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Democratic Progressive Party (Taiwan)

Democratic Progressive Party
民主進步黨
Mínzhǔ Jìnbù Dǎng
Abbreviation 民進黨
Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen
Secretary-General Hung Yao-fu
Founded September 28, 1986; 30 years ago (1986-09-28)
Headquarters Taipei, Taiwan
Think tank New Frontier Foundation
Membership  (2014) Increase 335,643
Ideology Taiwanese nationalism
Anti-communism
Progressivism
Liberalism
Social liberalism
Political position Centre-left
National affiliation Pan-Green Coalition
Regional affiliation Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats
International affiliation Liberal International
Colours      Green
Legislative Yuan
68 / 113
Municipal Mayoralties
4 / 6
City Mayoralties and County Magistracies
9 / 16
Local Councillors
291 / 906
Township Chiefs
54 / 211
Party flag
Flag of Democratic Progressive Party.svg
Website
dpp.org.tw
Democratic Progressive Party
Traditional Chinese
Simplified Chinese
Commonly abbreviated in Chinese as
Traditional Chinese
Simplified Chinese

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) is a liberal political party in Republic of China (Taiwan), and the dominant party in the Pan-Green Coalition. It is currently the majority ruling party, controlling both the presidency and the unicameral Legislative Yuan.

Founded in 1986, the DPP is one of two major parties in Taiwan, along with the historically dominant Kuomintang. It has traditionally been associated with strong advocacy of human rights and a distinct Taiwanese identity. The current leader is President Tsai Ing-wen, the second member of the DPP to hold the office. The DPP is a long-term member of Liberal International and a founding member of the Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats. It represented Taiwan in the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organisation. The DPP and its affiliated parties are widely classified as socially liberal because of their strong support for human rights, but they also advocate economic liberalism and a nationalistic identity; the DPP is also more willing to increase military expenditures compared to the KMT.

The DPP's roots were in opposition to Kuomintang one-party authoritarian rule. It was founded as the Tangwai – or "outside-the-KMT" – movement. This movement culminated in the formation of the DPP as an alternative party on September 28, 1986 when eighteen founding members met at Grand Hotel Taipei. A total of 132 people joined the party that day. The new party contested the 1986 election even though competing parties remained illegal under national law until the next year. The first members of the party drew heavily from the ranks of family members and defense lawyers of political prisoners as well as intellectuals and artists who had spent time abroad. Such individuals were strongly committed to political change that would ensure constitutional support in Taiwan for freedoms of speech, press, assembly, and association. The party did not at the outset give open support to an independent Taiwanese national identity–a move that could have invited a violent crackdown by the Taiwan's Kuomintang rulers. Its platform was pro-environment and pro-democracy. As more and more of its demands were met during the 1990s–such as the direct popular election of Taiwan's president and all representatives in its Legislative Yuan, and open discussion of Taiwan's repressive past as represented in the February 28 Incident and its long martial law aftermath–a greater variety of views could be advocated in the more liberal political atmosphere. Party members began openly promoting a national identity for Taiwan separate from that of China. The DPP supported reform of the Constitution that would make it official that Taiwan's national government represented only the people of Taiwan and made no claims to territory in mainland China or Mongolia.


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