Council of Agriculture minister-designate Tsao Chi-hung (曹啟鴻) stirred up a hornets’ nest last week with his statement during a media interview on opening the market to US pork.
“I cannot prevent deregulation resulting from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP),” Tsao said, adding that the incoming Cabinet will have to come to a collective decision on the issue of US pork.
Council deputy minister-designate Chen Chi-chung (陳吉仲) appeared to agree, saying: “Importing US pork containing ractopamine residues could be viewed as a down payment on Taiwan’s TPP membership. If it is not deregulated, we can forget membership.”
Although this is tantamount to saying that US pork imports will be deregulated, Tsao and Chen attempted to qualify their statemtns by saying that they “would absolutely not deregulate domestic use of ractopamine.”
Incoming Cabinet spokesperson Tung Chen-yuan (童振源) sought to downplay the issue by saying that the deregulation of pork imports would be handled in the course of TPP talks based on food safety guarantees, minimizing their industrial impact, complying with international regulations and establishing a mechanism for comprehensive dialogue.
Is there really any difference between this and the policies of President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and his administration? Has the Ma administration not also been willing to allow US pork imports to improve bilateral relations and gain Washington’s support for Taiwanese membership in the TPP? And has the Ma administration not also insisted that it will not deregulate the domestic use of ractopamine and said that deregulation would be in line with international standards?
From the administration of former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) to the present, the issue of US pork imports has presented a dilemma for Taiwan. Everyone knows what needs to be done, but the issue has been hijacked by fighting between political parties. Be it political, economic or foreign affairs, Taiwan needs the US’ support, and since the US government places great importance on opening the market to US beef and pork, it will be difficult for Taiwan to find the force to block that demand.
US beef imports were deregulated at the end of the Chen administration, but the then-opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) fought that decision to the bitter end. When the Ma administration took over and was about to implement the deregulation, it was the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) turn to protest and occupy the speaker’s podium for five days and four nights to stop the KMT passing the bill allowing US beef imports. Now that the DPP is returning to power, the tables are turned as the DPP insists on deregulation, while the KMT opposes it.
Government rule also entails responsibilities. Although the DPP’s position on US beef has changed time and again, it must resolve this issue, even though it means being criticized. Allowing US pork imports does not only involve food safety issues; it also involves diplomatic, economic, trade and national security issues. The new government will have to hold cross-departmental meetings to discuss the pros and cons of US pork imports and come up with a policy and explain the decision to the public and the opposition.
As the pan-blue legislators sharpen their knives for a battle over the US pork issue, they should remember that they might return to power one day. If they go overboard in their opposition and protests today, they will face the same problem of changing their position in the future that the DPP is having today. Although the governing and opposition parties have different interests and positions, concerns over long-term national interests should override short-term party interests. This realization is what differentiates a true politician from political dilettantes. The ruling and opposition parties should sit down together for calm, rational talks to find a solution to the US pork import issue.
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