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TAIWAN: FIGHTING FOR DEMOCRATIC MEDIA
by Winter Chiang

In 1947, the ruling party in Taiwan, KMT, imposed martial law on
the island. Newspaper, radio and television were firmly controlled
thereafter by the government. Even though martial law was finally
lifted in 1987, the three existing television stations are still
run by various arms of the state apparatus. TTV is owned by the
Taiwan Provincial Government. CTV is run by KMT; and CTS takes its
orders from the military. Through its direct or indirect control
over the two major newspapers and three television stations, the
ruling party has been able to effectively manipulate public
opinion and greatly restrict freedom of speech.

In the eighties, demand for democracy swept over Taiwan; and
martial law was increasingly challenged by voices from the
opposition movement. Farmers, workers, environmentalists and human
rights activists took their causes to the streets to demand
legalised protection of their rights. To suppress the waves of
social protests that were pushing Taiwan toward democratization,
the KMT relied on the use of force by the military and the police.
Mainstream media portrayed the protests as street violence and
public opinion continued to be  manipulated by the government. In
the meantime, political magazines that were sharply critical of
the government became popular.

In 1986, the Green Team, an underground video group began to
record faithfully social protest events and produced and
distributed video tapes. Their work caused people to understand
the opposition movement in a different light. Between 1987 and
1988, home videos produced by the Green Team and The 3rd Vision
bore witness to major protest events in a social movement that
marked the turning point of Taiwan's development toward
democratization.

In 1990, the Green Team established an underground television
station to counter the pro-government election campaign invariably
staged by the three TV stations. Others attempted to interrupt
official television broadcast. Mobile underground television
stations also joined in the movement against KMT control over mass
media.

By 1991, there were 300 cable TV stations in Taiwan, all of them
illegal because cable was banned. In 1991, the opposition party,
DPP, began to broadcast political speeches, reports of social
unrest and political discussion programs on cable TV channels.
Such channels were called " Democracy CTV". They began to produce
news reports on local events to counter centralized control over
news by the 3 televisions stations. This marked the beginning of
community TV news in Taiwan. However, such efforts were still
short of the spirit of a true community TV because they lacked
community participation in program production. In 1993, the
government was finally forced to legalize cable TV.

Also, in 1994, underground radio stations sprang up and became the
focus of attention. These stations opened hot lines for call-ins,
enabling taxi drivers, home makers and other listeners to become
street commentators on political events and social issues. The
immediacy of call-in dialogues inspired popular participation and
brought forth opinions that had been systematically silenced by
radio stations that receive official blessing. More importantly,
underground radio became a means of mass mobilization and a point
of conflict that sharpened people's awareness of the inseparable
ties between free speech and democracy. On August 1, 1994, the KMT
government used helicopters and a police force of six thousand to
crack down simultaneously on all 14 underground radio stations in
Taiwan. The early morning attack provoked mass protests and a riot
in the capital city of Taipei. Some stations resumed broadcast
almost instantly and received large sums of money from supportive
listeners. The crackdown only confirmed the martial law mentality
of the KMT and its fear of free speech.

Since 1986, people who pursue freedom of speech have waged a
continous war against government control over the media. Their
protests have been carried out in the margins of society, in the
form of distribution of underground video tapes, TV broadcast
interference, opposition cable TV or underground radio broadcast.
The war has been waged against centralized control by KMT over the
mass media, against official suppression of the people's will to
free expression. Such is the scene in which the electronic media
in Taiwan moves slowly but surely towards democratization.

Winter Chiang works for The Taiwan Report