Taiwanese Law & Government
Political Status
The political status of the Republic of China is a contentious issue. The PRC claims that the ROC government is illegitimate, referring to it as the "Taiwan Authority", while the ROC views itself as an independent sovereign state.[6] The ROC actively claimed to be the sole legitimate government of all China since its retreat to Taiwan in 1949 until the lift of martial law in 1987. Although the administration of pro-independence President Chen Shui-bian does not actively claim jurisdiction over all of China, the national boundaries of the ROC have not been redrawn and its outstanding territorial claims from the late 1940s have not been revised.[citation needed] Thus, the claimed area of the ROC continue to include Mainland China, several off-shore islands, Taiwan, Outer Mongolia, northern Myanmar, and Tuva (now Russian territory).
The political environment is complicated by the potential for military conflict should overt actions toward independence or reunification be taken. It is the policy of the People's Republic of China to use force to ensure reunification if peaceful reunification is no longer possible, as stated in its anti-secession law, and there are substantial military installations on the Fujian coast for this reason. As a result of Cold War politics, the United States has provided military training and sold arms to the ROC armed forces. However, the current status quo, as defined by the US, is supported on a quid pro quo basis between both Chinese states. The PRC is expected to "use no force or threat[en] to use force against Taiwan" and the ROC is to "exercise prudence in managing all aspects of cross-strait relations." Both are to refrain from performing actions or espousing statements "that would unilaterally alter Taiwan's status."
Within the ROC, opinions are polarized between those supporting unification, represented by the Pan-Blue Coalition of parties, and those supporting independence, represented by the Pan-Green Coalition of parties. The Kuomintang, the largest Pan-Blue party, supports the status quo for the indefinite future with a stated ultimate goal of unification. However, it does not support unification in the short term with the PRC as such a prospect would be unacceptable to most of its members and the public. Ma Ying-Jeou, former chairman of the KMT and frontrunner for the 2008 presidential election, has set out democracy, economic development to a level near that of the ROC, and equitable wealth distribution as the conditions that the mainland must fulfill for reunification to occur. The DPP, the largest Pan-Green party, also supports the status quo because the risk of provoking the PRC is unacceptable to its members. However, President Chen Shui-Bian of the DPP has stated that no matter what, any decision should be decided through a public referendum of the people of the ROC. Both parties' current foreign policy positions support actively advocating ROC participation in international organizations, but the KMT accepts the "One-China" principle and the DPP encourages economic ties with countries other than the PRC for security reasons.
For its part, the People's Republic of China appears to find the retention of the name "Republic of China" far more acceptable than the declaration of a de-jure independent Taiwan. However, with the rise of the Taiwanese independence movement, the name "Taiwan" has been employed increasingly more often on the island itself. The PRC has stated that any effort in Taiwan to formally abolish the ROC and replace it with a Republic of Taiwan would result in a strong and possibly military reaction. The current position of the United States is that the Taiwan issue must be resolved peacefully and unilateral action by either side is condemned; neither an unprovoked invasion by the PRC or a formal declaration of independence by Taiwan would be acceptable.
Citing its One-China policy, the PRC requires other countries to give no official recognition to the ROC as a condition of maintaining diplomatic relations. As a result, there are only 24 countries that have official diplomatic relations with the Republic of China. However, most countries have unofficial representative offices in the ROC. The United States maintains unofficial relations with the ROC through the instrumentality of the American Institute in Taiwan. The ROC maintains similar de-facto embassies and consulates in most countries, called "Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Offices" (TECRO), with branch offices called "Taipei Economic and Cultural Offices" (TECO). Both TECRO and TECO are "unofficial commercial entities" of the ROC in charge of maintaining diplomatic relations, providing consular services (i.e. Visa applications), and serving the national interests of the ROC in other countries in basically the same way as an Embassy or Consulate.
