Democratic Development And Predicament Of Taiwan (2008—2016)

Since the lifting of the “martial law” by the Taiwan authorities in the late 1980 s and the start of political transition,the process of democratization in Taiwan has lasted for more than three decades.Taiwan has introduced a set of “elections” as the center of its political system after the political transition and the “constitutional reform,” and has gradually transformed from an authoritarian regime to a democratic one.The establishment of a basic democratic framework including party politics and electoral system facilitated substantial achievements in Taiwan's democracy both in system and in form.As there has been no grave violent bloodshed,no substantial economic recession or political turmoil during the political transition period,the process is usually described as a “quiet revolution,” hailed by many observers as a model for political transformation during the “third wave of democracy.” Peaceful transfer of political power took place between the two major political parties in Taiwan in 2000,2008 and 2016,respectively,which symbolizes rather stable democratization.Taiwan's democracy should have been further consolidated with the peaceful transfer of political power.However,reviewing the many problems that have emerged in Taiwan in recent years,one can easily find that the quality of democracy in Taiwan is yet to be promoted and that Taiwan still has a long way to go toward “consolidation” of democracy.This article attempts to examine the development and problems of Taiwan's democracy after the second party rotation in 2008 from the aspects of political corruption,electoral culture,middle-way voters,political party interaction,governmental governance and social movement.Main reasons are explored through the three models of constitutional system,social disagreement and political party mobilization.Indeed,there has been some progress in Taiwan's democratization,mainly manifested in the containment of political corruption,the improvement of the electoral culture,and the increasing number of middle-way voters.However,such problems as the aggravating political party opposition,worsening administrative capabilities,and rising social movements have put Taiwan into a predicament of democracy,causing growing gaps between the actual situation of “democracy” and public expectations.As a result,Taiwan's “democracy consolidation” process is still faced by many challenges and difficulties.