Pro-Equality Candidate Triumphs in Taiwanese Presidential Elections

On Saturday, opposition Democratic Progressive Party chairperson Tsai Ing-wen won the presidential election with 56 percent of the vote.

The mainlanders decided on the move after Tsai, the head of the Democratic Progressive Party, was elected president in the island’s general elections last Saturday. Units of the army also joined in military drills and missile tests in 1995 and 1996 aimed at intimidating Taiwanese into voting for pro-unification candidates in the island’s first direct presidential election.

The sides are now entering in a wait-and-see period in the months before Tsai, Taiwan’s first female president, is inaugurated in May.

Tsai’s victory has angered many mainland netizens, who accused her of seeking Taiwan’s independence. Five legislative seats were also won by the youthful New Power Party, with heavy metal rock star Freddy Lim and human rights lawyer Huang Guo-chang both defeating veteran KMT legislators.

The United States has expressed concerns about the danger of worsening China-Taiwan ties at a time when China’s navy is increasingly flexing its muscles in the South China and East China seas. “We hope and believe that the global community will adhere to the One-China Principle, stand against any forms of ‘Taiwan independence, ‘ and support, with concrete actions, the peaceful development of the cross-Strait relations”.

Lawyer-turned-politician Tsai brushed off the attacks, and responded with a series of posts encouraging democratic debate on the island.

Gong, 57, is from the southeastern Chinese province of Fujian, which lies just across the narrow strait that separates China and Taiwan.

Tsai has said she will maintain peace with China, and Chinese state-run media has also noted her pledges to maintain the “status quo” with China.

And while these elections show that democracy is very much vibrant and alive in Taiwan, they could potentially set the stage for mounting tensions between Taiwan, mainland China, and by extension, the US.

One member of the Cambodia National Rescue Party, Kem Monovithya, took part as an election observer in Taiwan.

“Going forward, we will do our utmost to find a mutually acceptable mode of interaction between Taiwan and the mainland, one that avoids confrontation and prevents surprises”, Wu added.

The two sides have been governed separately since, though a shared cultural and linguistic heritage mostly endures – with Mandarin spoken as the official language in both places.

The gulf between Mr. Xi’s Stalinist-style humiliation of critics – the publishing house was preparing a critical biography of him – and Taiwan’s burgeoning liberalism does a lot to explain the victory of Ms. Tsai, whose party advocates Taiwanese independence.

“Assuming she serves as Taiwan president for four years, or even eight years, this will mean that people [in the region] get used to seeing a woman in a position of political power”, she said. “Now”, continued the user, “mainlanders view the Taiwanese people as clowns”.