English

KMT’s Green Terror Accusations Show Fundamental Disrespect For Taiwanese Democracy

Brian Hioe
Recent actions by members of the pan-Blue camp once again go to show how the pan-Blue camp has largely failed to reckon with its authoritarian past in demonstrating its fundamental disrespect for the institutions Taiwanese democracy. We can point to widely discussed recent events as an example of this, as seen in accusations of Facebook censorship by the DPP as part of a "Green Terror" and an incident in which a China Times intern took to throwing water balloons at pan-Green legislators...
EnglishJune 2017Politics6 min read

Does China Realize Its Taiwan Strategy Has Failed?

Brian Hioe
With rumors of an impending shuffle in China’s Taiwan Affairs Office, including the replacement of Zhang Zhijun as its head, this may signal a shift in China’s attempts to lure Taiwan back into its fold. But while it is anyone’s guess as to what China’s next steps will be, it may be, in fact, hasty to assume that this means that China has realized that its Taiwan strategy has failed and so wishes to change tack...
Cross StraitEnglishInternationalJuly 20176 min read

Controversy Over Religious Practices Exposes Potential Future Faultlines

Garrett Dee
Controversy on the subject of the government’s supposed restrictions on religious practices and their impact on the environment has sparked protests in Taiwan with the start of Ghost Month, leading over ten thousand Taoist and Buddhist devotees to march in Taipei in opposition to what they saw as unreasonable government interference in their religious expression...
EnglishJuly 2017Politics6 min read

China’s Ban On Online LGBTQ Content Likely A Product Of Nationalism

Brian Hioe
China's recent ban on all online video and audio content regarding LGBTQ issues is perhaps unsurprising, seeing as this follows on the heels of a ban on depictions of homosexuality on television. But perhaps the ultimate reason for crackdowns on LGBTQ representation in Chinese media has to do with current attempts by the Chinese government to fan up nationalism within China...
EnglishGender/SexualityJuly 2017Social Movements5 min read

The Fall Of Alex Tsai?

Brian Hioe
Alex Tsai, until recently the director of the Central Policy Committee of the KMT and a party spokesman, has been embroiled in controversy in past days with charges against Tsai of embezzling 300 million NTD from the sale of the Central Motion Pictures Corporation under the pretext of capital reductions...
EnglishJuly 2017Politics11 min read