Shu-ling Ko

Taiwan’s Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Democratic Success amid Global Authoritarian Consolidation

Ms. Shu-ling Ko is an English-language reporter from Taiwan who, in 2011, joined the Taipei office of Kyodo News, Japan’s oldest and largest news agency. In that capacity, she has written on various issues pertaining to Taiwanese politics and foreign affairs, including coverage of human rights abuses, elections, and cross-strait relations with the People’s Republic of China. Before joining Kyodo News, she worked as a beat reporter for the Taipei Times, the top English-language daily publication in Taiwan, where she managed overseas assignments in Latin America and the South Pacific. For her coverage of cross-strait relations and Pacific politics, Ms. Ko was awarded a Jefferson Fellowship at the East-West Center in 2015. She has also served on the executive committees of the Association of Taiwan Journalists, the East-West Center, and the Taiwan Foreign Correspondents Club. During her fellowship, Ms. Ko analyzed Taiwan’s competent management of the COVID-19 pandemic as a way of understanding the factors attributable to the island democracy’s strong performance at a time when other democracies have been faltering around the world.