March 2020

Report Details Continued Abuses in Taiwan’s Fishing Industry

A report by Greenpeace released last week suggests that human rights abuses in Taiwan’s fishing industry continue to take place, with little change having occurred in spite of criticisms in past years from Greenpeace and other environmental and labor NGOs. Taiwan has over 20,000 migrant workers that work on deepwater fishing vessels and one-third of tuna catches in the world come from Taiwanese vessels...

Lay Judge Bills Sent to Legislature, Debate Likely to Take Place on Judicial Reform

Judicial reform will likely become an object of contention in the Legislative Yuan in coming days and months, with different versions of a bill implementing a “lay judge” system set to be sent to the legislature from the Executive Yuan and Judicial Yuan. At the same time, judicial reform groups that call for the implementation of a full jury system will likely object to the new bill as still giving too much power to judges...

無政府時代的來臨(一) 全球極權化之下的時代革命

從6月9日百萬人大遊行起算,持續至今已達九個月的香港逆權運動,雖然以「反修例」為導火線,實則早已超越此一框架,成為一場反(中國)政府的香港獨立運動。由於抗爭者採取無大台、快閃、流動性與不割席等模式,並受已故武術大師李小龍的「Be water」哲學所啟蒙,因此有外媒將運動命名為「流水革命」(Water Revolution),而港人則直覺地自稱其為「時代革命」。為何這場「光復香港」的逆權運動會成為時代革命呢?這是否意味著它正把世界帶往一個連港人都想像不到的新時代呢?那會是怎麼樣的時代呢?...

Lessons From Taiwan on the Fight Against the Coronavirus: Between Politics and Collective Experience

How did Taiwan achieve its successes in fighting the COVID-19 coronavirus? Taiwan's strategy in its response to the coronavirus has been informed by three key inter-societal and historic elements: Taiwan's state formation during the 20th century, the political culture among elites that stems from the former process, and the collective experience of the Taiwanese population in dealing with the forces of nature...