Focus Taiwan: Taiwan’s martial law victims urge young people to cherish democracy
… One of the survivors, 81-year-old Yang Tien-lang (楊田郎), said he was arrested in 1955 at the age of 17 for allegedly “spreading propaganda for traitors,” while working as a newspaper delivery boy. His superiors reported that he had scrawled subversive slogans such as “overthrow Chiang Kai-shek” and “join the Communist Party” on the wall […]
Taiwan’s KMT taking out loans to pay salaries (Donovan’s quick take)
The KMT’s woes are continuing to mount on pretty much all fronts, largely due to an institutional culture and product of that culture and current party Chairman Wu Den-yih. The KMT brought massive wealth to Taiwan from China in the late 1940s, seized many assets that belonged to Japanese colonial government after their surrender, and […]
Donovan’s Quick Take: Han comes out in favor of marriage equality
From Focus Taiwan: “At a campaign event in Taipei on Saturday, a young supporter noted the issue’s importance to the younger generation, and asked if Han would support efforts by some KMT lawmakers to repeal the legislation. Han responded that in life — from our family relationships at home, to our friendships at school, to […]
Current Affairs Taiwan (CAT) 台灣時事 08.04.2019 Pilot 11
Hosts Courtney Donovan Smith (石東文) and Michael Turton (麥哲恩) take on a huge news week! Ko Wen-je announces he’s launching a new political party, and wants Terry Gou to be president. Terry Gou returns from Japan and secretly meets with Wang Jin-pyng. Speculation is rife, so we speculate! Dan Han the Cabbage Man is ripped […]
Current Affairs Taiwan (CAT) 台灣時事 07.28.2019 Pilot 10
Hosts Michael Turton (麥哲恩) and Courtney Donovan Smith (石東文) discuss Dan Han Kuo-yu becoming the official KMT candidate, Ko Wen-je, Terry Gou and Hung Hsiu-chu in relation to the presidential race. Cigarette smuggling scandal an indictment of Taiwan’s bureaucratic problems (The News Lens piece) and the impact of HK protests on Taiwan’s presidential election (Diplomat […]
Current Affairs Taiwan (CAT) 台灣時事 07.21.2019 Pilot 09
Michael Turton (麥哲恩) is back from vacation, and with Courtney Donovan Smith (石東文) they kick off with the Want Want Group suing the Financial Times, Taiwan’s Central News Agency and the DPP’s secretary-general. They follow on with Han Kuo-yu’s adventures this week, then look in on the latest on three other possible, maybe candidates Terry […]
Current Affairs Taiwan (CAT) 台灣時事 07.15.2019 Pilot 08
Michael Turton (麥哲恩) is still on the East Coast, but we were very fortunate to have Chang Jui-chuan 張睿銓 step in to give his take on the KMT primary and the Han Kuo-yu candidacy, Gou, Wang and Chu’s next steps and discord in the NPP as Lin Fei-fan joins the DPP.
Current Affairs Taiwan (CAT) 台灣時事 07.07.2019 Pilot 07
NOTE: Next week’s video will be recorded on Monday, January 15 after the KMT primary results are announced. It’s a lonely show with Michael Turton (麥哲恩) on vacation, but Courtney Donovan Smith (石東文) kicks off with a brief wrap on Ko’s China trip, then goes into a deep dive on the candidates in the KMT […]
Current Affairs Taiwan (CAT) 台灣時事 06.30.2019 Pilot 06
In a jam-packed show, hosts Courtney Donovan Smith (石東文) and Michael Turton (麥哲恩) discuss Daniel Han Kuo-yu, Dan Han, Dan Han and more Dan Han–he’s got dubious online support…but this isn’t the first time this has come up, he’s being investigated for allegedly misusing funds when he was head of the TAPMC, the bizarre China […]
Current Affairs Taiwan (CAT) 06.23.2019 Pilot 05
For the first four fuzzy minutes Michael Turton (麥哲恩) and Courtney Donovan Smith (石東文) discuss Han’s troubles in Kaohsiung, then the video gets clearer. A poll shows that if the 2018 9-in-1 elections were reheld today, the DPP would win in Kaohsiung and Taichung–but the other results would remain the same. Han’s big rally in […]