Also due to its One-China policy, the PRC only participates in international organizations where the ROC is not recognized as a sovereign country. In 1945, the ROC, as representative of all the territory of China, was one of the founding nations and Security Council member of the United Nations; however, in 1971, with the passage of United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758, it was replaced by the PRC. Each year since 1992, the ROC has petitioned the UN for entry but has been unsuccessful. Most member states, including the United States, do not wish to discuss the issue of the ROC's political status for fear of souring diplomatic ties with the PRC. However, both the US and Japan publicly support the ROC's bid for membership in the World Health Organization as an observer. However, though the ROC has applied for WHO membership every year since 1997 under various denominations, their efforts have consistently been blocked by PRC. Also, the Republic of China is pressured to use the politically neutral name "Chinese Taipei" in international events such as the Olympic Games when the PRC is also a party. The ROC is typically barred from using its national anthem and national flag in international events due to PRC pressure; ROC spectators attending events such as the Olympics are often barred from bringing ROC flags into venues. The ROC is able to participate as "China" in organizations that the PRC does not participate in, such as the World Organization of the Scout Movement.
The relationship with the PRC and the related issues of Taiwan independence and Chinese reunification continue to dominate ROC politics. For any particular resolution public favor shifts greatly with small changes in wording, illustrating the complexity of public opinion on the topic.
Government & Politics
The head of state is the President, who is elected by popular vote for a four-year term on the same ticket as the Vice-President. The President has authority over the five administrative branches (Yuan): the Control Yuan, Examination Yuan, Executive Yuan, Judicial Yuan and Legislative Yuan. The President appoints the members of the Executive Yuan as his cabinet, including a Premier, who is officially the President of the Executive Yuan; members are responsible for policy and administration.
The main legislative body is the unicameral Legislative Yuan with two hundred and twenty-five seats. One hundred and sixty-eight are elected by popular vote; forty-one are elected based on the proportion of nationwide votes received by participating political parties. Eight are elected from overseas Chinese constituencies and eight are for the aboriginal populations based on the same principle. Members serve three-year terms. Originally the unicameral National Assembly, as a standing constitutional convention and electoral college, held some parliamentary functions, but the National Assembly was abolished in 2005 with the power of constitutional amendments handed over to the Legislative Yuan and all eligible voters of the Republic via referendums.
The Judicial Yuan is Taiwan's highest judiciary. It interprets the constitution and other laws and decrees, judges administrative suits, and disciplines public functionaries. The President and Vice-President of the Judicial Yuan and fifteen Justices form the Council of Grand Justices. They are nominated and appointed by the President of the Republic, with the consent of the Legislative Yuan. The highest court, the Supreme Court, consists of a number of civil and criminal divisions, each of which is formed by a presiding Judge and four Associate Judges, all appointed for life. In 1993, a separate constitutional court was established to resolve constitutional disputes, regulate the activities of political parties and accelerate the democratization process. There is no trial by jury but the right to a fair public trial is protected by law and respected in practice; many cases are presided over by multiple judges.
The ROC's political system does not fit traditional models. The Premier is selected by the President without the need for approval from the Legislature, but the Legislature can pass laws without regard for the President, as neither he nor the Premier wields veto power. Thus, there is little incentive for the President and the Legislature to negotiate on legislation if they are of opposing parties. In fact, since the election of the pan-Green's Chen Shui-bian as President in 2000 and the continued control of the Legislative Yuan by the pan-Blue majority, legislation has repeatedly stalled, as the two sides have been deadlocked. There is another curiosity of the ROC system; because the ROC was previously dominated by strongman single party politics, real power in the system shifted from one position to another, depending on what position was currently occupied by the leader of the state. This legacy has resulted in executive powers currently being concentrated in the office of the President rather than the Premier.
The term ruling party was previously applied to the Kuomintang, as it was the authoritarian party that controlled all aspects of government (ruling party may also be applied to the majority party in a parliamentary system). The Soviets, who had trained Chiang and the KMT and the Communists, left a lasting mark on the practices of the KMT, and under a Leninist style one party state, there was little difference between the ROC government, the KMT, and the army. Today, however, the term "ruling party" has a specific, peculiar use in Taiwan and is used to describe the party holding the Presidency. This is not entirely accurate since Taiwan does not have a parliamentary system, where the executive branch is occupied by the same party or coalition that holds a majority in the legislature. This term is currently used because the Premier is appointed by the President, thus executive powers tend to be dominated by the party holding the Presidency.
