-Caveat Lector- <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/"> </A> -Cui Bono?- from: http://www.zolatimes.com/V4.14/taiwan_demise.htm Click Here: <A HREF="http://www.zolatimes.com/V4.14/taiwan_demise.htm">Chiang Kai-Shek Rolling in His Grave, by Andrew…</A> ----- Chiang Kai-Shek Rolling in His Grave by Andrew Perrin Taipei, Taiwan—If their world has been turned upside down, as many Taiwanese have been inclined to comment when reflecting on the historic events of the past two weeks, then Chiang Kai-shek, the man they once called Generalissimo, and who is buried just 30km north of Taipei city, must be rolling in his grave. His beloved Nationalist party that he resurrected in 1926 from the ashes of Sun Yat-sen’s Three Principles of the People; that he transplanted to Taiwan in 1949 after a humiliating defeat at the hands of the Communists on the mainland; and then reinvented, through purge, ploy, patronage and realpolitik, so that it could survive long after his death in 1975, is on the verge of irrelevance, possibly even extinction, if the doomsayers in Taipei are to be believed. And there are many of them. The World's Richest Political Party in Ruins Just over a week after the party had suffered its first defeat in the island’s young democratic history, it is no secret that the Nationalists, the world’s richest political party, now stand at the cross roads. Last week saw the unprecedented sight of thousands of disgruntled party members assembled outside party headquarters in downtown Taipei being met head on by a wall of stone-faced riot police: hitherto in Taiwan, a sight reserved for pro-democracy supporters burning the Nationalist flag. On Friday, March 24, the Nationalists protestors got what they were after: the head of the party chairman, and incumbent president Lee Teng-hui, who they blamed for the party’s stunning loss in the election. In Taiwan, where politics is never dull, and rarely predictable, Lee stood accused of sabotaging his own party’s candidate, Lien Chan, while lending tacit support to the opposition’s Chen Shui-bian (who won) during the campaign. It was a charge not without foundation. It is well known in Taiwan that Lee has met regularly in private with Chen, a fellow benshengren, or native Taiwanese, to lend advice and discuss ideas on Taiwan’s future development. And during the final weeks of campaigning a number of influential public figures close to Lee aligned themselves with Chen. The most notable of these, Nobel-prize winning chemist Lee Yuan-tseh, a man with a flawless public reputation for integrity and honesty, and a close friend of Lee’s, is believed to have swung near 2 percent of voters into Chen’s camp – the winning margin. That Lee should take some responsibility for the loss was disputed by few. But after 12 years in the chairman’s post, his departure leaves the party wide open to a split along ethnic and factional lines. “The party is in crisis,” said Bau Tzong-ho, political science professor at the National Taiwan University, and policy advisor to Lien Chan, the vice president and acting chairman of the party since Lee’s departure. “We are entering a crucial few months that will determine our future prospects.” Prior to Chen’s March 18 victory, the possibility that the Nationalists could now find itself in such a precarious position was unthinkable. Having ruled Taiwan for 54 years, much of that under martial law, the party has overseen the island’s transformation to a democracy and engineered its stunning rise from an agrarian-based society to a hi-tech driven dynamo economy that has become a model for the region. And the party still held a powerful majority in the legislature, boasted a membership of more than 2 million, and had assets tied up in the state and private sectors reportedly worth US$20 billion. But the Nationalists have now fallen prey to the very system that had allowed them to maintain a stranglehold on power for so long. “They ruled through a Leninist system that relied upon party membership to secure advancement either in politics or business,” said Antonio Chiang, publisher of Taiwan’s Th e Journalist, and one-time opposition journalist to Nationalist rule under martial law. “It was a system they believed unbeatable. There were elements within the party who wanted to reform, who wanted to rid the party of its links with gangsters and its close associations with big business, but that reform was too slow in coming for a rapidly-changing Taiwanese society that was learning to embrace democracy, and the notions of fairness for all that went it.” The challenge facing party leaders post-Lee is how to implement reform without splitting the party in two and reducing it to a minor opposition party. Lien Chan, the Insider In Lien Chan, they have a man who straddles the ethnic divide, but little else. Born on the mainland into an elite Taiwanese family, he was handpicked from an early age to one-day lead the party. His rise