While the Kuomintang has undergone and continues to undergo rapid
change, several questions arise. What are the lessons of KMT rule on
Taiwan? Are KMT leaders responsible for the emergence of democracy on
Taiwan? What will the KMT have to do to maintain popular support on
Taiwan? What will the KMT look like in several years now that the forces of
democratization are at work inside the party apparatus? While these
questions have been addressed in this book, it is necessary to offer a final
summary and analysis in this chapter.

As stated in the introduction, there are several general conclusions of this
study. KMT leaders have played a key role in the democratization process.
This is not to underestimate the role of the opposition. Opposition forces
were the real catalyst of political change in Taiwan. The opposition was
driven by subethnic rivalry and tempered by viable KMT development
schemes. Thus, prerequisites to democracy such as economic growth, culture,
education, and foreign pressure were all stabilizing factors in the liberalization
process.

While the KMT's Leninist structure created a stable economic and political
environment, it was also an obstacle to democracy. Finally, the quality of
democracy in Taiwan depends on the acceptance of more democratic virtues,
and the KMT's future depends on the party's ability to reform itself into a
conventional democratic political party. The final analysis and these
conclusions are best presented within the context of our framework.

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