President Chen Shui-bian (
Chen has received varying appraisals for his maiden diplomatic voyage as Taiwan's president. However, as a new hand in state diplomacy, Chen's Hunghsiang (
Before we evaluate the pros and cons of the project, we need to look at Chen's motives. First of all, Chen's trip was not aimed at showing off Taiwan's achievements. Rather, it was a defensive move aimed at consolidating Taiwan's ties in the face of Beijing's diplomatic sabotage. Chen ran into some ripples in Nicaragua -- accusations from the Nicaraguan media over money diplomacy, and the uproar triggered by Taiwan's ambassador Antonio Tsai's (
The guest-of-honor treatment Chen received during his tour has also helped improve Taiwan's visibility in the international community, the only sore spot being the low-key treatment he was given during his stopover in Los Angeles. However, Chen's self-restraint has helped build mutual trust between Taiwan and the US, and may pave the way to more stopovers by leaders from both sides.
The trip has also given Chen a chance to understand the situation on the ground at Taiwan's representative offices abroad. Some people have opposed Chen's trip, citing two reasons. One is that launching the tour at a time of unstable cross-strait relations and on the eve of China's annual Beidaihe (
During the trip, Chen promised to make good on financial aid packages promised by the previous administration. There were reports of a US$4.6 million loan to the Dominican Republic, and about a US$20 million aid package to Chad. The Presidential Office has maintained that these are projects promised by the previous government. In fact, even if they were new, there is nothing wrong about a developed country giving appropriate help to developing countries. It is only reasonable.
Another objection to Chen's tour has been that Taiwan's domestic politics have been in a shaky state. But during the 12 days Chen was away, the stock market remained fairly stable. Apart from the onslaught of Typhoon Bilis, everything on the domestic front went on as usual. Chen has praised Vice President Annette Lu (
On the contrary, it was Chen's hastened return to Taiwan that put a not so wonderful period to his trip. Despite his praise for Lu and Tang, Chen was obviously worried about possible flak from the opposition -- like that which he received for not cutting short his vacation to the US when Typhoon Winnie hit Taiwan in 1997, during his tenure as Taipei mayor. Apart from this political consideration, his hasty return was a no-confidence vote for the delegation of authority, putting a less-than-perfect end to the Hunghsiang project. Another journey of consolidation, however, awaits him in Taiwan itself.
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