In the contributions of Chief Justice Kotaro Tanaka on democracy in Japan, Col. Ben C. Limb on democracy in the Republic of Korea, Premier Ngo Dinh Diem on democracy in Vietnam and Mr. Modesto Farolan on democracy in the Republic of the Philippines, a common thread of thought may be detected. In all the five states, the fundamental democratic public philosophy has been there for varying lengths of historic time. The need is not for the introduction of an alien thought; it is for the development of suitable machineries for implementing that thought.
In the following paragraphs, we shall attempt to review what has been done by way of the implementation of the democratic idea in the Republic of China since 1949. Dr. John C. H. Wu commented on the promulgation of the Constitution of the Republic of China of December 25, 1947. We would like to recall two special features of that Constitution. Under it the presidency wields such powers and performs such functions as are usually granted or allotted to the chief executive of a republic. The National Assembly which enacted the Constitution adopted by resolution on April 18, 1948 a set of Temporary Provisions During the Period of National Crisis. By these temporary provisions, the powers of the president were considerably enlarged. During the period of national crisis, the president may, by resolution of the Executive Yuan, take emergency measures to avert imminent danger to the security of the state or to cope with any serious financial or economic crisis, without being subject to constitutional legislative restrictions. Considering the nature of the times when International Communism has been threatening the security of the state, such emergency powers conferred on the president for the duration of the crisis are easily understandable. The same practice may be found in other democracies in wartime.
Under the Constitution of the Republic of China, instead of the accepted separation of powers into the executive, legislative and judicial branches of government, there are five Yuans. In addition to the usual three, there are the Examination Yuan and the Control Yuan. The Examination Yuan takes care of open competitive examinations for aspirants to public offices, professional practitioners and technical personnel and the appointment, classification, emolument, advancement, retirement and pension of public servants. The Control Yuan has powers of review over the conduct of public affairs, rectification and impeachment of public servants. Aside from ample historical justification for the continuance of these features of Chinese government, they make distinctive contributions to the smooth working of democratic institutions.
Instead of dampening the enthusiasm of the Chinese people for continuing to develop the democratic machinery of government, the removal of the seat of government to Taipei in1949 only heightened it. Since 1949, the trend of democratic development in the Republic of China has been quicker in pace and wider in scope.
Take the election of the members of the legislative branch of the government for instance. The election of the members of the Legislative Yuan is a physical impossibility, as the puppet Peiping Communist regime is in occupation of the provinces on the mainland. In Taiwan, members of the legislatures of various grades are all elected by popular suffrage. All citizens of the Republic of China residing in Taiwan Province who have attained the age of 20 and have continued to reside in a given district for over six months have the right to vote. The Provisional Provincial Assembly was inaugurated on December 11, 1951. It is composed of 57 members who are directly elected on the basis of districts and municipalities of the province. The latest elections were held in April and May, 1954. Of the 57 members, six are women and three are representatives of the mountain tribes. The term of office of the Assemblymen is three years. They may be reelected. The Assembly meets for two weeks every six months. During its recess, the Assembly maintains a resident committee of nine members.
Members of district councils and municipal councils have been elected since 1950. In the 16 district councils and five municipal councils, 814 councilors were elected in the first election. They hold office for a term of two years. In the second election, held in 1953, 860 councilors were returned. Members of the town and village councils were first elected in 1950 and then again in 1952.
Popular interest in these elections has been high. The percentage of voters who have gone to the polling stations to cast their votes compares favorably with those of other democracies. In the second election for members of the Provisional Provincial Assembly, the percentage of actual voters as compared to the number of qualified voters is 74.41; that of the second election for members of the district and municipal councils is 79.72.
Not only are members of the legislative bodies elected, magistrates of district governments and mayors of municipal governments are also elected by popular suffrage through the secret ballot. All magistrates of the 16 districts and mayors of the five cities are elected. The ratio between the number of actual voters and that of qualified voters in the second election for magistrates and mayors held in 1954 was 75.33%.
The inference on the working of democracy of the land reform measures hardly needs detailed elucidation. The three main measures of reform-that of the reduction of rent on private tenant-farmed land to 37.5% of the total annual yield of the main crop, that of the sale to individual farmers of 63,000 chia of public arable land at much lower than the prevailing market price and that of restricting the individual holding of absentee landlords to three chia of medium grade paddy fields or six chia of medium grade dry land-furnished a solid foundation for the working out of economic democracy. Should the same general principle be carried through in the industrial field, the encouragement of the investment of private foreign capital notwithstanding, the prospect of economic democracy in the Republic of China is bright and heartening.
On the question of personal freedom, there has been some differences of opinion. Some critics have emphatically pointed out that there is ample room for improvement. We would be blind and deaf were we to claim that there is no room for improvement. After all, where do we find the utopia in which individual freedom is not subject to certain limits? We submit that perfect individual freedom does not make for the best democracy.
If freedom must have legitimate bounds in normal times, we offer no apology for such limitations upon personal freedom as are inevitable when the security of the state is seriously threatened everyday by International Communism. No apology is called for.
Instead of tooting our own horn, let's see what one friendly foreign observer has to say. Rodney Gilbert, writing in the May 17, 1954 issue of the Freeman, said: "An inspection of Formosa today reveals that the nine million Chinese now on the island are getting the best government that any part of China has had for many generations—the freest, most efficient and, yes, most honest...
As for common ordinary freedom of speech—unthinkable in any Communist country—nobody on Taiwan who has a critical word to say about this or that Government person or policy ever has to give a thought to possible eavesdroppers...
"There is no censorship of news, incoming or outgoing... Correspondents of all nationalities come and go without let or hindrance, and the resident correspondents of the Associated Press, United Press, Reuters, and the French Press Agency send out exactly what they please...
"Other freedom which are taken for granted in Free China are those of freedom of movement and of choice of employment… He can ride the railroads, the buses, the planes, or wander about by car, pedicab or on foot, as freely as though he were in Vermont, Kansas or Oregon. What is more, he can work at any job he can find…”
The trend of democratic development in the Republic of China has been a continuing and widening process. When the Communist threat to the security of the state is relaxed, we have reasonable ground to expect better things.
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<B>A Promise Kept</B>
"A Chinaman's word is his bond" has a hoary tradition. Following is one of the many that tell how a Chinese gentleman keeps his promises.
Fan Shih and Chang Shao of the Han Dynasty (208 B.C.-A.D.25) were schoolmates from far separated provinces. At the time when they both finished school, Chang asked Fan to visit him at his home two years later and Fan agreed.
On the day agreed upon, without having had a word from his friend after their separation, Chang asked his mother to have a feast prepared for Fan. "You two have separated," said his mother, "for two years over a distance of over a thousand Li. How do you know he is coming?"
"Fan is a man that keeps his words," said the son. "He will be here, I am sure." A feast was accordingly prepared. Sure enough, Fan arrived before dinner. —Retold by Edward Y. K. Kwong