chao-nan in Taichung. Chao said throughout the cam-
28. This compares to 4.6 percent in the U. S. Congress--2 percent in the Senate and
5.28 in the House of Representatives.
29. See, North American Daily (in Chinese), December 9, 1986, p. 2.
30. Ibid . See also "People's Voice Loud, Clear," Free China Journal, December 15,
1986, p. 2.
64 CONTEMPORARY ASIAN STUDIES SERIES
paign that "a vote for me is a vote for reform."31
Money also seemed to be less a factor in this election than in
previous elections. Most observers (including this writer) perceived
that vote buying (both with money and gifts) and expensive campaigning
were less prevalent. Clearly, most victorious candidates were not
known as much for their large or lavish campaign spending as had
been the case in previous elections. Certainly "money politics" did not
seem as great a problem-notwithstanding the country's continuing
economic growth and prosperity. It may be that accusations and publicity
about vote buying and excessive campaign spending in recent
elections and during the campaign for this election had some impact.
A poll taken after the election showed that the populace perceived
that the election reflected progress-by nearly seven-fold over
those who perceived that it did not. Over 60 percent replied that the
election was fair-nearly five times as many as those that thought it
was unfair. Vote buying was also judged to be a less serious problem
(confirming what observers, including this one, perceived), with nearly
70 percent saying that they did not think it was a serious problem in
their district or did not personally know about any such incidents.
The problem seemed to be perceived by those polled as more serious in
other areas.32
Most considered the election to have gone smoothly in view of the
existence of a new party and the fact that it was the first true party
competition in a national election in Taiwan. Because it was generally
understood that the government was not going to enforce most of the
campaign rules, many felt the election, especially the campaigning,
would not be orderly. On the other hand, there were very few serious
incidents during the campaign and none during the voting.
Clearly there was no overwhelming issue that divided the nation.
Issues were "bread and butter" issues. Sensitive or controversial issues
were used primarily as attention getters. Perhaps this was because
the system was "on trial," as were the democratic process and
political modernization. This was as it should have been, considering
the country was in a transition phase evolving into a democratic system-at
a very high rate of speed.
31. See "The People Spoke their Minds," Asiaweek, December 21-28, 1986, pp. 24-29.
32. See China Times (in Chinese), December 7, 1986, p. l.
CHAPTER4
TAIWAN'S 1989 NATIONAL AND LOCAL ELECI'IONS
Introduction
On December 2, 1989, the electorate in Taiwan went to the polls
to pick 101 members of the Legislative Yuan, 77 members (or a plenum)
of the Provincial Assembly, 94 members of the Taipei and
Kaohsiung city councils, and 21 county magistrates and city mayors.
This was one of four major elections in Taiwan's recent history to play
a vital role in pushing the democratization process ahead.1
Observers noted that this election was in many ways the culmination
of rapid, progressive change in the electoral processes in Taiwan.
This was also another watershed election in several respects because
the opposition Democratic Progressive Party attained what most consider
a resounding victory, giving it the status of a serious opposition
party and perhaps auguring in the beginning of a two-party system.
There was widespread discussion of Taiwan independence causing relations
with the People's Republic of China to become a campaign
issue as it had never been before.
The election was preceded by several important "legal changes"
in the system (since the last national election in 1986) that affected the
election process. First was the enacting of the Civic Organization
Law, which made it legal to form new political parties.2
Thus, for the
first time the Nationalist Party (KMT) faced a genuine, legal opposition.
It was unclear in the months prior to the election whether the
opposition would take the form of one main or core opposition party
or many. Nearly forty parties formed; eighteen entered candidates in
the race.
Second, the government had just revised the Public Officials ElecI.
The other three were in 1980, 1983 and 1986. For details on past elections, see
John F. Copper with George P. Chen, Taiwan's Elections: Political Development and Democratization
in the Republic ofChina (Baltimore: University of Maryland School of Law,
1984); John F. Copper, "Taiwan's 1985 Elections," Asian Affairs, Spring 1986, pp. 27-45;
John F. Copper, "Taiwan's 1986 National Election: Pushing Democracy Ahead," Asian
Thought and Society, July 1987, pp. 115-136.
2. Excerpts of this law have been published in typewritten form by the Government
Information Office in Taipei. A complete English version will be forthcoming.
(65)
66 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
tion and Recall Law.3
Control over election campaigns and other enforcement
of election laws was transferred from the military to civilian
organizations. The new law also expanded political participation and
made elections more competitive in form. The Democratic Progressive
Party characterized the revisions as making the system more democratic,
but it complained that there were too many limits or
restrictions on electioneering and that the law discriminated against
the opposition in a number of ways. DPP leaders particularly complained
about the short campaign period and the forbidding of television
advertising, which they charged did not hurt the KMT since it
owned or controlled all of the T.V. networks.4
KMT candidates complained
that the "equal access" to media coverage in the revised law
treated the ruling party unfairly since it was much larger. Both lauded
provisions which were aimed at discouraging "whimsical candidates"
and which hurt smaller parties and independents; the two major parties
felt these provisions made the process more rational. Both chided
the unrealistic restrictions on campaign spending.
Third, early in the year the Legislative Yuan passed the Law on
Voluntary Retirement of Senior Parliamentarians.5
In enacting this
bill, the Legislative Yuan sought to reduce the number of delegates to
the elected bodies of government who were voted into office (and subsequently
frozen or replaced with appointed members) before the government
moved to Taiwan in 1949. This was a sensitive issue because
the opposition regarded these delegates to the National Assembly, the
Legislative Yuan, and the Control Yuan as illegitimate. DPP candidates
mocked them in public and asked them to "step down or hurry
up and die," charging they were an obstacle to democracy. The KMT
argued that they were duly elected and should be allowed to retire
with respect. The issue mirrored the fact that Taiwan's political system
assumes one China, which the KMT supports and the DPP labels
ludicrous. The KMT, in its one-China policy, however, had the support
of both Washington and Beijing.
Another systemic change affecting the campaign and the election
was the inauguration of a primary election system by the KMT, with
3. The Public Officials Election and Recall Law of the Republic of China (Taipei:
Shine Chin Enterprises Co., Ltd. 1989)
4. These complaints were presented by Shih-yuan Tsai, Deputy Secretary-General of
the Democratic Progressive Party, during a briefing to an election observer team in Taipei
during the campaign. They are also contained in a typed booklet entitled "Taiwan According
to the DPP" given to members of the observer teams.
5. This statute has been printed in English and is available in typed form from the
Government Information Office.
TAIWAN'S .RECENT ELECTIONS 67
the DPP immediately following suit. This weakened the KMT leadership's
control over the nomination process and caused some ruling
party officials already in elective office to fail to be nominated. Both
created serious problems for the KMT. Primaries also resulted in the
military and veterans having a large voice in the nominating process,
since their turnout was high and they voted as a bloc in the primaries.
The KMT hence nominated more Mainland Chinese. The primaries
caused problems for the DPP as well, but in the context of already
serious differences on central issues and leadership it was not as disruptive
a process as for the KMT.6
This was the first election in Taiwan since the termination of martiallaw
in July 1987 and the January 1988 end of a ban on new newspapers.
It was the first since the death of Chiang Ching-kuo in
January 1988 and the succession of a Taiwan-born president. It also
followed the opening of significant contacts with the People's Republic
of China. Finally, it came in the wake of the Tiananmen Massacrewhich
some linked to an urgent need to keep Taiwan separate from
China and which led some to talk about and even advocate
independence.
The election results were generally unexpected. Only the KMT
and the DPP emerged with meaningful representation in the elective
bodies of government. Other parties and independents did poorly.
More important, the DPP victory exceeded the predictions of most
experts. This gave rise again to speculation about the evolution of a
two-party system, the impact of opposition politicians on the decision
making process in the future, and much more. The KMT, though still
in control and sometimes claiming the ruling party had won in a fair
and even contest, perceived the election as a setback.
The Campaign
The campaign began officially on November 17 for the Legislative
Yuan race and on November 22 for the other contests. The period
was divided into two parts: the individually or privately-conducted
part followed by officially-sponsored or public sessions. In fact, however,
the campaign began much earlier, technically in violation of the
election law; but this was not unlike previous election campaigns.
Candidates, in order to circumvent the restrictions on the length of
campaigns, held teas and birthday parties and gave "educational
speeches." Observers viewed these events as "early campaign" efforts.
6. See Wu Wen-cheng and Chen 1-hsin, Elections and Political Development in Taiwan
(Taipei: Government Information Office, 1989), pp. 16-18.
68 CoNTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIEs SERIES
The DPP's "early campaign" was highlighted by the return of a
number of dissidents, mostly anti-KMT figures, from abroad, mainly
from the United States. Many came carrying U.S. passports with different
spellings of their names and in this way escaped detection. Hsu
Hsin-liang was the most famous. Hsu, who was under indictment for
treason, had tried to return for the 1986 election, only to be detained
at the airport and sent back. This time he returned on a fishing boat
and was arrested, making it difficult for the government to ignore him.
In fact, he said that he had come back to stand trial, which he had
been denied before. Former U.S. Attorney General Ramsey Clark
attempted to travel to Taiwan to represent him but was not granted an
entry visa. In jail, Hsu was allowed to talk to news reporters, thus
drawing attention to his case while rallying his supporters. On October
10 supporters besieged the detention center where he was held,
sparking a riot that resulted in injury to a number of police and
onlookers.7
Another was Lin Yi-hsiang, whose mother and daughter were
mysteriously murdered subsequent to the Kaohsiung Incident in 1979.
Lin, shortly after he got back to Taiwan, published what he called the
"basic law" for the "Republic of Taiwan." The text was printed in
two of Taiwan's large newspapers. The Justice Ministry initiated proceedings
against him as well as the newspapers, but the Ministry did
not act quickly. Lin's "basic law" thus became well known and was
widely discussed throughout Taiwan during the campaign.8
A third famous dissident who returned was Kuo Pei-hung. Kuo,
chairman of the U.S.-based World United Formosans for Independence,
was on the wanted list in Taiwan for sedition. He came back
without notice before the campaign and organized his followers for a
"grandstand play." On November 22, during an evening political
rally, he stepped out of the crowd and up on the platform and to the
podium. He proceeded to give a highly emotional and inflammatory
speech in which he attacked the government and the KMT. This excited
the crowd, most of whom expected the police to close in at any
moment and arrest Kuo. The police attempted to do exactly that, but
when they moved in someone turned out the lights. Kuo and hundreds
of his supporters donned black masks, and in the confusion Kuo
escaped. The police, and the government, were thoroughly embarrassed
by the incident. Subsequently DPP candidates exhibited or
7. Lincoln Kaye, "On the Defensive," Far Eastern Economic Review, October 19,
1989, p. 26. For details on Hsu's earlier attempts to return, see Copper, "Taiwan's 1986
Election" cited in footnote 1.
8. For details, see China Post, November 11, 1989, p. 12.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 69
wore similar black masks at their rallies-black symbolizing their
blacklisted colleagues who could not return to Taiwan or could not
run in the election. After some deliberation, the Election Commission
banned the use of masks by candidates.9
Just before the campaign period started, 32 DPP candidates belonging
to the New Tide Faction, which advocated or supported Taiwan
independence, announced the formation of the "New Country
Alliance" and called for a new constitution and the election by Taiwan's
electorate of all members of Taiwan's elected bodies of government.
This pushed the independence issue further to the forefront of
the campaign and underscored the challenge of the issue to the government
and the KMT-and to Beijing.10
The KMT responded, though not in kind. KMT legislators
pushed a tough anti-crime bill through the Legislative Yuan, timing it
to be announced just before the election. Government officials also
initiated several special crime control efforts, including dragnets that
brought in large numbers of wanted criminals. Some were associated
with the DPP. Beijing assailed the advocates of Taiwan independence,
referring to the "evil consequences of the policy of two Chinas," and
promised to make a "strong response."11
Nationalist Party leaders
widely quoted Beijing's threats.
The government, with KMT prompting, also announced a
number ofbills and actions that Party leaders hoped would help KMT
candidates. Though many had been on the agenda for some time, they
were given special emphasis or a different spin. In mid-November the
KMT published a campaign advertisement saying that a vote for the
KMT would be a vote for a bullish stock market-implying that voting
for the DPP would cause the market to fall, thereby hurting nearly
four million owners of shares of stock (one fifth of the population and
perhaps half of the voters).12
The government, apparently at the instigation
of KMT leaders, also backed down from investigating investment
houses which had been criticized for creating an atmosphere of
wild financial speculating in Taiwan. Officials also suddenly decided
9. See "No more marks allowed, Election Commission says," China News, November
30, 1989, p. 12. See "Kuo Pei-hung's parents ask police to stop hunt," China Post, November
27, 1989, p. 12 for details on the impact of the case during the campaign.
10. See James McGregor, "Taiwan Poll Renews Independence Issue," Asian Wall
Street Journal, November 30, 1989, p.l.
11. See "Guarding Against the Ideological Trends of Taiwan Independence,'' Liao
wang, November 27, 1989, pp. 21-22, translated in FBIS (China), November 29, 1989, p.
52.
12. See "KMT ad misled investors into purchasing shares,'' China Post, November 26,
1989, p. 8.
70 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
against imposing a higher stock transaction tax to dampen stock
speculation.
When the campaign period started, the government ordered
10,000 extra police on duty to keep order. Riot police in full gear
patrolled areas where they thought violence might occur. Government
spokesmen said this was justified by the rise in crime in Taiwan
in recent years. Moreover, crime escalated at election time due to
criminals taking advantage of the increased presence of cash in the
hands of campaigners and their assistants. There were other reasons
for concern about violence during the campaign: Chen Yung-yuan, an
independent candidate for a Legislative Yuan seat, had been shot on
the street in Changhua, apparently by gangsters who had tried to extort
money from him. The death of Yu Deng-fa, the founder of the
opposition movement in southern Taiwan and father of Yu Chen
Yueh-ying, who was running for Kaohsiung county magistrate, also
drew attention. Yu probably died of natural causes (as the coroner
had reported), though DPP leaders claimed he had been murdered.
DPP candidate Hsu Jung-shu's office was torched and TV host Hu
Kua, a KMT supporter, reported numerous death threats.13
The DPP complained about the police, but many of their candidates
requested the same police protection that was offered to all candidates.
Many also hired their own bodyguards. A police dragnet
launched during the campaign resulted in five thousand arrests and
the seizure of hundreds of handguns smuggled in from China.
DPP candidates and their aides accused the KMT of vote buying
at nearly every rally. In private, however, DPP leaders admitted that
DPP candidates were also engaging in the practice. The prosecutor's
office of the Supreme Court offered a NT $200,000 reward for evidence
of vote buying, but this brought few results. Certainly it did not
hinder the practice much. On the other hand, one expert opined that
vote buying was only a 20 percent guarantee of a vote for a specific
candidate.14
Spending in excess of legal limits was also commonplace. DPP
candidates accused the KMT of using funds from party-owned companies
in illegal ways. Wu Li-yi, a KMT candidate, shocked an American
election observer team when he stated publicly that he would
spend N.T.$30 million (over one million U.S. dollars) on the election
and his DPP opponent would spend double that. Like their KMT
counterparts, DPP candidates clearly had money to spend, as reflected
13. See "Shadow of Violence," Asiaweek, December 1, 1989, p. 35.
14. See China Post, November 28, 1989, p. 12.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 71
by their well-heeled campaigns, gifts, and lavish parties. Observers
noted that vote buying and illegal campaign spending were the result
of Taiwan's economic boom combined with the now greater importance
of elected officials in influencing economic decisions. Most regarded
the growth of "money politics" as unfortunate but also
inevitable.
The DPP almost daily charged that the KMT possessed a monopoly
over television coverage and political advertising since all three of
Taiwan's stations are either owned by the KMT or by the government.
Late in the campaign, the DPP decided to do something about this.
Announcing it in advance, the DPP began broadcasting from a "guerrilla
station." DPP leaders subsequently claimed to be establishing a
permanent station in the Philippines to broadcast opposition views to
Taiwan. DPP candidates meanwhile sold videotapes of their speeches,
anti-KMT demonstrations, and the rally where Kuo Pei-hung appeared
and then disappeared.15
Both parties took a number of opinion surveys during the campaign.
Many distorted the results; some were completely fake. One
opposition candidate even sued a polling organization over an inaccurate
survey. The KMT published several surveys indicating that most
of the population did not support Taiwan independence. The DPP
responded with polls indicating that virtually no one wanted to unify
with China and be ruled by the Chinese Communist Party, thus suggesting
that the majority favored separation and thus independence.
Completely different results were obtained by asking the question differently.
Both sides also published inaccurate poll data predicting the
election outcome.16
So-called "snails without shells" (people with sufficient incomes,
but unable to afford decent housing) staged mass "sleep-ins" in expensive
residential areas and in conspicuous places in several of Taiwan's
large cities during the campaign.17
Some observers said the DPP was
behind these demonstrations. "Water buffaloes without skin" (people
who could not cheat on their income tax because of withholding) also
complained in organized public appearances.
A large number of candidates slandered opponents. Many filed
15. See Lincoln Kaye, "Television Tangle," Far Eastern Economic Review, November
30, 1989, pp. 23-24.
16. "Opposition Candidate Sues Group Over Inaccurate Survey," China Post, November
30, 1989, p. 11. Also see, "KMT Projects Winning 70 Percent of Votes," and "DPP
Comes Out on Top in NTU Simulated Poll" in China Post, November 30, 1989, p.ll.
17. "'Snails without Shells' Endorse 18 Candidates," China Post, November 30, 1989,
p. 12.
72 CONTEMPORARY ASIAN STUDIES SERIES
lawsuits against opposing candidates. A retired military man slapped
Kaohsiung county commissioner Yu Chen Yueh-ying while she was
campaigning. Organizing groups to heckle other candidates or honking
car horns to disrupt their speeches was widespread. Candidates
beheaded chickens and swore to be honest politicians or took vows in
temples. There was a multitude of other campaign antics.18
Some opposition candidates compared the Presidential Square in
Taipei with Tiananmen. Others said that if the KMT stole the election
its leaders would have to leave as the Marcos' did and would
probably take all their treasures and money with them. Some accused
the old guard KMT of "refusing to die." Many spoke in Taiwanese
only, saying that it was the "language of the people", in contrast to
Mandarin Chinese, which was the ruling class language. Many accused
top leaders of having multiple wives or of other moral
indiscretions.
Ju Gau-jeng, the "KMT's Rambo," accused opposition candidates
of stupidity with regard to the independence issue, and he said
they were ignorant and generally uneducated. He even declared that
some of his critics "should be exterminated." He bragged of his large
following and claimed credit for changing the KMT's foreign and domestic
policies singlehandedly.19
Attracting more attention than other candidates, New Country
Alliance members responded to authorities in Beijing criticizing their
advocacy of independence by staging public burnings of People's Republic
of China flags while challenging Deng Xiaoping and other communist
leaders to use military force against Taiwan. Many cursed
Deng and other Chinese leaders. One DPP candidate sent an invitation
to Premier Li Peng to come observe the election.
The single candidate drawing the biggest crowds, however, was
Hsu Hsiao-tan of the Labor Party. Hsu, who had been a stripper, ran
on a platform of supporting the arts and openness in government. Depicting
both, she distributed a campaign poster with a picture of herself,
nude, breaking through a KMT emblem. At one point she
challenged her opponent, also female, to a debate in English and a
comparison of nipples.
Toward the end of the campaign uncertainty prevailed in the
stock market, and the Tai Index saw the biggest drop ever in a single
18. See HoYing, "Tactics and Strategies Within the Combat Zone," China News, November
30, 1989, p. 12.
19. Ibid., p. 23.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 73
day. The next day it rose a record amount.20
The government, on
behalf of the KMT according to opposition critics, issued a statement
on the stock transaction tax a couple of days later hoping that this
statement would cause the market to rise. The stock market stabilized,
but slid downward during the last few days before the election.
The day before the election, when KMT General Secretary James
Soong announced that 34 of the elder parliamentarians would be retired,
DPP leaders cried foul. They had a similar reaction when a
statement by Deng Xiaoping, to the effect that he would solve the
"Taiwan problem" in five years probably from "inside of Taiwan,"
was published the day of the election. DPP leaders said this was calculated
to frighten the electorate from voting for opposition
candidates.21
The newly organized Campaign for Clean Elections sought to
oversee the election. It published several tracts on human rights
problems in Taiwan and a list of those candidates engaging in vote
buying. Because it was an arm of the DPP (according to the KMT),
most of the accused were naturally ruling party candidates. Two to
three hundred foreign reporters covered the election along with several
U.S. election observer teams, including one composed of five members
of Congress.22
The kind of campaign just described naturally overshadowed the
two parties' platforms and strategies. Thus both need to be assessed
in-depth.
The KMT's platform remained much the same as in previous
elections. It claimed credit for the Taiwan economic "miracle" and
the high standards of living and prosperity it produced. It also
claimed to have engineered political development. The KMT similarly
portrayed itself as the party of experience, which could keep the
nation "on track"-prosperous and stable. More specifically, its
agenda consisted of capitalism mixed with the right amount of social
security and welfare, a trade-led growth economy, and shifting to a
capital and knowledge-intensive economy. The party claimed also to
be a party of progress and a "party on the go" that would lead the
nation ahead.23
The KMT took a tough stand against crime and advocated social
20. See James McGregor, "Taipei Stocks Bounce Back By Record 6.5%," Asian Wall
Street Journal, November 30, 1989, p. l.
21. "Candidates Engage in Last-minute Campaigning on Eve of Election," China Post,
December 2, 1989, p. 12.
22. "300 Newsmen, Observers Here for Election," China Post, December 2, 1989, p.12.
23. For a summary of KMT platform and strategy, see "Campaign Strategist," (Inter-
74 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
and political stability. It promised actions to deal with bread and butter
issues such as air pollution, traffic, and water problems.
The only ideological issue of importance in the K.MT's platform
was anti-independence. KMT leaders promised to keep Chinese territory
and culture in tact: a one China policy. Party leaders who
sought to give this a different or more positive spin cited the "Taiwan
model" for reform on the mainland. Some KMT candidates, however,
ignored or played down the one-China idea, choosing to concentrate
on domestic issues.
