“Make Kaohsiung Great Again”: Mayoral Candidate Han Guo-yu

This is a translation from the original 這不是韓國瑜的選戰 by Lo Hui-wen (羅慧雯), who holds a PhD in economics from Kyoto University and teaches media related topics. Originally published by Voicettank. Translation by Tim Smith.

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In Taiwan’s 2018 Midterm Elections, a black horse candidate has been capturing news headlines throughout the country with his brand of outlandish, no holds barred personality that flagrantly disregards common respect. He is Han Guo-yu (韓國瑜), the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) candidate for the city of Kaohsiung in southern Taiwan, a stronghold of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).

When the 2018 Midterms is entered into the annals of history, Han will surely be mentioned, perhaps even as a turning point in Taiwan’s road to democracy. It’s sad that the vast majority of the voters in Taiwan, regardless of party affiliation, still cannot see which direction Taiwan is headed at this critical juncture.

Han dropped out of thin air from Taipei to run in the heavily DPP-favored Kaohsiung to run in that city’s mayoral election. In less than half a year, he threw things into chaos. KMT supporters nationwide sees Han as a savior, and conventional news media chase every instance of him shooting his mouth off, creating a “Han Wave” of popularity. In the past few months, he’s held two political rallies of his own which have gathered around 30,000 people in attendance, and he has also run off to other counties and municipalities in Taiwan to stump for other KMT candidates.

When looking broadly at this phenomena, every media outlet report and commentary have all attributed this “Han Wave” to Han’s willingness to say whatever’s on his mind without filtering, or his complete disregard for the veracity of what he says. Then there are people who credit how well his campaign and supporters manipulate the media (both news media and social media); finally some have suggested that the city of Kaohsiung is ready for some change, after being governed by the DPP for such a long time.

But what I’d like to focus on is the deeper political and historical implications of this phenomenon, rather than add to the buzz already surrounding Han’s campaign.

Contrary to popular perception, Han is not a political newcomer who represents change; in fact he was a national legislator from 1993 to 2002 for almost a decade, but there hasn’t been much coverage of his tenure as a legislator, until New Power Party legislator Freddy Lim posted Han’s record of his performance in committee hearings. Then, as a relatively unimportant person within the KMT, having only been a deputy mayor and then the manager of the agricultural promotion agency in Taipei, how did Han all of a sudden become a starlet of his party, grabbing national headlines as the candidate for the third largest metropolis in Taiwan? If this whole media circus is the result of some earth-shattering media strategy of Han’s campaign, then the media is either being manipulated by Han and the KMT, or worse, the media is colluding behind the scenes in some larger plan.

In any case, I will suggest that Han’s platform and popularity plays exactly into the hands of the Chinese Communist Party in Beijing, which can only be too happy to meddle in Taiwan’s elections and sow chaos and doubt into the democratic process.

“Zero tolerance for politics” is all about politics

First, Han has expressed in several interviews that he’s holding fast to his campaign promise of “100 percent energy towards the economy, none towards governance” under his proposed administration. He’s stated: “If elected mayor of Kaohsiung, I will have zero tolerance for any protests about politics on the streets! None!” This is a serious departure from Taiwan’s democratic principles, but does the media remind viewers how anti-democratic this proposal is?

Since the beginning of the electoral contest for Kaohsiung’s mayor, the “logic” of “you can’t eat democracy” and “focus on the economy, stupid” have been a running theme and main staple of Han’s messaging. How is this not a challenge to the ideals of democracy that Taiwanese people have fought so hard to consolidate? At the same time, Han’s pet phrase of “focusing on the economy” basically relies heavily on investment and tourism from China, which plays right into the hands of China’s united front in further incorporating Taiwan into its sphere of influence.

Second, between 1993 and 2002 Han’s tenure as a legislator shows a complete lack of leadership credentials or competence. He is but a fringe politician even within the KMT. If Taiwan’s media can be manipulated into propelling him as the newest starlet of the KMT, it shows that Taiwan’s media landscape faces a serious issue of credibility. The media still plays a crucial part in any democratic process by aiding voters in making informed choices. If the media can be so easily manipulated, that goes to highlight the frailty and absurdity of Taiwan’s democracy.

Han Guo-yu (courtesy of CTS YouTube Channel)

Taiwan’s democracy is often seen as an alternative model to China’s claim that “democracy is not for the Chinese.” Western scholars often raise Taiwan as an example of democratic change, believing that China could also move towards democratic freedom following its economic opening up and and the rise of a middle class. But China operates under a one-party dictatorship, if it had to compete against other parties in an unconstrained, multi-party system, then the Chinese Communist Party would lose its reason for existence. This is why although the Chinese government’s attitude towards Taiwan is to conquer and annex long-lost territories under the banner of nationalism, that is only China’s long-term goal (in the short-term they couldn’t contend with a military response from the US). For now, the Chinese Communist Party can only try to continuously embarrass Taiwan’s democratically elected government. An election that revolves around babbling nonsense from a candidate shows just how absurd Taiwan’s democracy is and how Chinese societies aren’t suited for western democratic systems.  

Third, Taiwan’s voters have rather low expectations of reporters and the news media, due to a hyper-competitive market that has led to sensationalism and other race-to-the-bottom practices. There is a common trope in Taiwan, “only dropouts are fit to become journalists.” This kind of thinking actually gives political actors the room for their meddling and manipulation, since the problem of fake news is merely a problem of reporting standards, and not a problem of bigger political forces. If the Taiwanese people do not demand more professionalism from our news media, then there won’t be any way for us to see through this veil of “entertainment” and realize just how much politics is influencing the information we are consuming.  

Willing partner in political manipulation

This election is a testing ground for just how well the media can be manipulated to sow discord and chaos within Taiwan’s democracy, through buying up media enterprises and social media trolling. The problem goes beyond simply criticizing the news media’s lack of professionalism or how it has become the crass kind of variety show; it is about political manipulation, with an industry that is willing to play its part in eroding Taiwan’s democracy, and be cute about it.

The extent of this problem is clear. Han Guo-yu, a fringe politician, has already risen to the top of his party by being a populist demagogue appealing to the worst un-democratic instincts of his base, even stumping for candidates in races all over the country. The absurdities arising from this election are shaking the faith of many Taiwanese voters towards democracy itself.

The only way to mend the fold after all this damage is to uncover and disclose the media’s funding sources. How much money has been made by the media in this election cycle? Shouldn’t we be able to see the money trail clearly? This is an issue that the government must swiftly respond to.

We shouldn’t wish for future historians to say that China’s united front used this election to humiliate Taiwan’s democracy, exploiting the Taiwanese populace’s distaste towards reporters while allowing the media to shirk its responsibility. We hope that this election will be remembered as the turning point when we refocused on the issue of whether the news media is playing its role in the consolidation of Taiwan’s democracy.

(Feature photo from Chinese Television System’s YouTube Channel)