in the party ranks has been steady, but not spectacular, and his selection as the party’s presidential candidate was frowned upon by some members who characterized him as lazy, uninspired and unpopular with the voters. His performance in the election, where he secured just 23 percent of the vote, surprised even his most ardent critics. In the wake of the loss, his appointment as acting party chairman has only served to fuel speculation of mass defections in the ranks, especially among those pushing for democratization of the party structure. “We were hoping there would be some immediate changes at the top of the party,” an unidentified 38 year-old Nationalist legislator told the Taiwan press last week. “The fact that Lien is now acting chairman after performing so badly in the election confirms to me that very little will change.” Despite the criticism surrounding his appointment, Lien’s first moves as acting chairman have been progressive. This week he announced his intention to expel those party members who did not support him during the campaign, and plans to set up a reform committee that will look to rid itself of the millstone that is known in Taiwan as “hei-chin” – literally Black Gold. “The black is the links to the gangsters who control the towns and secure the votes and the gold is the close relationship between government administrators and big business,” explained Bau Tzong-ho, of the National Taiwan University. “It is hei-chin that has hurt the party badly. As a ruling party it hesitated to cut links with these elements for it feared it would lose without access to grassroots votes. Now they have lost there is nothing to stop them.” But reform may not be enough. In the coming months, analysts predict the “Taiwan-first” side of the party, who faithfully followed Lee through his decade as president, will desert in droves to Chen Shui-bian, and business leaders, in the past crucial to delivering millions of employee votes to the party, will increasingly go the way of the market. “Potentially the Nationalists loses its place in politics because it is lost and there is no functional reason to stay with it … it’s quite possible there could a division of the people in the Nationalists, both toward the DPP and whatever the third force is,” said Professor Bruce Jacobs, an East Asian political analyst at Monash University in Melbourne, and in Taiwan this past month observing the elections. The third force may well be James Soong. Soong's Song Soong, mainland born and a former Nationalist heavyweight, broke ranks with the party last year to run as an independent after being overlooked for the party’s nomination in favor of Lien. With no party machinery to back him up, Soong still managed to secure 37 percent of the vote, furlongs in front of Lien, and just a short head away from the presidency. Now Soong has promised to start his own party – the People First Party – and reduce the Nationalists to a rabble by winning over those members, mostly of mainland origin, who suffered in silence as Lee took control of the party, and used it to push his own pro-Taiwan agenda. Whether Soong follows through on that promise is a matter of speculation. Already there have been calls from his supporters within the Nationalist party pleading with him to return to the fold, and return the party to its mainland roots. There is a feeling that Soong will stand back and watch the party self-destruct before riding in on a white horse painting himself as the savior. The prospect of Soong in control of the Nationalists will send shivers down the spine of the president-elect Chen. Following his inauguration in May he will be under immediate pressure to act upon his campaign promises of reforming the island’s political system, and retrieve those assets claimed by the Nationalists that he contends belong to the state. If he has to confront a hostile legislature, the chances of that happening are nil. “You must remember that Chen only secured 39 percent of the vote,” said Bau Tzong-ho. “He would not have won if Soong had not left the party. People are saying that the Nationalist party is dead, or dying. But they said that in 1949. People must remember that the Nationalists have a long history that is not easily forgotten. And the next election is only four years away.” ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Andrew Perrin, formerly a reporter for the Sydney Morning Herald, is now a freelance journalist based in Taipei, Taiwan. He may be reached at adperrin@ho tmail.com. from The Laissez Faire City Times, Vol 4, No 14, April 3, 2000 ----- Aloha, He'Ping, Om, Shalom, Salaam. Em Hotep, Peace Be, All My Relations. Omnia Bona Bonis, Adieu, Adios, Aloha. Amen. Roads End <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/">www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance—not soap-boxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. 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