Re-Reading Taiwan’s Pandemic Through the Lens of Civil Society Engagement
A Review of Taiwan’s Covid-19 Experience: Governance, Governmentality, and The Global Pandemic
Keywords:
Human Rights Justifications; Civil Society Engagement; Taiwan; Governance; Governmentality; COVIDAbstract
This article reviews Taiwan’s COVID-19 Experience: Governance, Governmentality, and the Global Pandemic (Routledge, 2024). It highlights how the volume’s analysis of governance, governmentality, and the emergence of a “public-health state” is strengthened - and at times problematised - when placed in dialogue with civil-society perspectives gathered from relevant stakeholders. Drawing on the ODCSE methodology (Systematic, Ongoing, Direct Civil Society Engagement), the article shows that civil society functions not merely as a compliance partner but as a potential co-producer of knowledge and accountability. Taiwan’s unique geopolitical position outside the UN human-rights system further shaped its reliance on rights-based justifications and the limits of external oversight. The article argues that participatory, civil-society-centred approaches can play an important role in evaluating rights-restrictive measures adopted during public-health emergencies.
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Copyright (c) 2025 Federica Cristani
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