Bolao is the pseudonym of an American of Taiwanese descent living in Taipei. Through a strange set of circumstances, though an American by birth and upbringing, he was involved in the attempt invade and occupy the Executive Yuan, Taiwan’s executive branch of government. The following is his investigation into and personal account of the Executive Yuan and Legislative Yuan occupation, both of which he was a participant in....
I was once a supporter of the KMT. When I was young I worshipped President Chiang Kai-shek's heroic deeds in the war against Japan, appreciated his opposition to Communism, and was grateful for him founding Taiwan. At that time, I believed the White Terror only harmed those antisocial personalities who didn't listen to the government, and that the government was teaching them how to be good people by arresting them, and that only by going along with the anticommunist policies of the government could one find prosperity...
This is the second installment of the two-part interview with J. Michael Cole conducted by Brian Hioe regarding his editorship of Thinking Taiwan, the relation of journalism and activism, and his recently released book, Officially Unofficial: Confessions of a journalist in Taiwan...
J. Michael Cole is editor in chief of Thinking Taiwan, a senior non-resident fellow at the China Policy Institute, University of Nottingham, and an Associate researcher at the French Center for Research on Contemporary China (CEFC) in Taipei. He is the author of the just-published Officially Unofficial: Confessions of a journalist in Taiwan...
I was recently invited to America by the Formosa Foundation, as a participant of the Sunflower Movement, to attend the Ambassador Program 2014. As a result, I spent twelve days in America...
This past Friday, approximately 200 protestors gathered outside of the former site of Chang Pharmacy in Dapu, Miaoli. One year ago on July 18th, 2013, the family-owned pharmacy was forcibly demolished in order to make way for commercial development. In September, owner Chang Sen-wen (張森文) was found dead under a bridge. The death was ruled a suicide by police, but there are those who remain suspicious, including Chang’s son...
台灣2014年三月太陽花運動在新加坡引起了兩種比較明顯的反應。星國主流媒體和官方一般以亂象看待太陽花。民間和社會媒體則藉著這次運動，開始從新認識政府權限和公民參與的問題。怎麼說是「從新認識」？其實，上世紀五、六十年代，也就是台灣戒嚴、白色恐怖時代，正是星國反殖民、學生、公會等運動最活躍的時候。五、六十多年後的今天，星國在人民行動黨長期嚴厲執政下，似乎遺忘了自己的這段歷史。而太陽花在台灣盛開的時候，也正好碰上了英國政府開放大量外交與英聯邦辦公室（Foreign and Commonwealth Office）和殖民地辦公室（Colonial Office）的歷史檔案。這兩件似乎沒有關聯的事情放在一起，再加上星國近幾年在人口、公共交通、貧富懸殊、房價、物價上受到的衝激，啟發了關心社會議題的新加坡人對政治制度的反思。...
