KMT REPORT: The party blamed ‘Internet armies,’ the party’s choice of legislator-at-large nominees and its inability to win over young people for it results the elections

Taipei Times
Date: Jan 16, 2020
By: Shih Hsiao-kuang  /  Staff reporter

Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) yesterday offered his resignation to

the KMT Central Standing Committee, while the party listed in a report seven major reasons for its defeat in Saturday’s elections.

After Wu’s resignation, the committee appointed KMT Legislator William Tseng (曾銘宗) as acting secretary-general to oversee the party’s operations.

In the report, the KMT said the major factors in its defeat were that the “sense of the nation’s impending doom” (亡國感) was greater than “hatred toward the Democratic Progressive Party [DPP]”; the KMT could not control the discussion on cross-strait relations and respond to changes; “Internet armies” swayed public opinion, challenging candidates’ images and making it difficult for them to win over independent voters; the victory in Kaohsiung’s mayoral election could not be replicated and a mistake was made regarding the choice of campaign strategy; internal conflicts within the party, lack of unity and campaigning that could have been improved; the party’s list of legislator-at-large nominees did not meet public expectations; and the party was unable to win the favor of young people, who are highly engaged in politics.

The report said that because Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜), the party’s presidential candidate, announced his candidacy less than six months after becoming mayor, his trustworthiness was questioned.    [FULL  STORY]

Radio Taiwan Internatyional
Date: 14 January, 2020
By: Paula Chao

The ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) says its landslide victory in last Saturday’s election is mainly due to the threat China poses to Taiwan.

At an official event last January, Chinese President Xi Jinping reiterated Beijing’s “one China” policy and its opposition to Taiwan independence. Xi also said that “peaceful unification” and the “one country, two systems” formula are best for both sides of the Taiwan Strait.

In an interview with Radio Free Asia, DPP Deputy Secretary-General Lin Fei-fan called these comments a “turning point” in the DPP’s recovery of support over the past year.   [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan’s election this week, along with South Korea’s successful democratic transition in the 1990s, challenged the notion that democracy isn't suited for Asian cultures.

Voice of America
Date: 2020/01/14

WASHINGTON — For Washington-based U.S. analysts, Saturday’s Taiwan elections were a threefold victory, for President Tsai Ing-wen and her ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), Taiwan as a whole, and the very concept of democracy in Asia.

“There’s this debate, which I always thought was a dishonest debate” about whether democracy as a form of governance is suited to Asian history and culture, Derek Mitchell, president of the National Democratic Institute, said.

He referenced Lee Kuan Yew, who ruled Singapore with a firm hand for three decades until 1990.

“Lee Kuan Yew once said that we Asians, democracy isn’t right for our culture,” Mitchell said at a Saturday morning function sponsored by the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the U.S. and two think tanks focused on Taiwan and China studies.    [FULL  STORY]

President added the US is Taiwan's top strategic partner and relations are stronger than ever

Taiwan News
Date: 2020/01/14
By: George Liao, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said during a reception for a delegation from the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) on Tuesday (Jan. 14) that Taiwan will defend its freedoms and promote regional peace, CNA reported.

Members of the delegation included Kurt Tong, former U.S. Consul General to Hong Kong and Macau.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 01/14/2020
By: Matt Yu, Chen Yun-yu and Emerson Lim

Taipei, Jan. 14 (CNA) President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Tuesday paid her last respects to the victims of the Jan. 2 military helicopter crash that killed eight ranking military officers, including Chief of the General Staff Shen Yi-ming (沈一鳴).

At the ceremony, held at the Songshan Air Force Base in Taipei, Tsai announced posthumous promotions for the eight military officers, whose coffins were covered with the Republic of China national flag.

"Thank you for your sacrifice, mission accomplished. The country will miss you and remember your contributions," Tsai said.

She also announced that the government has approved three benefit packages for soldiers actively pushed for by Shen — additional pay for paratroopers, higher bonuses for Air Force pilots, and professional allowances for sergeants.    [FULL  STYORY]

INCREASED PENALTIES: The MAC said it applies only to people ‘who intentionally break the law,’ and would not restrict regular exchanges across the Taiwan Strait

Taipei Times
Date: Jan 15, 2020
By: Chung Li-hua and Dennis Xie  /  Staff reporter, with staff writer

The Anti-infiltration Act (反滲透法) is to take effect today, the Presidential Office said yesterday on its

Web site.

