臺灣大選臨近之際國民黨考慮換人
Taiwan’s governing party has called a special congress to consider dropping its unpopular presidential candidate — just three months before an election that will set the tone for relations with Beijing.
臺灣執政黨舉行一個特別會議，以考慮更換其人氣不高的總統候選人。三個月後臺灣就將舉行大選，這場選舉將爲臺海兩岸關係確定基調。
In a rare race between two female leading contenders, Hung Hsiu-chu, a straight-talking legislator from the ruling Kuomintang or Nationalist party, has fallen 20 percentage points behind the frontrunner, opposition politician Tsai Ing-wen.
在少見的兩位女候選人對壘的競選中，直話直說的國民黨立法委員洪秀柱(Hung Hsiu-chu)目前在民調中落後領先者、反對黨政界人士蔡英文(Tsai Ing-wen) 20個百分點。
The KMT, which has ruled Taiwan for much of the period since it fled mainland China after losing the civil war with the Communists in 1949, decided yesterday it would hold the extraordinary meeting to “gather consensus and unite for victory”.
在內戰中被共產黨打敗的國民黨，在1949年逃離中國大陸以來的大部分時間裏統治着臺灣。該黨昨日決定舉行特別會議，以求“凝聚共識、團結勝選”。
Beijing regards Taiwan as a renegade province. A victory for the opposition Democratic Progress party would strain relations with mainland China because Ms Tsai’s DPP takes a more strident position than the KMT on Taiwan’s independence.
北京方面認爲臺灣是一個叛離省份。反對黨民進黨如果贏得選舉上臺，將使臺灣與大陸的關係趨向緊張，因爲蔡英文的民進黨在臺灣獨立問題上立場比國民黨更強硬。
The KMT was trounced in local elections last year, as voters voiced frustration over the high cost of living and Taiwan’s economic dependency on mainland China.
國民黨在去年的地方選舉中一敗塗地，選民們發泄了他們對生活費用高和臺灣在經濟上依賴中國大陸的不滿。
Eric Chu, KMT chairman and mayor of New Taipei, said in a speech that for the legislative elections, which will be held at the same time as the presidential contest in January, were concerned about the effect Ms Hung was having on the party’s popularity.
國民黨主席、新北市市長朱立倫(Eric Chu)在一次演講中表示，立委選舉（將與總統大選一起在明年1月舉行）的多名候選人擔心洪秀柱對黨的民意支持率產生的影響。
“As the party chairman, I must honestly report to Ms Hung that during this time, many of us who are running for the 2016 legislature are facing difficulties,” he said.
“身爲黨主席，我必須誠懇、完整地向洪秀柱報告，尤其是這段期間，很多2016年立委參選同志面臨困境，”他表示。
He also criticised Ms Hung for being too close to China, saying her views on cross-strait relations “deviate from mainstream public opinion”.
他還批評洪秀柱過於接近中國，稱她對兩岸關係的看法“與臺灣主流民意有所偏離”。
Mr Chu has been touted by analysts as a possible replacement for Ms Hung, despite having declined to stand as the party’s presidential candidate before her formal selection in July.
分析人士認爲，朱立倫可能取代洪秀柱，成爲國民黨提名的總統候選人，儘管他在今年7月洪秀柱被正式選定之前拒絕競選總統。
Ms Hung, who is vice-president of the legislature, defended her stance, telling reporters “my campaign is to help our country find the right path, to help find a way out, a way to live and survive”.
身爲臺灣立法院副院長的洪秀柱捍衛了自己的立場，她告訴記者，“參選是要替國家確立正確道路，替臺灣找出路、活路”。
Asked how she felt about her possible removal from the presidential race, she said: “I blame myself for not clearing things up. I stress again that we haven’t done enough communication. We will continue our work.”
在被問及對於她可能被取消提名資格有什麼感想時，洪秀柱表示：“怪我自己，很多話沒有說得很清楚，我一再強調，溝通做得不夠，我們將繼續努力。”
J Michael Cole of Thinking Taiwan, a think-tank backed by Ms Tsai’s foundation, said a victory for the DPP would send a strong signal to Beijing after eight years of rule by a KMT legislature.
得到蔡英文的小英教育基金會支持的智庫——想想論壇(Thinking Taiwan)的寇謐將(J Michael Cole)表示，在國民黨統治8年後，民進黨勝選將向北京發出一個強大信號。
“After eight years of substantially closer relations, the fact that the public might vote out the KMT is quite significant,” he said. “It speaks volumes about the red lines that Taiwanese have drawn... how far a government can go in relations with China.”
“經過8年密切得多的關係後，公衆可能在選舉中把國民黨趕下臺這一點相當重大，”他說。“這充分說明了臺灣人畫出的紅線……決定政府在與中國的關係上可以走多遠。”
