Fatal Terrain – Brown, Dale

NATIONAL ASSEMBLY HALL, GOVERNMENT HOUSE,

TAIPEI, REPUBLIC OF CHINA

SUNDAY, 15 MAY 1997, 1900 HOURS LOCAL

(17 MAY, 0700 HOURS ET)

The fistfight broke out as suddenly as a thunderclap. Several

men and women leaped over seats to clutch at those who dared

disagree with them or support another side over theirs. Railings

and seats were used as ladders to try to get at one another,

and the entire crowd seemed to surge forward like a pack of

wolves on the attack.

     The scene resembled an unruly crowd at a World Cup soc-

cer match, or a riot in South Central-but this was a special

session of the National Assembly of the government of the

Republic of China on Taiwan.

     The president pro tem of the National Assembly hammered

his gavel, trying to restore order. He glanced over at the na-

tional guard troops peeking through the window in the back

of the chamber, ready to burst in if necessary. He heard break-

ing glass and almost hit the panic button, but stayed calm and

watched nervously as the noisy politicians surged forward. It

took nearly thirty minutes to restore some level of calm, and

another ten minutes for the legislators to clear the aisles

enough so the National Police could escort the president of the

Republic of China, Lee Teng-hui, to the podium.

     My fellow citizens, your attention, please. I am pleased to

announce the results of the ratification vote of t -he Legislative

Branch, which was taken just a few hours ago,” President Lee

began. “By a vote of two hundred seventy-one for, thirty

against, three abstaining, Mr. Huang Chou-ming is hereby ap-

proved by the people of the Republic of Taiwan to serve as

vice president and premier. Mr. Huang, step forward, please.”

     Amid renewed cheering and yelling, mostly from the left

side of the hall, the new premier of the Republic of China

stepped up to the dais and accepted the green-and-gold sash

of office. Huang was a major figure in the Democratic Pro-

gressive Party (DPP), and his election to the number-two po-

sition in the Taiwanese government was significant-it was

the first major advance of a non-Kuornintang (KMT) Party

member in the country’s short history. Although the Kuom-

intang still held a solid majority in all branches of the Tai-

wanese government, the advancement of the DPP was a major

shift from nearly fifty years of KMT philosophy and control.

     The shouting, cheering, celebrations, and accusations sud-

denly and violently turned into another brawl on the floor of

the National Assembly. While bodyguards surrounded the

president and vice president, members of Taiwan’s National

Assembly ran up and down the aisles, stood on desks, and

screamed at each other; several members were up on the dais

near the president, fighting with one another to decide who

would speak with the president first. Members of the National

Police Administration, charged with the protection of govern-

ment buildings and property and who acted as security guards in the National Assembly chamber, had moved into the cham-

ber itself and stood stock-still along the outer aisles of the

Assembly chamber, long cane batons nearly invisible at their

sides and tear-gas canisters safely tucked away inside their

tunics. They did nothing but watch with stone-expressionless

faces while the fights and bedlam raged all around them.

     “My fellow citizens,” President Lee tried. His voice, even

amplified, was barely heard. He waited patiently for any sign

that the near-riot was subsiding. He heard clothing rip just a

few paces away from him-the fight had somehow moved up

to the dais, where police were trying to keep Assembly mem-

bers from reaching the president and new premier-and de-

cided that he needed to wait a few moments longer. He had a

pistol tucked away in a holster inside his pants at the small of

his back, and Lee considered firing a shot in the air to get

everyone’s attention, but quickly decided that a gunshot might

just make this place explode.

     The Taiwanese National Assembly was composed of mem-

bers elected for life. Since most of the membership had been

elected to their post in 1948, prior to the Communist overthrow

of the Nationalist Party on the mainland, there were some very

old gentlemen here in the Assembly Hall. But the old goats,

Lee noticed, were arguing and fighting just as hard as the more

newly elected members-they just had less endurance. The

hall was splitting into two distinct sections, a normal and corn-

mon occurrence here in the National Assembly. The largest

group was the Kuomintang, along with their nominal allies the

New Party, the Young China Party, and the Chinese Demo-

cratic Socialist Party. On the other side were the members of

the Democratic Progressive Party, a more liberal and modern-

thinking political party filled with young, energetic, rather ide-

alistic members. Although the right side of the hall, filled with

KMT members and supporters, was much larger, both sides

were equally boisterous.