"Social Issues, Civil Society and the Quality of Democracy"
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| Huaguang residents protest in front of MOJ |
Last Thursday (March 21, 2013), residents of the Huaguang Community (華光社區) went to the Ministry of Justice to
protest the forced demolition of their homes, bringing along shingle, bricks
and lumber from some of the already destroyed houses in the community. The
protesters clashed with police as they attempted to confiscate the rubble,
claiming it could be used as weapons. A week prior, the same residents and student
advocates protested and clashed with the police in front of the Executive Yuan,
as they tried to deliver a petition to the new Premier, who took office early last month and decided to retain the Minister of Justice for his cabinet.
The incident in front the Ministry of Justice is only one of numerous smaller protests during President Ma Ying-jeou’s first year of his second term in office. According the Criminal Investigation Division (CID) officers of the Zhongzheng First Police District (中正第一分局), the district where most government agencies including the President’s office and the Ketagalan Boulevard are located, the frequency of the protests has intensified in the past few months [1]. Since the end of February, there have been protests every weekend and during some weekdays.
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| March to preserve the Lo Sheng Sanatorium |
The size of the protests ranged from approximately fifty
people to tens of thousands. The issues range from laid-off workers being made to repay
assistance received from the Council of Labor Affairs after their employers
closed down factories without paying wages, to environmental groups, academics
and aborigines against the Miramar Resort Hotel in Taitung county.
Citizens have protested the forced eviction and demolition of old mainlander communities and squatters
residencies (眷村). Farmers whose land and rice paddies were
excavated without notice by the Miaoli County government for the expansion of
the Jhunsan Science Park have protested, as have those affected by the forced
demolition of the Lo Sheng Sanatorium by the Taipei City
Department of Rapid Transit System (DORTS) for the Shinjhuang MRT line.
Activities against media monopolization, tuition hikes, and the death penalty, in
addition to a major anti-nuclear power movement have all
generated attention.
Although most of the issues extend before President Ma
Ying-jeou took office, the Ma administration did not demonstrate much resolve
during his first term and exacerbated some cases during the second term by, for
example, filing law suits against the laid-off workers
for repayment, suing and freezing the bank accounts of
residents of mainlander communities, and going back on promises to keep the
farmland in Miaoli by the Vice President, and the action of the Ministry
of Interior to continue with acquisition and demolition[2].
On the media monopoly issue, President Ma has delegated
the task to the “independent agencies” under the Executive
Yuan, the Fair Trade Commission and the National Communications Commission, and
insists the administration should not involve itself with the acquisition of
media outlets by business conglomerates. The Ma administration and the
Kuomintang are currently developing ways to effectively deal with rising public
opinion against the continuation of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant and nuclear
energy more generally. Their proposed resolutions include the recommendation to
hold a referendum and providing television political talk shows with more talking
heads to promote support for nuclear energy and the power plant.
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| Anti-nuclear power march |
Robust Civil Society
From the series of protests and social movements during
the first year of President Ma’s second term, a few interesting observations
can be made: 1) Civil organizations, student groups and NGOs have taken
the place of political parties and became organizers and leaders of the
protests; 2) Social injustice, public safety, maintenance of democratic values,
such as freedom of expression and press, are drawing the largest numbers of
citizens to the street, instead of the traditional political divide such as,
green vs. blue, independent vs. unification, Taiwan vs. China, Taiwanese vs.
Mainlander; 3) One can also observe participation from various strata of
socio-economic background and age groups, transcending support for specific
political parties.
In addition, increasing number of students and the youth
population are becoming involved in social movements, political and social
issues advocacy. The Anti-Media Monopoly protest on September 1 last year
was said to be the largest protest dominated by the young since
the Wild Lily Movement in the early 1990s. Therefore, while President Ma’s
approval rating is in the low teens, the discontent among citizens on various
socioeconomic and public safety issues has reinforced Taiwan’s robust civil
society, an essential component of a healthy, vibrant democracy.
