The Cyber-reception for Three Hakka Tulou Construction Projects in Taiwan: From the Event to a Critique of Representative Democracy

ABSTRACT: In the early 2010s, under the second mandate of Ma Ying-jeou (KMT), plans to construct three Hakka tulou in western Taiwan aroused considerable discontent amongst a section of the Taiwanese population. Their disapproval manifested itself in the eruption of small-scale demonstrations and in the expression of differences of opinion and individual experiences in the cybersphere. As actors, internet users took on the role of citizen’s watch and people’s judge and revealed, through a critique of the three projects, the failings and tensions present in representative democracy both in terms of cultural identity and procedural mechanisms, highlighting opposed values of the various social agents. KEYWORDS: Taiwan, representative democracy, local election, Miaoli, tulou, Liu Cheng-hung, new media, actor, value, process.