In Macau, the authorities maintain that the time is not ripe for democracy, because the public is not “mature and cultured enough,” but what he has seen in Taiwan — the smooth voting process, peace and tranquility in society after the elections, participation in the campaign and the pursuit of fairness rather than economic development among young people — demonstrated that a society can achieve collective rationality through democracy, Sou said.

Chiang Meng-hin (鄭明軒), a Macau Conscience member who studies political science at the National Taiwan University, said the results were a response to the crackdown on the Sunflower movement.

The protesters did not react to the crackdown with a violent revolution because they trust the democratic system wherein they can levy retribution against the government via votes, Chiang said.

“This is why Taiwan did not become Ukraine. Taiwan has set a good example for democracy,” he said.