Forming communist parties, student groups not illegal in Taiwan: MAC

Taipei, Aug. 21 (CNA) Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday said that forming political parties or student groups that advocate communism is not against the law, following media reports about a "communist party" being established at one of the country's top senior high schools.

"Article 2 of Taiwan's Civil Associations Act originally stipulated that advocating communism was prohibited," MAC deputy head and spokesperson Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said at a regular news briefing in Taipei.

However, the provision was declared unconstitutional by the Constitutional Court in 2008, and thus one can register a political party with the Ministry of the Interior (MOI) under the name "Communist Party," he said.

A total of five parties, including the Taiwan Communist Party and the Communist Party of the Republic of China, have registered under the name "Communist Party," though some have self-disbanded, according to information available on the MOI website.

"As for young people being drawn to these Utopian ideals [referring to students forming communist groups], we do not view it from a legal perspective," Liang said. "I believe this is something for the Ministry of Education and local education departments to look into."

Liang's remarks came after a Thursday report by local Chinese-language newspaper Liberty Times about "Chien Kuo Communist Party" (CKCP), a group formed by students at Taipei Municipal Chien Kuo Senior High School, one of the most prestigious public all-male senior high schools in Taiwan.

The report said that the CKCP had established the "Taiwan Interschool Communist Alliance," with similar student groups to the CKCP found in as many as 39 schools, including New Taipei Municipal Banqiao Senior High School.

According to the introduction on CKCP's Instagram fan page, the group said it seeks to "promote the communist party's governance at Chien Kuo through democratic means, push for rapid reforms at Chien Kuo, and spread correct communist ideas."

The group also noted that it has "no connection with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)."

Seven posts on the fan page were still visible as of Thursday afternoon, with the earliest -- about member recruitment -- published in November 2022. The latest post, published at around 4 p.m. Thursday, came more than two years after the previous one in March 2023.

In the latest post, the general secretary -- identified by the Instagram ID "Farmertree8" -- said he is a graduating student from Class 327 at Chien Kuo, and stressed that the CKCP "not only has no ties with the CCP, but firmly opposes the CCP and its acts of aggression against the Republic of China (Taiwan)."

"The CCP, in the way it currently operates, can essentially be described as a Communist Party cloaked in authoritarian capitalism," he said. "In fact, even communists within China itself are persecuted by the CCP."

As for the current status of the CKCP, he said it was "dead," noting that membership had always been small and most of the members have now graduated.

The "Taiwan Interschool Communist Alliance" has also been unable to function due to too few active participants, he said, adding, "Simply put, it just fizzled out."

Commenting on the issue, Liang said it is normal for young people to have "illusions about communism" because of its "humanitarian and Utopian ideals."

"However, theory and reality are worlds apart," Liang said, adding that he hopes young people will study more about the history of the CCP and the international communist movement.

They can then learn that the reality of communist rule and the ideal of a communist society are "two entirely different things," he said.