Saturday, January 31, 2015

Ko Wen-je talks colonialism, China

(Ed. Note: Ko didn't mention how Taiwan has been a puppet of and a de-facto colony of the United States since 1947. What the United States has done to meddle in Taiwan affairs, beginning with approving two million ruling class migrants and turning their backs on the 228 massacre of Taiwanese intellectuals by Chinese KMT invaders, not to mention the billions of dollars of military and surveillance equipment sold and given away to "Free China" during the 39 year world-record duration U.S. approved Martial Law, military bases, sex industry, sweatshop economy and anti-unionism. The United States remains unmentioned as the biggest foreign influence in Taiwan in the 20th century.) 

Ko Wen-je talks colonialism, China

CULTURE GAP:The Taipei mayor said cross-strait cooperation is more important than discussing ‘unification’ in an online interview with ‘Foreign Policy’ magazine

By Abraham Gerber  /  Staff reporter

Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je speaks to reporters at a news conference on Tuesday last week.

Photo: Fan Pin-chao, Taipei Times

Colonization is associated with progress in the Chinese-speaking world, Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) said in an interview published on Thursday on the Foreign Policy magazine Web site.
“For the [world’s] four Chinese-speaking regions — Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong and Mainland China — the longer the colonization, the more advanced a place is,” Ko said, adding that it was “embarrassing” that “Singapore is better than Hong Kong; Hong Kong is better than Taiwan; Taiwan is better than the mainland.”
Ko did not elaborate, but Taipei City Government spokesman Sidney Lin (林鶴明) said the mayor’s remarks were intended to highlight some of the positive influences of colonization, without denying the “historic scars” and “bad memories” left behind by colonizers.
While the “open door” brought by colonization influenced colonized societies in a variety of ways, colonizers also left infrastructure and institutions that had an undeniably positive affect, Lin added.
In the interview, Ko reiterated comments that the “cultural gap” between Taiwan and China had to be closed before there could be any talk of “reunification.”
“When more than 99 percent of Chinese people close the doors while doing their business in bathrooms, we can talk about reunification [sic],” he said.
On cross-strait relations, he said: “Cooperation is more important than reunification,” while speaking of a need to convince China that “a free and democratic Taiwan is more in China’s interest than reunification.”
“People talked about ‘one country, two systems,’ but maybe we should talk about ‘two countries, one system’ instead,” he said.
Ko’s celebrity and status as an independent politician have led to hopes that he might be able serve as a bridge between the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and China through his participation in the annual Taipei-Shanghai forum.
Whether his proposal for a “two countries, one system” formula would have a bearing on cross-strait relations is unknown.
Late last night, Lin said that Ko has an open attitude toward cross-strait city-to-city exchanges and upholds the principles that both sides should know, understand and respect each other while cooperating.
In response to Ko’s proposal last week that the forum include other cities, Shanghai Mayor Yang Xiong (楊雄) said that further exchanges were welcome “on the foundation of the 1992 consensus.”
While China insists that the so-called “1992 consensus” of “one China with different interpretations” must be the premise of any cross-strait talks, Ko said in December last year that the slogan was a 22 year-old “consensus without consensus,” which should be replaced by what he termed a “2015 consensus.”
He declined to define what such a consensus might be.
“Without taking any position on the 1992 consensus, it is impossible to expect Shanghai to cooperate,” National Taiwan University associate professor of political science Chang Teng-chi (張登及) said. “The original hope was that there might be a possibility for Ko as an independent to have a greater flexibility to reinterpret the 1992 consensus by reiterating some part of it without ‘recognizing’ or ‘totally denying it.’”
Asked about Ko’s colonization remarks, National Chengchi University Taiwanese History department professor Hsueh Hua-yuan (薛化元) said that imperialism in contemporary history often brought about systems and construction that are later utilized by the former colony.
It is hard to deny that colonists affected their former colonies and brought about the modernization of colonized areas, Hsueh said.
National Taipei University Department of Administration and Policy professor Hao Pei-chih (郝培芝) said that the comments reflect Ko’s experience and views that being law-abiding represents advancement.
What is left for the former colony depends largely on the colonizer, Hao said, referring to how most former French colonies remain less developed, while those of England and Japan were more developed.
Additional reporting by Tseng Wei-chen and Jake Chung, staff reporter with staff writer


Taipei mayor's comments on benefits of colonization draw rebukes

2015/01/31 21:42:19

Taipei, Jan. 30 (CNA) Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je's (柯文哲) remarks that "the longer the colonization, the more advanced a place is" have drawn flak from scholars and lawmakers for overlooking the problems created by colonization.

Ko's comments in an interview published Thursday by Foreign Policy only look at the issue from one simple angle, failing to reflect the fact that colonization is a historical tragedy and ignoring the trauma the process causes, said Professor Chang Ya-chung (張亞中) of National Taiwan University.

Chang said that during the colonial rule of Taiwan, Japan-led development of the island was aimed at benefiting the Japanese homeland, and Taiwanese were seen as second-class citizens.

"Nobody likes to be colonized, and colonization is a misfortune," said Hsueh Hua-yuen (薛化元), a professor of Taiwanese history at National Chengchi University.

He explained that under the principle of cultural relativism, different cultures should not be compared as better or worse than one other.

Wang Hsiao-po (王曉波), a prominent commentator and professor at Shih Hsin University in Taipei, pointed to the United Nations declaration in 1960 on granting independence to colonial countries and peoples on the conviction that colonialism hampers world peace.

He said that progress cannot be attributed entirely to the length of colonization of a place as it involves geographic and historical factors as well.