The KMT appealed to farmers and the business community more
than to other groups, but it claimed to represent the whole nation
rather than specific groups or interests. Its program was basically conservative,
which it said fit with the traditionalism and conservatism of
Chinese culture. It lauded education, hard work, honesty, and merit.
It also spoke of morality in government.
KMT strategists sought to portray the DPP and most of the other
new opposition parties as radicals and hotheads who associated with
criminal and lower-class elements. The KMT pictured the opposition
as having little experience, unrealistic programs, and an agenda that
might bring the country to ruin economically and to war with the
mainland.
The DPP's campaign platform listed "political order based on democracy
and freedom" as its first item. Party briefings and campaign
literature focused on "real democracy" and more political and civil
liberties. DPP leaders pointed out that to have democracy the KMT
must cut its ties with the government and end its control of the media
and its "illegitimate" relationship with numerous industries and businesses.
They stressed that constitutional guidelines such as checks and
balances must be respected and charged the KMT with being in power
too long.24
The DPP's main tactic was to make the electorate believe that, in
order for Taiwan to become democratic, the public must support the
DPP. In short, a DPP victory--or even a better performance in the
election-would mean truly competitive elections, and therefore, political
modernization in the direction of democracy. In this connection
party leaders insisted that Taiwan must become democratic in order to
parry efforts by Beijing to incorporate Taiwan.
view of Wang Shu-ching, Chief Commissioner of the KMT City Committee, by Chen Yiming),Free
China Review, December 1989, pp. 32-37.
24. See "Taiwan According to the DPP," (mimeographed brochure given to foreign
observers by the DPP during the election).
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 75
The DPP platform called for balanced economic and financial administration,
which in more specific terms meant full employment, a
fairer tax system, better transportation, and environmental protection.
It proposed an improved welfare system and social security system.
The DPP advocated a "peaceful" foreign policy and mentioned specifically
cutting the size of the military, ending hostilities with the mainland,
and participating in international organizations.
Most frequently mentioned in DPP candidates' speeches were the
unfair advantages possessed by the KMT, the KMT's hold on the government,
the senior parliamentarians, and KMT vote buying. They
charged that under the KMT political change had not kept pace with
economic development. Although the party itself did not take a specific
position on the issue of Taiwan's independence, it did cite selfdetermination
in its platform. Moreover nearly all of its candidates
argued that unification with China was a stupid idea, which had no
public support, and that something must be done (meaning keeping
Taiwan separate) in response to Beijing's terrible human rights record
and its threats toward Taiwan. DPP leaders chided the KMT's waitand-see
policy and the idea that time was on Taiwan's side.
The DPP made a clear and strong appeal to only one interest
group: labor. Party leaders made reference to farmers' problems, but
not strongly; they did not expect to win many of those votes. While
not trying to appeal to socio-economic or occupational groups or to
regions in Taiwan, DPP leaders aimed to attract anti-government,
anti-KMT, and protest vote. The DPP also appealed to the democratic-minded
and to those with a socialist inclination. Its program
was clearly more liberal than conservative, if compared to the KMT or
to definitions used in platforms of political parties in Western
countries.
The DPP stated that its strategy for election victory was to seek
power at the local level and "surround the center." This, especially
the terminology, sounded like Mao's 1940 strategy to defeat the Nationalists:
by winning popular support, a guerrilla war strategy aimed
to defeat the Nationalists by prevailing in the countryside and later
surrounding and strangling the cities. Many, in fact, understood the
allusion. On the other hand, DPP leaders also vowed that in this way
they could get the KMT accustomed to sharing power and not evoke a
KMT backlash to their gains. In any event, the DPP had good cause
to adopt such a game plan because it was more capable of winning
local elections, and local elected positions are powerful and are spring-
76 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
boards for national elective office in Taiwan.25
As in previous elections, the platforms of both parties failed to
reflect very well what the voters thought were the most important issues.
The biggest election issue as reflected in most polls was crime.
Following were pollution and traffic. Taxes, water control, and other
tangible issues were also important. Economic growth was an issue,
but only in the sense that the electorate wanted sustained growth; few
wanted higher growth rates. Trade was an issue, but this was a matter
of keeping trade on track. Social security, health insurance, and welfare
were important, but what the public wanted in these areas was
unclear.26
With regard to these "bread and butter" matters, not only did the
two parties not focus on the issues, but their positions did not differ
very much. Both parties called for a crackdown on crime. The KMT
claimed to be the party of law and order, and most citizens perceived
it as such. However, because big increases in crime in Taiwan had
occurred on the "KMT's shift," its position on law and order was
somewhat less than credible. Some even said that the KMT had become
too soft and was making too many concessions to democracy.
Others said the KMT did not mind the increasing crime rate since this
was an issue that favored a KMT vote. On the issues of pollution and
traffic and on a number of other substantial issues, the KMT was seen
by the electorate as more competent to handle the problems, but also
as the party that allowed the problems to become as serious as they
were. Most voters expected higher taxes to pay for more social welfare
if the DPP were to rule the country, but they did not think seriously in
terms of that happening and thus did not show much worry over
higher taxes.
The choice between parties, in the last analysis, was more a matter
of supporting either the status quo or more democracy. The KMT
had a better agenda; the DPP had in its favor the democratization
issue. To some extent ethnicity was important: Mainlanders favored
the KMT; Taiwanese identified with both parties, though the DPP
was seen as a Taiwanese party. On the issue of Taiwan independence
the choice between the two parties was clear, though the meaning of
that term was not. Meanwhile, nearly every candidate's campaign was
25. For further details, see James McGregor, "Taiwan's DPP Pins Hopes on Local
Posts," Asian Wall Street Journal, December 1-2, 1989, p. l.
26. The issues the voters were most concerned about were little different from other
recent elections. There were differences in voters' interests comparing urban and rural
areas. In some cases the polls reftected contradictory interests; for example, voters favored
increased social security and health insurance, but not higher taxes.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 77
to a great extent personal: differences between himself or herself and
the opponent.
The Election Results
The Election Commission was not able to announce all of the
results of the election by midnight on polling day as it had promised.
Despite the more refined and sophisticated vote tallying system, accusations
of vote fraud and demands for recounts slowed down the process.
The DPP had organized protest demonstrations in advance,
thinking that its candidates would be cheated or assuming they would
lose. In most cases, however, the DPP candidate either was victorious
or the KMT candidate won so clearly that alleged irregularities were
not taken seriously. Yet a couple of exceptions caused protest demonstrations
to go on for two or three days.
In the Legislative Yuan contest the KMT won 72 seats, the DPP
21, and others (meaning independents) 8; this was 71.3%, 20.8% and
7.9% of the seats respectively. In the Provincial Assembly race the
KMT won 54 seats, the DPP won 16, and others 7; this was 70.1%,
20.8%, and 9.1% of the seats. In the country magistrate and city
mayor races the KMT won 14, the DPP 6, and others 1, or 66.7%,
28.6% and 4.8% in the order listed. For the Taipei City Council and
the Kaohsiung City Council races the tallies were: KMT 36, the DPP
14, and others 1, and the KMT 29, DPP 8, and others 5.27
In comparison to the number of seats each held before the election
(as a result of the 1986 election in the case of the Legislative Yuan
and the 1985 election for the other races) the KMT lost ground in
every category: 6 seats in the Legislative Yuan, 5 in the Provincial
Assembly, 3 county magistrate and city mayor offices, 2 Taipei City
Council seats, and 3 Kaohsiung City council seats. Since the DPP had
come into existence in 1986, after the previous local election, DPP
gains other than in the Legislative Yuan election were all new. However,
if one assumes the DPP is the successor to the tangwai, the DPP
made significant gains in those races. In the legislative race the DPP
gained 9 seats.
Besides reflecting a broad and significant DPP victory, which will
be discussed further below, the election results indicate that third parties
were unprepared. The new opposition parties, in short, failed to
prove they had, or could build, a base of support. Only the Labor
Party won a seat-a single place on the Kaohsiung City Council. The
27. Final election results were published in China Post and China News, December 4,
1989.
78 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
two older parties which were aligned with the KMT also failed to
demonstrate viability: the Young China Party lost the two seats it
held in the Legislative Yuan and its one seat in the Provincial Assembly,
while the China Democratic Socialist Party lost its only seat in the
Provincial Assembly. Similarly, independents did less well than in
previous elections, losing ground in all of the races except the Legislative
Yuan race. While it may be too early to make such a conclusion,
this is strong evidence that a two-party system, not a multi-party system,
is evolving. In any event December 1989 witnessed a two-party
election victory.
Because there was a larger number of candidates than in previous
elections, a significantly smaller percentage of contestants won:
33.2% for Legislative Yuan seats as compared to 73% in the 1986
election. In this sense the election was more competitive than other
recent elections. Besides this, few incumbents won office. This was in
part because few ran: only 48 of the 304 candidates for Legislative
Yuan seats were incumbents. Of those, seven lost. This translates into
70% newcomer winners.28
In many cases incumbent legislators decided
to run in other elections, many of them viewing some of the
other offices, especially county magistrates, as more important. KMTDPP
competition was also more intense for magistrate offices, thereby
causing both parties to try to put their best candidates up for these
races, in a number of cases pulling them from other races.
Family members or relatives of known political figures generally
did well. Relatives of the presidents of the Legislative Yuan, the Judicial
Yuan, and the Control Yuan all won seats. Two sons of the former
mayor of Kaohsiung won posts running on the KMT ticket. Yu
Chen Yueh-ying, who was reelected Kaohsiung County magistrate,
saw her son elected to the Legislative Yuan and her daughter elected
to the Taiwan Provincial Assembly. Chang Po-ya was elected to the
Legislative Yuan and her sister Chaiyi was elected mayor; their
mother was a noted local politician. Meanwhile several candidates ran
in place of their husbands or wives. However, some kin of known
political figures lost, such as You Ching's brother, who ran for the
Legislative Yuan.29
A number of candidates won on sympathy vote. Chen Shui-bian,
who had been injured in an accident, campaigned in a wheel chair; he
won. Yeh Chu-lau, whose husband burned himself to death in April
28. "7 Legislators Not Reelected; 70% of Parliament Newcomers," China Post, December
4, 1989, p. 12.
29. "Political Dynasties Flourish as Family Members are Elected," China Post, December
4, 1989, p. 12.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 79
after his opposition magazine was closed and while under investigatio~
for sedition, won a seat in the Legislative Yuan. A number of candidates
who had served jail terms were elected. Several won who campaigned
on the independence issue and some won after declaring they
could avoid jail if elected.
Mainlander and female candidates did well, especially in the Legislative
Yuan. Mainlanders won 19.2 percent of the seats; female candidates
won 14.1 percent. Over 25 percent of KMT victors of
Legislative Yuan seats were Mainlanders- the result of the military
vote in the primary. Almost 20 percent of KMT winners were female-a
product of the KMT entering more female candidates than
ever. Less than 6 percent of DPP victors were Mainlanders or
women.30
The increase in the number of Mainlanders (all second generation)
was five fold. (Only three had won seats in the 1986 election.)
Some observers said this marked an end to the KMT's "affirmative
action" policy designed to run more Taiwanese candidates. It needed
to be reversed, many said, since the percentage of KMT Taiwanese
candidates in recent elections had exceeded the percentage of the
Taiwanese population. Moreover, many applauded the young Mainlander
candidates as a force for reason and democracy, since most advocated
phasing out senior parliamentarians and reforming the KMT,
yet were more moderate on other issues. Some said the ethnic backgrounds
of candidates had faded in importance. In any event Jau
Shau-kong, a second generation Mainlander, won the third largest
number of votes nationwide. Another Mainlander, Yu Mu-ming, was
the top vote getter from the southern Taipei area.31
The educational level of winning candidates was high but did not
show an increase from the last election. In fact, it dropped. This was
due in part to the larger number of DPP winners-the DPP not giving
the same emphasis to educational qualifications as the KMT. The
level of experience of winners was also less for the same reason. Putting
a positive twist on these facts, many observers said educational
qualification had been overemphasized in past campaigns, while lack
of experience may be interpreted to mean broader experience.32 The
average age of winning candidates was somewhat higher, though for
30. These calculations are my own based on a number of local newspaper reports on
winning candidates.
31. "2nd Generation Mainlanders Do Well in Poll," China Post, December 4, 1989, p.
12.
32. "Newly Elected Officials by Age and Educational Background", China News, December
4, 1989, p. 12.
80 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
victorious candidates for Legislative Yuan seats it was almost the
same.
Voter turnout was 75.4% of an estimated 12 million eligible voters.
This was up markedly from the last two elections. In fact, the
voter turnout in this election was the highest in ten years. Inasmuch
as campaign rallies were not attended as well as in the last three elections,
voter interest seems to have been hidden. Alternatively, voters
were interested but based their decisions on information from other
sources.33
In light of the election results, the KMT could, and in some cases
did, claim victory. The ruling party won 60 percent of the popular
vote and more than two-thirds of the seats in every category of candidates:
Legislative Yuan, 71.3% (69.6% not counting the 13 of 18 vocational
seats); Provincial Assembly, 70%; Taipei City Council, 67%,
Kaohsiung City Council, 67%; county magistrates and city mayors
(taken as one category), 67%. The KMT accomplished this while
making the playing field level or almost level and in spite of many
voters favoring the opposition not because of its platform or its candidates
but in order to make the system democratic. Finally, by comparison
with elections in Western democracies the vote was a
resounding victory for the KMT.
Still, few observers viewed the election as a KMT victory; most
saw it as a major setback. All of Taiwan's major newspapers carried
headlines that proclaimed a KMT defeat. The KMT held an emergency
meeting Sunday morning after the election to discuss the results,
and most at the meeting considered it an effort to discover what went
wrong. Party Secretary-General James Soong stated solemnly: "We
calmly accept the upset."34
DPP leaders unequivocally viewed the election as a defeat for the
KMT and a victory for their party. The DPP won 31 percent of the
popular vote. An additional 9 percent of the popular vote went to
independents, most of whom favored the DPP. DPP leaders declared
after the election that they had accomplished this in spite of the tremendous
disadvantages (not a level playing field), the small membership
of the party (20,000 compared to 2.5 million KMT members),
and the fact that their party was only three years old. DPP leaders
also noted that the purported split over the issue of independence had
not proven real. In addition, they pointed out that all other competing
33. For details, see "Voter Turnout," China News, December 4, 1989, p.12.
34. See "Worst Poll Setbacks for KMT in 40 Years," China Post, December 4, 1989, p.
1.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 81
parties had failed.35
In terms of popular vote the DPP registered an increase of nearly
10 percent from the previous election in 1986. In total number of
seats, the gain was even more impressive---25 percent. The DPP made
advances in every category of elections. In the Legislative Yuan election
the DPP won nine more seats for a total of 21. Since 20 is required
to introduce legislation, this was a breakthrough. In the city
council elections, the DPP doubled its representation in Kaohsiung
and gained 40 percent in Taipei over what the tangwai had won in
1985. In the Taiwan Provincial Assembly the DPP made a smaller,
but still impressive, gain.
The biggest DPP victory came in the county magistrate races.
Many consider the county magistrate the most powerful popularly
elected official in Taiwan, and the DPP campaigned hard for these
slots. In these races the DPP won 38 percent of the popular vote,
compared to the KMT's 53 percent. It won 6 magistrates (Taipei,
Ilan, Hsinchu, Changhua, Pingtung, Kaohsiung). As a result, the
DPP gained control of the executive of the county governments
wherein 40 percent of the population lives, including the capital city.
The KMT had never before lost more than 4 magistrate races.
Anti-KMT county magistrates have in recent years destroyed police
and intelligence agency records on county employees and have
tried to withhold tax revenues from the national government. In so
acting they caused major problems for the national government and
the KMT. Now DPP magistrates can do this, and much more, if they
choose. They may try to disestablish KMT organizations, especially
KMT branches, within or close to county or city governments. They
may seek to restructure local police systems. They may institute local
health insurance programs and unemployment and welfare benefits.
The DPP will certainly exercise considerable political influence in the
counties for the next four years and probably beyond.
The DPP can also claim victory inasmuch as most of the candidates
that the KMT tried hardest to defeat won. You Ching, winner
of the county magistrate seat in Taipei county, site of the capital city
and the home of President Lee Teng-hui and other top government
leaders, is the best example. There are several others. In addition,
many of the most radical and controversial DPP candidates won. The
majority of DPP winners were of the New Tide faction, the most vociferous
supporters or advocates of Taiwan independence.
35. For DPP victory statements, see various articles in Independence Evening News (in
Chinese) December 3 and 4, 1989.
82 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
Implications for Taiwan's Polity
Most observers would say of the December 1989 election that the
DPP did better than most expected and that it should be credited with
a victory, perhaps a big victory. Furthermore, the DPP will be a force
to be reckoned with politically in Taiwan for the foreseeable future.
The success of the DPP also means that Taiwan has a meaningful organized
opposition and that competitive elections and competitive
politics are now well established. This translates into the following:
Taiwan has made another big stride toward a democratic system.
Some observers, in fact, say that Taiwan is no longer just becoming
a democracy; it already is one. Some opposition candidates stated
during the campaign that Taiwan has democratized faster than any
nation in the world over the last few years. Others admitted they consider
Taiwan the most democratic country in East Asia, save Japan.
These statements may be premature; yet clearly Taiwan has in a
number of significant ways made the transition from an authoritarian
to a democratic system.
This does not, however, mean that all of the important hurdles in
the political modernization process have been crossed. Nor does it
mean, necessarily, political stability and tranquility. Democracy is not
without costs. The DPP victory will probably mean greater, not less,
tension between the KMT and the opposition. There will no doubt be
difficult relations between the national government and the county and
city governments for some time. Decision making may, in fact, be
paralyzed on some issues as a result. Discord between the two parties
could spread into other realms.
The nation may well polarize further on the issue of separation or
Taiwan independence as a result of this election. The most vociferous
pro-independence candidates won, but so did their loudest opponents
and the advocates of the future unification of Taiwan with China.
This injects an ideological issue into Taiwan politics which may not be
auspicious. Ethnic politics may also gain, because ethnic issues were
amplified by candidates who made issue of differences in political
viewpoint and advocacy based on provincial or group identification.
Similarly, special interest groups played a greater role in this election
than in previous electoral contests. In fact, there were many complaints
that candidates were toadying to interest groups while ignoring
the silent majority. There is also evidence that special interests and
money politics reinforced and strengthened each other. Efforts to
check money politics in Taiwan clearly have not succeeded, though
vote buying or its equivalent seems to be the result more of economic
prosperity than increasing corruption.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 83
Party politics, for better and worse, are apparently a fact of political
life in Taiwan. Party competition normally facilitates the democratic
process, but it also creates partisanship and other undesirable
effects. Partisanship indeed seems to have taken root in Taiwan.
The election results indicate some events and campaign tactics
had a different impact on the voters than orginally thought. There
was clearly some misinterpretation of issues and stances that would
influence the electorate. Morever, the KMT made some fairly serious
errors during the campaign.
Many observers felt that the events in China in June- the
Tiananmen Massacre-would help the KMT at the polls. Initially, it
did have a salutary affect on the KMT campaign efforts. It made the
government and the ruling party look good by comparison; students
were not being killed with tanks and machine guns in Taipei. It also
solved the KMT's problem of formulating a "mainland policy"which
was troublesome and which in 1988 and early 1989 was a major
knotty issue. After Tiananmen, the KMT did not need to worry about
this very much. But these issues came back. DPP candidates to some
extent successfully portrayed themselves as similar to the Beijing students
and in this way won some sympathy from the electorate. More
important, the DPP found a poignant argument for self-determination,
Taiwan independence, or whatever version of separation it advocated:
Tiananmen and the repression that followed justified Taiwan
moving away from China. As one DPP candidate put it: "Beijing's
brutality justifies calls for separation." Certainly separation at the
time of this election-less than 6 months away from Tiananmen-did
not look like a radical notion; rather, it seemed the only sensible
policy.
Events in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union also helped the
DPP. Democracy seemed to be "breaking out around the world."
This being the case, pushing for even more democracy in Taiwan did
not seem to be out of place. The KMT had taken the position that it
had introduced democracy to Taiwan at a very rapid pace; the DPP
said it was not fast enough. The DPP in this context seemed to be
right.
The DPP's disadvantage in not having access to television was no
doubt exaggerated; otherwise the DPP could not have done so well.
In fact, survey polls indicate the electorate did not base its decisions
much on TV, clearly not as much as in many Western countries.
Moreover, the DPP was able to both make this an issue of fairness
(and thus democracy) and offset the handicap with effective advertising
in newspapers, magazines, and other places.
84 CONTEMPORARY ASIAN STUDIES SERIES
The KMT, and many outside observers, overestimated the impact
of the DPP split. KMT leaders did this intentionally to some extent to
support their position that the DPP was a group of ruffians; the rationale
being if they were ruffians, naturally they would not be able to get
along with each other. Differences over whether to agree with, support,
or advocate independence have been around for some time; these
differences did not cause a very serious split in the DPP ranks. In any
event, the DPP was not very dependent on party discipline, instead it
relied on activist candidates and personalities to win.
Counterpointwise, the KMT was not seen as factionalized; yet it
was-over how quickly to democratize, whether to let the DPP have
certain breaks and thereby level the field, and over some specific issues.
The issues of patriotism and separation confused KMT candidates.
Some KMT candidates also seemed to desire fair competition
with the DPP and thus did not try as hard in the campaign. A major
split in the KMT was never imminent, but differences in viewpoint did
affect the ruling party's performance.
The KMT also made some errors in strategy. KMT notables in
the government appeared to try to control the stock market in order to
influence the election outcome. They also tried to use statements
made by Deng Xiaoping and other pronouncements made by Beijing
to counteract the DPP's call for independence. To a sizeable portion
of the electorate this appeared to be cynical manipulation. KMT leaders
also seemed to give too much emphasis to educational standards
so as to portray the DPP as hoodlums. Thus, in picking candidates
they weighed too much on education and not enough on charisma.
This made the KMT look elitist and helped give the DPP an image of
a commonman party.
The KMT underestimated the sympathy vote and tried to use
logical arguments against it. It also put too much reliance on opinion
surveys, while trying to use them to influence voting. Both had bad
results.
