DEMOCRATIC PROGRESSIVE PARTY

(DPP) Taiwanese political party formed in 1986 by a group of independents who initially sought self-determination for the Taiwanese people, democratic freedoms, the establishment of economic ties with China, and a multiparty system. Despite a ban on new parties (part of the martial law regulations that were in effect from 1949 to 1987), the DPP was informally organized in 1983 and was the first opposition party to be officially recognized by the government (1986). It won 21 of 101 parliamentary seats in 1989. The party's popularity declined in the 1990s amid internal debate over Taiwanese independence from China.