Survey says...


This is the Taiwan Republic
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A DPP survey released December 25, 2008 presents a picture of Taiwan that differs greatly from the one painted by the memes that pro-China media and other journos often present. Below is a CNA article on the subject [translations mine]:

綠營：五成六民眾認為兩岸不宜黨對黨協商

Green camp: 56% of the public think cross-strait talks should not be conducted on a "party-to-party" basis

民主進步黨民調中心主任陳俊麟今天指出，民進黨最新民調顯示，65.8%民眾認為政府尚未做好開放兩岸政策的配套措施；55.8%的民眾認為兩岸政策由黨對黨方式共同協商並不適當。

Chen Chun-lin (陳俊麟), director of the DPP's Public Opinion Survey Center, says today that a poll shows that 65.8% of respondents feel that the government has not done a good job with cross-strait policy so far. 55.8% feel that conducting cross-strait negotiations on a party-to-party basis is inappropriate.

民進黨中央公布「台灣民眾的中國印象」民調，陳俊麟做以上表示。

Announcing the results of a poll titled "The Taiwanese public's impressions of China," Chen Chun-lin had this to say.

民調顯示，民眾對於台灣與中國的關係，認為是「同一個國家」的比例只有2.7%，「同一個民族」為36.4%，「同一個文化」為28.1%，「完全沒關係」為28.4%。

On the question of the relationship between Taiwan and China, only 2.7% consider the two territories to be "one country." 36.4% feel that the people of Taiwan and China are the "same ethnicity." 28.1% believe the people on the two sides of the Taiwan Strait share a "common culture." 28.4% say "there is no relationship whatsoever."

此外，民眾對於中國的印象，認為「友善的」比例為32.2%，「敵意的」為56.8%；「民主的」比例為8.9%，「專制的」比例為85.1%。

Furthermore, 32.2% consider China to be "friendly," while 56.8% feel that it is "hostile" towards Taiwan. 8.9% consider China to be a "democracy" while 85.1% think of China as a "dictatorship."

這份民調調查日期為12月23日至24日，完成數為1105人，抽樣誤差約為正負3.0%；主要針對20歲以上具有投票權的公民，以電話號碼隨機抽樣。

The poll was conducted on December 23 - 24 with a total of 1,105 respondents. The margin of error is plus or minus about 3.0%. The polling sample was gathered using random phone numbers and targeted citizens over the age of 20 who have the right to vote.

To summarize, a majority of Taiwanese people see Taiwan and China as two separate countries and consider themselves as having a different culture and ethnicity from the people across the Strait. If you, too, want to be able to see through the bullshit about China's "goodwill" or the so-called "panda-mania," just remember the missiles.


1,400 missiles... plus 2 pandas... equals... "goodwill"?
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Something that is known by the great majority of Taiwanese
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Max factors: Taiwan, 台灣, China, 中國, survey, 民調

Cross-posted at Taiwan Matters!

Labels: China, survey, Taiwan, 中國, 台灣, 民調

Money laundering, corruption, and forgery?

The Saturday Taipei Times has the details in English, fellow blogger Echo posts about it in Chinese, and if you've got the language ability and an iron stomach, here's the indictment itself (956 KB PDF file) -- all 208 pages of it.

The Friday night edition of Talking Show (大話新聞) also had a lengthy discussion of the topic. Readers of this blog who view the show should be aware that the hard copies possessed by both host Cheng Hung-yi (鄭弘儀) and guest Chen Ming-yi (陳明義) (Chinese Nationalist Party [KMT] spokes-whiner) differ from the PDF I downloaded in more ways than one.

Remember, an indictment is not a verdict, and the suspect was detained at the Taipei Detention Center for an entire month before these official charges were even made.

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Trumped-up charges: Taiwan, 台灣, Chen Shui-bian, 陳水扁, state affairs fund, 國務機要費, indictment, 起訴書

Cross-posted at Taiwan Matters!

Labels: Chen Shui-bian, indictment, state affairs fund, Taiwan, 台灣, 國務機要費, 起訴書, 陳水扁

Let's see what Mr. Ma is made of


At 12 noon on Sunday, December 7, 2008, starting from Taipei, Taiwan's Liberty Square (自由廣場), the student movement known as the Wild StrawBerries are planning a peaceful march to reiterate the following most-reasonable demands [edited for formatting, clarity, spelling, and completeness]:

1. President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and Premier Liu Chao-shiuan (劉兆玄) must publicly apologize to all citizens [for creating the situation which allowed the police to treat protesters the way they did during Chen Yunlin's (陳雲林) visit to Taiwan].

2. National Police Agency (NPA) Director-General Wang Cho-chiun (王卓鈞) and National Security Bureau Director Tsai Chao-ming (蔡朝明) must step down [to take responsibility for the police brutality that occurred as a result of the massive police presence].

3. The Legislative Yuan (行政院) must revise the Parade and Assembly Law (集會遊行法), which currently restricts the rights of the people [and which are set to become even more repressive early in 2009]. [This is basically a simple demand for ""Freedom of Assembly."]

Anyone who agrees to wear black, to refrain from displaying any partisan slogans, and to refrain being violent is welcome to attend this protest. Since permission to hold this protest was denied the group hasn't even applied for permission (but have instead voluntarily reported the activity to police, in line with how they want the Parade and Assembly Law [集會遊行法] to be modified), it will therefore be an act of civil disobedience.

Even if you don't attend, please sign the Wild StrawBerries' online petition if you want democracy in Taiwan to remain within reach. It has already slipped way too far backward since the Ma administration took office on May 20, 2008.

Who else has got their backs?
The Ma government has come under heavy criticism from many international human rights groups, including Amnesty International, Freedom House, Human Rights Watch, the International Federation for Human Rights, Reporters Without Borders, and others. Protests will also be taking place in Tokyo and Paris on Sunday in support of the Wild StrawBerries. Please support them any way you can.



RELATED LINKS:
* Watch the Wild StrawBerries practicing peaceful resistance (live on Justin.tv)

* The Wild StrawBerries' English blog

* The Wild StrawBerries' (野草莓運動) Mandarin blog

* A post by David Reid with images, links, and more details

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Ingredients: Taiwan, 台灣, Wild StrawBerries Movement, 野草莓學運, protest, 抗議, human rights, 人權

Cross-posted at Taiwan Matters!

Labels: human rights, protest, Taiwan, Wild StrawBerries Movement, 人權, 台灣, 抗議, 野草莓學運