The KMT may also have been overconfident. At times it seemed
to be. It also appeared less professional and less on the ball than in the
past. A number of the members of foreign election observer teams
noted this. Changes in personnel may have been the cause. A decline
in morale as a result of Chiang Ching-Kuo's death may explain it.
Similarly a number of KMT leaders seemed to be locked in a power
struggle with others in the party. President Lee Teng-hui was still new
in office, and, though his public image was very good, he has yet to
resolve some internal party disputes and convince many Party
stalwarts of his leadership abilities.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 85
DPP candidates made much of the fact that they were underdogs.
And this worked. They won the protest vote and the sympathy vote.
DPP candidates also benefitted from the widely-held view that a vote
for them was a vote for democracy. To some, a vote for the DPP
would encourage the KMT to do better. Thus there was a large bloc
of votes which did not directly support the DPP but which helped it in
the election. Most voters did not consider the possibility that the DPP
might win sufficiently to rule the country and did not worry about
their shortcomings. Finally, to some, DPP candidates (assuming the
KMT could not lose at the national level) winning local office would
make the system more competitive and perhaps more efficient.
In sum, the DPP's strategy and performance in the campaign
were considerably better than most observers anticipated. The KMT's
were worse. This, plus the DPP's attraction of the protest vote and
the vote for competitive elections and democracy, help explain the
DPP's gains. But so do world events: Tiananmen, the democracy
movements in Europe, and the pending collapse of communism.
Deng's threatening statements in this context amplified the help these
events gave the DPP. Events in Japan, too, had an effect: the ruling
conservative Liberal Democratic Party, which had been in power for
nearly 35 years, seemed to be suffering from age and corruption.
Many in Taiwan modelled their politics after Japan; this being the
case, the KMT could look forward to a long period of rule in an essentially
one-party dominant system. However, the Japanese electorate's
rejection of the Liberal Democratic Party in the summer and the
LOP's subsequent difficulties sent another signal to Taiwan's voters.
All of these factors could be reversed, or at least different, in the
next election. Thus 1989 seems to suggest a rise of the opposition and
competitive democracy in Taiwan; it does, however, not mean a demise
of the KMT.
How DPP politicians perform in office will surely influence the
next election. By 1992 the DPP will no doubt be seen to some degree
as a ruling or government party- certainly at the local level. The
DPP will have to campaign on its record next time. That may be an
advantage; in Chinese politics, it helps to be an incumbent. Yet being
an outsider, at odds with the KMT, proved a boon in this election. In
the next three years the DPP will have to come to terms with the
KMT, compromise or paralyze the system- either of which may hurt
their image with the protest voter.
The DPP will also have to reconcile many of its election promises
and statements with reality. DPP candidates spoke of a "peaceful foreign
policy" and of reentering international organizations, including
86 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
the United Nations. Fulfilling these promises will be very difficult.
The DPP will have to defend many of its "socialist" policies in the
context of the failure of both communism and socialism around the
world. They will have to cope with the female vote, which is growing
in influence in Taiwan. The KMT has a better record with both women
candidates and women's issues. The DPP will have to deal with
an image of a party dominated by narrow objectives that appeals to
special interest groups rather than the national interest. It will have to
deal with the crime issue, which certainly will not be easy.
Meanwhile the KMT will no doubt learn something from this
election setback. How the KMT responds to this "defeat" is difficult
to predict. It has been a party that has dealt with all kinds of adversity
in the past. It may be able to improve its image based on Taiwan's
democratization, its enhanced role in global economic affairs, and
what some call Taiwan's new identity. It may be able to adjust to
breaking its ties with the government and its control of television and
a large number of corporations and enterprises. It can probably also
change from an election strategy that emphasizes morality in government
to a strategy built on tough political campaigning in a pluralist
country.
In any event, it is clear that the election process and democracy
have been advanced by the 1989 national election. Probably future
analysts will say it was furthered by a big notch.
CHAPTER 5
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS
The analysis of the factors that have promoted or facilitated democratic
electoral politics in Taiwan and the separate assessment of
three elections in Taiwan above, reflect that democracy has quickly,
and no doubt permanently, become a part of this nation's political system.
In fact, that this has occurred is no longer in doubt. Why and
how it happened are still questions of some interest.
Local politicians in Taiwan often argue that national democratic
elections were made possible, even engendered, by democratic elections
for local office in Taiwan for more than three decades-beginning
in the 1950s. They reason that there was a "seeping up" process:
democracy worked at the local level, so why not apply it at the national
level? Additionally, there was pressure from local governments
and from the population to "push democracy up."
Indeed, democratic means of selecting local officials have been
used in Taiwan for some time. Popularly elected officials made local
politics work democratically. They sought to push their system to the
top, or democratize the nation by a "seeping up" process. Over time
these "democratic politicians" also rose in eminence and assumed positions
of greater importance, many of them in national affairs and in
the central government.
The political system they encountered at the top was, in principle,
a democratic system of government. It had a democratic constitution.
Its political ideology-Sun Yat-sen's Three Principles of the Peoplewas
democratic. A political culture or climate had begun to evolve in
the direction of democracy. Free market capitalism made this possible,
or necessary. Economic development created a middle class that
made demands for political change.
Central government officials nevertheless argue that, rather than
democracy seeping up, they gave Taiwan democracy at the local level.
They could have encouraged a different political system. They served
to oversee and force it to work. Local politics in Taiwan was full of
factional struggles. Had there not been oversight or what the Nationalist
officials call tutelage, chaos probably would have resulted. Some
top Nationalist officials have also averred that they wanted to create
democracy at the local level because they knew it could not have been
(87)
88 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
implemented quickly at the national level. They were committed to
democracy, but could not install it in the central government because
of both internal resistance and external threats.
The sudden or unexpected competitive election in 1980 and the
subsequent quick evolution of democratic electoral politics-in less
than a decade-suggests that it was not just a "seeping up" process.
Democratic political thought helped make it possible. Central government
officials had to have been ready and favorably disposed. President
Chiang Ching-kuo---Taiwan's "democratizer"-also played a
vital role. He was an impetus from above for Taiwan's democratization.
He conveniently used electoral change and election politics to
direct Taiwan's political modernization towards democracy.
The U.S. was also a factor. America had high expectations for
Taiwan: because Chiang Kai-shek (and every other president following
him) was a Christian; because Taiwan called itself "Free China"
and had a political system and a constitution both patterned after the
American models; because of the free market economy and the degree
of penetration ofTaiwan by foreign (mostly from Western democratic
countries) business and ideas. The U.S. also encouraged, with a heavy
hand at times, Taiwan to democratize-early on in order to justify
economic assistance and policies that favored the Nationalist government
over the Communist regime in Beijing. Later, after 1979 when
the U.S. broke relations with Taipei and the U.S. Congress wrote the
Taiwan Relations Act, to rationalize this legislation-the only law in
U.S. history written to govern relations with a specific country and
which cited concern that Taiwan remain secure and that it continue to
see progress in the areas of human rights and democracy.
Similarity, Beijing was a factor-albeit an indirect one. The People's
Republic of China sought to isolate Taiwan. It endeavored to
make the government of Taiwan appear autocratic and its foreign policy
hostile, uncompromising, and narrow-minded. Taiwan's reaction
was to push the democratization process even faster-in order to convey
the message that its future should be decided by its people, that
Taiwan should not be ruled by a communist government against its
will. Taiwan even appealed to the global community, saying that it
had democratized and, therefore, did not deserve to be isolated or
considered territory belonging to Beijing. Beijing's threats to Taiwan
also reduced ethnic tension between Mainland Chinese and locallyborn
Taiwanese-who were put in the "same boat" as far as their future,
meaning their survival and the nation's sovereignty, was concerned.
The intimidating statements made by Chinese leaders in
Beijing have clearly served as a unifying factor and a diversion from
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 89
otherwise factional tendencies and fractious disputes in Taiwan. Unity
and common understandings between various groups in Taiwan have
clearly helped advance democratic processes.
Of course, one must also give credit to the fact that Taiwan, being
an island, is protected by its geography from outside hostile forces.
Island countries have had a better record with democracy. So have
nations that are secure because of natural frontiers or barriers or security
arrangements. A history of cosmopolitanism was also an ingredient.
Taiwan, for centuries, has had contacts with other peoples and
nations. It was a trading entity in the distant past and retained this
tradition through the years. This has made the incorporation of new
political and other ideas, in this case a system based on the will of the
people, easier to accept and use.
Taiwan was made even more secure by the U.S. security guarantees:
in 1950 (when the Korean War started) and the U.S. intervened
to bloc an invasion of Taiwan and in 1954 in the form of a mutual
defense treaty. This U.S. commitment was reiterated in 1979 in the
Taiwan Relations Act, which came at a time when the U.S.-Republic
of China Defense Treaty was going to be cancelled. In short, the
United States helped provide an environment wherein democracy
could sprout and grow. Not having to worry (at least so much) about
an invasion or about other external threats, Taiwan's leaders and its
people could focus on internal problems, including political development,
and could fulfill the promises of democracy in the Constitution
and in Sun Yat-Sen's Three Principles.
Economic growth also promoted democratic institutions in Taiwan.
This is to be expected if growth is self-generated-or done the
hard way, by earning it rather than by luck or circumstance. Taiwan
accomplished its economic growth by hard work, good planning, and
cooperation between the private and public sectors, between the population
and its leaders, and among various interest groups. In recent
years, Taiwan has gained the status and recognition of being the
number one nation in the world in economic growth and the foremost
success story in economic development. The criterion is growth in the
gross national product over two decades-the standard most often
cited by economic development and political development theorists
alike. Because of rapid economic growth Taiwan needed democratic
reform. The political system had to modernize because the economy
had become increasingly sophisticated and needed a political system
that was open and could accomodate change and innovation lest economic
growth be impeded. In other words, Taiwan's economy was
90 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
built on free market capitalism which created democracy and needed
democracy to continue to grow.
Just as economic growth provided an infrastructure for democratic
politics, so did social change. Land reform was the first step.
Launched in the 1950s, it eradicated feudalism in n _·at Taiwan. It
made the local democracy discussed above possible. Together with
astute planning, land reform made the agricultural sector of the economy
grow quickly and at a rapid, sustained pace. As it grew, food
production became more efficient and many people moved into the
cities to work in Taiwan's industrial sector, which "took otr' in the
1960s. Urbanization, which probably occured faster in Taiwan than
in any other nation in the world at this time, promoted city political
machines. Commensurately, more people became interested in politics
with the changed environment and the breaking or weakening of family
and other ties that were part of rural society. As Taiwan's middle
class grew, so did the perception that politics was not just for the rich
or some other elite. Mass politics evolved. This created the need, and
the demand, for democracy. Elections soon were seen as the key to
realizing democracy.
This is not to say that these things occurred in a clear step-by-step
sequence: security, economic development, social change, political development.
That the order was neat and that one had to be accomplished
before the other could begin is, of course, an oversimplification.
They occurred simultaneously to some degree and
were interrelated and interdependent. Still there were different thrusts
or prominent conditions in each phase of Taiwan's political development.
In fact, this may be said to constitute the Taiwan democratization
model or paradigm. The "Taiwan experience" in
democratization, in other words, is a kind of step-by-step approach to
political modernization. The formula? Security comes first, or it is
the precondition. Then build consensus through economic development
plans. Successful economic growth creates the need for democracy.
Social change follows economic modernization and is
sandwiched between economic change and political change.
If political change comes last in the sequence, has not Taiwan
reached the last stage? This might seem to be the case; yet it is also
true that political modernization makes possible continued economic
development and social change. If Taiwan is to make the leap into a
knowledge-intensive economy, then continued or further political development
is essential. There seems to be a symbiotic relationship.
The same is true for social change of a progressive nature.
However, political change in Taiwan has not been without set-
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 91
backs, turmoil, and apprehension. This has been reflected particularly
in election campaigns. This author, as well as many other observers,
both local and foreign, agree that during campaign periods, the system
has appeared to have changed too fast. The chapters above have discussed
candidates in each election that have resorted to antics, unfair
tactics, and dishonest or illegal means to win. Each election has witnessed
new and sometimes serious problems that brought the system
into question. Taiwan's election law apparently has not worked well;
certainly it will be changed again in the future, perhaps many times.
Money seems to have become the bottom line in election politics. Further
democratization seems, in every election, to have created violence
and chaos. Political campaigns have been seen by many as
circuses, demeaning to the candidates and to the electorate.
But even in light of these developments, few have said that the
nation should turn back, that democracy was a mistake. Rather, the
citizens know that they are on the right track in spite of problems and
second thoughts.
If Taiwan has democratized faster than any other nation in the
world, as this writer has earlier suggested, then one must ask: Why has
it succeeded? One can cite the conservative nature of Chinese
politicial culture: rapid change does not hit so hard because of fundamental
attitudes about politics, such as the need for moral behavior
and universality of political ideals, etc., that Chinese espouse. The
Chinese people also fear anarchy; this is with good reason, since their
culture evolved with the need for government to control water, build
infrastructure projects for the transport of food, and much more.
When government did not function, the people suffered greviously;
many perished. Hence, when critics or opponents of the government
go too far, particularly in the direction of destroying the system or
using violence, the people respond with a demand for caution. When
some advocate overthrowing the system the people respond by siding
with the government. The electorate wants democracy, but it does not
want it to come through the destruction of the government (unless the
government is worse than anarchy or is itself promoting chaos, and
that has not been the case in Taiwan). Some say government officials
in Taiwan know that if the opposition becomes too extreme or threatens
violence the people will turn against them. Thus, they are more
tolerant of opposition antics and demands than governments in most
countries.
That Taiwan had a democratic constitution before its period of
rapid political development began was also helpful. Opposition politicians-working
within the system, or at least using it- asked that the
92 CONTEMPORARY ASIAN STUDIES SERIES
constitution be fully implemented. They assailed the "Temporary
Provisions" which nullified some of the guarantees in the constitution,
especially those that provided for civil and political freedoms and set
forth a design for a democratic system. They did not advocate scrapping
the constitution and framing another one, nor did they advocate
not having a constitution--or at least not until recently, (and their
recent demands have not been taken very seriously). Opposition politicians
likewise have not been very critical of the political system's
structure. Candidates for election, for example, have rarely attacked
the fundamental organization of the political system. They want to
change it, make it more democratic, but not destroy and rebuild it.
This has made the opposition in a sense a loyal opposition-even
though one would not guess this from observing an election campaign.
Similarly, there has been a broad consensus on the desirability of economic
growth. Differences have been primarily about how to do it,
who should benefit and, in more recent years, how to protect the environment
while continuing to grow. Finally, although self-determination
or Taiwan independence has been a heated, if not explosive, issue,
there is behind all of the argument and rhetoric the fundamental belief
that the Republic of China is a legal government and has sovereignty.
The questions are rather whether the government should claim title to
the mainland of China, whether there should be one China or two, or
whether the central government should have representatives in elected
office that are delegates from places other than Taiwan. The sovereignty
of the nation has not been in contention.
Having demonstrated in the previous three chapters that Taiwan
has made quite impressive progress in electoral politics and thus in
political development, leading toward, perhaps even close to or already,
democracy, it seems that Taiwan's experience with electoral
politics contains some lessons for other countries. This would appear
particularly true in view of the fact democracy is now "breaking out"
all over the world. Moreover, there is a special lesson for newly
democratzing nations: Taiwan has accomplished, largely through
election politics, democratization similar (in the words of some opposition
politicians) to what it took Japan decades to do and some Western
countries centuries. Building democracy is usually a slow process; in
Taiwan it was a rapid one. Most of the countries poised to try democracy-and
there are many-are in a hurry.
Taiwan's success with democratic electoral politics is also unique
among Chinese people. The People's Republic of China has never
had a meaningful democratic national election. There have been no
two-party, competitive elections in China. Competition in the sense of
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 93
having more than one candidate for an electoral position is something
very new there. Hong Kong has not gotten started either. Singapore
has had competitive elections, but barely so. Some say elections there
are not really competitive; the opposition is too weak and the government
too intolerant of opposition politicians. Taiwan can thus serve as
a model for even Singapore. Only in Taiwan have there been truly
competitive elections. Only in Taiwan have there been two-party or
multi-party (depending upon one's point of view) elections.
Turning directly to the factors that have influenced Taiwan's elections
in a positive way and to the three recent elections themselves
(and their significance), it is necessary to examine trends and make
some forecasts. Some mention should also be made about unresolved
issues.
One thing that is certain from looking at the factors influencing
electoral politics as well as the significance of the most recent elections,
is that Taiwan no longer has a one-party system. Party competition
has become a part of the electoral process and electoral politics in
Taiwan. It is even a part of the political process in a broader sense.
This will certainly continue to be true in the future. In fact, it is so
widely regarded as necessary for democratization to continue and a
democratic system to work that it is inconceivable that party competition
will not last.
This is not to say, however, what kind party system is evolving.
There seem to be three possibilites : a one-party dominant system, a
two- party system, and a multi-party system. There is evidence for
and an argument to be made to justify predicting any of the three
options.
Given the outstanding record of the Nationalist Party in engineering
economic development and social modernization, and, in general,
governing the nation, it would seem reasonable to predict, and
support as desirable, the evolution of a one-party dominant system.
Such an argument can also be made in light of the unrealistic proposals
made by the opposition parties, factionalism in the Democratic
Progressive Party and its general inability and lack of preparation to
rule the nation. One can certainly imagine a scenario where Taiwan
follows the pattern of Japanese politics. Like the ruling Liberal Democratic
Party, the Nationalist Party may remain in power for the foreseeable
future, with the opposition parties remaining only an
opposition party or parties. The Nationalist Party would have to
maintain a comfortable majority in the elected branches of government
and win all future national elections. But it is not unreasonable
to think the Nationalist Party can and will do this.
94 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
While voting trends and election results, especially in the last
election, cannot be used to argue for a one-party dominant system,
one can certainly make the case that opposition strength is based in
large part on the desire of the electorate for a democratic system and
on the fact that votes for the opposition are to a large extent votes for
democracy, not votes for a new ruling party. Independent opposition
candidates, the tangwai, and then the Democratic Progressive Party
have certainly been able to count on fifteen to twenty percent of the
voters voting against the party in power or for party competition, thus
voting for them. This being the case, assuming it goes no further, a
one-party dominant system will result. Even if it increases to near
fifty percent of the vote, but goes no further, the outcome will still be a
one-party dominant system.
An argument for a one-party dominant, Nationalist Party-led nation
can also be made from looking at the overwhelming advantages
possessed by the ruling party in the realms of party registration, party
finances, organization, experience, etc. It would also follow from the
belief or advocacy that Taiwan needs strong leadership which only
the KMT can provide. Similarly, some may contend that the transition
from rule by the Nationalist Party to another political party
would be too traumatic given present or near-term future conditions
(such as Beijing's threats, the need for a strong defense, economic
growth, and more), and that many voters perceive this--enough to
keep the Nationalist Party in power indefinitely.
The broad base ofsupport possessed by the Nationalist Party that
has not been shaken by the opposition parties is further evidence for
the one-party dominant system. The KMT has the support of business,
farmers, labor (though this support may have weakened), and
professional organizations. It appeals to all ethnic groups and to the
electorate in all regions of the country. Though seen by some as a
party of Mainland Chinese, it has in every national election won more
than half of the Taiwanese vote. It is conservative, but so are most
Chinese. It has the reputation for being moderate, rather than radical,
and this suggests broad support.
A second alternative is the development of a two-party system.
The outcome of the 1986 election and especially the 1989 election can
be offered as proof for the growth of a two-party system in Taiwan.
As soon as the Democratic Progressive Party became a genuine political
party (though still not legal in 1986) it performed well in a national
election. It performed even better in 1989. All other political
parties failed in both elections, especially in the last elections. The
DPP was able to maintain party discipline while attracting various
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 95
kinds of opposition politicians into its fold. It learned even before it
gained party status to avoid ideological issues and to eschew blatant
sensationalism and radicalism. In short, the DPP from the onset had
a fairly broad base of appeal, and as time passed (actually not very
long considering the history of the development of political parties in
most countries) its political base became wider.
The DPP has also, to a considerable extent, come to be seen as the
opposition in Taiwan. It has been the beneficiary of nearly all of the
protest vote. It has learned to get attention and publicity and in the
process to upstage other opposition parties. Some would also argue
that it has come to be seen as a party representing the Taiwanese;
even ifthat is only somewhat true (which to date seems to be the case),
the DPP may be able to broaden its support among the majority
Taiwanese electorate. There is certainly a "Taiwanese nationalism" in
Taiwan and it is likely to grow in the future. Some have also labelled
the DPP the "liberal" party as opposed to the "conservative" Nationalist
Party. If Taiwan's economic and political development have
reached a mature stage, as some argue, liberal ideals may be a logical
next step. All of these facts or pieces of evidence indicate the DPP will
increase its strength in future years, making it a truly competitive
party. The result has to be a two-party system.
One can also argue for the evolution of a two-party system looking
at the fact that the model for democracy in Taiwan has been
largely the United States, not to mention pressure from the U.S. to
democratize. Because the U.S. has a two-party system, it is reasonable
to think that Taiwan will copy or emulate this system. Moreover,
many high-ranking officials in Taiwan as well as scholars (partly because
they were trained in the U.S., but partly for academic reasons)
believe that a two-party system is preferable to any other. In recent
discussions about Taiwan's future party system there has been frequent
mention of the fact that the Western European countries with
multiparty systems are less stable and their political systems work less
effectively.
Another factor is that, while the constitution of the Republic of
China does not mention political parties, it can be argued that the
presidential system of government implied in the constitution, and in
effect in Taiwan for four and one-halfdecades, lends itself to the development
of a two-party system-just as it did in America.
Finally, the electoral system in Taiwan favors the growth of a
two-party system. The type of ballot, voting districts, and much more
favor a two-party political structure. So do the election laws, including
recent changes that discriminate against "frivilous candidates"
96 CONTEMPORARY ASIAN STUDIES SERIES
who are not members of either the Nationalist Party or the Democratic
Progressive Party.
A third possibility is the development of a multiparty system.
The fact that the Civic Organizations Law makes it easy to form a
political party and there has been a proliferation of new parties is
prima facie evidence for a multiparty system. One can thus argue
that it is simply a matter of time before a number of these parties gain
a following and voter support.
There is reason to believe issue parties will develop in Taiwan.
