Public Story
A Change of Sky - Taiwan Presidential Elections Sketchbook (2000 - 2008)
In the 2000 presidential election in Taiwan, Chen Shui-bian, the candidate of the Taiwan Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) with a pro-independence stance, won the election. This ended the nearly 90-year rule of the Kuomintang (the Nationalist Party of China, KMT) in Taiwan and completed the first party alternation in power. The Taiwanese Chinese media widely used the term "a change of sky" （變天）to describe this politically earth-shaking change. At that time, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) on the other shore of the Taiwan Strait, which had long emphasized its goal of "unifying" Taiwan, used missiles to threaten the Taiwanese people. In 2008, the KMT returned to power, completing another party alternation.
This series of photos were taken during the three presidential elections from 2000 to 2008 in various parts of Taiwan. I did not intend to present this serious documentary series, but rather as a Hong Kong resident who has never experienced full democracy, to immerse myself in the heated atmosphere of a general election. Although Taiwan's democracy is not perfect, it is the earliest Chinese-speaking country to achieve full democracy. Despite facing the CCP's verbal attacks and military intimidation, they remain undeterred. Most importantly, one could see the passion oozing from every face, and the carnival-like atmosphere during elections, which had surpassed the political goal of electing leaders and become a celebration of democratic values.
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