The first-ever debate for democratic presidential elections took place yesterday, in which the three opposition presidential candidates gathered on the same stage to accept questions from citizens, concretely demonstrating the true meaning of popular participation in democratic elections. This debate was originally predicted to be the battle of the century, but it lacked the participation of the incumbent president. Without the fuse to ignite an explosion of combativeness between ruling party and opposition, thrusting and parrying among the three candidates was not extensive. Instead, the three candidates put their own distinct personalities to the forefront, a spectacle many people found particularly fascinating.

Lin Yang-kang enjoys the ample experience of a lifetime in politics, and he projected as his strong suit a good overall grasp of the nation's affairs. His performance was steady and organized. In his opening speech, he attempted to appeal to people's emotions, recalling his background from a farming family. In addition, he was able to discuss individual topics pragmatically, presenting tangible arguments instead of theoretical discourse about broad principles. Lin spoke with intensity and assurance on the constitutional system, with which he is very familiar. However, restrained by his conditioning through years of bureaucratic experience, he appeared overcautious in the midst of exposition and argumentation. Inevitably, he imparted a feeling of being a little too conservative and a little too lacking in initiative.

Surprisingly, Chen Li-an, who has always kept a low profile, created for himself a fresh image in the debate. While arguing his points, Chen seemed calm in appearance, but he frequently launched powerful attacks against the ruling elite. He said that when he met President Lee last year, he offered quite a lot of advice on domestic and foreign affairs. But the president was simply pontifical and didn't take him seriously. So Chen remarked, "I've seen and experienced" what Peng Ming-min termed "the arrogance of power." Chen Li-an expressed a desire to "atone" for abuses of power that occurred in the past, and with forceful intonation and gestures, he declared his determination to serve the public. Thus, he remedied the prevailing impression many had of him as lacking in resolution.

Peng Ming-min, having already weathered the buffeting of 49 debates while winning his party's nomination, appeared very self-composed on stage. Peng maintained his scholarly demeanor and offered well-structured argumentation. He furthermore launched forward into an offensive strategy, clearly demarcating himself from the other candidates. In his opening speech, Peng called the other three tickets "high-ranking officials and aristocrats." He accused them of using their lofty power to implement the policies of White Terror, while he himself had been politically black-listed and had lived in exile for 30 years. His acute exposition left a deep impression. It's a pity he didn't maintain his momentum through to the end. When replying to media questions and presenting his concluding speech, he failed to strengthen his platform and lost the opportunity to put to rest criticisms that he is unfamiliar with domestic affairs.