On some important issues the KMT and the DPP have the same platform
or have ignored the problems suggested by the issue. Geographically
based parties have not developed. The initial success of the
Labor Party (though it did not do well in the 1989 election) is certainly
evidence that third parties can attract interest group support.
Given the fact that Taiwan's political situation is in such flux and
the electorate so undecided, as witnessed, for example, by the fact that
when the DPP formed in 1986 polls showed the public did not favor
its declaration as a party-there seems to be room for more political
parties. This would also be evidenced by the fact that a number of
interest groups, farmers to mention only one, do not feel adequately
represented by any political party. They are generally conservative
and do not favor the Democratic Progressive Party on ideological
grounds. If they decide the KMT does not represent them well, for
which there is some evidence, they may seek to support another party.
Labor has already done so, or has taken the first step to do so.
It is also easy to foresee factionalism in the DPP that could result
in a party split or in the formation of a new party by disaffected DPP
members. Clearly, some of the disputes among DPP members and its
leaders look like the seeds of future party disagreements of a serious
enough nature that they could lead to a party division. Taiwan independence
is just one of these issues. Efforts by DPP members or factions
to more actively vie for the support certain groups of the
electorate could also cause a party schism. Some DPP members have
sought the support of interest groups to the chagrin and displeasure of
other party members. This is likely to be a more serious problem in the
future. Cooperation with the Nationalist Party on important issues
also threatens to split the DPP, and this will continue to be a problem.
Another critical factor is that the DPP has become viewed as
something other than an opposition party because of its victory in the
1989 election. It is the party in power in a number of counties now.
This leaves room for other parties to claim that the DPP is no longer
anti-government or anti-KMT, and to try to fill the void. Clearly,
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 97
DPP leaders in office cannot behave as members of a protest party and
this will change the image of the DPP. It may alter its attractiveness
to voters. It should also be noted that the DPP's strength lies in middle-echelon
elective office positions, especially the county magistrates
and city councils and mayors. The DPP has not yet shown strength at
the town or village level. Independents, which could go in any direction
in terms of future party identification (or making none), are
strong at that level. They might form new parties in the future or
associate with presently existing third parties.
Though the two most recent elections give evidence for a twoparty
system developing in Taiwan, two elections (in the opinion of
this writer as well as many other observers) are too few to provide a
convincing argument about the development of a party system. It will
take several more elections to discern the direction of changes in the
party system; it may take even longer. In fact, Taiwan may have
something in between two or three different party structures for some
time. If the DPP manages to absorb or defeat challenges by other
oppositions parties, yet does not offer a strong challenge to the KMT,
Taiwan's party system may resemble periods in U.S. history when one
of the political parties was dominant over the other even though the
system was a two-party one. Another possibility would be for the Nationalist
Party to lose strength while the DPP and other opposition
parties both gain strength. This would leave the KMT in power if the
DPP and other parties could not form a coalition or if the KMT could
attract a coalition partner. One might draw other scenarios.
Finally, something needs to be said about projecting trends discernible
during the last three elections. Unfortunately, because of the
newness of competitive elections and the considerable change the nation
is undergoing politically, projecting trends is exceedingly difficult.
Still, it is clear that there are some significant trends. For example,
successful candidates have not been very ideological. The ineffectiveness
of an ideological campaign was demonstrated by several
candidates in the 1980 election. Such campaigns have not reappeared
to any extent. In the last three elections ideology for the most part
played an insignificant role. Candidates could be identified as conservative
or liberal, even the parties; yet they could not be labeled as
highly ideological. Political philosophy was not often discussed and
there was little evidence that it might become a future campaign issue.
Most candidates would be defined as pragmatic or issue candidates, or
personalistic; certainly most winning candidates can be so described.
The pragmatic nature of the Chinese people and the failure of ideological
systems, especially communism in the People's Republic of China,
98 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
seems to add weight to the argument that ideology will not become an
election issue in the future and the parties won't become ideology-
based.
Candidates who overstated what they would do in office and candidates
that were too showy were often rejected, consistently enough
that one might label this a trend. However, a line must be drawn between
this kind of candidate and the charismatic candidate. The latter
did well in these elections; not only that, they fared better in the 1989
election than in the previous elections. Likewise, commonman candidates
fared especially well in the 1989 election. Well educated candidates
were able to impress the electorate with their educational status
in the national elections until 1989. Educational qualifications may
have peaked as a campaign asset or such qualifications may have been
carried too far in elections before 1989. Alternatively, because the
DPP ran a number of candidates with outstanding educational qualifications
in 1989 the difference between the two major parties may have
evaporated at least in the voters' minds. It seems unlikely that education
will increase in importance as a qualification for political candidates.
In other words, elected bodies of government will not become
institutions for the educated elite. Whether the KMT will continue to
give it major billing is difficult to predict.
Money politics will most certainly remain a factor in elections.
The opposition has been disadvantaged because of fewer funds in a
number of elections. This was particularily true in elections before
1989. However, it was barely true, or not at all, in 1989. The playing
field appeared to have become nearly level in this respect. In any
event, neither party has wanted restrictions placed on campaign
spending. With a financial advantage in the hands of the two biggest
parties, the use of money in campaigns may become institutionalized.
On the other hand there may be a return to demands for disclosure to
embarrass their opponents, thereby enabling poor candidates to use a
financial handicap to his or her advantage. Ifone party sees this as an
advantage, or if independents seek office on a bigger scale, the importance
of money may change. The evidence is mixed about this. This
author favors the view that money will be an advantage to candidates
and this favors the Nationalist Party and the Democratic Progressive
Party.
Party discipline was a problem in every election discussed here as
well as in previous elections. It was less so in 1989, but this may be an
anomoly. Both parties will certainly make strenuous efforts to increase
party discipline in the future. Cooperation between the KMT
and the DPP will no doubt help both. The growth of a two-party
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 99
system will, of course, be a contributing factor. Party discipline may
also contribute to the rise of a two-partv system.
Campaign strategies will no doubt be refined and improved. The
success or failure of both the KMT and the opposition in these elections
was to a large extent determined by election strategy and tactics.
It is particularly apparent that the DPP improved both its election
strategy and tactics for the 1989 election. At the same time, the KMT
suffered because of serious mistakes in both areas. Both parties will
probably learn much from their mistakes, as well as from their successes,
and devote more time and energy to strategy and tactics, observe
those of their opponents, and do a better job in this realm in the
future.
Regarding future campaign issues, it seems probable that the
problems about which voters have expressed the most concern will
remain. Crime, pollution, and traffic are almost certain to be future
campaign issues. These problems are not being solved, or at least not
at a sufficiently rapid pace to satisfy voters. Some of them are not
being solved at all; they are becoming more acute. Regarding these
issues, perception may be more important than the reality of the
problems. It seems that, if anything, the perception is that the
problems are increasingly important ones. New voter issues will naturally
arise, and as polling becomes more commonplace and more sophisticated,
voter concern will carry greater weight.
This does not mean that candidates will not campaign on their
own issues, non-issues, fabricated issues, and sensational issues. Candidates
for elective office in Taiwan have found, just as in the U.S. and
other Western democracies, that they must identify with a controversial
issue or position in order to build a following before the campaign
starts. Such issues tend to be more extreme and be issues of concern to
minorities, interest groups, or voting blocks. Candidates then move to
the center and take on more popular issues. This has been a visible
pattern in recent elections and will be more so with each passing
election.
Candidates will also use controversial issues to attract attention.
Attendance at campaign rallies has declined during the period covered
here, seeming to indicate that candidates must first draw a crowd
before they can do anything else. As in advertising, they must first get
the attention of the audience. Such an approach seems to favor issues
such as Taiwan independence. In recent elections, many DPP candidates
made this part of their platform and spoke of it in campaign
speeches. Most (increasingly so in recent campaigns), however, used it
as an attention-getter or introduction. They did not define the issue or
100 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
their position clearly; in fact, most made it an emotional issue rather
than one they talked about in specific terms or on which they
broached clear solutions or answers. This seems likely to continue.
Such campaigning tends to polarize the electorate and even the
entire society and nation. This has been quite noticeable in recent
campaigns. It promises to continue, though in some ways the electorate
seems to be getting used to it. But, it seems unlikely to exacerbate
ethnic tension inasmuch as the KMT is a multi-ethnic party and the
DPP has not moved further in the direction of becoming a single-ethnic
party. Meanwhile, ethnic differences as well as ethnic identification
are diminishing. Alternatively, campaigning will accentuate
ethnic tension, but only temporarily.
Domestic issues will likely continue to dominate the slate of campaign
issues. Economic issues will remain in priority position: GNP
growth, salaries, worker benefits, insurance, etc. Growth will not be
an overriding issue as long as it is sustained at the present level or a bit
lower. A recession, though, would change this. Issues tangential or
related to the economy will remain important and may become even
more central. Pollution and traffic are critical issues that are in essence
economic; labor is another.
Foreign policy issues will remain important-more important
than in most other countries. Taiwan is more sensitive to the foreign
policies of most other countries because it is an exporting country. It
is also threatened militarily by the People's Republic of China. Taiwan
also lacks diplomatic legitimacy. Thus, the electorate's interest in
foreign policy is quite understandable. Foreign policy issues may even
increase in importance; or domestic issues and foreign policy issues
will in some cases merge. Because of this, the DPP must adopt more
realistic tenets of foreign policy; its naivete is too noticeable. So too
the KMT will have to abandon its unrealistic "return to the mainland"
policy. Both positions make the parties too vulnerable to attack
and ridicule by the other.
The issue of unelected (or chosen more than 40 years ago) delegates
to the elected bodies of government, which was a major issue in
the 1989 election, will not likely be very important in future elections.
All (or nearly all, assuming the legislation cited here and a subsequent
high court decision work) will retire before the next election. DPP
charges about the undemocratic nature of the system will have to
change. On the other hand, it is likely the DPP and other opposition
candidates will seek other points for complaint. They will almost certainly
continue to experience disadvantages in running for office, or for
winning. They will likely continue to rally for democratic change,
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 101
even if and when the system becomes as democratic as most Western
democracies. Democracy and the fairness to make it work can always
be made an issue.
Constitutional issues will probably remain important. In fact, the
pitch of complaint may rise. This was more an issue in the 1989 election
than previous elections, and these structural and fundamental issues
seem to be gaining rather than receding in importance. Winning
elections to a great extent depends on the system in which campaign
races are conducted, and political candidates realize this.
Future election issues and the course of political change in election
politics will, of course, be influenced by the success or failure of
the present government. President Lee Teng-hui in a sense is able to
bridge many gaps: he is an old and trusted KMT leader, yet also a
Taiwanese. He has been a balancer in many respects-offsetting democratic
changes, which have accentuated Taiwan's separation, with
overtures toward Beijing. Yet he has clearly not been able to satisfy
everyone, and it is unlikely he can. This means that he will have to
deal with party politics- both its good and bad sides. He no doubt
will continue to try to play a balancing role but will not find that easy.
In conclusion, it is apparent from assessing the last three elections
that Taiwan's political system has evolved quickly and decisively toward
a fully democratic one. Elections have played a central and even
indispensible role in that process. The case can be made that Taiwan is
already a democracy in terms of election campaigns and politics. Yet
the political system must consolidate the changes which have been
made and demonstrate that the process as it has evolved can work
well.
On the other hand, future elections are likely to be stormy and
bring further changes in both electoral politics and the system as a
whole. Change is still in store, although one might anticipate this
change being more a matter of adjustment or refinement in the system
than revolutionary or troublesome change. If Taiwan is a democracy,
it is not a mature democracy.
But it being the case that Taiwan is a democracy, or close, and
has done this so quickly and without violence, it should be seen more
and more as a model of successful democratization. Its electoral politics
and elections must be understood as largely behind or responsible
for that change. If other developing nations, even communist nations,
want to democratize with a map in hand, they should certainly look at
Taiwan's experience in managing and holding elections and the course
of political party development and party competition in their elections.
Article 1:
APPENDIX I
ELECI'ION AND RECALL LAW - 1989
Chapter One
GENERAL PROVISIONS
The election and recall of public officials during the period of mobilization
for, suppressing Communist rebellion shall be governed by
the provision of this law. Matters regarding their election and recall
not herein stipulated shall be governed by other relevant and applicable
laws and orders.
Article 2:
The public officials herein referred to mean the following
personnel:
1) Of the Central Government: Members of the National Assembly,
of the Legislative Yuan, and of the Control Yuan.
2) Of the local governments: Provincial assemblymen, councilmen of
cities of provincial status, county councilmen, councilmen of cities of
county status, hsiang (chen and shih) representatives, magistrates,
mayors ofcities ofcounty status, hsiang (chen and shih) chiefs, village
leaders and li leaders.
Article 3:
The election of public officials shall be conducted on the basis of
universal suffrage, equality among citizens and direct and secret ballots.
Members of the Control Yuan, however, shall be elected with
secret ballots cast by provincial assemblymen and councilmen of the
cities of provincial status. The number of names entered on each ballot
in the election of the members of the Control Yuan shall not exceed
one-third of the number of the members to be elected in the same
election.
The recalls of public officials shall be decided by the electors of
their respective constituencies with secret ballots.
Article 4:
The deadline day for calculating the ages and the lengths of residence
of the electors and the candidates shall be that immediately pre-
(103)
104 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
ceding the election day, and the facts concerning their ages and
residence shall be those recorded on the household registration books.
The lengths of residence shall begin and shall be calculated from
the day of registration of the fact of moving into a new residence. In
reholding a balloting, the balloting day last fixed for the election shall
be the criterion day for calculating the ages and the lengths of
residence.
Article 5:
The stipulations for the calculation of the various periods herein
shall be in accordance with the provisions of the civil code, and a fixed
period shall not be lengthened when its last day is a holiday.
Chapter Two
ELECTION AND RECALL ORGANS
Article 6:
For the election of public officials, a central election commission,
provincial election commissions, election commissions of cities of provincial
status, county election commissions, and election commissions
of cities of county status shall be established.
Article 7:
The Central Election Commission shall be in charge of the elections
of the members of the National Assembly, the Legislative Yuan,
the Control Yuan, the provincial assemblies and the councils of cities
of provincial status. The Commission shall also direct and supervise
the related inferior election commissions to conduct these elections.
The provincial election commissions shall be in charge of the election
of county councilmen, city councilmen, magistrates and mayors,
and shall also direct and supervise the county and city election commissions
to conduct these elections.
The county election commissions shall conduct the elections of
the representatives and the chiefs of hsiangs, chens and shihs
(municipalities).
The county election commissions shall conduct the elections of
the leaders of villages and Lis, and the city election commissions shall
conduct the elections of 1i leaders.
The elections provided for in Paragraph 2, 3 and 4 shall also be
under the supervlSlon of the respective superior election
commission(s).
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 105
During the election period, the election commissions of the cities
of provincial status and the election commissions of the counties and
the cities of county status shall establish offices in the districts,
hsiangs, chens, and shihs to manage election affairs.
Article 8:
The Central Election Commission shall be under the jurisdiction
of the Executive Yuan and shall consist of several members. The
number of its members of the same political party shall not exceed
one-half of the total number of the members of the Commission. The
members shall be appointed by the President of the Republic upon the
recommendation of the President of the Executive Yuan. One of them
shall be designated as its chairman. The organic rules of the Commission
shall be drafted by the Executive Yuan and shall be submitted to
the President of the Republic for his approval.
The provincial election commissions and those of the cities of
provincial status shall be under the jurisdiction of the Central Election
Commission and shall each consist of several members; they shall be
appointed by the President of the Executive Yuan upon the recommendation
of the Central Election Commission. One member of each
commission shall be designated as its chairman.
The county election commissions and those of the cities of county
status shall be under the jurisdiction of the provincial election commission
and shall each consist of several members; they shall be appointed
by the Central Election Commission upon the
recommendation of the provincial election commission. One member
of each commission shall be designated as its chairman.
The organic rules of all election commissions shall be drafted by
the Central Election Commission and shall be subject to the approval
of the Executive Yuan.
All members of election commissions at all levels shall discharge
their functions and duties impartially and in accordance with the law.
Article 9:
The recalls of public officials shall be handled by appropriate election
commissions. For the purpose of handling recalls, Article 7 shall
be applied mutatis mutandis.
Article 10
During the time of conducting an election or recall, the related
election commission of any level shall be competent to have the staff
106 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
members of any government agencies transferred and placed under its
supervision to do election or recall business.
Article 11:
The election commissions of all levels shall be in charge of the
following affairs:
1) The proclamation of elections and recalls.
2) The procedures and plans for elections and recalls.
3) The screening of the qualifications of candidates.
4) The planning for election publicity.
5) The inspection of election and recall activities.
6) The establishment and management of ballot casting and opening
stations.
7) The examination of the results of elections and recalls.
8) The preparation and issuance of election certificates.
9) Other affairs related to elections and recalls.
Article 12:
The Central Election Commission shall opt several impartial persons
who have the right to vote as inspectors at large. They shall be
appointed by the President of the Executive Yuan upon the recommendation
of the Central Election Commission. One of them shall be
designated as convener. The election commissions of the cities of provincial
status, counties, and the cities of county status shall each have
an inspection group of several members. The respective election commissions
shall recommend impartial persons having voting rights to
the Central Election Commission or the provincial election commissions
for appointment. One member of each group shall be designated
as its convener. Each inspection group shall execute the following
affairs:
1) To see if there is violation of any law and regulation regarding election
and recalls by any candidate, campaign assistant, recall sponsor
or public official under recall process.
2) To see if there is violation of any law or regulation regarding elections
and recalls by an elector or a recall sponsor.
3) To see if there is any law violation by the persons executing election
or recall business.
4) To oversee other affairs related to elections and recalls.
All inspectors shall be honorary without salary. The terms of office
and the number of members shall be stipulated in the organic rules
and regulations of the Central Election Commission, of the election
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 107
commissions of the cities of provincial status, and of the election commissions
of counties and the cities of county status.
The election commissions of the cities of provincial status and of
the counties and the cities of county status shall each opt impartial
persons having voting rights as inspectors to work in the meeting of
political views presentation.
The work code for inspectors and inspection groups of all levels
shall be fixed by the Central Election Commission.
Article 13:
The budgets of the election commission of all levels shall be made
by the central, provincial (city) and county (municipal) governments
in accordance with the law.
Section 1 Electors
Article 14:
Chapter Three
ELECfiONS
All nationals of the Republic of China who have attained the age
of 20 and who do not have any of the following disqualifications shall
be eligible to vote:
1) His civil rights have been deprived and have not been restituted.
2) He has been declared incompetent and the declaration has not been
abrogated.
Article 15:
In an election of public officials representing geographical areas, a
person having the right to vote shall be an elector either in the place of
his or her domicile of origin or in the constituency where he has resided
continuously for six months or longer.
The provision regarding domicile of origin in the above paragraph
shall not apply to the elections of representatives of hsiangs
(chens and shihs) or to the election of the leaders ofhsiangs (chens and
shihs)) villages and lis.
In the election of public officials of the cities of provincial-status,
the counties, the cities of county status, hsiangs, chens, and shihs, the
length of residence of a person as provided for in Paragraph 1 shall be
the length of his or her residence in the administrative district where
he lives even when a new constituency is created therein. A person
108 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
who moves into a new constituency after an election proclamation is
made, however, shall have no right to vote in the election.
Article 16:
The electors in an election of the public officials with special life
habits shall be the electors also with special life habits who have the
other qualifications set forth in Article 15.
The electors in an election of the public officials representing an
occupational or a women organization shall be the electors who have
been members of their organization for at least six months and also
have the other qualifications set forth in Article 15.
The electors in an election of the members of the Control Yuan
shall be the provincial assemblymen and the councilmen of the cities
of provincial status.
Article 17:
A person having the right to vote who in one category of election
has two or more capacities to cast ballots shall choose one of them to
exercise his right to vote.
Article 18:
A person having the right to vote shall choose a place to exercise
this right in accordance with the following provisions:
1) A person qualified to vote both in the place of his domicile of origin
and in the place of his residence shall exercise his right to vote in the
latter place unless he, twenty-five days before the balloting day, files a
declaration with the household office of the hsiang (chen, shih, district)
of his domicile of origin to the effect that he will exercise this
right in the place of his domicile of origin.
2) A person qualified to vote both in an occupational or a womenorganization
and in a geographical constituency shall exercise the
right to vote in the occupational or women organization unless he
(she), sixty days before the balloting day, files a declaration with his
(her) organization to the effect that he (she) will exercise this right in
the geographical constituency.
3) A person qualified to vote both in an occupational organization and
in a women organization shall exercise the right to vote in the women
organization unless she, sixty days before the balloting day, files a declaration
with the occupational organization to the effect that she will
exercise this right in the occupational organization.
4) A person qualified to vote in two or more occupational organiza-
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 109
tions shall, sixty days before the balloting day, file a declaration with
the organization of his choice to the effect that he will vote in this
organization, and he shall inform the other organizations he belongs of
this fact. The one who does not declare shall vote in the organization
to which he was admitted earlier. If he was admitted to two more
organizations on the same day, he shall exercise the right to vote in his
geographical constituency.
5) A person with special life habits and qualified to vote both in an
occupational organization and in a women organization shall exercise
the right to vote in the constituency of persons with special life habits
unless he (she), sixty days before the balloting day, files a declaration
with the organization of his (her) choice to the effect that he (she) will
exercise this right in the occupational (women) organization.
Article 19:
If a member of an occupational organization or a women organization
loses its membership 20 days before the balloting day, he or she
shall not be qualified to vote in the occupational or women organization.
But he or she may exercise the right to vote in his (her) geographical
constituency or the constituency of persons with special life
habits in accordance with the law.
Article 20:
Unless stipulated otherwise, an elector shall cast his ballot at the
poll in the place of his or her household registration.
Electors of occupational and women organizations and the workers
of the polls may cast their ballots either in the place of their household
registration or place of work. Members of occupational and
women organizations, who choose to cast their ballots in the their
working place however, shall be required to file, sixty days before the
balloting day, declarations with their affiliated organizations, to the
effect that they will vote in their working place.
When elections for two or more categories of public officials are
held simultaneously, those who choose to exercise their right to vote
as members of the organization(s) according to the relevant regulations
shall have to cast their ballots at the same polls for ordinary
electors. Those who choose to vote in their working places shall also
be so required.
