Opposition Sweep To Victory in Taiwan

[v2freak]

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapc...ion/index.html

From Jonathan Lai

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) -- Taiwan's opposition Nationalist Party, which supports closer ties with mainland China, won a landslide victory in parliamentary elections Saturday in a major upset for President Chen Shui-bian.


A big Nationalist victory would provide a substantial boost for Nationalist leader Ma Ying-jeou.

1 of 2 The opposition victory is a massive blow to Chen's government, whose hard-line policies were aimed at formalizing de facto independence for Taiwan. Chen, who has been president for eight years, must step down after the presidential elections on March 22.

"This is the biggest failure since the founding of the DPP (Democratic Progressive Party) and, as chairman, I should take responsibility," he said at a news conference before announcing his resignation as DPP's leader. The DPP was founded in 1986.

Frank Hsieh, the DPP candidate, will face the Nationalists' Ma Ying-jeou in the March presidential vote. Hsieh currently trails by around 20 points in opinion polls.

The ruling Democratic Progressive Party garnered only 24 percent of the vote, and now hold 27 seats. Chen had hoped his party would win at least 50 seats.

The Nationalists won 72 percent of the vote to gain 86 seats, including five for smaller aligned parties in the 113-member parliament, according to the Central Election Commission.

"KMT will not abuse its power of majority," said Wu Po-hsiung, chairman of the Nationalist, or Kuomintang, Party. "Instead KMT will use it on stabilizing the society, uniting the nation and restoring the image the parliament should have."

There are 17 million Taiwanese registered to vote from a population of 23 million, and the turnout was 58.5 percent.

A major election issue was the economy, political observers said. Salaries have remained stagnant and unemployment is high in one of the world's top 20 economies, while the prices of consumer goods have soared -- at the same time as China has enjoyed an economic boom.

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The Nationalists have promised to boost the economy by allowing Chinese tourists to visit the island and arranging direct flights between Taiwan and China.

If the Nationalists take the presidency, they will then be able to end years of deadlock between the nation's legislative and executive branches. Initiatives that the Nationalists have stalled in recent years have including a multibillion-dollar sale of American weapons to the island.

It could also see a thawing of the island's often frosty relationship with China, with the Nationalists not dismissing the notion of possible reunification with the mainland -- an issue of serious dispute since the unresolved civil war of the 1940s. China refuses to recognize Taiwan's de facto independence from the mainland.

Beijing's at ude towards Taiwan has also been the source of tension with Washington for several decades. E-mail to a friend

[Cant_Be_Faded]

The US has opportunities in the Taiwan issue and the n. korea denuclearization process to participate in multilateral diplomacy involving China that can set the foundation for a decent diplomatic relationship with an up and coming regional and world power.

I see some success thus far in the n. korea issue but we seem bent on riding the fence of the taiwan issue too much, and that makes us seem weak in China's eyes, further lowering the world opinion of our country.

We say one thing and do another. This strategery is self defeating.

[v2freak]

In your opinion, what should the US do about the whole thing?

-> "KMT will not abuse its power of majority," said Wu Po-hsiung
Unfortunately, I don't believe him.

[Cant_Be_Faded]

US should support China incorporating Taiwan formally, drop all independence mumbo jumbo, and seek a quasi-middle ground to provide taiwan with a semblance of autonomy like hong kong

[v2freak]

Look at it from Taiwan's perspective: would you want someone coming into your house and telling you how to live?

If you think the US should maintain ties with China strictly because of business, then I will have to disagree. With the government's regulation of all the wrong things, poor practices and dangerous products, I don't see why the US should be so eagar to support China. China looks to me to be one of those backstabbers; they'll play nice until they decide that you need to be taken down. Their temerity to dictate what team Yi plays for, coupled with their military-trained cyber hackers are prime examples of this.

[Cant_Be_Faded]

lol
well no doubt in some aspects they are backstabbers and no doubt it seems they're owning us in terms of genetically and militarily enhanced cyber hackers

but
I still feel that the only truly long term beneficial solution to this problem will be to support a unified china but with different policies. They did it for Hong Kong, they can do it for Taiwan. The fact that the opposition won with such a sweep can ignite this kind of policy. China is a proud country. Why after half a century are they getting pissed? Because Taiwan was rumored to be imminently declaring independence. What's the big in deal--Taiwan has been seperate from China in all but name for a long time? Well its that seperation by name that China will not tolerate. It weakens their domestic and regional standing, it makes them seem "weak" and its something a proud nation with a deep history such as China simply will not tolerate.