Colorless Voters Are the Bedrock for Han Kuo-yu

  Colorless Voters Are the Bedrock for Han Kuo-yu

China Times Editorial (Taipei, Taiwan)

April 17, 2019

 Translation of an Excerpt

The talks and scope of Kaohsiung City Mayor Han Kuo-yu during his US tour exceeded the mayoral level, with the full force of critique, while carrying a more intense flavor in responding to “run for president” calls from Han fans. The Han vogue has crossed the Pacific Ocean, extending into overseas Chinese communities, eliciting an unprecedented tide of enthusiasm; the overseas Chinese communities relayed heartfelt voices that "after feeling hopeless for so long, we see hope." This is a similar voice of the heart at the “three big mayoral campaign rallies in Kaohsiung" last yearend that Han Kuo-yu turned around Kaohsiung. Han Kuo-yu led the KMT to surpass the KMT’s "strength in connecting with the grassroots," then from Kaohsiung penetrating Taiwan, and even directly reaching overseas Chinese communities.

Lee Yen-chiou, a veteran media personality, revealed on her Facebook page that the enthusiasm for Han Kuo-yu in the United States not only surpassed former President Ma Ying-jeou; politicians including President Tsai Ing-wen, Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je, and former New Taipei City mayor Eric Chu, all could not compare. The overseas Chinese exhibited great zeal because they felt helpless for too long and finally saw hope. For this reason, Han Kuo-yu said "see each other on January 11 next year," sounding the bugle to call up the Han followers overseas.

When Han Kuo-yu spoke at a Harvard University forum, he tossed out an aphorism “defense depends on the United States, technology depends on Japan, markets depend on China, and efforts depend on ourselves.” At Stanford University, he spoke under the topic of “My Road to Kaohsiung: Reshaping Taiwan’s Party Politics and Emphasizing the Role of Public Servants in a Modern Democracy," directly pointing out that in the past 20 years Taiwan’s development has stagnated principally because the government is a "party servant" rather than a "public servant," which serves only the factional interests and political spoils, becoming slaves for political parties.

The true mainstream vox populi is hoping to terminate the vicious fighting between the Blue and Green, and hoping for cross-Strait peace, with the resurgence of Taiwan’s economy, making people prosperous. In the past 20 years, Taiwan has experienced turn-overs in ruling parties between the Blue and Green, indeed as Taipei City Mayor Ko Wen-je said, this was a historical quandary, with everyone having a share. Han Kuo-yu’s rhetoric must transcend Blue and Green, sublimating a greater picture from the Kaohsiung experience.

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