Ma’s overly ambitious and optimistic first campaign,
which promised to dramatically improve the lives of
Taiwanese, his portrayal of the readiness of his
administrative team, Ma’s vow to continue fulfilling campaign
promises from the previous term if elected to a second term, combined with
his inability to fulfill those promises are all reasons for the wide-spread of
disgruntlement among ordinary citizens. The main challenge to the Ma
administration now is the ordinary citizens who are not a part of any
organization. These citizens are of critical importance in shifting the
political balance because they are turning up in the streets in protest
marches. They heckle the police and the authorities to express their opposition
first to specific measures, support broader demands, and ultimately it is these
citizens who can challenge a regime.
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| Amis elders protest against Miramar Resort |
Moreover, advocates and protesters are
learning campaign, mobilization and demonstration strategies from each
other, while showing up at one another’s demonstrations to lend support. It is
usual to see a group of graduate students protesting in front of the Fair Trade
Commission against the monopolization of media, then see the same group of
students show up in front of the Department of Rapid Transit System (DORTS)
placing stickers that say, “Quit lying and be professional” on the department’s
sign to advocate for the lepers of Losheng Sanatorium. Protesters often cite
the International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights” (ICCPR) and the
“International Covenant of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights” (ICESCR),
which the Kuomintang dominated Legislative Yuan passed into law, with President
Ma signing the instrument of ratification on May 14, 2009. The
camaraderie among the different advocacy groups is a salient phenomenon in
Taiwan today.
Challenges in the Next Three Years
During Ma’s first term, the political opposition
mobilized most of the major protests. From the Anti-EFCA Rally, to Ma’s 100-day Protest, to the 517 Rally and the 1025 Rally to Protect Taiwan, the theme never
drifted too far from defending Taiwan’s sovereignty or against Ma’s
China-friendly cross-Strait policies. However, in recent months, not only have
protests became more frequent and intense, but protesters are focusing on
issues social justice, social and economic welfare, human rights and democratic
quality. Ma’s habitual “Will resolve in accordance to law” (依法行政) answer no longer resonates. One of the most popular term
netizens are now using to reflect Ma’s policies is “lack of feeling” (無感).
As the Ma administration struggles to provide feasible
solutions to social issues, it is encouraging to see youth and citizens who
ordinarily would not take to the streets assuming the task of monitoring the
government, holding government officials, including the President, accountable
for their promises and their obligation to the people. This lively and
independent civil society is invaluable in upholding the quality of democracy
in Taiwan. It should also serve as a cautionary tale to the opposition that
attacking President Ma on his policy failures is not enough to win votes or
instigate regime change. The opposition will have to prove itself as a viable
political alternative to the Kuomintang in order to achieve electoral success
in the upcoming elections.
As an official from the Civil Execution Department
responsible for the forced demolition of Huaguang Community said, “I’m just
doing my job as an officer of the court, but it’s the government – right now,
Ma Ying-jeou – who is responsible for taking care of the people. Everyone else
is watching, including me, and if we realize they are insincere in helping us
better our lives, we won’t welcome them back” [3].
Dr. Ketty W. Chen is a Visiting Scholar at the National Taiwan University, Institute for Advanced Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences. Prior to arriving Taiwan, she taught at the Department of Behavioral and Social Sciences at Collin College in Plano, Texas. Follow her on Twitter @HelloKetty1998.
[1] Interview conducted by author during and after the March 21, 2013, Huaguang Community Ministry of Justice protest.
[2] When the residents of the Huaguang Community refused to move out of their homes in 2000, the Ministry of Justice under the Chen Shui-bian administration did not carry out the project of urban renewal.
[3] Interviewed by the author on March 18, 2013 at Huaguang Community, Taipei, Taiwan.(All photographs by author)
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| Marchers kneel and touch their heads to the ground to protest the demolition of Lo Sheng Sanatorium |
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| Rally against the Miramar Hotel resort in Taitung |
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| 200,000+ showed up for the Anti-Nuclear Power March |
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| Cute Anti-Nuclear Power Cacti |
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| Student leaders of Anti-media Monopoly Movement rally in front of the Fair Trade Commission |
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| Anti-Media Monopoly protest at the Legislative Yuan |
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