Re: Support for sovereignty and DPP no longer tied
This editorial, published in the Liberty Times a few days ago, was so good I was going to translate it myself. Thankfully, Perry Svensson of the Taipei Times did the hard work for me. A concluding point:
The fact that support for the DPP is slipping while support for Taiwanese independence is increasing shows that while the public wants Taiwanese independence, it is displeased with the DPP’s approach.
To extract itself from these difficulties, the DPP must either find ways to persuade the public that its approach is the right one or come up with a new approach.
It doesn’t look like the DPP will act any time soon, but the party can no longer afford to put off addressing its troubles.
As I have said the before, the party seems to me to be out of sync with both its message and messengers, rather than differing from Taiwanese voters on core values. The question is, can the DPP make themselves palatable again? They must. And sooner rather than later.
But like Lin Cho-shui (林濁水), who wrote the piece linked above, I don't anticipate the DPP will act any time soon.
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The fact that support for the DPP is slipping while support for Taiwanese independence is increasing shows that while the public wants Taiwanese independence, it is displeased with the DPP’s approach.
I think it's more than just that. I think the Taiwanese electorate actually believes that PandaMa and the KMT's approach can actually be thought of as independent from the sovereignty / unification question. This, as I stated before, is not so much a failure for the DPP's approach as it is a victory for the giant propaganda machine that IS the KMT (also coupled with the CCP and Western media propaganda). It should be noted that the KMT have a much easier sell here, too. Until the Taiwanese finally feel the effects of full authoritarian rule once again -- Unification will remain an abstract notion which can be separated from all other elements of socio-economic policy.
I personally don't think there is a viable solution for the DPP now, unfortunately. The majority of Taiwanese (like Americans) are short-term thinkers and the KMT are well aware of this. Unless there is a leader that appears in the DPP that is extremely charismatic and can sell the Taiwanese an alternate vision that basically states that "no pain = no gain" -- I see no hope for an independent Taiwan.
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DPP needs to portray not just a free taiwan message but also what that means.
Taiwan is not currently independent. This point needs to be made clearly before any further discussion of Taiwan politics can proceed.
At the most basic level, the ROC in Taiwan is a subordinate occupying power, beginning Oct. 25, 1945. Then by moving its central government to occupied Taiwan in Dec. 1949, it became a gov't in exile.
Taiwan territory is occupied territory. The principal occupying power is the USA.
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