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Pan-blue intents cannot be serious

A group of KMT and PFP legislators has adopted a resolution proposing that the leaders of Taiwan and China make simultaneous declarations ruling out independence for Taiwan and renouncing the use of force by China. The idea is in keeping with the ideology of the legislators who oppose "Taiwan independence" or even "ROC independence," for that matter. It may also appeal to those in Taiwan who are anxious about the military threat from China.

But it is a half-baked idea; absurd, unequal and damaging to the sovereignty of Taiwan and the human rights of the people of Taiwan. I suspect that the idea is influenced by US policy toward Taiwan and China, which, in a sense, can be simplified as "two nos": no unilateral declaration of independence on the part of Taiwan and no use of force on the part of China.

It is important to the national interests of the US that Taiwan and China be prevented from taking any "provocative action" against each other in order to maintain peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait. Both Taiwan and China fully understand the position of the US and try to avoid any action directly challenging the US stance. But as a matter of principle and of their own national interests, neither Taiwan nor China accepts the formula as a quid pro quo. It remains the unilateral position of the US.

Taiwan cannot accept it because it denies the right of the people to self-determination. The formula implies that Taiwan is not a sovereign state. The DPP has long insisted that the two sides sign a peace treaty and declare a mutual renunciation of the use of force to settle differences. Such a move would amount to normal practice in accordance with the principle of the equality of sovereign states, but, of course, it is a formula that the PRC won't accept.

The opposition legislators' argument is untenable. They believe that because the PRC won't agree to mutual renunciation of the use of force we had better give them what they want -- denying our own people the right to choose their destiny in the process. The UN Charter grants the right of self determination and imposes the obligation to pursue the peaceful resolution of disputes. It takes a firm stand against the use of force or threats of the use of force to settle disputes.

What the opposition legislators should have done was to ask the PRC to withdraw its missiles deployed against Taiwan and to commit to a peaceful resolution of differences through political dialogue. The deal proposed by the opposition legislators is as ludicrous as that offered by Chinese President Jiang Zemin (江澤民) to withdraw the PRC's missiles in exchange for a reduction of US arms sales to Taiwan.

Everything Taiwan has done in the past 10 years has been done with only one purpose: to defend its status as a democratic state. Unlike the government under late president Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石), the democratic government has not challenged the legitimacy of the PRC and has never posed a military threat to China. On the contrary, Taiwan has tried to reduce tension with China through exchanges and consultations. The PRC has not reciprocated this goodwill. It is determined to annex Taiwan one way or the other. It has increased its air and sea power dramatically by purchasing large amounts of advanced arms from Russia.

And, despite billions of dollars of Taiwanese investments pouring into China, the PRC is deploying hundreds of short-range ballistic missiles. Alarmed by the PRC's military threat, the US has upgraded the quality of the defensive weapons systems it is prepared to sell to Taiwan to maintain the military balance in the Taiwan Strait. It has been the policy of both the US and Taiwan to try to ensure that an arms race doesn't accelerate while maintaining a military balance between Taiwan and the PRC.

There is a direct link between US arms sales to Taiwan and the PRC's intentions and military capability regarding Taiwan. Missiles are only part of the PRC's military threat. Withdrawal of the missiles would not eliminate the PRC's military threat. The PRC could announce the unilateral withdrawal of the missiles as a goodwill gesture to Taiwan, but it is absurd for Jiang Zemin to ask the US to reduce arms sales in return. Neither the opposition legislators' resolution nor Jiang Zemin's proposal are serious or acceptable.

James Wang is a Washington-based journalist.
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