 |
| Major
political parties>> |
Green Party Taiwan
 Taiwan's Green Party was formally established January 25, 1996, not long before the March 1996 presidential and legislative elections. In those races, the young party fielded 13 candidates, one of which, Kao Meng-ting, was elected to the National Assembly as one of Yunlin County's representatives. The party, however, has not gained any additional seats at the national level since then.
Taiwan's Green Party shares many of the core values of the many other Green parties throughout the world, including stressing ecological sustainability, grassroots democracy, social justice, and world peace.
The Green Party's roots -- in Taiwan and elsewhere -- are in social activist movements. The party is determined not to become estranged from this foundation. As part of this effort, the Green Party of Taiwan's program includes "political waste recycling," under which its elected representatives are to donate 80 percent of their salary to movements for social justice and ecological sustainability.
The party seeks greater political and economic power for workers. It calls for workers' active involvement in the shaping of national policies and for the adjustment of the tax system to provide for a more equitable distribution of wealth, specifically by instituting a higher tax for the "super rich" and lowering the tax burden on those with low wages.
As part of its stance on non-violence, the Green Party calls for Taiwan not to make military alliances with other nations but instead focus its energy on promoting world peace.
Although the Green Party's membership is small and its resources are few, a number of its ideals have strong support in Taiwan's society, such as environmental conservation and opposition to nuclear power.
Concern for the environment -- a central issue for the Green Party -- has grown in Taiwan. One way this has manifested itself is the growth of recycling programs. Taipei City, for example, now has a stringent and successful recycling plan. Throughout the country, recycling efforts are gaining ground.
It is therefore probably safe to say that the Green Party enjoys considerably greater sympathy than its very limited electoral successes to date indicate.
|
|
|
