We have, if we are to fulfill our role properly, to fulminate against the preposterous new legislation proposed by the PFP in which the notion of betraying the country should be strictly defined and anybody penalized who accuses others of such a betrayal without the necessary proof.
To attack this proposal is easy enough. We could point out that what constitutes the idea of betrayal comes from one's ideas of what behavior is honorable and what is contemptible. It is a moral judgement and, as such, is not reducible to precise definition.
It is obviously justified to question the loyalty of politicians such as PFP Legislator Kao Ming-chien (
Suppression of free speech comes as nothing new to the pan-blue camp, of course, and we might say that, with this latest proposal they are simply returning to past form. It is barely more than a decade since a person could be jailed here for suggesting that Taiwan might be better off as an independent country. And of course we remember that one of the most ardent supporters of the restriction on voicing such sympathies was one James Soong.
What this proposed legislation amounts to is the pan-blue camp trying to stifle free speech in an attempt to dodge awkward questions about its loyalties. To put the PFP's proposed law into perspective, it wants to make it OK to sell out your country, but illegal for anyone else to accuse you of doing this.
So there is much to question, in fact deplore, about the PFP's proposal. No party that was committed to free speech and democratic politics would even contemplate such a law. And this tells us a lot about the PFP's commitment to those notions.
But although we think the proposed law is incontrovertibly a bad thing, we cannot help smiling. Why? Because criticism of the pan-blues has finally started to hit home.
For a long time the pan-blue's tete-a-tetes with their friends in Beijing were widely known among foreign experts on China affairs but taken very little notice of here in Taiwan. The Kao affair has been a huge catalyst for Taiwanese to sit up and ask questions about just where the blue camp's loyalties lie, why their politicians are so intimate with Beijing, why their legislative agenda concentrates on China's favorite issues. In this respect the new law is the obverse of the pan-blues' "support" for referendum legislation. By supporting something Beijing detests -- though not enough to actually pass the bill -- the blue camp wants to prove its innocence of allegations of betrayal, while also, for good measure, making it an offense to make such allegations.
What this suggests is that loyalty might well become the driving issue of next year's election. We hope it does. The secondary reason is that the DPP doesn't have much of a record of achievement to run on. But the major reason is that nothing is more important. Do you want a free Taiwan or a Taiwan Special Administrative Region of China? That is exactly what the election must be about.
Recently, China launched another diplomatic offensive against Taiwan, improperly linking its “one China principle” with UN General Assembly Resolution 2758 to constrain Taiwan’s diplomatic space. After Taiwan’s presidential election on Jan. 13, China persuaded Nauru to sever diplomatic ties with Taiwan. Nauru cited Resolution 2758 in its declaration of the diplomatic break. Subsequently, during the WHO Executive Board meeting that month, Beijing rallied countries including Venezuela, Zimbabwe, Belarus, Egypt, Nicaragua, Sri Lanka, Laos, Russia, Syria and Pakistan to reiterate the “one China principle” in their statements, and assert that “Resolution 2758 has settled the status of Taiwan” to hinder Taiwan’s
Can US dialogue and cooperation with the communist dictatorship in Beijing help avert a Taiwan Strait crisis? Or is US President Joe Biden playing into Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) hands? With America preoccupied with the wars in Europe and the Middle East, Biden is seeking better relations with Xi’s regime. The goal is to responsibly manage US-China competition and prevent unintended conflict, thereby hoping to create greater space for the two countries to work together in areas where their interests align. The existing wars have already stretched US military resources thin, and the last thing Biden wants is yet another war.
As Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu’s party won by a landslide in Sunday’s parliamentary election, it is a good time to take another look at recent developments in the Maldivian foreign policy. While Muizzu has been promoting his “Maldives First” policy, the agenda seems to have lost sight of a number of factors. Contemporary Maldivian policy serves as a stark illustration of how a blend of missteps in public posturing, populist agendas and inattentive leadership can lead to diplomatic setbacks and damage a country’s long-term foreign policy priorities. Over the past few months, Maldivian foreign policy has entangled itself in playing
A group of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers led by the party’s legislative caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (?) are to visit Beijing for four days this week, but some have questioned the timing and purpose of the visit, which demonstrates the KMT caucus’ increasing arrogance. Fu on Wednesday last week confirmed that following an invitation by Beijing, he would lead a group of lawmakers to China from Thursday to Sunday to discuss tourism and agricultural exports, but he refused to say whether they would meet with Chinese officials. That the visit is taking place during the legislative session and in the aftermath