The New York Times
Date: SEPT. 10, 2015
By: AUSTIN RAMZY
TAIPEI, Taiwan — The people of Taiwan appear poised to elect their first female president.
Tsai Ing-wen of the Democratic Progressive Party is the front-runner in the presidential campaign underway in Taiwan. Credit Billy H.C. Kwok for The New York Times
Two of the three leading candidates in the January election, including the nominees of both major parties, are women.
Women have led other Asian nations, but they have largely followed in the footsteps of male relatives. Not in this case. Rather, analysts say, the race reflects the fact that Taiwan does a better job of putting women into political office than just about anywhere else in the world.
The island “amazed me when I first started looking at it,” said Joyce Gelb, a professor emeritus at the City University of New York who researches women in politics. “It’s second only to the Scandinavian countries, which are the bellwethers of women’s representation. I think it’s very impressive.”
Explanations for the rise of women within Taiwan’s political class abound, including the matriarchal traditions of some Taiwanese aboriginal tribes and the promotion of women’s education during the Japanese colonial period. [FULL STORY]
