ABSTRACT
Taiwan's political history is a complex one. Its political culture finds its origins in local family rule, Western colonialism, China's bureaucratic system, and Japanese feudalism, with one or another prevailing during certain periods. After World War II, Taiwan's political system, which was transplanted from China by Chiang Kai-shek, was based on Sun Yat-sen's writings and his goal of establishing republicanism in China. Taiwan's political culture bears the imprint of Nationalist China. Another place to begin an assessment of Taiwan's political system is its constitution. The constitution provided for an elected National Assembly, members of which were chosen for six-year terms to represent counties, municipalities, and areas of equivalent status. Taiwan is a civil law society; thus the judicial system places an emphasis on statutes rather than on case law. Taiwan's central government is patterned after the United States three-branch system, with the addition of two more branches.
