Taipei Mayor Chiang Wanan (pictured left) and Democratic Progressive Party Taipei mayoral candidate Shen Boyang (pictured right). (File photo)
In the mid-19th century, morphine extracted from opium was widely used for medical treatment. It immediately relieved the pain in front of the eyes, but left the cost of addiction behind. Negative accusations in electoral politics have similar medicinal properties. They can quickly stimulate mobilization of hatred and paralyze opponents, but the real identification and responsibility are often left until after the vote.
In this year’s Taipei mayoral election, Shen Boyang’s article discussing drug policy 12 years ago gave this post a theme that touched family anxiety. Taiwanese voters have already seen several similar episodes in recent years. Before the 2012 presidential election, the Yuchang case linked Tsai Ing-wen to suspicions of profit trafficking. It was not until August of the same year that the special investigation team concluded that there was no evidence of criminality and concluded the case.
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By 2022, accusations such as vaccine procurement and high-end profiteering have become important offenses and defenses in the Taipei mayoral election. Chiang Wanan also criticized Chen Shizhong and the government for being "black boxes" on issues such as the "30-year sealing" of vaccine procurement data and the large-scale cover-up of contracts; after the election, the Beijing Inspection Bureau handled 62 epidemic-related reports, all of which were concluded with no evidence of specific crimes. In the same year, the lack of construction of the Hsinchu Baseball Stadium was extended to accusations of profit taking against Lin Zhijian. Until October this year, the High Prosecutor's Office dismissed the case and reconsidered, and Lin Zhijian was determined not to prosecute.
As long as an accusation quickly dominates an issue and the cost of being later proven to be an exaggeration is so small, politics will inevitably become path dependent on this quick fix. Stimulation comes so quickly, but responsibility goes so slowly.
Drug policy is particularly well-suited to creating this kind of excitement. Parents think about their children, and communities think about public security. Many people don’t even need to know the details of the policy, but their most fragile nerves are provoked. Jiang Wanan repeatedly asked Shen Boyang, in which community and what kind of drugs should be provided; Luo Zhiqiang and other Kuomintang legislators then announced the dispatch of large LED advertising trucks, claiming that Shen Boyang not only advocated the supply of drugs in community centers, but also advocated the legalization of marijuana.
Jiang Wanan openly supports Methadone and clean needles. He could have asked Shen Boyang to fully answer the old article and discuss the issue of system design, but Lanying continued to amplify and flash viral slogans. When harm reduction policies are simplified to "the government distributes drugs," and when people think of drug supply when they hear community services, frontline medical and social workers may have to re-explain that the work they do is not condoning. Jiang Wanan gained a momentary surge in popularity, but the public health system had to put in many times the effort to rebuild trust.
As early as the Japanese colonial period, Du Chongming used "progressive abstinence therapy" to diagnose and treat opium addiction in Taiwan, focusing on how addiction is formed and how toxicity develops. The same goes for elections. If you continue to reward omission of context, hints of crime, and amplification of fear, it will be difficult to stop this style of play. If there are candidates and political parties who are unwilling to give up this quick fix in this election campaign, the only people who can truly implement the so-called "friendly treatment environment" for Jiang Wanan are voters who no longer use fear as a substitute for judgment.
☆One less drug means more health, Liberty Times reminds you to stay away from drugs☆
