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EDITORIAL: Self-respect loses to self-censorship

The government decided last night to apply for WHO membership and World Health Assembly (WHA) observer status this year under the name “Taiwan” again, an idea president-elect Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) has opposed.

In an interview with the Central News Agency last week, Ma said he favored a bid for WHA observer status under the name “Chinese Taipei.” Saying there had not been any success in the quest to join international organizations with names other than “Chinese Taipei,” Ma said he believed that this was a workable title and one that Beijing has not objected to. He went on to say that he strongly opposed the idea of applying for full WHO membership under the name “Taiwan,” and criticized the government’s WHO bid last year as a “total embarrassment.”

It is amazing how quickly Ma can go from trumpeting slogans such as “Taiwan Moves Forward” and “Taiwan Will Definitely Win” during the presidential campaign, to “strongly opposed to the idea of using the name Taiwan to apply for full WHO membership.” Coupled with his reservation last week over the use of the word “Taiwan” on stamps to mark his inauguration, no wonder the Democratic Progressive Party caucus has accused him of “discarding the name ‘Taiwan’ like ‘toilet paper’” following his win on March 22.

While some say Ma is just being practical with his “Chinese Taipei” proposal, which might enable Taiwan to inch forward, it is still quite sad that he has not hesitated to criticize the government for embarrassing the country by using the name “Taiwan” while remaining silent about China’s efforts to blockade Taiwan internationally.

Former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) chairman Lien Chan (連戰) and Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤) signed a five-point “vision for cross-strait peace” in April 2005. In that pact the KMT and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) agreed to push for negotiations on Taiwanese participation in international organizations and events, with priority placed on Taiwan’s WHO membership.

So why doesn’t Ma put that “agreement” to the test and see what Beijing’s promises are worth? Why rush to automatically downgrade Taiwan’s WHA bid to the ridiculous name of “Chinese Taipei”?

Ma has said that he would not “clash with China” should he be elected but his “self-censoring” approach makes one wonder about the fate of Taiwan in the international arena.

Vice president-elect Vincent Siew (蕭萬長) will attend the Boao Forum in China today and is very likely to meet Hu on the sidelines. Will Siew be upholding Taiwan’s dignity, or follow Ma’s “gentlemanly approach” and censor himself?

Choosing not to “clash” with China does not mean Beijing will leave Taiwan alone. Self-censorship will not stop China from obstructing Taiwan in international matters. Even before he takes office, Ma should be willing to defend the country’s name and dignity, rather than fall over himself with awkward constructs aimed at appeasing Beijing. He should keep in mind that he campaigned for and won election to be president of the Republic of China, not the Republic of Chinese Taipei.

If the president of the country can’t stand firm and defend his nation’s identity and title, why should anyone else?
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