Knowledge-Net for a Better World July 2019   Populism in Taiwan: a Bottom-up Model Working Paper Series (Populism in Asia) Chin-en Wu, Associate Research Fellow at Academia Sinica Yun-han Chu, Distinguished Research Fellow at Academia Sinica   "The Bottom-Up Way to Protect Democracy: Populism in Taiwan" With an increase in dissatisfaction of liberal democratic systems around the world, populism has taken the center stage in all facets of life, especially in the discourse of politics and governance. In order to address this global issue, the Asia Democracy Research Network (ADRN) has been conducting research on populism based on country cases since 2017. ADRN was established by the East Asia Institute (EAI) in 2013 with funding from the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) to strengthen civil society in Asia and promote democratic norms and values. As part of ADRN research project, EAI has planned a special working papers series. This series is composed of six working papers, and the publication schedules is as follows: 1) South Korea’s Tamed Populism: Popular Protests From Below and Populist Politics from the Top (Issue on 2nd July 2019) 2) Populism in Taiwan: a Bottom-up Model (Issue on 9th July 2019) 3) Contemporary Populism and Democratic Challenges in the Philippines (Issue on 16th July 2019) 4) The Changing Nature of Populism in Malaysia (Issue on 23rd July 2019) 5) Populism in Contemporary Indian Politics (Issue on 30th July 2019) 6) Populism in Thailand (Issue on 6th August 2019) For the second publication of the ADRN special working paper series, Dr. Chin-en Wu and Dr. Yun-han Chu, associate research fellow and distinguished research fellow of Institute of Political Science at Academia Sinica explore populist movements in Taiwan. In their discussion, Dr. Wu and Dr. Chu analyze Taiwanese populist organizations and the environment that has contributed to their rise. In doing so, they argue that the "bottom-up model" of Taiwan is largely a "rejection" of the pro-mainland establishment and its attempts to "weaken Taiwan’s democracy." They also add that the movement has room for improvement as they have not yet made "significant contributions to Taiwan’s political and social development." In conclusion, Dr. Wu and Dr. Chu suggest that a "broad and inclusive definition of ‘the people’ is a better approach for the health of democracy."    Recent Publications Special Report | State of Democracy in Asia Report Special Report | Combating Corruption toward Clean Governance in Asia: Country Cases Special Report | Civic Space in Asia: Emerging Issues and Policy Lessons from Six Asian Countries     #909 Sampoong B/D, 158, Eulji-ro, Jung-gu, Seoul, 04548, Republic of Korea Tel 82 2 2277 1683  |  Fax 82 2 2277 1684 | Email EAI Copyright 2019 © EAST ASIA INSTITUTE. All Rights Reserved.