was during the time under Chiang Kai-Shek that the slow but gradualmarch toward democracy started taking place. From the moment that he stepped foot onTaiwan, he immediately started making changes to improve both the political structure andthe economy of the small province. Even though high ranking positions were stilldominated by the KMT party members, the lower levels of government were in need ofnew people. It was here that Chiang Kai-Shek implemented organized elections on thelocal level to get the local Taiwanese involved with politics, not just those of the KMTwho had come from the mainland. Through a strong party foundation, even under martiallaw, the KMT was able to provide a basis for civil society which alleviated the possibilitiesof any serious political challenges while still giving the populace an opportunity forparticipation. (Haggard 1995, Pg 280) Even though Taiwan was under an authoritarian regime, the economic success ithad during that time could be considered a factor in bringing about the democratization ofTaiwan. One of its most well known economic improvements was its land reform policy. The land reform policy was made up of three major goals of which it accomplished. Anincrease of overall agricultural production freed up workers for industrial jobs and gavethe country a surplus of agricultural goods it could sell off. A second goal was to equalizethe population in terms of wealth, status, and income. Through this equalization, theKMT was able to keep the elites at bay, while strengthening its own position, and givingto the greater good of the population. The third goal came as a result of the second, thesupport of the population. With the equalization of the population, those who were not aswell off in the previous system, saw a vast improvement in their standing, thus giving moresupport to social and political activities. (Rigger 1999: 69) In the next four decades, Taiwan experienced a huge surge ...
