Colonialism in Taiwan

By Samuel Yang of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan

For many Taiwanese, the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) regime was another unfriendly foreign colonial power.

When President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) was elected in 2000, the people of Taiwan celebrated a major breakthrough in their struggle for democracy. Unfortunately,Taiwan's democracy has been sabotaged by the KMT.

Despite the election of a DPP administration, the KMT has been able to control the schools, local governments and military with unfair distribution of governmental funds and privileges.

The guaranteed 18 percent interest offered specifically to those privileged groups is just one of the many examples.

Such undemocratic tactics have been supported by the KMT-dominated legislature, judiciary and the media. The resounding defeat of the DPP in the January legislative election attests to the KMT's continued influence.

Nonetheless, Taiwan's democracy has been able to prevent the KMT from perpetrating its autocracy. Therefore, the party is now cooperating with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and advocates eventual unification with China.

Taiwanese should be alert to not only the rising political power of the KMT, which might lead to a resurrection of the old autocracy, but also to the possibility of annexation by China, the colonial rule of which would be worse than that of the past KMT regime or Japan.

Both the KMT and CCP have made a show of becoming more democratic to deflect criticisms of their autocracy and rampant corruption.

The inability of the KMT and CCP to embrace democracy is deeply rooted in Chinese culture, which instills the virtue of citizens' loyalty to the rulers but grossly neglects the fact that the citizens are the masters of the government -- the fundamental principle of modern civilized governance.

The KMT's autocracy and undemocratic disregard of law and order is largely responsible for the recurrent political turmoil in Taiwan since World War II. It is most ironic that media biased in favor of the KMT and CCP have shaped domestic and international opinions that have been detrimental to the democratic development.

The public has been misled to believe that the KMT and CCP are the salvation of Taiwan and China.

While China repeatedly condemns past colonial occupations by foreign powers, it practices the same old colonialism by occupying Tibet with force and repression. It also intends to invade Taiwan against the will of the Taiwanese.

The expectation that China will become a democracy might be the underlying motivation of foreign investors. Unfortunately, China's population is so misled by a biased media that China's democratization is impossible for the foreseeable future. Meanwhile, the country is a security threat to not only Taiwan, but the entire world.

On March 22, the people of Taiwan must use their votes to reject the undemocratic KMT, and send an unequivocal signal to China that a Tibet-style colonial occupation of Taiwan is not acceptable.