Governance of Biodiversity Conservation in China And Taiwan

‘In general, the DPP is more pro-environment than the KMT. However, ever since

the DPP became the ruling party in 2000, the situation has changed. In the past, the

close interaction between business and the KMT constrained the KMT’s autonomy

in policy making. However, the current ruling DPP is facing pressure from the

business community due to electoral concerns. The co-existence between the DPP

and business community has been established and consolidated.’^16

The failure of the KMT recently to establish a sound relationship with ENGOs
suggests that the KMT’s social base did not expand after 2000. The KMT, as
an opposition party, does not include environmental issues among its strategies
to increase local support. For example, TEPU is classified as ‘deep green’
from the KMT’s perspective, making it seem untrustworthy. Yet, the local
TEPU chapters work with individual politicians whether they are green or
blue. Color does not appear to be a major concern at the local level.^17
Whether ENGOs should be color blind is a contentious issue in the ENGO
community. The shrinking of ideological ties between the ruling DPP and
ENGOs creates new opportunities for the latter to forge linkages with local
officials. Local chapters of Wetlands Taiwan deal with governments and
politicians irrespective of party affiliation. Even when encountering DPP
magistrates, they still raise their concerns and object to any development in the
Qigu region. Tainan magistrate Su Huanzhi, once the darling of
environmentalists, in 2001 suggested building an international airport. From
TEPU’s perspective, this new policy orientation eroded the consensus between
ENGOs and the Tainan county government.^18
Yet Taiwanese ENGOs clearly recognize the political nature of the
environmental movement. Although relations between TEPU and the Taiwan
government have cooled recently, TEPU’s success in stopping the Binnan
development was the result of a skillful public relations campaign and a
mutually beneficial alliance with Su Huanzhi. Furthermore, political lobbying
is very important to the ENGOs. Due to its long-existing relationship with the
DPP, TEPU could lobby directly with the Presidential Office.^19 Thus, the DPP
connection has a lingering value to Taiwan’s ENGOs.

Alliance Formation among ENGOs

Environmetal NGOs have burgeoned in tandem with Taiwan’s democratiza-
tion movement. However, in their evolution they did not establish a
peak association to coordinate activities. Our interviews with ENGO
representatives did not elicit much information about pan-ENGO alliances. In
some sensitive areas such as the movement opposed to the construction of the
fourth nuclear power plant (NPP4), ENGOs formed a grand alliance in order
to demonstrate strength and forge common action. Under normal
circumstances, ENGOs have friendly but aloof relationships with each other.

166 Governance of biodiversity conservation in China and Taiwan