The Republic of China—Striding Into Its 2nd Century
Beacon of Democracy, Bastion of Liberty
Workplace of the ROC’s popularly elected head of state, the Office of the President is a symbol of the nation’s democratic way of life. (Government Information Office)
A century after its founding on January 1, 1912, the Republic of China—Asia’s first republic—has developed into one of the world’s most vibrant multiparty democracies and staunchest champions of freedom. This is the accomplishment of countless people from all walks of life who have kept faith in the nation’s founding ideals, as expressed most famously in the thought of its founding father Dr. Sun Yat-sen and in the Constitution of the Republic of China, drafted in the spirit of Sun’s “Three Principles of the People.”
Since its government relocated from mainland China to Taiwan in 1949, the ROC (Taiwan) has become renowned as an advocate of democracy and human rights, rule of law and the principle that sovereignty resides in the people. Taiwan has commonly been praised as a “beacon of democracy,” as by some 30 senators in a joint letter to U.S. President Barack Obama in 2009. And for many years, it has been included among the ranks of the world’s freest countries in U.S.-based Freedom House’s annual Freedom in the World survey.
President Chiang Ching-kuo waves to marchers in a parade during Double Tenth National Day celebrations in 1987, shortly after rescinding martial law. Standing to the far left is Vice President Lee Teng-hui, who succeeded President Chiang upon the latter’s death in January 1988. Lee was elected president by the National Assembly in 1990 and went on to become the ROC’s first popularly elected president in 1996. (Government Information Office)
The ROC’s success in promoting democracy and human liberty is of particular significance in that it demonstrates the compatibility of these values with Chinese culture. President Ma Ying-jeou highlighted this fact in his May 20, 2008 Inaugural Address: “On the day of Taiwan’s presidential election, hundreds of millions of ethnic Chinese worldwide watched the ballot count on TV and the Internet. Taiwan is the sole ethnic Chinese society to complete a second democratic turnover of power. Ethnic Chinese communities around the world have laid their hopes on this crucial political experiment.”
Taking up this theme again in his 2011 New Year’s Day address to the nation, the President declared that in its second century, “the ROC will serve as a paragon of democracy for the Chinese-speaking world.” Rather than quarreling over political issues, Taiwan and mainland China should “focus on encouraging and helping each other grow in terms of the core values of freedom, democracy, human rights and rule of law.”
Article 7 of the ROC Constitution stipulates that “All citizens of the Republic of China, irrespective of sex, religion, ethnic origin, class or party affiliation, shall be equal before the law.” Over the years, much has been done to realize this ideal. Take gender equality for example. Since the 1990s, Taiwan has passed a raft of legislation to promote gender mainstreaming and improve women’s living conditions. Further, the government established the cross-ministerial Committee of Women’s Rights Promotion under the Executive Yuan in 1997 to ensure gender equality in the public sector and, in 1999, the Foundation of Women’s Rights Promotion and Development to advance that cause society-wide.
Media the world over gave prominent coverage to the nation’s second democratic rotation of power in May 2008. (Chen Mei-ling)
As one indication of progress made in this regard, women account for more than one third of lawmakers in Taiwan’s various representative bodies—the highest rate in Asia and higher than those in most Western democracies.
Demonstrating the ROC’s resolve to maintain momentum in the work of fostering democracy and human rights, at the President’s urging, on March 31, 2009 the Legislative Yuan ratified two United Nations conventions—the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights—although in 1971 the ROC lost its membership in the United Nations, of which it is a co-founder. That same day, it passed legislation requiring that all ROC laws be in conformance with these conventions.
President Ma signed the instruments of ratification of the two covenants in May 2009. Further, to ensure that steady progress is made in implementing them, on December 10, 2010—International Human Rights Day—he established the Presidential Office Human Rights Consultative Committee, with Vice President Vincent C. Siew serving as its convener.
Advances in gender equality and mainstreaming have enabled women to more fully develop and apply their potentials. (Chang Su-ching)
To strengthen people’s political rights and advance social justice, the ROC government has also taken aggressive action to combat corruption. This includes, for example, the recent drafting and enactment of amendments to the Punishment of Corruption Act that make it a crime for defendants in corruption-related cases to refuse to reveal the sources of personal assets. Among ongoing initiatives, on November 4, 2010, the Cabinet approved a draft bill for establishment of the Agency Against Corruption under the Ministry of Justice as an agency dedicated to enhancing the integrity of government.
Democracy has been a great boon for Taiwan, enabling its people to push for the enactment and strict enforcement of a host of reformist laws. This has brought about notable improvements in protection of civil liberties, political rights and quality of life in numerous areas, such as privacy of personal information, access to government information, transparency of lobbying activities, and improvement of environmental conditions. Among important items of legislation that have been enacted or have come into effect since mid-2008 are:
President Ma presents the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy’s 2010 Asia Democracy and Human Rights Award to Triveni Balkrishna Acharya, president of India’s Rescue Foundation. (Office of the President)
• amendments to the People with Disabilities Rights Protection Act, the Children and Youth Welfare Act, and the Public Assistance Act.
• amendments to the Labor Union Act and the Settlement of Labor-Management Disputes Act;
• launching of the National Pension system and the Labor Insurance Annuity system;
• the Fair and Speedy Criminal Trials Act;
• the Civil Servant Administrative Neutrality Act, aimed at preventing political interference in government administration and preventing public servants from abusing their positions of authority;
• amendments to the Local Government Act, which serve as a basis for mergers of local governments aimed at providing better service; and
• a set of new laws and amendments aimed at streamlining the central government—reducing the number of Cabinet-level organizations from 37 to 29 starting in 2012—while increasing its effectiveness.
Praised internationally, the ROC’s balloting and ballot tabulation systems leave virtually no room for irregularities. (Chang Su-ching)
These and many other initiatives spurred by members of the ROC’s citizenry, acting through their democratically elected representatives, have made central and local governments more effective tools of the people’s will. This fact is reflected in a variety of international surveys. In its 2010 World Competitiveness Yearbook, for example, the Switzerland-based International Institute for Management Development ranked the ROC as having the sixth-most efficient government among the 58 leading nations surveyed—up 12 notches from the previous year. Such progress is possible only in a healthy democracy.
Looking forward, President Ma stressed in his 2011 New Year’s Day address the imperative to continue striving to “forge a just and fair society where there is equal opportunity for development, the judiciary is impartial and clean, the gap between rich and poor is reduced, and human rights are safeguarded.” Blessed with a robust civil society and vibrant free press that engage in public dialogue on key issues, help lay out policy directions and monitor government performance, the ROC enters its second century with confidence and optimism in achieving these goals.
