Quotes of the Day

If Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian is seeing red these days, he can blame Shih Ming-teh. Shih was once chairman of Chen's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). But for weeks now he has been leading crimson-clad demonstrators in protest to force the President to resign over corruption allegations against him, his aides and his relatives (they deny any wrongdoing). Shih, 65, spoke with Time's Natalie Tso about Chen, Taiwan's democracy, and his "red revolution."

What's driving you to lead these protests?
Chen makes all the major decisions on his own without any discussion with others. Also, he wavers in his stances. People can forgive him these things because of his lack of experience and his lack of vision, but when [the financial scandals] came out, I was really, really mad. I had to do something.

Chen was one of the lawyers who defended you democracy activists in 1979 after clashes between the opposition and the police. Why turn against him?
I struggled [with this] for a long time. It's tough for me emotionally. But, out of friendship, a lot of people in the DPP are afraid to stand on the right side.

The Kuomintang (KMT), which the DPP ousted, also had corruption issues.
The DPP can't say: "Since the KMT did it, why can't I?" That's why the people took power from the KMT. If we don't make Chen resign, people will say, "He could do it, so why can't I?" [Then] we will never have clean politics.

You were jailed for 25 years for fighting the KMT's authoritarian rule. How would you compare the current struggle with your earlier one?
Before, it was very dangerous to protest; you could get caught and be executed. We struggled for democracy and human rights, and we achieved those goals. Now we face a corrupt and inept government. People are protesting for a clean leader and government.

Why not let the courts, which are investigating the irregularities, do their job?
Western civilization relies on the courts to decide, but Taiwan's judiciary is not fair and just.

Isn't there a risk that you set a Philippines-type precedent for the removal of leaders through street demonstrations, instead of using the ballot box?
Not at all. This is building up Taiwan's democratic system. Since 1992, people can elect their legislature and, since 1996, their President, but when the legislators and President don't have the trust of the people and they have to wait till their term is over, that hurts the country more.

Opinion polls indicate that citizens are tiring of the protests and feel they should end because they hurt Taiwan society.
There will of course be people who think that way. Eighty-seven people were carried away by the police. That's probably what influenced public opinion. They didn't listen when we told them not to lie on the streets ... But if President Chen doesn't resign, there will be no peace and stability in Taiwan.

Will you still persist if he does not resign?
Yes, this movement is not just about Chen but about the core values of our society.

How do you want to be remembered?
I've been a person who sticks to his ideals and to righteousness. I hope my tombstone says: ONE WHO SACRIFICED. I sacrificed my life for the people, for Taiwan, for democracy, human rights, and to protect peace across the Taiwan Strait. Today, textbooks say I was the soul of the opposition movement [during the authoritarian era]. How they see me in the future, that's up to them ... [But] I don't want to be President. I'm too old.

Red is the color of your anti-Chen campaign. Why?
It represents anger and passion, and it liberates our prohibition on color. In the Chiang Kai-shek era, it was prohibited to wear red [because it was the Communist color]. This campaign has done one thing: it has freed people from the fear of color. Now red is uniting the people of Taiwan.

• Natalie Tso
• TIME talks to Taiwan's outspoken protest leader