Constitutional Reform Office and Constitutional Reform

As Scott Sommers observed in his recent series of posts on the problems of education in Taiwan, the DPP has been erected administrative bodies to carry out the functions of government, since the opposition parties, who have a majority in the legislature, refuse to cooperate with it in carrying on the normal functions of governance.

One of the DPP's goals is constitutional reform. The ROC was meant to function as the exoskeleton for a one-party Leninist state, the KMT, and was never meant to operate as a normal, let alone democratic, government. The DPP today announced the formation of the Constitutional Reform Office to sell the idea to the public as Chen met with a delegation from France.

President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) said yesterday that although Taiwan's constitutional system is significantly influenced by France's semi-presidential system, it is not exactly the same. As a result, Taiwan's constitutional system is confusing and troublesome, Chen said. His proposed constitutional reform will address this issue and discuss whether Taiwan should implement the French semi-presidential system, the American presidential system, or the Japanese cabinet system, the president said.

The Office of the President is about to establish a "constitutional reform office" to officially launch the second stage of constitutional reform, Chen noted. The president made the statement yesterday while receiving members of a Taiwan-friendly delegation from France's senate.

Taiwan