It is worth asking, therefore, whether the SEF and ARATS can continue to handle cross-strait negotiations on their own.
During its eight years in power, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government drew useful ideas from both ruling and opposition parties, establishing a “Macau model” for cross-strait negotiations.
Chang Wu-ueh (張五岳), director of Tamkang University’s Graduate Institute of China Studies, described the SEF as having a political mandate but the status of a civic group. Its officials are in charge of negotiations but the agreements are put into effect by government bodies, Chang said. In this way, talks are carried out by high-ranking civilian officials from both sides.
In WHO Secretary-General Margaret Chan’s (陳馮富珍) recent invitation to Department of Health Minister Yeh Ching-chuan (葉金川) to attend the World Health Assembly as an observer, Chan addressed Yeh as “Minister, Department of Health.”
Will it eventually be possible to progress beyond using civic groups to conduct cross-strait talks in favor of a more official negotiating structure? Has the SEF fulfilled its transitional role and should it bow out? This is something for all political parties to consider.
The Statute Governing the Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (臺灣地區與大陸地區人民關係條例) invests executive departments with considerable powers. Fifty-six subsidiary laws are categorized under “law, politics and society,” “finance, economics, science and technology” and “education and culture,” such as the Regulations Governing Approval for People from the Mainland Area to Engage in Commercial Activities in Taiwan (大陸地區人民來臺從事商務活動�?鴘k) and the Regulations Governing Approval for Mainland Area Professionals to Engage in Professional Activities in Taiwan (大陸地區專業人士來臺從事專業活動�?鴘k).
Although these laws may have inadequate provision for legislative supervision, they are at least sufficient to address non-political issues. While gradually setting up a more official structure for cross-strait talks, the government should enact and amend laws to allow for greater legislative scrutiny. By engaging in sincere dialogue with the opposition, the government can build a consensus on cross-strait policy.
Hong Chi-chang was chairman of the Straits Exchange Foundation from 2007 to last year.
TRANSLATED BY JULIAN CLEGG
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