“State-to-state” is the shorthand expression that the news media like to use to refer to the idea that the Republic of China (ROC) and the People’s Republic of China (PRC) have a special state-to-state relationship that former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) formulated toward the end of his presidency.
This was originally intended as a discourse to guarantee the continued existence of the ROC, and it was Lee’s — who was then also chairman of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) — report back to Taiwanese on the state of the nation before he stepped down as Taiwan’s first popularly and directly elected president.
This expression is also the reason why pledges to maintain the “status quo” are, if not satisfactory, at least acceptable.
It has already been 16 years since Lee stepped down as president, and during this time, not only has his old party refused to treat him with respect, but the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has also rejected his description of the cross-strait relationship as being state-to-state in nature.
During his eight-year tenure, President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) has repeatedly used the so-called “1992 consensus” to boast about his one-sided idea of a “one China, with each side having its own interpretation” of what that China is, and pushed a Taiwan that is independent of China toward Beijing while looking at the fetters with which he has tried to bind Taiwan to China as a lifeline.
This ran counter to mainstream public opinion, and after his eight years in office, he will now be known as the person who destroyed the KMT.
As the third transfer of power is under way, Lee decided to publish his book Last Days: My Life’s Journey and the Roadmap of Taiwan’s Democratization (餘生) in which he talks about the things that remain unfinished. The state-to-state formulation is once again creating waves, showing that the KMT clearly continues to fail to understand why it is being spurned by Taiwanese.
In 1971, former president Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) and his regime chose to give up the ROC’s status as a UN member state instead of admitting that their government did not represent all of China. In doing so, the Chiang regime gave Taiwan the status of a nation that is not a nation. The KMT was unable to properly follow up on Chiang’s decision, and the nation instead saw the party-state deviate more and more from mainstream public opinion. There is indeed a reason why the party has been abandoned by Taiwanese.
Maintaining the “status quo,” according to which the ROC is not a part of China, is not a radicalized and idealized state-to-state formula, but a rather conservative view of reality. Lee is a pragmatist and a realist rather than someone who promotes rash aggression, and he is a protector of Taiwan’s sovereignty.
All presidents after Lee should lead Taiwan and Taiwanese toward developing the cross-strait special state-to-state relationship and direct their efforts toward consolidating liberty and democracy in Taiwan and striving for economic wellbeing, peace and security. A deep understanding of the essence of the state-to-state formula will help Taiwan smoothly develop into a small and beautiful nation that is no threat to China’s territory and sovereignty.
The ROC Constitution articles that deal with China should be amended as Taiwan goes through a process of normalization. Taiwanese must recognize the PRC, and bringing the ROC on Taiwan and the Constitution in line with each other is a necessary step if Taiwanese are to rebuild their identity.
Lee Min-yung is a poet.
Translated by Perry Svensson
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