Diplomats and stage magicians are the two professions that still need to wear high silk hats; "all the tricks are in the hat," as the American humorist Will Rogers said. Foreign Minister Jason Hu (胡志強) resigned from his post on Friday to take on his new role as campaign manager for vice president and KMT presidential candidate Lien Chan (連戰). Magic from a hat is pretty much what the KMT will need to win next year's presidential election.
Hu has proven himself to be an extremely resourceful diplomat in difficult circumstances ever since he began his diplomatic career as Taiwan's representative to the US in 1996. Hu's public standing has risen considerably during his two years as foreign minister, even winning plaudits from the DPP for his performance. Moreover, public opinion polls consistently give him the highest approval rating of all cabinet members, and Hu has established an excellent media image for himself domestically. These are two important conditions for a successful diplomat.
There is no truer representative of British politician Enoch Powell's remark that all political careers end in failure than being Taiwan's minister of foreign affairs. It is a mission impossible, something like trying to bail water out of a sinking ship. It gives diplomats a high media profile, but dooms them to failure as any successes are short-lived and precarious. In this gloomy light, Hu has done comparatively well.
Taiwan's establishment of diplomatic relations with Macedonia was a major triumph for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), but the complex political situation in that country keeps officials awake at night. Taiwan's relationship with Papua New Guinea is also teetering on the brink and has called forth an interesting performance of prestidigitation from Taiwan's diplomats. To this day, Jason Hu is still reluctant to comment on whether Taiwan has actually established diplomatic relations with Papua New Guinea or not.
The government has not clearly stated whether its priority is foreign diplomacy or cross-strait relations, and this has taken its toll on morale among diplomats. If Taiwan is too aggressive in its foreign diplomacy, it is bound to call forth a strong reaction from China and add to cross-strait tensions. This exposes MOFA to criticism, including independent presidential candidate James Soong's (宋楚瑜) recent attack on Taiwan's diplomatic policy in the Washington Post.
MOFA represents the Republic of China, not the People's Republic of China, but the similar nomenclature creates serious confusion. The domestic explosiveness of the independence-reunification issue also prevents MOFA from using the word "Taiwan" in its diplomatic efforts, leading some to believe that the ministry represents the PRC. Taiwan's national identity crisis has split the loyalty of officials within MOFA, and caused more than a few career diplomats to wonder what they are struggling for. This problem is unique to Taiwan.
Israel faced a worse diplomatic dilemma in the past, but its diplomats had a sense of mission and fierce national loyalty and the country was thus able to recruit many dedicated and talented people to such work. Taiwan should learn from Israel's experience.
Diplomacy is a profession, and requires a great deal of skill to carry out a variety of functions and tasks. Diplomats nowadays should furthermore have a good background in economics and technology. But what the new foreign minister needs, however, is vitality and vision. The post should be held by a politician and not a career diplomat. Politicians have a better understanding of social trends and public opinion, while career diplomats are ill-suited to make political decisions or judgements. A heavyweight figure is needed to take MOFA's reigns and lead the ministry to further diplomatic breakthroughs.
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