A recent contest organized by the government to design a new Taiwanese ID card and eventual shuttering of the website after cyberattacks is illustrative. Namely, the incident illustrates some of the dynamics of Taiwanese identity contestation in recent years...
The annual demonstration commemorating International Workers’ Day took place today in Taipei, drawing thousands of workers out onto the streets in protest...
The deterioration of political freedoms in Hong Kong continues apace, with freedom of speech and academic freedoms now under attack. Controversy has suddenly erupted all at once regarding comments by Occupy Central figure Benny Tai, one of the three leaders of Occupy Central with Love and Peace, that have been interpreted as supportive of Hong Kong independence, and claims by government leaders that freedom of speech in support of Hong Kong is not protected...
A demonstration was held by LGBTQ groups this morning to demonstrate the Central Election Commission passing a referendum pushed for by anti-gay groups. The referendum seeks to overturn a judicial ruling in favor of the legalization of marriage equality in Taiwan by the Council of Grand Justices last year. In particular, the demonstration serves as the start of what will necessarily be a longer campaign by LGBTQ groups...
With the Central Election Commission announcing that a referendum against same-sex marriage pushed for by anti-gay groups has passed the necessary threshold for a referendum to be held, shock and anger has broken out in Taiwan. However, in itself, it may not be too surprising that anti-gay groups were able to achieve reaching this referendum...
The #MeToo campaign has exploded across the Chinese Internet in the past month. This was prompted by an outpouring of anger regarding a twenty-year-old sexual assault case involving university student Gao Yan, who killed herself in 1998...
Electoral politics in 2018 elections and beyond stand to be shaken up by the recent formation of the “Formosa Alliance”, which intends to push for reform of the Referendum Act in order to allow for a referendum on amending the name of the nation and settling long-standing issues regarding independence/unification. This referendum push could pose a challenge to the DPP in terms of seizing its traditional base...
Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je continues to come under fire for the eviction of protest occupations around the Legislative Yuan. However, Ko is accused of selective policing practices in evicting occupation encampments with closer ties to pro-Taiwan civil society while allowing pan-Blue occupations to remain...
The eviction last week of indigenous vendors outside a former residence of Zhang Xueliang in Chingchuan, Wufeng Township near Hsinchu raises a number of issues. Namely, indigenous vendors have operated outside the residence for twenty years. Many vendors have no other means of livelihood if they are forced to relocate...
Anger has broken out from Taiwanese activists after the forced removal of the Alliance of Referendum for Taiwan/Free Taiwan Party’s occupation encampment outside the Legislative Yuan by the Taipei city police...
