March to demand use of `Taiwan'

Tens of thousands are expected to take to the streets on Saturday, marching to campaign for the use of "Taiwan" as the official name of the nation, with former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) serving as the event's general convener.

Expressing his strong approval of the march, the ex-president accepted the post yesterday in response to a request by representatives of the pro-independence "Alliance to Campaign for Rectifying the Name of Taiwan" (台灣正名運動聯盟).

The alliance is composed of dozens of non-governmental pro-Taiwan groups which have been promoting the name change to help Taiwan assert its rightful place in the international community.

While Lee will not attend Saturday's march because event organizers say they don't want him to walk in the heat, the Reverend William Lo (羅榮光), general-secretary of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan, will read a written statement penned by Lee.

"Lee is our eternal spiritual leader. We came here today to ask for his endorsement of the march. His agreement to be our general convener is an unexpected windfall," said Chairman of the World United Formosans for Independence Ng Chiautong (黃昭堂) after a one-and-a-half-hour meeting with Lee at the Taiwan Research Institute, a think tank founded by the former president.

Ng said that Lee suggested joining the march, but the group declined his offer, not wanting to see the elderly Lee walk under the hot sun.

Given that "Taiwanese" can be an argumentative conception, Chen Lung-chu (陳隆志), chairman of the Taiwan New Century Foundation, provided this definition.

"Whoever acknowledges Tai-wan to be his own country is considered Taiwanese," he said, adding that he hoped that under the name "Taiwan," people would stand up with pride and walk with heads held high within international society.

"The first step is to admit that we are Taiwanese," the members said. The next step will be to encourage private enterprises to add "Taiwan" to their companies' official names, the members added.

Then, they said they would demand the government drop "China" from the titles of state-owned businesses wherever it is found.

Pursuant to these actions, the government is to be prodded to request admission to the UN and other international organizations under the name "Taiwan" and to demand the country's embassies add "Taiwan" to their official titles, they said.

The ultimate goal is to enact a new Constitution, having "Taiwan" replace the "Republic of China" as the country's official name.

They said the reason they picked the day before Mother's Day for the march is that for Taiwanese, "the name of their mothers is Taiwan."

They added that, at a time when US President George W. Bush has thrown his weight behind Taiwan and called the country the "Republic of Taiwan," Taiwanese nationals should also speak out.

In a State Department news briefing on April 4, Bush referred to Taiwan as "the Republic of Taiwan." In his speech, Bush referred to Taiwan as a country, while he commended US efforts to bring China and Taiwan into the WTO.