It is interesting to note that toward the end of this extensive study of the democratization of Taiwan Christian Schafferer asks whether James Soong, leader of the People First Party, can succeed in creating a three-party system in the country's political life. As it stands, a year before the March 20, 2004, presidential elections in Taiwan, Soong has allied with Lien Chan, leader of the KMT, to form a single ticket in the hope of unseating President Chen Shui-bian, leader of the Democratic Progressive Party. In the presidential elections of 2000, five parties took part, including the KMT, PFP and DPP, in a very fiercely contested democratic elections that resulted in Chen Shui-bian's victory, ending 50 years of KMT rule over Taiwan.

Democracy and democratization have taken hold in many countries over the past 20 years, and Freedom House, a US-sponsored organization, has closely monitored the process. Taiwan is one of the most compelling case studies because of its successful shift from an authoritarian regime to a full-fledged democracy on top of an economic miracle.

Christian Schafferer is a leading European expert on East Asian politics, having spent years in Taiwan, South Korea, Japan and China studying the democratization process. He backs his study on the evolution of democracy in Taiwan with statistics and scientific explanations, interspersing the text with little known dirty details about the election campaigns.

Democracy, he implies, has its nuances. He quotes Joseph Schumpeter, obviously a fellow European, who defines democracy as a system "for arriving at political decision in which individuals acquire the power to decide by means of a competitive struggle for the people's vote." Other political scientists have elaborated and expanded that definition. But generally speaking it is acceptable to say that democracy rests on two pillars: political rights (for example, elections) and civil liberties (meaning freedom of assembly and speech among others). Those are the yardsticks by which to measure whether a country is democratic or not.

President Chiang Ching-kuo began Taiwan's liberalization in the early 1970s. The process came to fruition when the government accepted the formation of an opposition party, the DPP, in 1986, and a year later ended martial law. The KMT under Lee Teng-hui continued the process with the issuance of the Civic Organization Law, which set rules for the establishment of new political parties. The DPP has insisted on full-fledged democracy.

Many factors contribute to liberalization and democratization, without which the process would not be complete in Taiwan. Diplomatic isolation forced the KMT regime to reform its political system. Pressure from Washington, economic development, local and national elections, overseas Taiwanese organizations, competition with mainland China and the domestic social situation with the emergence of the middle class were among the other contributing factors. The author explains these factors in details and how they worked in Taiwan's favor. The US Congress played an important role, particularly when it adopted the "Taiwan Relations Act" to restore relations between Washington and Taipei after the US recognized Beijing in 1979. Pressure was put on Taipei to uphold human rights, political rights and civil liberties.

Local elections conducted in Taiwan in 1997 moved the country a step further towards democratization. For the first time, the DPP received more votes than the KMT in elections for mayors and magistrates in various municipalities and counties. The emergence of the opposition party came on the heel of widespread discontent among voters about the KMT's inability to improve public safety, fight organized crime and public corruption and stop the deterioration of the environment. Women's rights become a major issue that same year, as the KMT was perceived as being chauvinistic in clashes involving female candidates.

The author takes great pain in describing the behavior of some of the leading politicians and political parties as they strive to win votes. Democracy is not always a pretty sight.