Good news indeed that the US House of Representatives has adopted a measure as part of a funding bill that would prevent the Bush administration from spending money on enforcing restrictions against visits by Taiwanese officials.
But the bill must be passed by the Senate and signed by President George W. Bush to take effect, and the chances of the measure relating to Taiwan surviving seem small, given the indecent haste with which the famously pro-China US State Department expressed its disapproval of developments.
But the overwhelming support in the House for the bill is a genuine cause for celebration. The symbolism affirms the efforts of all those who are striving to turn Taiwan into a credible diplomatic partner for a country that is key to its future.
It would be churlish to deny that some in the Bush administration might reasonably interpret the measure as a provocation. It may, so the reasoning goes, upset whatever efforts have been made to appease Beijing in recent months, and especially in the wake of the quixotic recall attempt on President Chen Shui-bian (
But Taiwan is, nonetheless, entitled to something: some reminder of why the US can be trusted, some reward for cooperating with the US in maintaining regional stability, some encouragement that at the end of the day the powers that be will stand up for those in need. Of late, the State Department and other pro-China agencies have offered none of these comforts and this is beginning to panic supporters at home and abroad. Add a long-term campaign against weapons purchases by the pan-blue camp and you have a recipe for thorough demoralization -- just what the Chinese doctor ordered.
It's high time that pro-China forces in Washington were reminded in practical terms that Taiwan is not Cuba -- and that the fundamental freedoms of Taiwanese should be reflected in the ability of their unofficial representatives in the US to speak to who they want, when they want.
The ability of Washington to conduct its foreign affairs cannot be injured by the simple act of enhancing communication between friends and allies. If anything, it is the opposite: shackling Taiwanese envoys and their US counterparts is antagonistic toward everything good that the US stands for, and corrodes the American goal of seeding democracy around the world. Some of these same seeds were planted -- indirectly -- in Taiwan, and what has flowered from them is an imperfect but empowering political structure. Anyone who notes regularly high voter turnout and witnesses the tallying of votes at local polling booths after an election can feel this.
The thought of Washington gagging its own public servants and diplomats to avoid offending an autocratic government is surprising enough; even more surprising -- indeed, unnerving -- is the apparent belief in the US State Department that this policy has no malign effect on Taiwan's ability to defend itself.
Muting the voices of the imperilled and cultivating an atmosphere of misunderstanding and aloofness is in the interests of no responsible party. With the Senate vote and Bush's response to follow, Taiwan will soon be reminded of who in the US takes its security more seriously.
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