Recent developments of Taiwan’s civil-military relations are the result of civilians using increasingly robust strategies to enhance their influence over the military. This paper, published by Democratization, analyses factors that have strengthened the power of Taiwan’s civilian elites and weakened the military’s bargaining power. While exploitation of civilian control instruments could generate civil-military conflict in the future, civil-military relations will most likely remain supportive of further consolidation of Taiwan’s democracy.
Civil-military relations research suggests examination of civil-military sharing of power to determine who dominates external defence, internal security, public policymaking and political leadership processes. Analysis of levels of civilian control indicates levels of progression towards democratisation.
After the Chinese National Party fled to Taiwan from communist China in 1949, the military continued to dominate external defence and internal security. It also exercised influence on pubic policy and political leadership selection. Lifting of martial law in 1987 allowed transition to democratic norms and structures, including an increase in civilian influence over areas formerly under exclusive military control.
Use of increasingly robust control strategies has allowed Taiwan’s civilian governments to reduce military influence in politics and expand civilian control over national defence. This strengthening of civilian control was made possible by the following conditions and factors:
- Taiwan’s regime was already largely civilian-dominated when democratisation began in 1987. This democratisation from above favoured restriction of military power.
- A changing corporate ideology within the military that redefined professional duties and officer corps responsibilities promoted institutionalisation of civilian control.
- After the institution of a doctrine establishing external defence as its primary duty, military involvement in internal security decreased.
- After liberalisation of the political system in the 1970s, officer corps cohesion was weakened. Civilian leaders expanded their influence by taking advantage of increasing rivalries between the different services.
- A stable civilian government throughout the transition period prevented a power vacuum that may have prompted military intervention.
- Aided by high economic performance, civilian government secured citizen support; a vibrant civil society exerted pressure to reduce military influence.
- United States’ (US) training programmes helped forestall military meddling in the economy, finance and social regulation. US criticism of the military’s army-centred defence strategy supported civilian efforts to change the defence structure.
The following factors affecting Taiwan’s transition to a civilian-military framework underscore the importance of civilian control to the democratisation process:
- Initial civilian control lagged behind other democratisation efforts. Only with the 2002 National Defence Act did civilian control begin to raise the quality of democratisation.
- The first ‘generation’ of civilian control involves preventing coups and demilitarising the political centre; the second involves institutionalisation of civilian control instruments.
- Taiwan’s post-martial law presidents managed to push back military involvement in politics and applied ‘divide and conquer’ strategies to increase civilian leverage over the military.