Electors who shall elect the member of the Control Yuan shall
cast their ballots at the polls set up by the election meetings held by
110 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
the provincial assemblies and by the councils of the cities of provincial
status.
Article 21:
An elector shall obtain his ballot in the poll on the presentation of
his identification card.
In the election of the members of the Control Yuan, an elector
shall obtain his ballot in the poll on the presentation of his credential
identifying his provincial assemblymanship or city councilmanship.
Article 22:
All electors shall go to the poll to obtain and cast their ballots in
the prescribed time. After the deadline no one shall be permitted to
enter the poll. Those who have entered timely but do not yet cast their
ballots may proceed to cast the ballot.
Section Two Electoral Registers
Article 23:
The electoral register of a geographical constituency shall be
compiled by the household office of a hsiang (chen, shih, district)
based on the household registration books. All those who have duly
registered and in accordance with the law have the right to vote shall
be included in the register. Those who have moved away from their
registered residences or changed their domicile registration on any of
the twenty days before the balloting day shall exercise the right to vote
in the constituency where they are originally qualified to vote.
Article 24:
The electoral register of an occupational or a women organization
shall be compiled by the household office in conformity with the provisions
of Article 23 above and based on the membership roster made
and reported by the occupational or women organization. Those who
have lost their membership on any of the twenty days before the balloting
day shall exercise the right to vote in the organization in which
they are originally qualified to vote.
There shall be compiled separate electoral registers of the electors
of occupational and women organizations who have declared to the
effect that they will cast their ballots in the place where they work.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 111
Article 25:
The electoral register of the citizens with special life habits shall
be compiled by the household office in accordance with the provisions
of Article 23 above, and the identification of a citizen as one having
special life habits shall be based on the record in the household registration
books.
Article 26:
When elections of two or more categories of public officials are
held at one and the same time, the electoral registers may, according
to the actual need, be compiled either separately for different elections
or jointly for all the elections.
Article 27:
The electoral registers for the election of the members of the Control
Yuan shall be compiled by the civil affairs departments of the provincial
governments and the governments of the cities of provincial
status based on the names listed of provincial assemblymen and city
councilmen.
Article 28:
The electoral registers of occupational and women organizations
shall be compiled by the respective organizations and shall be displayed
publicly at the office of each organization 50 days before the
balloting day for five days for their members to read. Any member
who finds a mistake or an omission on the register may apply for correction
during the period of display.
Article 29:
Upon completion of the compilation of the electoral registers the
household offices shall submit them to the hsiang (chen, shih district)
office for transmittal to the election commission of the city of provincial
status or county or city of county status for reference. At the
same time it shall send a copy to the respective village or li office. The
village or li office shall put the copy on display in the office for five
days. Any citizen who finds a mistake or an omission on the copy may
apply for correction during the period of display.
Article 30:
At the expiration of public display days the village or li leader
112 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
shall immediately submit the electoral registers together with a report
on the applications for corrections, if any, to the hsiang (chen, shih,
district) office for transmittal to the household office for re-checking
and re-correcting purposes.
The electoral registers shall be finally established and fixed after
public display and corrections, and the election commissions of the
cities of provincial status and of the counties shall proclaim the numbers
of electors.
Section Three Candidates
Article 31:
The elector who has attained the age of 23 may register as a candidate
for a public office, but to be a candidate for county magistrate
or for mayor of a city of county-status one must attain the age of 30,
and to be a candidate for chief of a hsiang (chen or shih) one must be
at least twenty-six years of age.
An elector who has attained the age of 35 may register as a candidate
for member of the Control Yuan either in the place of his (her
domicile of origin or the administrative district where he (she) has
resided continuously for six months or longer.
A person whose nationality of the Republic of China has been
restored for three years or who has been naturalized in the Republic of
China for ten years shall be eligible to register as a candidate in accordance
with the provisions of the preceding two paragraphs.
Article 32:
A person who applies for registration as a candidate in an election
of public officials shall be required to have the following scholastic
background and experience:
1) A candidate for member of the National Assembly or the Legislative
Yuan: a senior high school or higher school graduate; or having
passed an ordinary or a higher civil service examination; or having
served as a provincial assemblyman or a councilman of a city of provincial
status or as a higher-level public official for at least one term.
2) A candidate for member of the Control Yuan: a junior college or
higher learning school graduate, or having passed a higher civil service
examination together with four or more years of experience in administrative
or judicial work: or having taught at a junior college or
school of higher learning or having practiced as a lawyer or accountant
for four years or having served as a provincial assemblyman or
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 113
councilman of a city of provincial status or a higher-level public official
for at least one term.
3) A candidate for provincial assemblyman or councilman of a city or
provincial status: a senior high school or higher learning school graduate;
or having passed an ordinary or higher civil service examination;
or having served as a councilman of a county or a city of county status
or a higher-level public official for at least one term.
4) A candidate for councilman of a county or a city of county status:
a junior high or higher school graduate; or having passed a grade D
special examination; or having served as a representative of a hsiang
(chen or shih) or a higher-level public official for at least one term.
5) A candidate for representative of a hsiang (chen or shih): a junior
high or higher school graduate; or having passed a grade D special
examination; or having served as a representative of hsiang (chen or
shih) or a higher-level public official or leader of a village or a li for at
least one term.
6) A candidate for magistrate or mayor of a city of county status: a
junior college or higher learning school graduate; or having passed a
high civil service examination together with four or more years' experience
in public administration; or having taught as a lecturer at a
junior college or a higher learning school for four or more years; or
having practiced for four or more years a profession with a qualification
certified by the passing of a high civil service examination; or having
graduated from a senior high school or passed an ordinary civil
service examination together with experience as a councilman of a
county or a city of county status or as a chiefof a hsiang (chen or shih)
or higher-level public official for at least one term.
7) A candidate for chief of a hsiang (chen or shih): a junior high
school graduate or having passed an ordinary civil service examination
together with four years' experience in public administration or together
with experience as a representative ofhsiang (chen or shih) or a
higher-level public official for at least one term.
8) A candidate for leader of a village or li : an elementary school graduate
or having passed grade D special examination; or having served
as representative of a hsiang (chen or shih) or a village or li, for at least
one term.
Qualifications set forth in the above paragraphs regarding candidates'
scholastic background and experience shall be determined
through a screening process. The rules concerning the screening process
shall be determined by the Examination Yuan.
A person who has been qualified through a screening process as a
candidate for a certain public office before this law is put into effect
114 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
shall be eligible for election to that office without having to go once
again through another screening process.
A person who has been qualified through a screening process as a
candidate for one of the two categories of central government officials
as stipulated in Item 1 of Paragraph 1 above, shall be an eligible candidate
for the other category of official specified in the same Item 1
above and also an eligible candidate for an official specified in Items 3,
4 and 5; a person who has been qualified through a screening process
as a candidate for public office specified in Item 2 shall be eligible for
the public offices specified in Items I, 3, 4 and 5; a person who has
been qualified through a screening process as a candidate for public
office specified in Item 3 shall be eligible for the offices specified in
Items 4 and 5; a person who has been qualified through a screening
process as a candidate for public office specified in Item 4 shall be
eligible for the office specified in Item 5; a person who has been qualified
through a screening process as a candidate for public office specified
in Item 6 shall be eligible for the offices specified in Items 7 and 8;
and a person who has been qualified through a screening process as a
candidate for public office specified in Item 7 shall be eligible for the
offices specified in Item 8.
Article 33:
When elections of two or more categories of public officials are
held simultaneously, a person shall be permitted to register as candidate
only for one of them. A person who has two or more qualifications
of candidacy in the election of one category of public officials
shall be permitted to register only one candidacy.
The registration of a person who has registered simultaneously as
a candidate for two or more different public offices or as two candidates
for one public office shall be null and void.
Article 34:
The following persons shall not be permitted to register as
candidates:
1) Those who have committed treason or sedition and have been
convicted.
2) Those who have committed the offense of graft and have been
convicted.
3) Those who have violated any of Articles 87, 88, 89, 90 and 91 of
this law, or Article 142 or Article 144 of the Criminal Law and have
been convicted.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 115
4) Those who have committed a crime other than the offenses set
forth in the preceding three paragraphs and have been convicted and
sentenced to a fixed prison term which has not been or entirely been
served. This clause shall not apply to those who have been reprieved.
5) Those who are confined under peace and safety preservation measures
or have been ordered to receive reformatory education and have
not yet finished the confinement or education.
6) Those who have been declared bankrupt and whose rights have not
been restored.
7) Those who have been suspended from official appointment or from
official duty in accordance with the law and the period of suspension
has not expired.
8) Those who have been deprived of their civil rights and whose rights
have not been restored.
9) Those who have been declared unfit to dispose of their property
and whose rights have not been restored.
Article 35:
The following persons shall not be permitted to register as
candidates:
1) Military men or policemen in active service.
2) Students currently attending schools.
3) Persons handling election affairs.
The above Item 1 shall not apply to the military men in active
service who are in the reserves or militia men on call before they are
ordered to enlist for active service, or when they are on educational,
service or muster duties.
The above Item 2 shall not apply to the students who are incumbent
public officials taking advanced courses.
An incumbent functionary shall not be permitted to register in
the constituency where his main office is located as a candidate for
member of the National Assembly.
Article 35-1:
All legally established political parties may recommend candidates
to participate in the elections for public officials. To complete
the registration a candidate thus recommended shall submit his (her)
party's letter of recommendation.
Article 36:
When any of the following disqualifying facts is discovered, either
116 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
before the name lists of registered candidates are made public or
before the balloting is conducted, the registered candidacy shall be
canceled by the election commission. The election commission shall
also bring a lawsuit against an elected person to invalidate his election
if a disqualifying fact is found after the balloting under Article 103-1
of this law:
1) The qualifications of the candidate are not accordant to the requirements
specified in Article 31, or the qualification acquired
through the screening process has been nullified.
2) The candidacy is in violation of Article 34 or Paragraphs 1 and 3 of
Article 35.
3) Candidacy registration is forbidden by Paragraph 1 of Article 85.
Article 37:
Persons who have registered as candidates may not withdraw
their candidacy registration after the end of the registration period.
Persons who withdraw their candidacy registration before the end of
the registration period may not reapply for registration as candidates
for the same category of candidacy.
Political parties may withdraw their recommendation before the
end of the registration period.
After the end of the registration period, the registered candidates
who move out of, or disenroll household registration in their current
constituencies or forfeit their membership in a professional organization
or women organization, shall retain their registered candidacies
and shall have to exercise their right to vote in their respective constituencies
or organization.
Article 38:
At the time of registration, a candidate shall make a security deposit,
the amount of which shall be duly announced by the election
commission before the balloting day. Candidates for village and li
leaders, however, are exempt from doing so.
The amount of the security deposit of a candidate recommended
by a political party shall be reduced one half. If the party withdraws
its recommendation, however, the candidate shall pay the total
amount.
The security deposit referred to in the preceding two paragraphs
shall be refunded within ten days after the announcement of the list of
the elected. However, no refund shall be made to a candidate for
member of the Control Yuan who receives no vote, or to any candi-
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 117
date for other post who fails to win 10% of the quotient resulting from
dividing the total number of eligible electors in the candidate's constituency
by the total number of officials therein to be elected.
Section Four Constituencies
Article 39:
For the election of public officials, the constituencies shall be demarcated
in accordance with the following provisions:
1) For members of the National Assembly to be elected by cities of
provincial status and counties (cities of county status): the administrative
areas to which they belong, shall be their respective constituencies.
An administrative area may be divided into several
constituencies.
2) For members of the Legislative Yuan to be elected by provinces
and cities of provincial status: the administrative area, to which they
belong, shall be their respective constituencies. An administrative
area may be divided into several constituencies.
3) For provincial assemblymen to be elected by counties and cities of
county status, the administrative areas, to which they belong, shall be
their respective constituencies. For councilmen of the cities of provincial
status: the administrative areas, to which they belong, shall be
their respective constituencies. An administrative area may be divided
into several constituencies.
4) For councilmen of a county or a city of county status, and for representatives
of a hsiang (chen or shih): the administrative areas, to
which they belong, shall be their respective constituencies. An administrative
area may be divided into several constituencies.
5) For magistrates of counties, mayors of cities of county status,
chiefs of hsiangs (chens and shihs) and leaders of villages and lis: the
administrative areas, to which they belong, shall be their respective
constituencies.
Article 40:
For members of the National Assembly and the Legislative Yuan
to be elected by occupational organizations, all occupational organizations
of the same category shall constitute a constituency.
For members of the National Assembly to be elected by women
organiz~ti~ns, the women organizati?n of a province and that of a city
of provmc1al status shall each constitute a constituency.
118 CoNTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
Article 41:
For members of the National Assembly, the Legislative Yuan, the
provincial assemblies, and councils of cities of provincial status or for
representatives of a hsiang, chen or shih to be elected by citizens with
special life habits, the constituencies shall be fixed in accordance with
the following provisions:
1) For members of the National Assembly and the Legislative Yuan
this group of citizens shall be divided into a constituency of those living
on the plains and a constituency of those living in the mountainous
areas.
2) For provincial assemblymen, councilmen of the cities of provincial
status, county councilmen and councilmen of the cities of county status
and for hsiang, chen and shih representatives to be elected by the
citizens with special life habits, the citizens of this group in the administrative
area of a province, a city of provincial status, a county, a city
of county status, a hsiang, a chen or a shih shall each constitute a
constituency. These citizens in any administrative area may also be
divided into a constituency of those living in the plains and a constituency
of those living in the mountainous areas.
Article 42:
The constituencies provided for in Paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 of Article
39 and Paragraphs 1 and 2 of Article 41 for the election of provincial
assemblymen and councilmen of cities of provincial status shall be
demarcated by the Central Election Commission. The constituencies
set forth in Paragraph 4 of Article 39 and Paragraph 2 of Article 41
for the election of councilmen of a county or a city of county status
shall be demarcated by the provincial election commission. The constituencies
set forth in Paragraph 2 of Article 41 for hsiang (chen and
shih) representatives shall be demarcated by the county election commission.
The proclamation of constituency demarcation shall be made
simultaneously together with the election proclamation. When there
is a change in the demarcation of a constituency, the proclamation
shall be made six months before the expiration of the terms of office of
the public officials concerned, or before the prescribed dates. In making
the above demarcation of constituencies administrative districts,
population distribution, geographical environment, communications
circumstances and the number of public officials to be elected shall be
all taken into account.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS
Section Five Election Proclamations
Article 43:
119
The election commissions shall issue various proclamations in accordance
with following provisions:
1) An election proclamation shall set forth the category of election,
the number of public officials to be elected, the demarcation of constituencies,
the election date and the time of balloting. The proclamation
shall be issued forty days before the expiration of terms of office of
public officials concerned or before the prescribed dates, but in reholding
an election or a balloting and in supplementary elections the forty
days stipulation shall not apply.
2) Days for candidates registration shall be proclaimed twenty days
before the election day. The duration of registration shall not be less
than five days. But in the elections of representatives of hsiangs, chens
or shihs, chiefs of hsiangs, chens or shihs, and leaders of villages and
lis, the duration shall not be less than three days.
3) The name lists of the electors shall be proclaimed fifteen days
before the election day and shall be for public reading for at least five
days.
4) The name lists of registered candidates shall be proclaimed one day
before the beginning of campaign activities.
5) The number of electors shall be proclaimed three days before the
election day.
6) The name lists of persons elected shall be proclaimed within seven
days after the election.
When no candidate is registered in a constituency during the duration
provided for in Paragraph 1, Article 2, a second proclamation
for candidates registration shall be issued for a duration of not less
than two days.
Article 44:
The elections of public officials shall be completed ten days before
the expiration of the respective terms of office or before the prescribed
dates. But this provision shall not apply in reholding an election, or a
balloting or in supplementary elections.
Section Six Election Activities
Article 45:
The duration of campaign activities of the candidates for public
offices shall be in accordance with the following provisions:
120 CONTEMPORARY ASIAN STUDIES SERIES
1) Fifteen days for the candidates for members of the National Assembly,
the Legislative Yuan and the Control Yuan.
2) Ten days for the candidates for members of provincial assemblies,
councilmen of the cities of provincial status, county councilmen, councilmen
of the cities of county status, magistrates and mayors.
3) Five days for the candidates for representatives of hsiangs, chens
and shihs, and for the candidates for chiefs of hsiangs, chens and
shihs.
4) Three days for the candidates for village and li leaders.
Campaign activities shall end on the day immediately before the
election day. The duration of campaign activities referred to in this
article shall be counted backward from the concluding date. The beginning
and closing times of each day of campaign activities shall be
decided by the election commissions.
Article 45-1:
The maximum campaign expenditures of the candidates for public
office shall be set by the election commission and announced simultaneously
together with the election proclamation.
The maximum amounts of campaign expenditures referred to in
the paragraph above shall be the following amounts: (1) a basic
amount prescribed with consideration given to the categories of the
public offices concerned, the duration of campaign, the programs of
activities, the sizes of the constituencies, the communications circumstances,
campaign activities and their overhead costs, and the price
index of daily life necessities, and (2) an amount resulting from first
dividing the total population of the constituency concerned by the
number of public officials to be elected and then multiplying the basic
amount.
Article 45-2:
No candidate may accept contributions of campaign expenditures
from the following sources:
1) Foreign groups or juridical persons or individuals, or groups or juridical
persons whose main membership is composed of foreigners.
2) Other candidates of the same category of public officials in the
same election.
Article 45-3:
A candidate or his designated person shall keep records of campaign
funds.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 121
Within 30 days after the election, the candidate shall report the
receipts and expenditures to the related election commission. The report
shall be signed by one of the said persons.
If the election commission, in view of the facts on hand, suspects
the truth of the report it may require the candidate to file proof or
documentation.
These shall be kept on file for six months after the submission of
the report. In the event of a lawsuit involving him, the proof and or
documentation shall be kept for three more months from the time of
judgment.
The rules for checking campaign receipts and expenditure shall
be decided by the Central Election Commission.
Article 45-4:
When a candidate's total campaign expenditure is within the
maximum amount prescribed by Article 45-1, the portion of it not
contributed by any one may be entered in the income tax report of the
election year for claiming tax deduction.
An individual's contribution of campaign expenditures to any single
candidate may not exceed 20,000 yuans. A profit-seeking enterprise's
contribution to any single candidate may not exceed 300,000
yuans. The total amount of contributions accepted by a candidate
may not exceed the maximum amount prescribed by Article 45-1.
An individual's contributions to a legally established political
party (ies) may not exceed both 20 percent of his (her) annual total
income and the total amount of 200,000 yuans. A profit-seeking enterprise's
contributions may not exceed both 10 percent of its annual total
income and the total amount of 3,000,000 yuans.
An individual's contributions mentioned in the above two
paragraphs may be entered in his (her) income tax report of the election
year for tax reduction purpose. A profit-seeking enterprise's contribution
may be entered in its annual income report as expenses or
losses during the election year.
A profit-seeking enterprise which has lost money for three or
more successive years may not make any campaign contribution.
Article 45-5:
A candidate for public office who receives ballots three quarters
more than the minimum total ballots needed for his/her election shall
receive a campaign expenditure subsidy to be calculated at 10 yuans
122 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
per ballot. However, the maximum amount of campaign expenditures
prescribed for his (her) constituency.
If the elected individual winning the minimum ballots needed for
his/her election, referred to in the above paragraph, is a woman and
wins a seat reserved only for women, the number of ballots won by the
elected immediately larger then hers shall be taken as the minimum
number of ballots needed for election.
The expenditures for the subsidy set in Paragraph 1 above shall
be listed in the budgets of the election commissions in accordance with
the law.
Article 46:
Except in the election of the member of the Control Yuan, each
candidate during the period of campaign activities may set up in his
(her) constituency campaign headquarters and may employ campaign
assistants.
Regulations pertaining to campaign headquarters and the employment
of campaign assistants shall be fixed by the Central Election
Commission.
Article 47:
The following persons shall not be qualified for campaign
assistants:
1) Registered candidates.
2) Public functionaries.
3) Those who have any of the disqualifications set forth in Article 34
and those listed in Item of Article 35 above.
One person shall not serve as a campaign assistant for two
candidates.
Article 48:
(deleted)
Article 49:
With the exception of the political views presentation meetings of
the candidates for members of the Control Yuan, all of which shall be
sponsored by the election commission, political views presentation
meetings shall be divided into candidate-sponsored meetings and election
commission-sponsored meetings. Candidate-sponsored meetings
shall be held before election commission-sponsored meetings, and the
number of days for the latter shall not exceed those for the former.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 123
The election commission-sponsored meetings shall be held by the
election commission during the days set for them. The candidates
concerned shall personally attend any or all meetings to present their
views. Whether election commission-sponsored meetings in the election
of village and li leaders are held or not shall be decided by the
election commission in accord with the situation.
The candidate-sponsored meetings shall be held by the candidates
on the days specified. No more than six meetings shall be held in any
single day, and each meeting shall last no more than two hours. Candidates
concerned shall be present. No one other than the candidate
and his campaign assistant(s) shall make speeches at the meeting. The
time and place of a meeting shall be reported to the election commission
in charge for its approval two days in advance.
The election commission may send authorized inspectors to oversee
the proceedings at the political views presentation meetings.
Article 50:
The election commission shall compile the candidates' political
views and pledges, serial numbers photographs, names, ages, sexes,
domiciles of origin, birthplaces, party affiliations, scholastic backgrounds,
experiences, occupations, addresses, and balloting day and
places, etc., shall print all these in a gazette and shall distribute them
to all households in the constituencies or to the provincial assemblymen
and councilmen of cities of provincial status, and meanwhile post
them in appropriate places two days before the balloting day.
When registering their candidacies, the candidates shall submit
the above-mentioned political views and pledges, and personal data to
the relevant election commission.
If the content of political views and pledges of a candidate violates
any of the provisions of Article 54 above, the election commission
shall notify him and ask him to correct them within a fixed
period. When the period expires, if he (she) does not correct them or
after revision the content still violates any of those provisions the
points which violate the provisions will not be printed in the gazette.
Candidates shall be held responsible for their own personal data.
If the election commission in the course of carrying on its official duties
knows any personal datum (data) to be untrue, or upon inquisition
finds it (them) untrue, it (they) will not be printed in the gazette.
