Votes aimed at Pro-China legislators

For the bigger part of his life, Pu was not seeing himself as an activist – but that changed last year.

Furiously, what he thought was undemocratic behavior by Taiwan’s legislators and clear Chinese influence in parliament, he joined thousands of others in a large -scale street protest. Two months ago, he registered with a campaign group.

He has never done these things before. “The previous social movements were important, but to be honest, they did not anger me,” the 39-year-old photographer told the BBC. “We are citizens … and we must make sure that our society adheres to its democratic systems and spirit.”

Now this anger reaches a turning point. On Saturday, Taiwan will conduct a vote to decide whether to shoot more than two dozen legislators, accused of being too close to China, in what is called “Dabamsky”, or the great recall.

An unprecedented vote can change the balance of political power in Taiwan. But the political divisions have already deepened, with both sides of the debate claiming to be the savior of Taiwan’s sacred democracy.

This began with the January election in January, when voters elected the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) William Lai as their president, but gave the opposition the dominant presence in parliamentary legislative yuan.

In the coming months, the main opposition party Quomintang worked with the smaller People’s Party of Taiwan and Independent to block DPP bills and adopt controversial legislative acts. This included a restriction on the powers of the Constitutional Court, a reduction in the government’s budget and an increase in the voting threshold for recalling votes.

These moves have caused significant outrage among some Taiwanese who perceived them as a government of the DPP government, while strengthening the opposition’s parliamentary power.

In May 2024, thousands began protests in what became known as the Bluebird movement, partly called on Taipei Street, where many had gathered.

Many of the movement believe that the opposition, led by Kumintang, which is known for its relatively friendly position in China, is influenced by Beijing and secretly insisting on China’s program in Taiwan’s legislation.

The party denied this, but the suspicion grew when a group of Quomintang legislators visited China last year and were greeted by the highest-ranking official Chinese Communist Party Wang.

Civic groups in the Bluebird movement have released petitions to remove various Kumintang MPs, while Kumintang supporters have avenged the same to some DPP MPs.

So far, the petitions for 31 locations of the legislators have received sufficient preliminary support to continue with a final vote for download. All these places are kept by Kumintang – and if they are recalled enough enough, it may mean that DPP ultimately wins the majority in the legislature.

While Taiwan has reminded voices before, he has never seen so much in such a short time.

On Saturday, citizens in 24 districts will vote in simple yes or not a question: whether they agree to start their legislator. Another round of vote will be held in August for other cases of download.

In each area, if the number of votes exceeds 25% of registered voters and more than half approves the withdrawal, the place will be released and elections must be held within three months.

This means that turnout is crucial to the success of the great withdrawal – and this is the reason why civilian groups flood their social media and kill the streets that are developing for votes.

On a recent night in the weekdays, Pue and several members of his civil group stood in front of the subway in Taipei. Some kept banners and chanted slogans as others distribute fans of paper and fabric packets, decorated with the words “Let’s go out together to vote” and “say” to download.

Mr. Day acknowledged that with a few withdrawal votes that take place in Kumintang’s fortresses, even if they succeed, the party can be re-elected in the election.

However, the great recall would still be worth it, he insisted, as it was a way to “correct our democracy”.

Whatever the result, it would “send a strong signal to all political parties, you must respect the most wishes of Taiwan’s citizens.”

Den’s day admitted that many of the Bluebird movement was DPP supporters, but denied that civilian groups were funded by the party – a theory heavily pushed by the opposition.

“We don’t care if DPP wins the election. What is more successful to us is that we hope to have a normal parliament that is not near China and the Chinese Communist Party.”

He also took a problem with what he saw as a weak answer from DPP, saying: “From the first petition to recall, civilian groups say DPP that citizens are here and there are many of us … We are strongly urging DPP to join us.”

Initially, DPP tried to distance itself from the great recall. But in the end, she showed her support, with LAi emphasizing that DPP “must be aligned with the power of people” and order the party’s employees to help a group program to “protect the nation”.

This inevitably nourishes the opposition’s accusation that DPP has secretly designed the great recall and Bluebird movement, indicating the fact that DPP can extract the most political profit.

Not only does it have a chance to win a permanent majority in the legislature. Even if Kuomintang won in the election eventually, DPP would hold the majority for a few weeks, giving him plenty of time to pass decisive laws.

Protests against the head, organized by Kumintang and other opposition parties, have attracted thousands. At such a rally in the new Taipei neighborhood in Banao last weekend, the supporters have appeared bangs and chanting “not on the vote” as they cross their hands.

As they took the stage, the speaker after the speaker condemned the great recall while characterizing William Lai as a fascist and authoritarian traitor to Taiwan’s democracy.

Large screens released LAI videos to make him look like Adolf Hitler with the words “Fuhrer Lai”, as well as the slogan “Green Terror” – a reference to the DPP party party and the White Terror Party, a period of authoritarian rule and political repression at Kumintang.

The rhetoric echoed that of Beijing, who embarked on the debate as he watched from afar. His service in Taiwan has accused Lai of “participating in a dictatorship under the guise of democracy” and “using all possible means of suppression of opposition.”

“The response legislators were chosen by the majority of voters in their areas. If they are not good enough, they can be voted in the next election,” said the participant in his rally Zili. “Why should we use this evil way to get rid of them?”

The 68-year-old night shift worker insisted that legislators were aimed simply because they belonged to Kumintang and that Bluebird activists work for DPP.

“You can’t get one party to take the other one in one big recall. It’s not democratic,” he said.

“I’m a side with blue,” she added, citing the color of Quomintang’s party. “But I do not oppose green. I am not here because I support Kumintang, but to protect democracy.”

But there are also many Taiwans who are on the fence.

Looking at the rally of anti-ads on the sidelines, Banao Peggy Lynn’s resident was. Like several other observers that the BBC spoke with, it was confused by vanity over the great recall.

“I don’t know what it really is, I didn’t follow the debate at all … So I don’t have an opinion,” said the 43-year-old children’s worker.

“I will vote after reading more in it and deciding on how I feel that day for it.”

Analysts say that regardless of the result, the big download will leave a lasting effect on the Polarized Society of Taiwan.

Political fighting at times became nasty. Legislators have encountered parliament over the political dead end while activists face doxing and abuse. Like a day, he told the BBC that as they came out, he and his teammates were attacked or pushed by residents who opposed the vote.

The vote was also not left without scandal: the officials found numerous forged signatures, many of the deceased voters, in petitions against DPP and Kuomintang MPs.

The vote “will strengthen the concept of four years as not given, but as conditional for implementation and subject to periodic examinations. Political polarization is likely to get worse before it gets better,” said the Venia Sung, a political scientist at the Australian National University of Taiwan.

But the great recall is also “creating a space for renewed political activity”, especially for DPP supporters, added Dr. Sung, which he characterizes as a complete grace for the resilience of Taiwan’s civil society.

Ian Chong, a non -residential scientist from Carnegie China, said that if many of the votes to respond succeed, “a signal that will send to politicians in Taiwan, is that they should be careful about how far the line is pushing in public moods … They cannot deviate too much as there will be consequences.”

“But if he gets out, then he strengthens politicians to do what they want,” he noted.

“This will strengthen the polarization … And it would be easy for politicians to write off the great recall as another movement of civil society, which does not receive enough speed outside a certain part of the population.”

If there was a close but not a definite result in general, it may mean that “Kumintang and DPP will eventually have to look for compromises and work together.”

This, added Dr. Chong, “may not be a bad thing for Taiwan.”