President Tsai, Your Economic and Cross-Strait Policies Do Not Show that You Care for the Younger Generation

  President Tsai, Your Economic and Cross-Strait Policies Do Not Show that You Care for the Younger Generation

China Times Editorial (Taipei, Taiwan)

July 18, 2018

 Translation of an Excerpt

The DPP National Party Congress exhibited the main theme of "reforms show that we care about the younger generation" and Tsai Ing-wen, in her capacity as party chairwoman, delivered an impassioned speech. Examining Tsai Ing-wen's address, the DPP's greater blind spot in administration is simplifying the entire administration as "reforms," and entirely contracting the goal of reforms into "caring for the younger generation." Such narrow interpreting of the goals of administration is a serious mistake. Strictly speaking, among the various policies of administration of the Tsai government, the only one that truly conforms to "caring for the younger generation," we are afraid, is pension reforms for retired military, civil servants, and public school teachers, which has won recognition of quite a few people, though it is difficult to cover up its crude and violent approach. As to other reforms, such as judicial reforms, “one fixed holiday, one flexible day-off,” pay raises, etc. have all been stalled half-way, with no results, eliciting controversies. In a nutshell, "the reforms care for the younger generation" labeled by the DPP, is in fact, empty in content.

Furthermore, a great administrator can usually make a comprehensive consideration with regard to the gains and losses in its policies, while taking into account the strengths and shortcomings of policies, as well as the interests of all circles and the legitimacy of the means employed; it will never be "sacrificing this generation" for the younger generation, or "sacrifice one communal group” for the benefit of another. The reason is very simple. In a democratic society, nobody should be designated as a member of a group “that could be sacrificed.” However, in the eyes of the DPP government, we often see divisive approaches of this category, using slogans of sophistry to attack a group of people in order to court favor of another. In the end, everyone becomes the target of attacks in rotation.

"Reforms care for the younger generation" is a script written by young literati, but it is a slogan after all, lacking the power of a clarion call. The reason is that if one truly wants to build a better tomorrow for Taiwan’s younger generation, it is still necessary to start from developing the economy, fully implementing the rule of law, and erecting peace, so that it will be a long-enduring and sustainable policy. However, the administration of the Tsai government overemphasizes spotty or piecemeal reform ideals, but lacks the holistic thinking and nurturing of national goals. In some cases, it is only for attaining very narrow goals, while disregarding the rule of law, sacrificing rationalism and harmony, and even going to the extent of creating social divide. In other words, under a grandiose slogan of "reform," in reality, it often covers up veritable crudeness and violence, serious short-sightedness and greater injustice; how could this possibly bequeath happiness to the younger generation?

The economist John Maynard Keynes has a famous quote: "In the long run, we are all dead." For targeting the current problems, the powers that be should offer a policy of solution, not employing useless long-term slogans to gloss over the problems, nor asking the younger generation to march forward over the dead bodies of the preceding generation, while proclaiming it as progress. The younger generation needs a self-realizing environment of employment, a society of peaceful and stable development, and a legal system with a set of tractable rules. Please do not destroy these under the pretext of reforms.

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