Candidates recommended by their political parties shall have
party recommendation published those not recommended by any
political party or whose parties shall have party recommendation pub-
124 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
lished ; those not recommended by any political party or whose party
recommendation has been withdrawn shall have only party affiliation
published.
The election commissions may, to meet the actual needs, make
use of television and other means of mass communications to conduct
election activities for the election of public officials of certain
categories.
Article 51:
Campaign propaganda materials with words or pictures to be
printed and distributed shall be personally signed by the candidates.
Campaign propaganda materials mentioned in the above paragraph
shall be posted only in places supplied or specified by the election
commission. The size of posted materials shall be decided by the
election commission.
Candidates' hanged and standing placards, billboards, pennants,
banners, or other advertising items, except those placed on campaign
vehicles, shall not be placed 30 meters off the campaign headquarters
of the respective candidates.
Article 51-1:
During the period of campaign activities, political parties may
hold political rallies and print and distribute campaign propaganda
materials for the candidates they have recommended.
At the political rallies referred to in the above paragraph, in addition
to the candidates and their assistants, other individuals, having
been duly reported to the election commission by their own party (ies)
may also speak.
The propaganda materials printed and distributed by political
parties shall clearly bear the responsible political party's name.
Political rallies referred to in Paragraph 1 above shall be held
only during the period specified for candidate-sponsored political rallies,
and shall be regulated by the provisions of Paragraphs 3 and 4 of
Article 49.
Article 52:
Except those in the election for members of the Control Yuan,
any candidate may use campaign vehicles and loudspeakers during the
period for campaign activities.
The vehicles used by the candidates for campaign activities shall
fly pennants prepared and issued by the election commission. Each
TAIWAN'S .RECENT ELECTIONS 125
candidate shall use no more than five vehicles. A candidate whose
constituency is a city of provincial status or a county, or a city of
county status shall use no more than three campaign vehicles. A candidate
whose constituency is a hsiang (chen, shih) shall use no more
than ten campaign vehicles. A candidate whose constituency is a village
or li shall use no more than one campaign vehicle.
Loudspeakers used by candidates for campaign activities shall be
installed on the campaign vehicles and used only at candidate-sponsored
political rallies and campaign headquarters, and shall be used in
such a proper way as not to interfere with the presentation of political
views and pledges by other candidates.
Article 53:
(deleted)
Article 54:
The utterances of a candidate and of his campaign assistants shall
not commit any of the following offenses:
1) Instigating persons to commit offenses against the internal security
or external security of the state.
2) Inciting persons to undermine social order with violence.
3) Committing other offenses set forth in the criminal code.
Article 55:
The campaign activities of a candidate and his assistants shall not
include any of the following acts:
1) Making public speeches in any place other than the place of political
rallies.
2) Conducting campaign activities beyond the prescribed hours of the
prescribed days.
3) Assembling a crowd for a demonstration.
4) Organizing electors for a signing drive, or using radio or television
to broadcast campaign advertising.
5) Setting off firecrackers.
Article 55-1:
During the period prescribed for campaign activities, no political
party shall be allowed to engage in any of the following activities:
1) Except at political rallies, campaigning on behalf of any candidate
by making public speeches.
2) Establishing campaign headquarters or hiring campaign assistants.
126 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
3) Except at political rallies, campaigning on behalf of any candidate
by using campaign vehicles or amplifiers.
4) Assembling a crowd for the purpose of campaigning for a
candidate.
5) Campaigning for a candidate by posting campaign materials, hanging
or erecting such advertising media as placards, billboards, flags, or
banners 30 meters off the political party's office.
6) Mobilizing electors for a signing drive or using radio or television
to broadcast campaign advertising for a candidate.
7) Setting off firecrackers.
Article 56:
During the period prescribed for campaign activities, no person
other than the candidates, their assistants, and their political parties
may carry on campaign activities in accordance with the law and engage
in any of the following acts:
1) Campaigning for a candidate by making public speeches or by publicly
broadcasting or playing audio or video tapes of speeches.
2) Campaigning for a candidate by printing and distributing or posting
campaign materials, or hanging or erecting such advertising media
as placards, billboards, pennants or banners.
3) Campaigning for a candidate by using campaign vehicles or amplifiers
which have not been approved for campaign activities.
4) Campaigning for a candidate by assembling a crowd for a
demonstration.
5) Campaigning for a candidate by mobilizing electors for a signing
drive or broadcasting or placing advertisements in the mass media.
6) Setting off firecrackers on behalf of a candidate.
Section Seven Casting and Opening of Ballots
Article 57:
In the election of public officials, polls shall be established in the
office buildings, schools, public places, and other appropriate places in
keeping with the size of the constituency and the geographical distribution
of electors.
In the election of the members of the Control Yuan, the poll shall
be established at the provincial assemblies or the councils of cities of
provincial status.
Upon completion of balloting, a poll shall be turned into a ballotopening
station and the ballots shall be counted aloud in the presence
of spectators. After all the ballots are opened and counted the chief
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 127
administrator and the chief inspector of the ballot-opening station
shall proclaim together in writing the result of the opening of the
ballots.
Article 58:
Each poll and each ballot-opening station shall have one chief
administrator and several administrators appointed by the election
commission to take charge of ballot casting and opening business.
Article 59:
Each poll and each ballot-opening station shall have one chief
and several inspectors to inspect the casting and opening of ballots.
Each candidate shall be entitled to recommend a number of inspectors
according to the actual need. The election commission in
charge shall appoint the recommended and qualified inspectors after
screening. However, this recommending right of the party-recommended
candidate shall be exercised only by that political party. The
candidate or the political party may assign the inspectors so recommended
to his or its designated poll and ballot-opening stations to inspect
the casting and opening of ballots. If the assigned inspectors are
more than the prescribed number for a poll or ballot-opening station,
the choices shall be determined by drawing lots. However, it must not
be that all the inspectors at a poll or ballot-opening station are members
of the same political party.
When the recommended chief inspectors and inspectors are less
than needed, the election commission in charge shall opt and appoint
inspectors from among the following personnel:
1) Local impartial individuals.
2) Personnel of government offices, private organizations and schools
3) Adult students of the colleges and universities.
The rules governing the recommendation of inspectors and their
service shall be decided by the Central Election Commission.
Article 60
The ballots shall be printed and distributed by the election commission,
taking into account the different constituencies. The ballots
shall bear the serial numbers, names and photographs of all
candidates.
The above-mentioned ballots shall be delivered to the chief administrators
of the polls the day before the balloting day. Each chief
128 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
administrator shall count the ballots together with the chief inspector
in the presence of spectators.
Article 61
Before casting his ballot an elector shall vote for a single candidate
with a marking tool prepared by the election commission. In the
election for members of the Control Yuan, an elector shall vote for a
number of candidates not exceeding the number provided for in Paragraph
1 of Article 3.
After marking his ballot the elector shall not show it to anyone.
Article 62
A ballot shall be invalid in any of the following instances:
1) It is not prepared and distributed by the election commission in
charge.
2) It is marked for two or more candidates or in the case of the election
for members of the Control Yuan for a number of candidates exceeding
the number stipulated.
3) The mark is put in such a place that the elector's choice cannot be
ascertained.
4) The mark is altered.
5) The ballot bears a signature, name chop, fingerprint, words or any
other writing sign.
6) The ballot is tom.
7) The ballot is so stained that the elector's choice cannot be
ascertained.
8) The ballot is not marked with the tool prepared by the election
commission in charge.
Any question regarding the validity of a ballot shall be determined
by the chief administrator together with the chief inspector of
the ballot-opening station. If there is a disagreement between them, it
shall be voted upon and decided by all inspectors. In the event of a tie,
the ballot shall be declared valid.
Article 63:
The chief administrator together with the chief inspector shall order
a person to leave the poll or that ballot-opening station if any of
the following facts exists:
1) He has made a din or has interfered with or persuaded others to
vote or not to vote, in defiance of interdiction.
2) He carries a weapon or dangerous articles into the poll.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 129
3) He has other improper acts and has defied interdiction.
If any of the above-mentioned circumstances happens to an elector
and he is ordered to leave, the ballot at his hand shall be taken
back and the incident shall be recorded under his name in the electoral
register. If the case is serious, a specific report shall be made to the
election commission.
Article 64:
If the casting or opening of ballots is prevented by a natural calamity
or other acts of Heaven, the chief administrator of the poll or
ballot-opening station shall report the situation to the election commission
of a city of provincial status or that of a county (or city of
county status), and shall ask for approval to change the date or place
for casting or opening the ballots. If it is an election of public officials
of the Central government, provincial assemblymen (or councilmen of
a city of provincial status), county councilmen (or councilmen of cities
of county status), magistrates or mayors, the case shall also be reported
and transmitted to the Central or provincial election commission
for reference. Section Eight Election Results
Article 65:
In an election of public officials there shall be a prescribed
number of vacancies. The candidates in a constituency who have won
a plurality of ballots shall be elected. When two or more candidates
have received an equal number of ballots the winner shall be determined
by drawing lots.
In an election of public officials when there is a women quota and
when the women elected are less than the quota, the ballots obtained
by the female candidates shall be separated from those obtained by
male candidates and shall also be counted separately. The female candidate(s)
who has (have) won a plurality of ballots shall be declared
elected.
Article 66:
Where the number of candidates does not exceed or is less than
the number of vacancies up for election in a constituency, only the
candidates who have received the following stipulated number of ballots
shall be declared elected. In elections for members of the Control
Yuan or for villages and li leader, however, this provision does not
apply.
1) In elections for members of the National Assembly and the Legisla-
130 CONTEMPORARY ASIAN STUDIES SERIES
tive Yuan, provincial assemblymen, councilmen of a city of provincial
status, county councilmen, councilmen of a city of county status and
hsiang (chen or shih) representatives: 10 percent of the quotient resulting
from dividing the total number of electors in the constituency
by the number of public officials to be elected in the same
constituency.
2) In elections for county magistrates, mayors of cities of county status
and hsiang (chen and shih) chiefs: 20 percent of the total number
of electors in the constituency.
If, in pursuance with the above provisions, no one is elected or the
number of the elected does not reach the number of public officials to
be elected, and if this is related to a magistrate (mayor of a city of
county status) or hsiang (chen or shih) chief, a new election shall be
proclaimed and held within a fixed period after the balloting day. If
this is related to members of the National Assembly and the Legislative
Yuan, provincial assemblymen, councilmen of a city of provincial
status, county councilmen, councilmen of a city of county status,
hsiang (chen or shih) representatives, their vacancies shall be left unfilled.
When the vacancies reaches one half of the total number of
public officials to be elected in any one constituency, a date shall be
fixed for a hi-election.
Article 67:
When an elected person dies or when his election is declared null
and void before his taking office, the case shall be handled in accordance
with the following provisions:
1) In the case of a magistrate, a mayor of a city of county status, a
chief of a hsiang (chen or shih), a leader ofa village or a li, a hielection
shall be held within a fixed period.
2) In the case of a member of the National Assembly, the Legislative
Yuan, the Control Yuan, a provincial assembly, the council of a city of
provincial status, a county council, the council of a city of county status,
or the board of hsiang (chen or shih) representatives, it shall be
deemed as vacancies still left unfilled. If the unfilled vacancies reach
one half of the total number of the public officials to be elected in any
one constituency, a vacancy-filling election shall be held within a fixed
period.
Article 68:
The persons duly elected in an election shall take office at a stipulated
date. Any person elected in a hi-election or after a reballoting in
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 131
an election and thus cannot take office at the stipulated date, his term
of office shall also begin from the stipulated date.
Chapter Four
RECALL
Section One Initiation of a Recall Case
Article 69:
The recall of a public official may be initiated by an elector of the
official's constituency. It shall be brought to the election commission.
An elected official who has not yet served one full year after taking
office shall not be subjected to recall process.
Article 70:
A recall paper shall be accompanied with a statement of reason(s),
and the initiation shall be made by electors of the official's constituency.
The number of the initiators shall have to conform with the
following provisions:
1) In the case of a member of the National Assembly, the Legislative
Yuan, a provincial assembly, the council of a city of provincial status,
a county council, the council of a city of county status, or of hsiang
(chen or shih) representatives, the number of initiators shall be 5 per
cent or more of the quotient obtained by dividing the total number of
the electors in the official's constituency with the number of the public
officials to be elected in the constituency.
2) In the case of a member of the Control Yuan the number of initiators
shall be 10 per cent or more of the total number of the members of
the provincial assembly or the council of a city of provincial status,
which has elected that member.
3) In the case of a magistrate, a mayor of a city of county status, or a
hsiang (chen or shih) chief, or a village or 1i leader, the number of
initiators shall be 2 percent or more of the total number of electors in
the official's constituency.
In any of the above-mentioned recall cases, no more than one
person shall be listed in one proposal, but if in the same constituency
there are two cases of recall, they may be voted on at the same time.
Article 71:
No military man in active service, policemen or functionary can
serve as an initiator of a recall proposal.
132 CONTEMPORARY ASIAN STUDIES SERIES
Article 72:
A recall proposal may be withdrawn from the election commission
with a written application with the concurrence of two-thirds of
the initiators before cosigners are solicited.
Section Two Establishment of a Recall Case
Article 73:
After having received a recall proposal, the election commission
shall examine the initiators of the proposal within fifteen days. If they
are found in conformity with the provisions of the law, the commission
shall notify the leading initiator to take a book or books of cosigners
from the commission in ten days and to solicit cosigners within a
fixed period.
If any of the initiators is found not in conformity with the provisions
of the law, his name shall be cancelled and the election commission
shall notify the leading initiator to make up the number of
initiators in five days. Any making-up beyond this time limit shall be
inadmissible.
Article 74:
In cosigning a recall proposal, the cosigners must be the electors
of the constituency of the official to be recalled, and the number of the
cosigner must be in conformity with the following provisions:
1) In proposing to recall a member of the National Assembly, the
Legislative Yuan, a provincial assembly, the council of a city of provincial
status, a county council, the council of a city of county status,
or of a hsiang (chen or shih) representative, the number of cosigners
shall be 15 percent more of the quotient obtained by dividing the total
number of electors of the official's constituency with the prescribed
total number of the public officials to be elected in the constituency.
2) In proposing to recall a member of the Control Yuan, the number
of cosigners shall be 20 per cent or more of the total number of members
of the provincial assembly or the council of a city of provincial
status, which has elected that member.
3) In proposing to recall a magistrate, a mayor of a city of county
status, a chief of a hsiang (chen or shih), or a leader of a village or li,
the number of cosigners shall be 18 per cent or more of the total
number of electors in the official's constituency.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 133
Article 75:
The total number of electors referred to in Articles 70 and 74
above means the total number of electors of the constituency of the
official to be recalled at the time of his election. The criterion day for
determining both the ages and the periods of residence of the electors
referred to above shall be the day when the case of recall is initiated.
Article 76:
After having found that the cosigning for the case of recall conforms
with the law, the election commission shall proclaim the case of
recall established. If the case of recall is found inconsistent with the
law and is proclaimed that it is not established, the original initiator
shall not initiate another recall proposal against the same person
within a year beginning from the day when the case of recall is proclaimed
not established.
Article 77
After a case of recall has been proclaimed and established, a copy
of the statement of reason or reasons shall be sent to the official to be
recalled and he shall submit a statement of reply in ten days.
Article 78:
The election commission shall proclaim the following items
within five days after the official to be recalled has submitted a statement
of reply:
1) The date and the beginning and ending time of balloting on the
case of recall.
2) The statement of reason or reasons for recall.
3) The statement of reply.
The statement of reply shall not be proclaimed if it is not submitted
by the official to be recalled within the stipulated time.
Article 79:
Except in a proposal to recall a member of the Control Yuan, the
initiators of the recall proposal may, while soliciting co-signers, set up
a recall headquarters and employ a staff.
Except for the soliciting of co-signers, there shall be no activities
favoring or opposing the recall during the proceedings.
Regulations regarding the establishment of the recall headquarters,
the employment of staff and the soliciting of co-signers shall be
134 CoNTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
decided by the Central Election Commission. Section Three Balloting
on a Recall Case
Article 80:
The balloting on a recall case shall be held within 30 days after
the establishment of the case has been proclaimed.
Article 81:
A recall ballot shall have two printed columns: One bearing the
wording "agree to recall" and the other "disagree to recall" to be
marked by the electors with tools prepared by the election commission
in charge.
The elector shall not show his marked ballot to any one.
Article 82:
The provisions of this law regarding the ballot casters, ballot casting,
and ballot opening shall apply mutadis mutantis on the ballot
casters, ballot casting, and ballot opening in the case of balloting on a
recall case.
Article 83:
A case of recall shall be carried when the ballots agreeing to recall
outnumber the ballots disagreeing to recall, but the number of ballot
casters shall have to be in conformity with the following provisions:
1) In the case of recalling a member of the National Assembly, the
Legislative Yuan, a provincial assembly, the council of a city of provincial
status, a county council, a city of county status, or of a hsiang
(chen or shih) representatives, one-third or more of the electors in the
official's constituency shall have cast their ballots.
2) In the case of recalling a member of the Control Yuan, one half or
more of the total number of the members of the provincial assembly or
the council of a city of provincial status which has elected him shall
have cast their ballots.
3) In the case of recalling a magistrate, a mayor of a city of county
status, a hsiang (chen or shih) chief or a village or li leader, one half or
more of the electors of the official's constituency shall have cast their
ballots.
Ifthe electors who have cast their ballots on the recall case do not
reach the respective numbers set forth in the above provisions or if the
ballots agreeing to recall do not outnumber the ballots disagreeing to
recall, the case shall be rejected.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 135
Article 84:
Within seven days beginning from the balloting day, the election
commission shall proclaim the result of balloting on the recall case. If
the case is carried, the recalled person shall be relieved of his official
duty on the day of proclamation.
Article 85:
After the case of recall is carried, the recalled person shall not be
permitted to be a candidate for the same public office in four years
beginning from the day of the deprivation of official duty. This provision
also applies to a person who has resigned in consequence of the
establishment of a case of recalling him.
If the case of recall is rejected, no more recall proposal against the
same official shall be permitted during his term of office.
Chapter Five
PUNISHMENT OF OFFENSES AGAINST ELECI'ION AND
RECALL
Article 86:
Violators of the provisions of Item 1 of Article 54 shall be sentenced
to a prison term of not less than seven years. Violators of Item
2 of Article 54 shall be sentenced to a prison term of not less than five
years. The penalty for a violation of Item 3 of Article 54 shall be
decided in accordance with each of the relevant laws governing
punishment.
Individuals who, in the text of their speeches delivered at the
political rallies convened by political parties, violate the provisions of
Article 54, shall be dealt with in accordance with the provision in the
preceding paragraph.
Article 87:
Any person who during campaigning or assisting in a campaign
openly assembles a crowd and incites a riot to disturb public order
shall be sentenced to a prison term of not less than seven years. The
chief conspirator shall be sentenced to life imprisonment or a prison
term of not ~ess than ten years.
Any person who attempts to commit the above offense shall also
be punished.
136 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
Article 87-1:
During the period of election or recall any person who commits
acts of violence or duress against a public servant executing his official
duties shall be sentenced to a prison term of not more than five years.
In the event of the death of a public servant is resulted from that
violence or duress, the punishment shall be life imprisonment or a
prison term of not less than seven years. If the public servant is severely
injured, the offender shall be sentenced to a prison term of not
less than three years but not more than ten years.
Article 87-2:
For those who openly assemble a crowd to commit offenses described
above, they shall be sentenced to a prison term of not more
than three years, a detention at hard labor or a fine of not more than
30,000 yuans. The principal leader and the perpetrators shall be sentenced
to prison terms of not more than ten years and not less than
three years.
Of those who commit offenses described in Paragraph 1, the
leader and perpetrators who put a public servant(s) to death shall be
sentenced to life imprisonment or to a prison term of not less than
seven years; and those who severely injure a public servant(s) shall be
sentenced to a prison term of not less than five years and not more
than twelve years.
Article 88:
Violators of the provisions governing contributions acceptance set
forth in Item 1 of Article 45-2 shall be sentenced to a prison term of
not more than five years. Violators of the provisions governing contributions
acceptance set forth in Item 2 of article 45-2 shall be sentenced
to not more than one year's imprisonment, or detention with forced
labor or a fine of not more than 10,000 yuans.
The property accepted as contributions by those who commit the
offenses listed in the preceding paragraph shall be confiscated. If the
whole or a part of the property in question cannot be confiscated, a
fine shall be ordered to make up the difference.
Article 89:
A person who offers, agrees to pay or pays a bribe or offers other
improper benefits to a candidate to make him withdraw from the election
or engage in certain campaign activities shall be sentenced to a
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 137
prison term of not more than five years and a fine of not more than
50,000 yuans.
The above provisions shall apply to a candidate who demands,
agrees to accept or accepts a bribe or other improper benefits in exchange
for his promise to withdraw from the election or to engage in
certain campaign activities.
The bribe or other improper benefits the candidate has accepted
and thus has committed one of the foregoing two crimes shall be confiscated.
If the whole or a part thereof cannot be confiscated, the value
thereof shall be collected from the offender.
Article 90:
A person who has committed one of the following offenses
through violence, duress or other illegal means shall be sentenced to a
prison term of not more than five years:
1) Interfering with other's campaign or forcing others to withdraw
from the campaign.
2) Obstructing others to initiate or cosign a case of recall or to force
others to initiate or cosign a case of recall.
An unaccomplished offence specified in the preceding paragraph
shall be punished.
Article 91:
A person who has committed any of the following offenses shall
be sentenced to a prison term of not more than five years and a fine of
not more than 50,000 yuans thereto be imposed:
1) To offer, to pay or to agree to pay money and material thing or
other improper benefits to an organization or office in the constituency
under the pretext of donation in order to induce the members of the
organization or office not to exercise their right to vote or to exercise it
in a certain manner.
2) To offer, to pay or to agree to pay money and material thing or
other improper benefits to an initiator or cosigner of a case of recall in
order to induce him to refrain from initiating or cosigning the case or
to proceed to initiate or cosign it in a certain manner.
Article 92:
With an intent to influence the outcome of an election, anyone
employing written words, pictures, audio-tapes, audio-video tapes,
speeches or other methods to circulate trumped-up stories sufficient to
138 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
damage a public servant or other person(s) shall be sentenced to a
prison term of not more than five years.