The 12-article law, passed by the Legislative Yuan on Dec. 31, prohibits people acting on the instructions of or with the funding of “infiltration sources” from illegal campaigning or lobbying, or receiving illegal political donations, as well as disrupting social order, peaceful assemblies, elections or referendums.

While the activities are already defined as illegal in the Criminal Code, the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法), the Presidential and Vice Presidential Election and Recall Act (總統副總統選舉罷免法) and the Civil Servants Election and Recall Act (公職人員選舉罷免法), the Anti-infiltration Act stipulates the punishments are applicable to people who break those laws on the instructions or with the financial support of infiltration sources, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said.

The Anti-infiltration Act applies only to people “who intentionally break the law, and not to those who are unaware of the situation,” the council added.    [FULL  STORY]

2020 Elections

Radio Taiwan International
Date: 11 January, 2020
By: John Van Trieste

KMT presidential candidate Han Kuo-yu has conceded defeat in the 2020 presidential election.

At around 8:40 pm Saturday, Han appeared onstage at his campaign headquarters to address his supporters. He announced that he had called his rival, the incumbent President Tsai Ing-wen, to congratulate her on her victory. He called on his supporters to remain calm and called on President Tsai to create a future for Taiwan’s people in which they can live in peace and work happily.
[FULL  STORY]

International headlines largely focused on Tsai Ing-wen's re-election as a blow to Beijing, but the legislative election results are not as clear-cut.

The News Lens
Date: 2020/01/13
By: Milo Hsieh

Taiwan’s 2020 general elections have officially concluded. Taiwanese voters have shown massive support of their incumbent President Tsai Ing-wen. 

While international media have framed Tsai’s victory as a strong rebuke against China, the election results may not be as straightforward. Tsai won the election with a record-breaking 8.1 million votes, but not all her supporters are necessarily in favor of a strong anti-China stance. 

The Kuomintang (KMT) performed surprisingly well 

Despite the opinion polls predicting Han Kuo-yu’s overwhelming defeat, he received more than 5.5 million votes, surpassing that of Eric Chu, the previous KMT candidate in 2016. 

Although Han lost the presidency, his party fared quite well in the legislative race. The KMT gained three seats in the legislature while Tsai’s Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lost seven. Both parties went head-to-head over the party vote, each receiving 13 legislative-at-large seats. 
[FULL  STORY]

China blames 'dirty tactics,' 'external dark forces' for Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen's victory

Taiwan News
Date: 2020/01/13
By: Keoni Everington, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — After more than 60 countries sent messages of congratulations to

Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) after her landslide victory in the 2020 election, China cried foul, claiming that their actions violated the "one-China" principle.

The country held its 15th presidential election and 10th legislative elections on Saturday (Jan. 11). According to the final result from the Central Election Commission (CEC), Tsai and her running mate William Lai (賴清德) won the presidential race with a record-breaking 8,170,186 votes, or 57.13 percent, while their Kuomintang (KMT) opponents Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) and Simon Chang (張善政) received almost 3 million fewer votes.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) told the media Sunday (Jan. 12) that officials from more than 60 countries had greeted Tsai by phone call and email, including U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Japanese Foreign Minister Motegi Toshimitsu. In a released statement, Pompeo congratulated Tsai on her well-deserved win and praised Taiwanese voters for demonstrating the spirit of democracy.

When asked to respond on that day to the greetings sent by senior officials from countries such as the U.S., the UK, and Japan, Communist China's Foreign Ministry Spokesman Geng Shuang (耿爽) used the diminutive term "Taiwan region" to refer to Taiwan and said the matter was a "sub-national affair in China."    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 01/13/2020
By: Chen Yi-hsuan, Wang Hung-kuo and Frances Huang

Taipei, Jan. 13 (CNA) Taipei Rapid Transit Corp. (TRTC), which operates the Taipei Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) system, said on Monday that it is planning to implement a new fare scheme on Feb. 1, which is aimed at rewarding frequent passengers.

Under the new pricing system, those who ride the MRT for 51 times or more per month will get a 30 percent discount on their total ticket fare, with the reward to be transacted back to their smart cards the following month when they pass an MRT gate, the company said.

Passengers who take the service between 41-50 times could get a 25 percent discount, while those riding the trains for 31-40, 21-30 and 11-20 times each month will get a discount of 20 percent, 15 percent and 10 percent, respectively.

After TRTC held a board meeting Monday to approve the new pricing scheme, the metro system operator scheduled Feb. 1 as the launch date for the new fare scheme, the company said.
[FULL  STORY]