Government and society - Taiwan - Encyclopedia Britannica

Taiwan's 1947 constitution, promulgated while the Nationalist government still ruled the mainland as well as Taiwan, created a republican system of government. Taiwan TableofContents Taiwan Introduction&QuickFactsLandReliefDrainageandsoilsClimatePlantandanimallifeThepeopleEthnicgroupsLanguagesReligionsSettlementpatternsDemographyEconomyAgriculture,forestry,andfishingResourcesandpowerManufacturingFinanceTradeServicesLabourandtaxationTransportationandtelecommunicationsGovernmentandsocietyConstitutionalframeworkLocalgovernmentJusticePoliticalprocessSecurityHealthandwelfareHousingEducationCulturallifeCulturalmilieuFamilystructureDailylifeandsocialcustomsTheartsSportsandrecreationMediaandpublishingHistoryEarlyhistoryTaiwanaspartoftheJapaneseempireEarlyNationalistruleSuccessorstoChiangKai-shekTaiwansince2000TheChenShui-bianpresidencyTheMaYing-jeoupresidencyTheTsaiIng-wenpresidency FastFacts 2-MinSummary Facts&Stats Quizzes Media Videos Images More MoreArticlesOnThisTopic AdditionalReading Contributors ArticleHistory GovernmentandsocietyTaiwanhadnocentralgoverningauthorityuntiltheDutchcolonizedtheislandinthe1620s.TheDutcheralastedonlyabout40years,however,andTaiwanbecamethefirstplaceevertofreeitselffromWesterncolonialrule.Subsequently,Taiwanwasself-governing,butforonlyafewdecades.TaiwanwasthenmadepartofChinafortwocenturies,afterwhichitwasacolonyofJapanfrom1895to1945.WiththeendofWorldWarII,in1945,TaiwanwasagainmadepartofChina,butthatarrangementlastedforonlyfouryears.In1949,aftertheChinesecommunistshaddefeatedtheNationalistgovernmentonthemainland,theNationalistleaderChiangKai-shekmovedhisgovernment,party,andmilitarytoTaiwan.Taiwan,astheRepublicofChina,representedChinaintheUnitedNationsuntil1971,whenthePeople’sRepublic(theregimeestablishedbythecommunistsonthemainlandwascalledthePeople’sRepublicofChina)tooktheChinaseat.Subsequently,Chiang’sgovernmentquicklylostitsinternationalstanding.Chiang’sgovernment—amixofpresidential,parliamentary,andcabinetmodels—wasbasedontheconstitutionpromulgatedin1947.However,itworkedmoreasapresidentialsystem,sincepoliticalpowerresidedlargelyintheNationalistParty,orKuomintang(KMT),overwhichChiangpresided.Asetof“TemporaryProvisions”(tothe1947constitution,rescindingsomepartsofit)andanemergencydecree(characterizedbysomeasmartiallaw)wereenactedin1948and1949,respectively,whiletheNationalistswerestillatwaronthemainland.Theresultwasapoliticalsystemthatwasdemocraticinformbutnotverymuchsoinoperation.Thegovernment,thepolicesystem,theeducationsystem,andthemilitary(atthetop)werestaffedmainlybymainlandChinesewhohadmovedtoTaiwanfromChinaafterWorldWarII.Hakkas,alocalminoritythathadmigratedcenturiesearlier,whomthemainlandChinesetrustedmorethantheFukienTaiwanese,assumedpositionsinthepoliceforcesandtherailroads.FukienTaiwanese,Taiwan’slargestethnicgroup,comprisingabouttwo-thirdsofthepopulation,graduallyassumedpositionsinbusinessandlocalgovernment.DemocratizationinTaiwanwasintroducedinlocalpoliticsfirstandfavouredtheTaiwanese,especiallytheFukienTaiwanese.Bythe1980s,Taiwanhadmadesignificantstridestowardestablishingaworkingdemocracy.In2000therulingKMTwasdefeatedinthepresidentialelectionbythecandidateoftheDemocraticProgressiveParty(DPP),whosebaseconsistedofFukienTaiwanese.Inanelectionthenextyear,theDPPwonthelargestnumberofseatsinTaiwan’slegislature(theLegislativeYuan).Whileethnicitybecamelessofanissueinmostrespectsthanithadbeeninthepast—asaresultofintermarriage,socialchange,andurbanization—itcontinuedtoplayaroleinpolitics,especiallyduringelections.Nevertheless,theKMTregainedthepresidencyandwonamajorityinthelegislaturein2008,onaplatformofitsbeingamultiethnicpartywhileadvancingbettergovernmentandriddingpoliticsofthecorruptionthathadplaguedtheDPP’sPres.ChenShui-bianandhisparty.TheDPPrebounded,however,winningboththepresidencyandamajorityofseatsinthelegislaturein2016.ConstitutionalframeworkTaiwan’s1947constitution,promulgatedwhiletheNationalistgovernmentstillruledthemainlandaswellasTaiwan,createdarepublicansystemofgovernment.Thedocumentensuredlegislativesupremacyandgrantedaconsiderabledegreeofautonomytolocalgovernments.Thepresident,originallychosenbytheNationalAssemblyuntilthatbodywasabolishedin2005,isnowelectedbypopularvoteandisheadofstate.Thepremier,whoisappointedbythepresident,headsthegovernment.Politicalpartiesarenotmentionedinthedocument,althoughitwasassumedthattheywouldplayaroleinpolitics.InsteadofthethreebranchesofgovernmentthatarefoundinmostWesterngovernments,theconstitutionoriginallyprovidedforfive:theexecutive,legislative,andjudicialcomponentsplusaControlYuan(branchofgovernment)andanExaminationYuan.ThetwoadditionalbranchesrepresentedorgansofgovernmentintraditionalChinathatcheckedonthebureaucracyandthatmanagedfunctionssuchasthecivilserviceexaminationsandpromotions.Itwasthoughtthatafive-branchsystemwouldprovidebetterchecksandbalancesthanathree-branchsystem.TheTemporaryProvisionsof1948gavethepresidentemergencypowers,bannedtheformationofnewpoliticalparties,andsuspendedthetwo-termlimitforthepresident.The1949emergencydecreegrantedthemilitary,police,andintelligencebodiesbroadpowers.Thetwomeasurestruncatedconstitutionalrightsandeffectivelypreventedthepoliticalsystemfromoperatingdemocratically.However,localgovernmentwasnotmuchaffected,norwereeconomicrightscurtailed.Theemergencydecreewasterminatedin1987,andtheTemporaryProvisionswerecanceledin1991.Theconstitutionwasamendedanumberoftimesduringthe1990s.Untilthenthegovernment,astheRepublicofChina,effectivelyhadmaintainedanelectoralcollegewithotherpowers(theNationalAssembly)thatincludedrepresentativesfromeachofthemainlandprovinces.OneoftheimportantchangesundertakenintheearlypartofthedecadewasthestartofaprocesstogetridofthoserepresentativesofChinaintheelectedbodiesofgovernment,althoughoverseasChinese(ethnicChineselivingoutsideTaiwanandChina)wereallottedspecialrepresentation.Othermeasuresincludedreformsofprovincialandlocalgovernment,equalrightsforwomen,safeguardsforthehandicappedandtheaboriginalpeoples,changesintherelationshipofthebranchesofgovernmentandtheroleofthepremier,andthestartofaprocesstophaseouttheNationalAssembly.In1993theControlYuanceasedtobeanelectedgovernmentbody,anditsfunctionsweretruncated.Fromearly2005untilmid-2008itdidnotfunctionatall,becauseofadeadlockbetweenthepresidentandthelegislatureovernominees.Thebranchhassincebeenreinstated,butitisnolongerregardedasanimportantorganofthegovernment.TheExaminationYuanlikewiseisnolongerthoughtofasamajorbranchofthegovernment,meaningthatTaiwan,forallintentsandpurposes,hasathree-branchsystem.In2003thelegislaturepassedtheReferendumAct,whichdefinedthattheretoforeunusedconstitutionalprovision.Referendumswereincludedinsubsequentelections,andsomecausedconsiderablecontroversy.In2005theconstitutionwasamendedtoabolishtheNationalAssembly.Theprocess,however,didnotresolvethequestionofthefundamentalstructureofthegovernment,thoughotherchangesandpracticehavemadeitmorepresidential.