On April 26, it was heartrending and unbearable to see elderly Taiwanese being beaten up by pro-China gangsters at the CKS International Airport when they wanted to voice their objections to Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Lien Chan's (
We cannot but ask why President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) government failed to protect these peacemakers who have voiced their support for Taiwan and have been staunch supporters of Chen's administration.
Are we the ones to be held responsible for the clash at the airport? Well, we do have to take all the blame for not having elected Lien as president in 2000, distorting his character so that he is willing to act against Taiwan in such a way. We should also take all the blame for conducting a transfer of power in 2000 when Taiwanese awareness had not been consolidated. We are even responsible for pushing the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) into power when the pan-green camp had not achieved a legislative majority.
Some believe that if the recent clash at the CKS International Airport had not happened, then it might be impossible to avoid a repetition of the 228 Incident. At least on this occasion, the Taiwanese people did not choose to be silent or to surrender. Some even said that since Lien is a political has-been who is putting on the last show of his career, he should simply be ignored.
If it is because the transition of power that took place five years ago, the KMT's failure to retain its hold on power and the pan-greens' failure to win a legislative majority that has compelled the governing party to take a humble, middle-of-the-road and conciliatory approach in dealing with other parties, thereby reducing those who uphold Taiwan consciousness to silence, we would prefer to be an opposition party rather than a governing party.
Comrades! Let us stop pinning our hopes on the nation's leadership and return to the spirit of a real opposition party. Let us return to where we started out when we were full of hope and had a vision for the future. Let us take a step backward, regroup and consolidate our forces and establish a political party that truly represents Taiwan.
Chen Gau-tzu is deputy director of the Northern Taiwan Society
TRANSLATED BY DANIEL CHENG
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