With its star gone, is it time for the KMT to rethink ties with Beijing?
- Han Kuo-yu went from the Kuomintang’s great hope to its big disappointment in just two years, as the pro-independence camp gained momentum
- Beijing’s hardline position on the island is a barrier to peaceful cross-strait links, analysts say
Running on a platform of economic prosperity for all and playing down the party’s traditional pro-unification views, Han stormed home in a traditional Democratic Progressive Party stronghold to become mayor of Kaohsiung – the island’s second-biggest city – in late 2018.
His win raised hopes within the party that he could be the one to lead them out of the electoral wilderness and forge a path towards better relations with the mainland.
In March 2019, despite no official links across the Taiwan Strait, Han made a rare trip to mainland China and held talks with top officials from the Taiwan Affairs Office.
About a year later, Han was the KMT’s nominee for president, campaigning on a policy of acknowledging that both sides of the Taiwan Strait belonged to one country.