Article 93:
A person who has committed any ofthe offenses set forth in Paragraph
2 of Article 61, Paragraph 2 or Article 81, or Paragraph 1 of
Article 63 and has refused to leave the polling place or the ballot opening
station after being ordered to do so shall be sentenced to a prison
term of not more than two years or a fine of not more than 20,000
yuans.
Article 94:
During the recall process, a person who agitates the crowd on the
spot where others are committing any ofthe following offenses shall be
sentenced to a prison term of not more than a year or a fine of not
more than 10,000 yuans, and the principal leader and the perpetrators
ofany of these offenses shall be sentenced to a prison term of not more
than five years:
1) To assemble a crowd to beseige the person involved in the recall,
the initiators of cosigners ofa recall, the staff officers, their recall headquarters,
their domiciles or their residences.
2) To obstruct by violence, duress or other illegal means the performance
of duty by the person under recall process and the initiators and
co-signers of recall process and their staff members.
Article 95:
A person who, with an intent to hinder or disrupt ballot casting
and opening by withholding, destroying, concealing, exchanging' or
seizing a ballot box, an election ballot, a recall ballot, and electoral
register, a ballot-casting report, a ballot-opening statistics sheet or a
ballot-marking tool shall be sentenced to a prison term of not more
than five years.
Article 95-1:
A person whose campaign expenditure exceeds the maximum set
forth by the election commission in charge in accordance with the provisions
of Paragraph 1 of Article 45-1 shall be fined not less than
10,000 yuans and not more than 50,000 yuans.
Article 96:
A person who has violated the provisions set forth in Paragraph 3
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 139
of Article 49, Item 1 of Article 55 or Item 1 of Article 56 and has
refused to conform after being restrained by an inspector shall be sentenced
to a prison term of not more than one year.
Article 96-1:
When a political party violates the provtstons set forth in
Paragraphs 2 and 4 of Article 51-1, Item 1of Article 55-1, or Item 1 of
Article 56, and does not obey inspector's attempt to curb the offending
behavior, the perpetrators shall be punished in accordance with the
provisions set forth in Article 96, and the political party in question
shall also be fined not less than 10,000 yuans and not more than
50,000 yuans.
Article 97:
Violators of the provisions set forth in Paragraphs 1, 2, and 4 of
Article 45-3, Paragraphs 1 and 3 of Article 51, or Paragraph 3 of Article
51-1, shall, in accordance with the criteria provided in Paragraph 5
of Article 45-3, or the provisions governing the location and size for
posting bills set forth in Paragraph 2 of Article 51, be fined not less
than 1,000 yuans and not more than 10,000 yuans.
Violators of the provisions set forth in Paragraphs 2 and 3 of Article
52, Items 2, 3, 4 and 5 of Article 55, Items 2 through 7 of Article
55-1, Items 2 through 6 of Article 56, or Paragraph 2 of Article 79,
shall, in accordance with the provisions covering ways and means set
forth in either paragraph 2 of Article 46 or Paragraph 3 of Article 79,
in case they do not obey inspector's attempt to curb the offending behavior,
be rendered the same punishment stated in the preceding
paragraph.
A person who puts anything other than an election ballot or a
recall ballot into a ballot box, or who takes an election ballot or a
recall ballot away from the polling place, or deliberately tears up an
election or recall ballot, shall be fined not less than 500 yuans and not
more than 5,000 yuans.
Article 97-1
A person who has committed the crime described in Paragraph 2
of Article 89 or Paragraph 1 of Article 143 of the Criminal Law, but
who surrenders within three months after committing the criminal act
shall be exempted from punishment. If the person surrenders three
months after the commission of the criminal act, the punishment may
140 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
be commuted or exempted. If the person admits of the crime during
the investigation or trial, the punishment may be commuted.
A person who surrenders as described in the previous paragraph
but fabricates stories with an intent to have someone else punished
shall be punished in accordance with the criminal law provisions regarding
false accusation.
Article 98:
Where other laws provide for more severe penalties for offenses
listed in this chapter, their provisions shall govern.
Any election or recall official who makes use of his official power,
opportunity or means of duty to commit the crimes listed in this
Chapter shall receive a penalty(ies) one and a half times more severe
than that (those) herein prescribed.
A person sentenced to a prison term for an offense listed in this
Chapter or offenses of interference with voting contrary to the special
provisions of the Criminal Law shall be deprived of civil rights.
Article 99:
An incumbent functionary who has registered as a candidate and
has committed any of the following offenses and the commission has
been proved true by an election commission, the commission shall first
notify the competent office of the offending functionary to suspend his
duties and at the same time to handle the case in accordance with the
law:
1) Rejecting without justifiable reason the election commission's request
for assisting in certain matters or for assigning staff members.
2) Interfering in the personnel or operations of the election
commission.
3) Using public fund to pay campaign expenses under a pretext.
4) Demanding an organization and its head subordinate to him or
under his command or his supervision to support his campaign.
5) Abusing his power to make campaign personnel arrangements by
transferring persons without due reason.
Article 100:
In the election of public officials of the Central Government the
chief prosecutor of the Supreme Court shall head the prosecutors of all
levels, and in the election of local public officials the chief prosecutors
of the competent courts of law shall head his subordinate prosecutors.
Their duties shall be to monitor and to prosecute on their own initia-
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 141
tives the criminal cases regarding interference in an election or a recall,
and meanwhile to dispose of the accusation, complaint or
surrender to justice brought by an office, organization or individual.
Each prosecutor shall make prompt investigations and take necessary
measures.
In conducting the above-mentioned investigation, a prosecutor
may command the judicial police in accordance with the provisions of
the Code of Criminal Procedure and the Statute for Transferring and
Directing the Judicial Police.
Article 101:
Chapter Six
ELECTION AND RECALL SUITS
When an election commission has violated the law so as to affect
the results of an election or a recall, a prosecutor, a candidate, the
person under recall process and the initiator of a recall case may,
within 15 days after the proclamation of the name list of the elected
persons or the proclamation of the result of a recall is made, bring a
suit against that election commission before a competent court of law
to request nullifying the election or recall.
Article 102:
In a suit of nullifying the result of an election or a recall balloting,
when the law court has adjudicated and declared the invalidity of the
election or recall, the election or recall shall be null and void. A period
of time then shall be set in which a hi-election or recall be held. If
the law violation involves only a part of the election or the recall process,
the part of the election or the recall process involved shall be null
and void, and a reballoting on the nullified part shall be held within a
fixed period. But this shall not apply to a situation in which the nullified
part obviously has not affected the result of the election or recall.
Article 103:
When an elected official has one of the following deeds, the election
commission, the prosecutor or the candidate(s) of the same constituency
may, within 15 days after the proclamation of the list of the
elected officials, sue for the nullification of the election in a court with
competent jurisdiction:
1) The number of ballots won by the elected official is so inaccurate as
to have affected the election result.
2) A violation of the provisions set forth in Paragraph 3 of Article 49
142 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
or Items 1 and 3 of Article 55 has occurred, and the violator(s) does
(do) not obey inspector's attempt to curb the offending behavior.
Article 103-1:
An election commission, a prosecutor and a candidate of the constituency
of the elected official may each, within the prescribed various
dates, bring a suit against the elected official before a competent court
of law to request nullifying his qualification as an official elect under
any of the disqualifying facts set forth in Article 36.
Article 104:
The election of a person shall be null and void after a law court
has adjudicated the suit for nullifying his being elected and has declared
his election invalid.
Article 105:
A judgment on the invalidity of an election or of the election of a
candidate shall not affect his performance of official duties undertaken
after his taking office.
Article 106:
After the approval or rejection of a recall case, if the number of
ballots is found inaccurate enough to affect the balloting result, the
election commission, the prosecutor, the recalled person and the initiator
of the recall case each may, within fifteen days after the proclamation
of the balloting result, bring a suit against the initiator of the
recall case or the recalled person before a competent law court to apply
for nullifying the approval or rejection of the recall case.
After the law court has adjudicated and declared that the approval
or rejection of the recall case is null and void, the approval or
rejection of the recall case shall be null and void, and a period of time
shall be set in which a re-balloting shall be held.
After the nullification of the approval of recall case, the official
duties of the recalled person shall be restored.
Article 107:
When an elector discerns a fact that may invalidate an election,
the election of a candidate, the recall of an official, or the approval or
rejection of a recall case, he may, within seven days after the proclamation
of the name list of the elected persons or the balloting result on
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 143
a recall case, file an accusation with a prosecutor or an election commission
together with the support of evidence.
Article 108:
The following courts possess jurisdiction over election and recall
suits:
1) The district court and its branch courts located in the constituency
where the election or recall suit arises have jurisdiction over its first
trial. When the act(s) or situation(s) straddle(s) two or more constituencies
all the district courts and their branch courts shall each have
jurisdiction over the suit.
2) In election and recall suits where one party refuses to accept the
verdict of a district court or a branch district court and lodges an appeal,
then the respective high courts and branch high courts superior
to the above said courts shall each have jurisdiction over the appeal of
election and recall suits.
Article 109:
To try election and recall suits, the trying court shall establish a
provisional chamber consisting of a number of judges and to try the
case en bane. The court shall try such cases before handling any suits
of other kinds. Election and recall suits shall be finally adjudicated in
the court of second instance. The court trying cases of appeals shall
have to deliver its verdict(s) within three months at most from the
beginning of the proceedings.
Article 110:
In addition to the provisions regarding procedures for election
and recall suits set forth in this law, those in the Code of Civil Procedure
shall apply mutatis mutandis. But those provisions relating to
the effect of abandonment, acceptance of liabilities and admission of
undisputed facts that do not apply to the actions shall not apply.
Article 111:
Chapter Seven
SUPPLEMENTARY PROVISIONS
The fines stipulated in this law shall be ruled by the election commission.
When a fine is not paid in time after notification, the case
shall be referred to a law court for compulsory execution.
144 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
Article 112:
The enforcement rules for this law shall be drawn up by the Ministry
of the Interior and it shall submit them to the Executive Yuan for
approval.
Article 113:
This law shall be put into execution on the day of its
promulgation.
APPENDIX II
CIVIC ORGANIZATIONS LAW DURING THE PERIOD OF
NATIONAL MOBILIZATION FOR THE SUPPRESSION OF
COMMUNIST REBELLION
Revisions in the Title and the 67 Articles as Promulgated
by the President
January 27, 1989
[Excerpts]
Article 2:
Civic organizations and their activities may neither violate the
Constitution nor advocate communism or the division of the national
territory.
Article 3:
The offices responsible for civic organizations are: the Ministry of
the Interior (central government), the provincial or city governments'
Departments or Bureaus of Social Affairs (provinces, municipalities,
and provincial-level cities), and the county or city governments (counties
or county-level cities).
However, the various areas that civic organizations are active in
shall be under the guidance and oversight of the offices normally responsible
for those areas.
Article 4:
There are three categories of civic organizations:
1) professional organizations;
2) social organizations;
3) political organizations.
CHAPTER 9
Political Organizations
Article 44: (Goals of political organizations)
Political organizations are groups formed in the Republic of
China whose goals are to use commonly-held, democratic political
concepts to aid in the crystallizaton of the people's political will and
the enhancement of political participation.
(145)
146 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
Article 45: (Definition of a political party)
That which conforms to either of the following provisions is a
political party:
1) National political organizations whose goal is to nominate
candidates to participate in elections for public office, who establish a
political party in accordance with the law, and who apply for registration
to the responsible offices in the central government;
2) National political parties which are already registered and
whose goal it is to nominate candidates to participate in elections for
public office.
Article 46: (Registration of political parties)
Those which establish political parties in accordance with Paragraph
1 of Article 45 shall, within thirty days after their founding convention,
prepare a copy of their charter and a list of the responsible
persons for presentation to the responsible offices of the central government
for registration and the issuance of a certificate and seal.
Political parties according to Paragraph 2 of Article 45 shall, the
day before elections are announced, prepare a copy of their charter
and a list of responsible persons for presentation to the responsible
offices of the central government for registration.
Article 47: (Territorial organization of political parties)
Political parties shall take the administrative divisions of the entire
country as their organization's territory. No regional parties shall
be established; however, regional branch offices may be set up.
Article 48: (Political parties may nominate candidates)
Political parties established in accordance with Article 46 may
nominate candidates to participate in elections for public offices in accordance
with the provisions of the Public Officials Election and Recall
Law During the Period of National Mobilization for the
Suppression of Communist Rebellion.
Article 49: (Democratic principles of organization and operation)
Political organizations shall follow democratic principles to organize
and operate. Specific provisions concerning items such as the
titles, numbers, length of office, dates for taking and leaving office,
meetings, and expenses of their elected members shall be separately
established in their charter.
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 147
Article 53: (Equality of political parties)
Political parties shall have the right of equal access to public
grounds and public mass media according to law.
Article 51: (Prohibition on donations from foreigners)
Political organizations are forbidden to accept donations from
foreign organizations or from organizations whose main membership
consists of foreign organizations or corporations.
Article 52: (Political party review board)
The Executive Yuan shall establish a political party review board
to deliberate matters of disciplinary action against politcal parties.
The Political Party Review Board is to be composed of impartial people;
people from the same party may not comprise more than one-half
of the total number of people on the Political Party Review Board.
The organization of the Political Party Review Board is to be set by
the Executive Yuan.
CHAPTER 10
Supervision and Penalties
Article 53: (Denial of approval and revocation of approval)
Applications for approval to establish a civic organization shall
be denied where the said organization has violated Article 2 or other
legal provisions. If the violation of the law takes place after approval
has been granted, the approval shall be revoked.
Article 54: (Reporting changes in the organization's charter for
examination and recording)
After a civic organization has been checked, ratified, and registered,
if there are changes in its charter, or in the biographical information
on its chosen functionaries, or the register of names of the
responsible person or persons, in such cases a report shall be made
within thirty days to the responsible office for the purposes of examination
and recording.
Article 55: (Revocation of approval)
Failure to establish a civic organization more than six months
after having received approval to do so shall result in the revocation of
the approval. Those who reported to the responsible office for check-
148 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
ing and approval, however, may have this period extended to a maximum
of an additional three months.
Article 56: (Merger and division of civic organization)
In cases where it is necessary for civic organizations to merge or
divide because of a change in the organization's territory or other reasons,
then they may apply to the responsible office for appraisal and
approval.
Article 57: (Encouraging civic organizations)
The responsible office may reward civic organizations for excellence,
the types of reward to be decided by the central responsible
office.
Article 58: (Penalizing civic organizations)
In situations where a civic organization violates laws or regulations
or impairs the public welfare, the responsible office may take the
following actions against it:
1) issue a warning;
2) annul the organization's decisions;
3) suspend a part or the whole of the organization's operation;
4) relieve the organization's staff members from their posts;
5) impose a time limit in which to rectify the problem;
6) revoke the approval;
7) order the organization disbanded.
Penalties stated in Paragraphs 1 through 3 above may also be imposed
by the office in charge of the target industry. The penalties
stated in Paragraphs 2 and 3, however, shall only be imposed after
consultation with the responsible office.
Penalties imposed on political parties shall be limited to warnings
and orders to disband. The Political Party Review Board shall deliberate
on the imposition of these penalties.
Article 59: (The disbanding of civic organizations)
In any of the following situations civic organizations shall be
disbanded:
1) the responsible office revokes approval;
2) the organization goes bankrupt;
3) the organization merges or divides;
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 149
4) the organization fails to rectify a problem within the specified
time limit;
5) a decision is made by the organization's decision-making body
(or its representatives) to disband.
Article 60: (Penalties I)
A person or persons who establish a civic organization without
applying for permission or registering in accordance with the law, and
then fail to disband within the specified time limit after notification by
the responsible office shall be fined not more than NT$20,000.
A civic organization which has had its approval revoked or has
been disbanded by the responsible office, but which after notification
has failed to disband within the specified time limit, or which has violated
the regulations stated in Article 65 and after notification by the
responsible office failed to register within the time allotted, shall receive
the same fine.
Article 61: (Penalties II)
In a case where a civic organization is established without applying
for permission or registering in accordance with the law, and there
is a failure, after notification by the responsible office, to disband
within the specified time limit, and business continues to be conducted
under the name of that organization, and there is a failure to obey the
responsible public servant's attempt to curb the offending behavior,
.then the ringleaders shall be sentenced to not more than two years of
imprisonment or forced labor.
In a case where a civic organization which has had its approval
revoked or has been disbanded by the responsible office, but which
after notification has failed to disband within the specified time limit,
or which has violated the regulations stated in Article 65 and after
notification by the responsible office failed to register within the time
allotted and continues to conduct business under the name of that organization,
and fails to obey the responsible public servant's attempt to
curb the offending behavior, the ringleaders shall be subject to the
same penalties stated in the preceding paragraph.
Article 62: (Penalties Ill)
Those who accept donations in violation of the provisions stated
in Article 51 shall be sentenced to not more than two years of imprisonment,
forced labor, or fined not more than NT$20,000.
Those who commit the crime stated in the preceding paragraph
150 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
shall have the donations they accepted confiscated, then repayment of
their monetary value will be demanded.
Article 63: (Enforcing the payment of fines)
Those who fail to pay fines imposed in accordance with this law
within the specified time limit shall have their cases referred to the
court for enforcement.
APPENDIX III
STATUTE ON mE VOLUNTARY RETIREMENT
OF SENIOR PARLIAMENTARIANS
Promulgated by the President
February 3, 1989
Article 1: (Applicability of the law)
The voluntary retirement of senior parliamentarians elected to
the parliamentary organs in the first national elections shall be governed
by this law.
Article 2: (Meaning of senior parliamentarians)
The senior parliamentarians elected to the parliamentary organs
in the first national elections are:
1) Members of the National Assembly, Legislative Yuan, and
Control Yuan who were elected in the 1947 elections.
2) Members of the National Assembly, Legislative Yuan, and
Control Yuan who were elected in the 1969 elections for additional
representatives and supplementary elections to fill vacancies.
3) Members of the National Assembly and Legislative Yuan who
filled vacancies in their respective parliamentary organs in accordance
with the law.
Article 3: (Application for voluntary retirement)
Delegates mentioned in the preceding article shall apply for voluntary
retirement with their respective parliamentary organs in accordance
with the provisions of this law.
Article 4: (Considered as seeking voluntary retirement)
Delegates mentioned in Article 2 who meet one of the following
conditions shall be considered as seeking voluntary retirement:
1) Those who are seriously ill and have been unable to fulfill their
responsibilities for a continuous period of one or more years.
2) Those who have resided abroad continuously for six months
or more for reasons unrelated to work.
Delegates who are considered as seeking voluntary retirement in
accordance with the preceding paragraph shall be notified by their respective
parliamentary organs. In the event that they do not apply for
voluntary retirement six months from the month following the notifi-
(151)
152 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
cation, their respective parliamentary organs shall file the applications
on their behalf.
Article 5: (Payment of retirement compensation)
Delegates retiring under this law shall be given retirement compensation
in accordance with the following provisions:
1) Delegates who have served less than 15 years in parliament
shall receive a lump sum retirement compensation.
2) Those who have served 15 years or more shall select one of the
following methods for payment of the retirement compensation:
a) In a lump sum
b) In monthly installments
c) Half the compensation in a lump sum, and the other
half in monthly installments.
For members of the Legislative and Control Yuan, the lump sum
retirement compensation in the preceding paragraph shall be calculated
according to the base units of the annuities and supplemental
subsidies they received during their last month in office. For members
of the National Assembly, the calculation shall be based on the research
stipends and supplemental subsidies they received during their
last month in office. Every six months of service shall be calculated as
one base unit. Periods shorter than six months shall also be considered
one base unit. The maximum number of base units is 61.
For retirement compensation that is paid in monthly installments,
the supplemental subsidies shall be paid in full, in addition to
which delegates who have been in public service for 15 years or more
shall receive an amount based on the monthly-paid annuities of incumbent
members of the Legislative and Control Yuan. Members of the
National Assembly shall receive 75 percent of the monthly research
stipends paid to incumbent members of the National Assembly, with
an annual increment of one percent. The maximum limit is set at 90
percent.
Retirement compensation to be paid in a lump sum and monthly
installments in accordance with Item (c) of Clause 2 of Paragraph 1
shall be calculated proportionately.
Article 6: (Calculation of the length of service)
Delegates retiring under this law shall have the length of service
include their military, public, and teaching service.
The length of service shall be calculated on the condition that the
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 153
institutions where the delegates served provide documents proving
that the delegates concerned did not receive retirement pensions, retirement
compensation, retirement benefits, severance pay, military
pensions, or retirement entitlements.
Delegates who have concurrently been in military, public, or
teaching serivce during their tenure as members of the National Assembly
shall select one of these services for calculating the length of
service when they resign, retire, or are discharged from military
service.
Article 7: (Handling of retirement compensation and calculation of
length of service for delegates who return to parliament or
hold other public offices after retirement)
Delegates who return to parliament or to military, public, or
teaching service after receiving their retirement compensation in accordance
with this law shall not have to return the said compensation.
The length of service before their first retirement shall not be included
when they resign, retire, or are discharged from military service the
second time.
When delegates who have received retirement pensions, retirement
compensation, retirement benefits, severance pay, military pensions,
or retirement entitlements apply for retirement under this law,
the length of service for calculating the retirement compensation shall
include the length of service previously calculated, with the maximum
limit not exceeding the provision in Clause 2 of Article 5. In the event
that the length of service exceeds the maximum limit, retirement compensation
shall not be paid for the length of service exceeding the
limit. In the event that the length of service does not reach the maximum
limit, retirement compensation shall be paid for the length of
service only.
Members of the National Assembly who had been in military,
public or teaching service shall not be required to return retirement
pensions previously received when they apply for retirement under
this law, and the retirement compensation shall be calculated on the
basis of the actual length of service in the National Assembly.
Article 8: (Handling of payment of retirement compensation)
The relevant parliamentary organ shall handle the payment of the
retirement compensation.
154 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
Article 9: (Payment of retirement compensation)
Monthly installments of the retirement compensation shall be
paid starting from the month following the retirement.
Article 10: (Fund for retirement compensation)
Funds for the retirement compensation shall be listed in the
budget of each parliamentary organ.
