Justice & Law Quote by Chen Shui-bian

Chen Shui-bian’s confidence isn’t just optimism; it’s a deliberate piece of democratic stagecraft aimed at turning procedure into identity. By pairing “universal value” with “basic human rights,” he anchors Taiwan’s political aspirations in a moral vocabulary that reads as globally legible, not merely locally partisan. It’s a strategic move in a place where every institutional reform is shadowed by the question of sovereignty: to speak the language of rights is to invite recognition, solidarity, and comparison with established democracies.

The second half of the line does even more work. Referenda are framed not as a tactical tool but as a habit, something that will “take root” and become “part of our daily lives.” That organic metaphor matters. It suggests inevitability, patience, and legitimacy, as if direct democracy is the natural next step in Taiwan’s civic evolution rather than a contested political weapon. Subtext: opposition to referenda isn’t just policy disagreement; it’s resistance to democratization itself.

Context sharpens the edge. Chen governed in an era when Taiwan’s democratic institutions were still consolidating, and when referenda, especially on identity-adjacent questions, were seen by critics as volatile and by Beijing as provocative. So the quote reads as reassurance to domestic moderates (this is normal democracy) and a signal outward (Taiwan belongs in the human-rights-centered democratic club). The intent is to normalize a potentially explosive mechanism by wrapping it in the calm, universalist rhetoric of legitimacy.