Abstract

Two student leaders and activists will discuss the new era of Hong Kong's democracy movement with prospects for the future of Hong Kong after 2047.

Speaker Bios 

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Nathan Kwun-chung Law, 22, Is a well-known student leader and organizer in Hong Kong. He is Secretary General of the Hong Kong Federation of Students, having been a Standing Committee member from 2014-15. He participated in the only negotiation session with the Hong Kong SAR government during the Umbrella Movement.

This event is sponsored by the Taiwan Democracy Project in the Center on Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law. It is free and open to the public. 

Video of event

Post-event interview with Joshua Wong and Nathan Law

Abstract

Speaker Bio

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Nancy Okail is the Executive Director of The Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy (TIMEP). She brings more than 15 years of experience promoting democracy and development in the Middle East and North Africa region to this role. Prior to joining TIMEP, Dr. Okail was the director of Freedom House’s Egypt program. She has also worked with the Egyptian government as a senior evaluation officer of foreign aid and has managed programs for Egyptian pro-democracy organizations that challenged the Mubarak regime. She was also one of the defendants convicted in the widely publicized case of 43 non-governmental organization employees charged with using foreign funds to foment unrest in Egypt. She was sentenced in absentia to five years in prison, and, as a result, has spent the last four years in exile. She holds a Ph.D. from the University of Sussex in the U.K. where her dissertation examined the power relations of foreign aid.

Abstract:

The Wild Lily movement was a student demonstration in 1990 calling for democracy through direct election. 24 years later, the Sunflower movement was driven by a coalition of students and civic groups that were discontent with the Taiwanese government's handling of China relations. We discuss the general trajectory of student movements and the subsequent rise of numerous 'Third Force' parties that represent a new way for civic engagement in politics. 

Speaker Bio:

Dr. Fan Yun (范雲), PhD, is associate professor of sociology at the National Taiwan University. She is a politician, sociology scholar, feminist theorist, and former chairperson of the Social Democratic Party in Taiwan. After graduating from NTU with a B.A. and M.A. in Sociology, she received her PhD in Sociology from Yale University. She was president of the student association at NTU, assistant research fellow at Academia Sinica, commander for the Wild Lily student movement, and chairperson for the Awakening Foundation for women's rights. Her research interests include social movement, collective action, gender politics, identity politics, civil society and democracy. She has participated in social movement since the Wild Lily student movement in 1990, and was participant and witness to the trajectory of Taiwan’s transition into modern civil society and democracy.

In January 2016, voters in Taiwan went to the polls to select a new president and legislature, bringing to a close President Ma Ying-jeou’s second and final term in office. This roundtable, held at the annual conference of the Association of Asian Studies in Seattle, Washington, brings together four specialists on Taiwanese politics to reflect on the legacy of the last eight years of rule by the Kuomintang (Chinese Nationalist Party), and to consider the challenges facing the new DPP administration of Tsai Ing-wen, which takes office in May 2016. 

The roundtable panel will consider questions about five key developments under President Ma. First, on cross-Strait relations: what has been the political impact of the wide array of agreements that Taipei signed with the PRC, and is this period of enhanced cooperation likely to be sustained by his successor? Second, on the economy: Taiwan’s economy has become increasingly integrated with that of mainland China. What are the long-term political consequences of this trend? Does the next administration have any feasible alternatives to continued dependence on the PRC market? Third, on social changes: wealth inequality has risen significantly under President Ma. Why, and with what consequences for Taiwan’s social compact? Fourth, on social movements: social activism has surged during the Ma era, most notably during the student protests that came to be called the Sunflower Movement. What are the root causes of this increase in social movement activity, and what are likely to be the lasting consequences for Taiwan’s democracy? And finally, on democratic governance: the Ma administration to a surprising degree struggled to pass reforms and to respond effectively to social demands despite holding a large KMT majority in the legislature. Is this worrisome? Does it indicate a general decline in the Taiwanese political system’s ability to govern, or is it something more specific to the Ma administration?  

In considering these questions, the panelists will contribute to the debate about both the state of Taiwan’s democracy and Ma Ying-jeou’s legacy as president.

This special event at the Association for Asian Studies annual conference is sponsored by the Taiwan Democracy Project at the Center on Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law at Stanford University.