Article 11: (Methods of application for the retirement
compensation)
To apply for retirement compensation, two copies of an application
form shall be filled out and submitted with relevant documents of
proof.
The said application forms for retirement compensation shall explicitly
carry the following information:
1) The applicant's name, sex, provincial origin, date of birth,
identification card number, and place of residence and domicile;
2) Name of the institution where the applicant is serving at the
time of retirement, the position held, his/her monthly-paid annuities
or research stipends and supplemental subsidies during the month of
retirement, date of retirement, positions held and length of service
before retirement, the length of service selected for calculation, and
titles of relevant documents of proof;
3) Reasons for retirement;
4) Type of retirement compensation selected;
5) Date for the receipt of the retirement compensation.
Article 12: (Loss of the right to receive retirement compensation)
Delegates shall forfeit their right to receive retirement compensation
in the event of one of the following occurrences:
1) Death;
2) Revocation of civil rights for life;
3) Conviction of offenses against the internal and external security
of the state;
4) Loss of the nationality of the Republic of China.
Article 13: (Terminating the right to receive monthly installments of
the retirement compensation)
Delegates shall have their right to receive the retirement compensation
terminated in the event of one of the following occurrences and
TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 155
the right shall be restored when the reasons for the revocation no
longer exist:
1) Revocation of civil rights which have not yet been restored;
2) Regaining of paid public official status.
Article 14: (Cancellation of validity)
In the event that the retirement compensation is not received
within three years starting from the month following retirement, the
compensation shall be cancelled. But if the right to receive the compensation
is not exercised due to reasons beyond control, the period of
validity shall be interrupted and shall be resumed when the reasons no
longer exist.
Article 15: (Consolation compensation)
For delegates who receive the retirement compensation in
monthly installments according to stipulations in Items (2) and (3) of
Clause 2 of Paragraph 1 of Article 5, consolation compensation shall
be paid to their family members in the event of death.
The retirement compensation shall be recalculated on the basis of
the length of service, monthly-paid annuities or research stipends at
the time of death, and provisions of Paragraph 4 of Article 5 for a
lump sum payment. The monthly installments of the compensation
already paid shall be deducted from the amount and the remainder
shall be paid, with an additional one-year annuities or research stipends
as consolation compensation. The same shall apply to those
who have already received the full amount of their retirement
compensation.
In the event that delegates who receive their retirement compensation
in monthly installments leave no will upon their death, their
consolation compensation shall be received by their respective parliamentary
organs and used for their funeral or memorial activities.
Article 16: (Exclusiveness of the right to receive)
The right to receive retirement compensation shall not be withheld,
transferred, or used as guaranty.
Article 17: (Date of enforcement)
The law shall go into effect on the day it is promulgated.
APPENDIX IV
ELECfiON STATISTICS
ELECI'IONS FOR SUPPLEMENTARY LEGISLATORS,
1969-1986
Seats Won Percentage Distribution
of Votes Cast
Total ByKMT By Non-KMT
Year Seats Number% Number % KMT Non-KMT Total
1969 11 8 72.7 3 27.3 76.0 24.0 100.0
1972 28 22 78.6 6 21.4 70.2 29.8 100.0
1975 29 23 79.3 6 20.7 78.7 21.3 100.0
1980 52 41 78.8 11 21.2 72.1 27.9 100.0
1983 53 44 83.0 9 27.0 70.7 29.3 100.0
1986 73 59 80.0 14 19.2 69.9 30.1 100.0
Source: "Democratization in the ROC," held in Taipei, Jan. 9-11, 1989.
(157)
158 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
VOTES FOR KMT AND NON-KMT CANDIDATE
IN RECENT ELECI'IONS IN TAIWAN
Election For KMT Non-KMT Total
Office Year Number % Number % Number %
Taiwan Provincial
Assemblymen 1985 4,464,812 69.8 1,928,728 30.2 6393540 100.0
County Magistrate
and City Mayor in
Taiwan Province 1985 3,945,367 62.6 2,353,959 37.4 6229326 100.0
County and City
Councilor 1986 4,666,297 74.1 1,628,623 25.9 6294920 100.0
Shih (City), Chen
(Town), and
Hsiang (Township)
Chiefs 1986 4,449,954 83.2 896,334 16.8 5346297 100.0
Source: Taiwan Provincial Election Commission, Report on the Election of the Eighth
Provincial Assemblymen, the Tenth County Magistrates and City Mayors, the Eleventh
County and City Councillors, and the Tenth Hsiang (Township), Chen (Town), and Shih
(City) Chiefs.
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TAIWAN'S RECENT ELECTIONS 161
Gold, Thomas B. State and Society in the Taiwan Miracle. New York:
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Tien, Hung-mao, The Great Transition: Political and Social Change in
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Wu, Tsong-shien. Taiwan's Changing Rural Society. Pasadena, Calif.:
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Gregor, A. James. Ideology and Development: Sun Yat-sen and the
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Greenhalgh, Susan M., and Edwin A. Winkler. Approaches to the
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Koo, Anthony Y.C. The Role ofLand Reform in Economic Development,
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INDEX
Actuarial Charts, 23
Advertisements (Political), 18, 29, 59
"Affirmative Action", 79
Aging Parliamentarians (see also Elder Parliamentarians), 23
"Aquino", 57-59
Association for Public Policy Studies, 8
Association of Tangwai Writers and Editors, 8
Association of Tangwai Elected Officials, 8
Ballot, 95
Basic Law, 68
Beijing, 5-6, 25, 34, 39, 46, 59, 64, 69, 72, 74-76, 83-84, 88, 94, 101
"Bottom Up" (Democracy), 4
Campaign Aides, 19
Campaign Posters, 19, 29
Campaign Rules, 64
Campaign Speeches, 19, 33, 99
Campaign Spending, 19, 29, 41, 55, 64, 66, 71, 98
Campaign Workers, 36, 54, 58
Candidates (for Political Office), 7-9, 15-16, 18-20, 27-43, 45, 47-48,
53-75, 77-86, 91-92, 94-95, 97-99, 101
Carter, Jimmy, 6
Central Advisory Committee (Democratic Progressive Party), 9
Central Committee, 15-16, 47
Central Executive Committee (Democratic Progressive Party), 9
Chang Po-ya, 78
Changhua, 70, 81
Chao Shao-kang, 63
Charisma, 16, 84
Chen Shui-bian, 78
Chen Yung-yuan, 70
Chiang Ching-kuo, 3, 8, 10, 12, 15, 21, 24, 39, 46-47, 49, 67, 84
Chiang Kai-shek, 11, 88
Chieh Yen fa (see also Martial Law), 12
China Democratic Justice Party, 21
China Democratic Socialist Party, 20, 78
China Liberty Party, 21
China Patriotic Party, 21
China People's Party, 21
(165)
166 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
China, 3-6, 11, 17, 20-21, 23-24, 27, 30, 33-34, 37, 43, 52, 55-56, 59,
61, 65-67, 69-71, 73-74, 77, 81-82, 87-88, 91, 94, 96, 99
China Unification Party, 21
Chinese Liberty Party, 14
Chinese Republican Party, 21
Chou Ching-yu, 53
Civic Organizations Law, 18, 95
Coal Mines, 30, 32, 46
Colonial government, 4
Commonman politics, 10
Communism, 9, 22, 33-34, 51, 59, 85-86, 97
Communists, 4, 55-56
Congress (Political Party), 9, 15, 17, 22, 46, 73, 88
Conservative (Political Culture or Candidates), 40, 43, 54, 74-75, 85,
91, 94-97
Constitution (Republic of China), 9, 12, 21-22, 31, 48, 51, 69, 87-89,
91-92, 95
Control Yuan, 16, 20, 24-25, 66, 78
Corazons, 59
Corruption, 14-15, 46-47, 82, 85
Counterfeit Ballot, 57
Crime, 12, 50, 54-55, 69-70, 73, 76, 86, 99
Curfew, 12
Democracy, 3-14, 16, 23, 25, 29, 32, 35, 41, 43-45, 52-53, 56-57, 61-62,
66, 74, 76, 79, 82-83, 85-92, 94-95, 101
Democratic Freedom· Party, 14
Democratic Progressive Party (see also DPP), 3, 7-8, 17, 20-22, 45, 49,
50, 65-66, 93-96, 98
Democratization, 3, 5-6, 10, 16-17, 21, 23-24, 28, 47, 65, 76, 86, 88,
90-93, 101
Demonstrations, 10, 13, 49, 57, 61, 71, 78
Deng Xiaoping, 72-73, 84
Dictatorial (Policies of Government), 7
Diplomacy, 8, 55
Dirty Tricks (in Campaigns), 58
Discipline (Party), 8, 15, 51, 60, 84, 94, 98
Donations, 19
DPP (see also Democratic Progressive Party), 7-11, 13, 18-22, 24-26,
45, 50-62, 66-77, 79-86, 94-101
Eastern Europe, 11, 83
Economic Growth, 8, 31-32, 45, 62, 64, 76, 89-90, 92, 94
Education (Level of Political Candidates), 33, 38-39, 41, 63, 74, 84, 98
INDEX 167
Elder Parliamentarians (see also Aging Parliamentarians), 25-26, 73
Elder Statesmen, 17
Election Commission, 19-20, 29, 34, 53, 69, 77
"Election Holiday", 7
Election Law, 3, 6-7, 17, 20, 34, 59, 67, 91
Election and Recall Law, 18, 29, 59, 60, 66
Electoral Politics, 3-4, 7, 12-14, 20, 22-23, 45, 87, 92-93, 101
Electorate (Taiwan's), 10, 23, 27-30, 33-34, 37, 40-45, 51, 53, 60, 62,
65, 69, 73-74, 76, 83-85, 91, 93-96, 98-100
Emergency Decree (see also Martial Law), 11, 13
Equal Access, 23, 66
Ethnic Politics, 82
Ethnic Tensions, 5
Executive Yuan, 11
Factionalism (Political Party), 10, 37, 40, 42, 61, 93, 96
Farmers Party, 21
Female (Candidates or vote), 41, 63, 72, 79, 84
Filibuster, 25
Filing fee, 19
Flags (Party), 45, 59, 72
Foreign Currency, 56
Foreign Exchange, 47
Foreign Policy, 9, 34, 39-40, 55, 76, 88, 100
Foreign Trade, 55
Formosa Faction (Democratic Progressive Party), 22
Gentlemen's Agreements, 6, 34
Gerrymander, 20
Government-in-Exile, 23
Government Information Office, 13
Graduate education (Political Candidates or Officials), 63
Graham, Katherine, 50
Grand Hotel, 8, 49
"Greater China", 5
Guerrilla, 71, 75
Guns, 83
Habeas Corpus, 12
Handbills, 58-59
Health Insurance, 76, 81
Helpers (For Campaign Candidates), 19, 35
Henry Liu, 30-31, 40, 46
Hou Yuan Hui, 8
House Foreign Affairs Committee, 46
168 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
Hsiao Yu-chen, 53
Hsinchu, 81
Hsu Hsiao-tan, 72
Hsu Hsin-liang, 56, 68
Hsu Incident, 58
Hsu Jung-shu, 70
Hu Kua, 70
Human Rights, 7, 54, 73, 75, 88
Hung Chao-nan, 63
Ideology, 15, 33, 63, 97
Independence (see also Taiwan Independence Movement), 9-10, 16,
21-22, 34, 43, 51-52, 56-57, 59, 63, 67-69, 71-72, 75-76, 79-84, 92,
96, 99
Independent politicians, 8, 30, 60, 66-67, 77-78, 80, 97-98
Inflation, 56
Interest Group Politics, 20
Interest Groups, 82, 86, 89, 96, 99
Interior Ministry, 50
Intermediaries, 4
International Affairs, 49
James Soong, 73, 80
Joint Headquarters (Party), 19
Judicial Yuan, 78
Justice Ministry, 68
Kang Ning-hsiang, 22, 53, 63
Kaohsiung City Council, 27, 30, 33, 36-38, 41, 77, 80
Kaohsiung Incident, 6, 12, 49, 56-57, 68
Kaohsiung, 6, 12, 20, 27, 30-31, 33, 36-38, 40-41, 49, 54, 56-57, 62, 65,
68, 70, 72, 77-78, 80-81
KMT, 3, 7-9, 11-20, 22-26, 29, 32-33, 35-43, 46-63, 65-86, 94, 96-101
Korean War, 4, 89
Kuo Pei-hung, 68, 71
Kuomintang (see also KMT and Nationalist Party), 3, 7, 14, 27-41, 60
Labor, 10, 14, 21, 33, 72, 74, 77, 94, 96, 100
Labor Movements, 14
Labor Party, 10, 21, 72, 77, 96
Labor Reform, 21
Lawsuits, 72
Lawyers, 17
Lee Teng-hui, 16, 31, 81, 84, 101
Legal Assistance, 12
INDEX 169
Legislative Yuan, 5, 16, 18, 21-22, 24-27, 50-51, 59-63, 65-67, 69-70,
77-81
Leninist, 9, 50
Li Peng, 72
Liberal (Candidates or Parties); 9, 43, 54, 75, 85, 93, 95, 97
Lin Shui-chuan, 52
Local elections, 4-5, 9, 27, 36, 41, 43, 75
Mainland (China), 4-5, 11, 14, 16, 23, 25, 40, 52, 55, 67, 74-75, 83, 88,
92, 94, 100
Mainland Chinese (see also Mainlander and Mainlander Chinese), 67,
88, 94
Mainland Representatives, 25
Mainlander Chinese (see also Mainland Chinese), 5
Mainlander (see also Mainland Chinese), 5, 79
Mao Tse-tung, 4, 75
Marches (see also Protest), 13, 59
Marcos, 72
Martial Law (see also Emergency Decree), 3, 9-14, 18, 21, 34, 38, 45,
47-48, 50, 52, 62, 67
Mass Politics, 11, 90
Matsu, 11
Media, 12-13, 23-24, 31-32, 34, 39, 45-46, 56, 58, 66, 74
Military Courts, 12-13
Military, 11-13, 18, 25, 30, 33, 35, 41, 60, 66-67, 72, 75, 79
Minor Parties, 23, 60
Model (Taiwan), 16-17, 44, 50, 74, 90, 93, 95, 101
Money (used in Politics and Campaigns), 18, 20, 39, 55, 64, 70-72, 82,
91, 98
"Money Politics", 18, 20, 39, 55, 64, 71, 82, 98
Multi-Party System, 20-23, 78, 93, 95-96
National Assembly, 5, 16, 25-26, 28, 47, 59-63, 66
National Democratic Institute, 49
National Security Council, 24
National Security Law, 13, 22
Nationalist Party (see also KMT and Kuomintang), 3, 6-8, 14-15, 17-
18, 21, 27, 31, 47, 49, 60, 65, 69, 93-98
Neihu, 25
Neo-Socialist Party, 21
Nepotism, 15
Networks (Political), 19, 57, 66
New Country Alliance, 69, 72
New Tide Faction, 22, 69, 80
170 CoNTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
New Tide, 22, 69, 81
Newspapers, 11, 14, 33, 46, 52, 57, 59, 67-68, 80, 83
Non-Party candidates, 19
Observer Team (Elections), 70
Old Guard, 24, 72
"Old Thieves", 25
One-China Policy, 5, 66
One-Party System, 23, 56, 93
Opinion Polls (see also Polls), 12, 18, 48, 53
Overseas Chinese, 24-25
Parades, 11, 19
Participation (Political), 8, 18, 29, 52, 64, 66
Parties (Political), 3, 6, 8, 10, 12-17, 20-23, 31, 42, 45, 47-54, 60, 62,
65-67, 71, 73-78, 81-82, 93-100
Party Congress, 9, 17, 22
Party Constitution, 9
Party discipline, 51, 60, 84, 94, 98
Party organization, 47, 50-51
Party-owned Companies, 70
Party Platform, 30, 61
Party Politics, 81
Party System, 4, 22, 62, 65, 93, 95, 97
Patriotism, 84
People's Republic of China, 52, 55-56, 59, 65, 67, 72, 88-89, 92, 97,
100
Philippines, 58-59, 71
Pingtung, 38, 51, 81
Platform (Party), 6, 9-10, 16-17, 20, 22, 30, 43, 48, 61, 68, 72-75, 80,
96, 99
Polarization, 6, 30, 52
Political party, 6, 8-9, 14, 20-21, 23, 31, 40, 42-43, 45, 48-49, 94, 96,
101
Polls (see also Opinion Polls), 8, 12, 18, 27, 33, 35, 42-43, 45, 48, 51,
52, 53, 58, 64, 65, 71, 76, 83, 96
Pollution, 35, 53-54, 74, 76, 99-100
Posters, 19, 29, 59
Presidential office building, 49
Press Control, 13
Primary Election, 3, 66
Propaganda, 31
Protest Politics, 22
Protests (see also Marches), 12-13, 22, 48-49, 57, 75, 77, 85, 95-96
INDEX 171
Provincial Assembly (Taiwan), 20, 27-30, 36-37, 40-41, 65, 77-78, 80-
81
Public Financing, 19
Public Opinion Polls (see also Polls), 18, 46
Quemoy, 11
Radicals, 8, 11, 22, 30, 57, 63, 81, 83, 94
Rambo, 25, 72
Ramsey Clark, 68
Reform, 3-4, 6, 14-16, 20-22, 64, 74, 89-90
Republic of China (see also Taiwan), 3, 6, 11, 20, 23, 27, 34, 43, 45, 68,
92, 89, 95
Republican China, 3
Revolution, 59, 63
Rezoning, 20
Riot Police, 70
Rumormongering, 58
Scholars, 4, 17, 24, 48, 95
Secessionism, 22
"Seeping Up" (Democracy), 5, 87-88
Self-Determination (see also Independence), 10, 34, 40, 43, 50, 52, 56,
59, 75, 83, 92
Senior Parliamentarians (see also Aging Parliamentarians and Elder
Parliamentaries), 23-24, 66, 75, 79
7th fteet, 11
"Snails Without Shells", 71
Social change, 8, 89-90
Social Security, 55, 73, 75-76
Soviet Union, 83
Standing Committee, 47, 51
Stock Market, 72-73, 84
Strategy (election), 6, 27, 35, 39, 42-43, 60, 75, 84-86, 98-99
Street Politics, 13, 56
Strikes, 14
Students, 19, 83
Sun Yat-sen, 3-4, 89
Supplementary elections, 5, 23
Supreme court, 70
Sympathy vote, 78, 84-85
Tai Index, 72
Taipei, 5, 8, 20, 24, 27, 30-31, 33-34, 36-42, 46, 49, 53-54, 58, 62-63,
65, 7~ 77, 79-81, 83, 88
Taipei City Council, 27, 30, 37-38, 40-42, 77, 80
172 CONTEMPORARY AsiAN STUDIES SERIES
Taiwan Garrison Command, 11
Taiwan (see also Republic of China), 3-14, 16-18, 20-25, 27-36, 40-41,
43-47' 49-52, 55-58, 62, 64-76, 78, 80-83, 85-97' 99-101
"Taiwan Model", 74
Taiwan Provincial Assembly, 20, 27, 36, 40-41, 78, 81
Taiwan Strait, 4, 20
Taiwanese Government, 10
Taiwanese Independence Movement (see also Independence), 51-52,
56-57, 59
Taiwanese, 4-5, 10, 15-16, 34, 40, 43, 51-52, 56-57, 59, 72, 76, 79, 94-
95, 101
Taiwanization, 47
Tangwai Election Campaign Committee, 9
Tangwai Research Association for Public Policy, 47, 49
Tangwai, 6-9, 21, 27, 30-33, 35-40, 42-43, 47-51, 55, 61, 77, 81, 94
Taxes, 44, 76
Television, 18-19, 29, 59, 66, 71, 83, 86
Temporary Provisions, 9, 12, 14, 21, 91
Tenth Credit Union, 31, 46
13th Congress (Nationalist Party), 15
Tiananmen, 11, 67, 72, 83, 85
Tokenism, 5
Trade, 47, 55-56, 76
Trade Surplus, 47, 55
Traditionalism, 74
Traffic, 33, 53-54, 74, 76, 99-100
Treason, 11-12, 56, 59, 68
Truman, Harry, 11
Two-party system, 7, 19, 27, 43, 67, 78, 93-95, 97-98
U.S. (see also United States), 4-7, 11, 15, 30, 46, 49-53, 55-57, 68, 70,
73, 88-89, 95, 97, 99
Unemployment, 31-32, 45, 55, 81
Union, 21, 30-31, 46, 83
United Democratic Party, 21
United Nations, 9, 50, 55, 86
United States (see also U.S.), 6, 30, 39, 43, 56, 68, 89, 95
U.S.-Republic of China Defence Treaty, 88
Veterans, 67
Violence, 25, 27, 34, 51, 58-59, 70, 91, 101
Vote Buying, 18, 40, 55, 64, 70-71, 73, 75, 82
Vote-Buying, 18, 70
Vote Fraud, 18, 77
INDEX
Washington Post, 50
"Water Buffaloes Without Skin", 71
Water Control, 33, 76
Welfare Society, 50
Welfare, 9, 33, 43, 50, 54-55, 73, 75-76, 81
Western Democracies, 15, 17, 29, 50, 53, 58, 63, 80, 99, 101
Western European Model, 50
Western Media, 12-13, 24
Western Political Parties, 51
"Whimsical Candidates", 19, 66
Wine, 13, 30, 32, 46
Women, 21, 41, 57, 63, 79, 86
Women's Party, 21
Workers, 10, 14, 19, 21, 33, 36, 54, 58-59, 100
Young China Party, 20, 30, 37, 78
Yu Chen Yue-ying, 37, 53, 70, 72, 78
Yu Deng-fa, 70
Yu Mu-ming, 79
173
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
John F. Copper is The Stanley J. Buckman Professor of
International Studies at Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee. He
is the author of ten books on Asian affairs, including three other books
on Taiwan: Taiwan's Elections: Political Development and
Democratization in the Republic of China (with George P. Chen),
1984: A Quiet Revolution: Political Development in the Republic of
China, 1988; and Taiwan: Nation-State or Province? 1990. Dr. Copper
has also contributed more than one hundred articles and op-ed pieces
to academic journals, magazines and newspapers. He has lived in Asia
for more than thirteen years, including six years in Taiwan.