«The Future of Taiwan Democracy»

The Geneva Press Club and the Délégation culturelle et économique de Taipei in Geneva have the pleasure to invite you to a conference. Please register below to participate:

with

Ambassador Nicole Su, Director-General of Délégation culturelle et économique de Taipei in Geneva

Dr. Lionel Fatton, Assistant Professor of International Relations at Webster University Geneva

Dr. Jacques deLisle, Stephen A. Cozen Professor of Law & Professor of Political Science; Director, Center for the Study of Contemporary China at University of Pennsylvania

Moderated by Isabelle Falconnier, Director of Geneva Press Club

On 13 January 2024, Taiwan held its eighth direct presidential election. Taiwanese people elected a new president and parliament and successfully demonstrated their conviction for the democratic way of life. The president-elect, Lai Ching-Te, affirms that this is a “victory for the democracy” and that he is fully committed to maintaining the peace and stability as well as the status quo across the Taiwan Strait.

Dr. Lai pledges to invite opposition figures to form an inclusive Cabinet, as his party does not have the parliamentary majority. Furthermore, during the election process, there was clear evidence of China’s interference ranging from economic coercion to disinformation manipulation. Ambassador Su will present the implication of the election.

Democratic Taiwan faces not only China’s attempt to influence its election, but also further reaction from China with the intention to sabotage the confidence between the new government and the Taiwanese people as well as to undermine the trust within the Taiwan society. Professor Fatton will share his view on China’s interference and its strategy.

In the multilateral fora, China also attempts to exert its influence through distortion of United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758 to suit its own interest and to block Taiwan’s international participation. However, the fact is that the particular resolution passed in 1971 dealt only with the credential issue and did not even mention Taiwan. Professor deLisle will expose the Chinese fallacy.