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Lien must meet with Chen before China visit

During his visit to China, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Vice Chairman Chiang Pin-kun (江丙坤) said that "the biggest opposition party does what the government cannot easily do. But the fruits will be enjoyed by the people as a whole."

KMT Chairman Lien Chan (連戰) is planning to visit China next month, and he hopes to promote the signing of a cross-strait peace agreement. I approve of the opposition's efforts on behalf of the country to break the cross-strait deadlock. But if Lien has the nation's interests in mind, he should meet with President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) to discuss a mutually agreed-upon strategy for cross-strait talks, lest Lien be used by China to divide Taiwan further.

After the March 26 demonstration against the "Anti-Secession" Law, China had to face massive pressure from the international community that it make balancing goodwill gestures toward Taiwan. The harm to Taiwan's interests is obvious when China now uses talks between the KMT and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to create the false impression that Taiwan does not oppose the law, in order to relieve international pressure. The small favors in the 10-point agreement between the KMT and the CCP cannot make up for the damage done, particularly since several of these points require negotiations between Taipei and Beijing before they can be implemented.

The KMT's eagerness to push ahead will destroy the government's comprehensive plan for cross-strait relations. Chen's willingness to accept questions and criticism from within his party in order to sign a 10-point consensus with People First Party (PFP) Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜) was meant to consolidate a relationship between the pan-blue and pan-green camps before pushing moving forward with cross-strait negotiations.

The self-restraint shown by Chen when he abstained from delivering a speech at the March 26 demonstration was aimed at winning the approval of the international community and maintaining some room for cross-strait interaction. But until China makes appropriate concessions to Taiwan, we should not hurry to restore such interaction and thereby relieve international pressure on China. The timing of the KMT delegation's does a disservice to Taiwan.

Most of the KMT-CCP agreement involves issues that require cross-strait negotiations, including direct flights, the sale of Taiwanese agricultural products in China and the export of fish from China to Taiwan. These are all issues that China has declared that they are ready to discuss, and the government is incapable of doing so. But Taipei is waiting for China to make the appropriate concessions before beginning to work for these changes.

When it comes to Taiwan's participation in the WHA, China is actually responding to US pressure. On March 8 and 11, US officials criticized China's Anti-Secession Law, saying it was a mistake and demanding that Beijing show flexibility on the issues of cross-strait transport flights and Taiwanese participation in the WHA. China is merely using the KMT-CCP negotiations to deflect US pressure.

Taiwan and China are currently enemies. Only a united Taiwan will be able to resist China. The KMT's willingness to play a role in cross-strait relations to make up for the government's limitations is laudable. But continued wrangling between the government and the KMT will be to China's advantage. I call on Lien to meet with Chen before his visit to China, in order to promote cooperation between the government and opposition on the signing of a cross-strait peace agreement and Taiwan's overall interests.

Tung Cheng-yuan is an assistant research fellow at the Institute of International Relations of National Chengchi University.

Translated by Perry Svensson
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