On Sunday, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s Liberal Democratic Party and its coalition partner retained their super-majority of seats in the legislature, signaling a continuation of Abe’s economic stimulus policies known as “Abenomics.”
Hong Kong’s pro-democracy protesters bid farewell to their 75-day street occupation when police stormed the main protest site at the Admiralty district, tearing down thousands of colorful tents and makeshift barricades.
Student activist Chen Wei-ting (陳為廷) runs for parliament in his native Miaoli; calls for constitutional reforms in Taiwan; India and its climate change challenges, and civil unrest in the US after a series of racially-charged cases of deaths by police.
After the dramatic local elections last week, political opinion makers from both the KMT and DPP sides are turning their attention to the issue of constitutional reform and systems of governance.
On November 29, Taiwan’s ruling KMT suffered a historical defeat in nation-wide local elections, losing 9 of 16 county and metropolitan level executive positions, and losing 6.2% of local council seats overall.