Citing the example of Hong Kong, Wang said its prosperity is due to a long-term closed-door policy in China's other regions that made Hong Kong the only export harbor; for Singapore, its success comes from a superb location for shipping in the Malaccan Strait.

Lawmakers from the ruling Kuomintang (KMT) and its allies were also quick to criticize Ko's comments.

"Nobody should beautify colonial rule in any form, especially an intellectual in a former colony," KMT Legislator Lin Yu-fang (林郁方) said, noting Japanese violence against Taiwan's indigenous people during its 50-year rule of Taiwan.

Wu Yu-sheng (吳育昇) also of the KMT said Ko should apologize for this "serious gaffe."

Yok Mu-ming (郁慕明), chairman of the minor New Party allied with the KMT, said: "I don't understand Ko's words."

He argued that if colonial rule brought so many benefits, colonized countries would not have to fight for their independence.

Taipei City spokesman Lin Ho-ming (林鶴明) came to Ko's defense, arguing that colonization leaves "bad memories, but it also has an influence that can be assessed positively."

"Colonialism means opening the door, which is bound to bring the shock of cultural diversity, but will naturally bring influences like civilization and institutionalization," he said.

Institutions and infrastructure brought by rulers of the past "objectively speaking have an undeniable positive effect, but at the same time, the historical scars they leave must be addressed," he said.

(By Hsieh Chia-chen, Chen Chih-chung, Tseng Ying-yu and Lilian Wu)
Enditem/WH

Monday, January 26, 2015

'New Power Party' established, hoping to recruit 100,000 supporters

New party sets big challenges

New party sets big challenges

FOUNDING FATHERS::Rocker-activist Freddy Lim and a former Judicial Reform Foundation executive director said their party seeks a normalized national status

By Lii Wen  /  Staff reporter

Mon, Jan 26, 2015 - Page 3

Led by the lead singer of the metal band Chthonic, Freddy Lim (林昶佐), and lawyer Lin Feng-jeng (林峯正), a group of prominent activists yesterday vowed to bring a breath of fresh air to next year’s legislative elections with the founding of a new political organization — the New Power Party (NPP, 時代力量黨).
Members of the nascent party were undeterred by a recent split in its main founding organization — the Taiwan Citizen’s Union (TCU) — with TCU president Fan Yun (范雲) expected to launch a separate activism-based party in March.
Although both groups founded by TCU members promised to present an alternative to the major political camps, their members reportedly developed irreconcilable differences about inviting public participation.
With outspoken supporters of Taiwanese independence, such as Lim, and veteran social activists in its ranks, the NPP is likely to compete for voters who lean toward the pan-green camp headed by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).
According to an NPP statement, the party’s platform includes the advocacy of a “normalized” national status for Taiwan, promotion of tax reform and improved social security measures, as well as reform to the much maligned Referendum Act (公民投票法).
At the NPP’s inaugural news conference yesterday, party founders outlined their goal of bringing “transparency and openness” to politics through an Internet-based voting platform that would allow the public to nominate its legislative candidates.
By registering on the party’s Web site, NPP supporters would be eligible to nominate any candidate for a preliminary list that would later be voted on by party members, Lim said.
Registered supporters can become party members by paying a NT$600 annual membership fee, he added.
Lim said the party is confident that it will attract at least 100,000 registered supporters before the end of March, adding that the vote to finalize the party’s legislator-at-large list would be held from May 30 to June 1.
He brushed off questions about how the party would react if it fails to reach its proclaimed goal, saying that the group was more worried that its computer servers might be unable to handle the “overwhelming” surge of support.
NPP founders said that they aimed to represent the interests of residents “from all walks of life,” with their novel Internet voting system marking a break from traditional politics.
While Lim is equally famous for his musical career and his political activities, Lin is the former executive director of the Judicial Reform Foundation and a well-known human rights activist.
“In an age of technology, we should use new technological means to solve traditional problems,” Lin said. “The true aim is to lower the threshold and costs for public participation.”
Lim and Lin sidestepped questions from reporters about the TCU’s split and declined to elaborate on differences between the NPP and the party’s fellow activists.
TCU member Urda Yen (嚴婉玲), who is expected to join the other expected activist party to be headed by Fan, said the groups had similar ideals and that she welcomed the increased presence of “third-party” alternatives.
She added that the groups were divided over methods of public participation, with Fan’s group reluctant about the NPP’s nomination mechanism, as it might “leave little room for cooperation with other [social reform] groups.”
“We think it is more important for the public to have a say in policies,” Yen said.
Earlier in the day, DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said that allowing room for smaller political parties to flourish would be “beneficial to Taiwan’s political culture,” adding that the DPP would seek cooperation with minor parties, including potential competitors.

'New Power Party' established, hoping to recruit 100,000 supporters

2015/01/25 22:03:51

Taipei, Jan. 25 (CNA) Taiwan saw the birth of a new political party on Sunday, which was named as "New Power Party (時代力量)."

The party was established by members of Taiwan Citizen Union (公民組合), a non-governmental organization devoted to the pursuit of equality, justice and environmental sustainability.

Lin Feng-cheng (林峯正), one of the founders, said the party hopes it can recruit 100,000 supporters by the end of March, whom it will invite to recommend candidates for the legislator-at-large seats.

There are more than 200 political parties in Taiwan, a country upholds the freedom of assembly and association. Only five of them hold seats at the Legislature. They are the ruling Kuomintang, the Democratic Progressive Party, the Taiwan Solidarity Party, the People First Party, and the Non-Partisan Solidarity Union.