US beings to understand the CCP

A few days ago, US Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick, who is in charge of Asia-Pacific affairs, offered rare, strident and straight forward criticism of China's political, military and economic strategies and system, and he entreated China to turn toward democracy. News reports called it "maybe the bluntest statement about China's one-party dictatorship made by the Bush administration."

In order to co-opt Beijing, the US State Department has for many years described US-Chinese relations in smooth diplomatic language. But this can easily be misunderstood by the outside world and make Beijing think that it has succeeded with its cheating and tricks. It could also give the outside world the wrong idea about China's "peaceful" rising.

The change in the US' attitude can in fact already be seen in the recent cancellation of Chinese President Hu Jintao's (胡錦濤) visit, and the meeting between US President George W. Bush and Hu in New York when an impatient Bush, with feigned politeness, offered direct and succinct criticism of China's human-rights situation. This does not mean the US is changing the way it deals with China, but rather that it is persisting in its own ideals in dealing with the country.

Only such a blunt approach will put pressure on China. Trade or money cannot be used to eliminate problems resulting from a difference in values, or force the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to improve its human-rights record and initiate political reform.

In response to Zoellick's criticism, foreign ministry spokesman Qin Gang (秦剛) said every country should build a harmonious society based on tolerance. But if diplomacy is an extension of domestic policy, we don't see the CCP showing any tolerance toward its citizens. Instead, it resorts to violence time and again. When the CCP calls for tolerance in its dealings with the outside world, it is but a lie aimed at winning it further benefits.

At a meeting with some of the participants to the 22nd Congress on the Law of the World in Beijing on Sept. 5, Hu said that, "we will continue to develop socialist democracy, perfect a democratic system, enrich the democratic form and guarantee that democratic elections, democratic decisions, democratic management and democratic supervision are implemented in accordance with the law."

He managed to cram seven references to democracy into one short sentence. So how come less than three weeks later he has given up on democracy and is doing all he can to protect the one-party dictatorship? Does he feel that since he can't bluff the US, there is no longer a need to sing the praises of democracy?

Although the US has seen through the dictatorial qualities innate to the CCP, it still seems to lack an understanding of Taiwan's domestic issues. This has an impact on finding solutions to the cross-strait issue. For example, the US thinks that the reason the arms-procurement bill still has not passed is because the government and opposition are colluding to avoid Taiwan's responsibilities, when the fundamental issue is that Taiwan's democratic institutions are still weak.

This problem includes dictatorial pressures from China and attempts to restore the old party-state system in Taiwan. To achieve this, some people do not shrink from leaning on the CCP's one-party dictatorship for support, making them the source of cross-strait disaster.