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PFP `peace' bill betrays the nation's sovereignty

With all the attention focused on the proposed national communications commission (NCC) bill, the other bill that the People First Party (PFP) is trying to sneak through the legislature bundled with it has been virtually ignored. This is the so-called cross-strait peace advancement draft law (海峽兩岸和平促進法), a pernicious bill that seeks to undermine the Constitution and betray Taiwan's interests.

If this bill is passed into law, it will allow for the creation of a cross-strait peace committee, which could directly infringe on the legislature's authority, presidential prerogatives and even extend its reach into the judiciary, forcing government agencies and public servants to conform to decisions it makes.

This monstrous creation combines legislative, administrative and judicial powers that flagrantly disregard the constitutional separation of powers.

The destructive impact that it would exert is no less than that of the March 19 Shooting Truth Investigation Special Committee. Its passage would be a disaster for Taiwan's constitutional development.

From a political perspective, the bill takes as a premise the "five noes" and the so-called "1992 consensus." The problem is that to accept these premises is to throw away any claims Taiwan has to sovereignty and accept that it is simply an appendage of China.

The fact that the "1992 consensus" has no legal existence just goes to highlight that this PFP bill is being driven by ideological considerations, at the expense of the law.

In addition, the committee would promote the arrangement that "in non-political organizations, each side of the Strait could hold a seat."

This proposal rejects all of Taiwan's efforts to assert itself over the past 10 years, and accepts that Taiwan should be forever debarred from full membership of the international community.

The proposed law is full of political language, lacks legal professionalism and is a slipshod piece of work.

The pan-blue camp is also clearly ignoring the will of the people. In last year's referendum, the question as to whether Taiwan should hold talks with Beijing to establish a peaceful and stable framework for cross-strait interaction failed to achieve the minimum number of required responses. This made it invalid. But isn't the pan-blue camp now seeking to do just that, despite the results of the referendum? The cross-strait peace advancement bill is not only unconstitutional and anti-democratic, it also rejects Taiwan's sovereignty.

And if we take into account the PFP's "pilgrimage" to Beijing last month and its suggestion that doctors from Taiwan be allowed to develop their practices in China, it clearly aims to dilute support and funding for the ruling party.

For a long time, the PFP has not concerned itself with Taiwan's security, leading to its irrational blocking of the arms procurement bill.

Looked at in this context, the cross-strait bill clearly is nothing more than a declaration of Taiwan's subordination to China, which harmonizes perfectly with China's "Anti-Secession" Law.

I hope that those few perceptive members of the Chinese Nationalist Party's (KMT) localization faction who have Taiwan's best interests at heart will not be blackmailed by the PFP in its attempt to go against the will of the Taiwanese people.

They should prevent the passage of a bill that sells out Taiwan and help to maintain the democratic system and sovereignty that we have built up with such difficulty.

Tseng Wei-chen is a postgraduate student at the National Taiwan Normal University.

Translated by Ian Bartholomew
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