蕭錫惠 | Hsi-Hui Hsiao
在競技場上的人：寫給726大罷免的公民戰士
美國總統老羅斯福曾說：「值得讚揚的，不是那些站在場外批評的人，而是那位親身進入競技場、臉上沾滿塵土、汗水與鮮血的人。」這句話，正是對726大罷免最貼切的註腳。
這場由31個罷免團隊組成的全台行動，沒有政黨資源奧援，沒有媒體全力聲援，卻在國民黨派系與中共認知戰的夾殺中，勇敢出征。他們逐戶敲門、逐張連署，靠的不是動員系統，而是對真相的執著與對未來的信仰。
我看見他們，彷彿看見當年那個站在街頭的自己。1996年，我從美國返台，投入彭明敏總統選舉，一個人站在台北車站擺攤三個月。那是我第一次真正理解，什麼叫做「為民主站出來」。三十年來，靠著信念與恩典，我一直走在自由的路上。而如今，726的志工們正踏上相同的征途。
即使結果未達預期，我們仍無所遺憾。這31個罷團，就像31支民主作戰部隊，勇敢突圍。他們不是職業政客，而是願意走進歷史現場的平凡人，是願意「臉上沾滿塵土也不退縮」的戰士。
與他們對比的，是那些冷眼旁觀、只會嘲諷的人。他們從未走上街頭，從未承擔風險，卻對罷免運動指指點點，說什麼「戰略錯誤」「票數不夠」。他們從未理解，在地方黑金與假消息橫行的現實下，每一張連署、每一次宣講，都是多麼艱鉅的挑戰。
但我們知道：真正的失敗，不是跌倒的人，而是那些從未嘗試的人。726行動雖未成功，卻讓我們看清了誰在說謊、誰在背叛、誰又願意為民主站出來。
我們正在打一場漫長的戰爭，對手不只是政黨，而是深植社會的威權陰影與冷漠現實。而726罷團，正是最鮮明的民主火種。
歷史會記得這些人的臉孔，不是因為他們勝選，而是因為他們曾經奮戰。他們是真正進入競技場的人——而這樣的人，永遠值得敬佩。
In the Arena: A Tribute to the Civic Warriors of the 726 Recall Movement
President Theodore Roosevelt once said, “It is not the critic who counts… The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood.” These words are the most fitting tribute to the spirit of Taiwan’s July 26 (726) recall movement.
This island-wide campaign, carried out by 31 recall teams, had no backing from major political parties, no widespread media support, and was caught in the crossfire of entrenched KMT factions and China’s cognitive warfare. Yet these citizens bravely stepped forward—knocking on doors, collecting signatures one by one—not through top-down mobilization, but with conviction and a belief in truth and a better future.
When I see them, I see myself from years ago. In 1996, I returned to Taiwan from the U.S. to support Dr. Peng Ming-min’s presidential campaign. I stood alone at Taipei Main Station for three months, setting up a booth each day. That was the first time I truly understood what it meant to “stand up for democracy.” For the past thirty years, by faith and grace, I have walked the path of freedom. And now, I see that same fire in the volunteers of 726.
Even though the recall votes fell short, we feel no regret. These 31 recall groups were like 31 democratic battalions, breaking through against all odds. They were not career politicians, but ordinary people who chose to step into history—people who entered the arena, unafraid of getting their faces marred by dust and sweat and blood.
In stark contrast are those who sat in comfort, mocking and criticizing from the sidelines. They never went out into the streets, never bore the risk, yet they had plenty to say about “strategic mistakes” or “insufficient votes.” They never understood the sheer difficulty of organizing under local black-gold networks and a flood of disinformation—how every signature, every conversation, was a battle.
But we know this: true failure does not belong to those who fall, but to those who never even try. The 726 movement may not have succeeded electorally, but it succeeded in exposing the liars, the traitors, and the brave.
We are engaged in a long war—our enemy is not just a political party, but the shadow of authoritarianism and a culture of apathy rooted deep in society. And these 31 recall teams are the clearest sparks of democratic resistance.
History will remember their faces—not because they won, but because they fought. They were truly in the arena. And such people, always, deserve our highest respect.