Fri, Jan 16, 2004 page1

• Chen says referendum in March his No. 1 concern

  DEMOCRATIZATION The president said that he was prepared to lose the election in his quest to promote democracy in the country, calling the goal a matter of faith

  • By Lin Chieh-yu / STAFF REPORTER
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  President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) yesterday insisted that the nation's first referendum must go ahead as planned and that he was prepared to pay the heavy price of losing the presidential election in order to accomplish this historic mission for the people of Taiwan.

  "My most important two missions for March 20 are to win the presidential election and to hold the referendum, and if I had to choose between the two, I would choose the referendum," Chen said at a party to publicize the release of his latest book.

  "If I am not able to achieve these two missions simultaneously, the referendum is absolutely my priority because it is my promise to the people, to the nation," he said.

  

  President Chen Shui-bian promotes his new book, Believe in Taiwan -- President A-Bian's Report to the People, during a press conference in Taipei yesterday.

  PHOTO: CHIANG YING-YING, TAIPEI TIMES

  "My most important concern about the presidential election is not whether I can win a second term, but what I can achieve to give to the nation and to history," Chen said, adding that holding the referendum and establishing a new constitution are now not only ideas of his, but also matters of faith to him.

  The new book, titled Believe in Taiwan -- President A-bian's Report to the People (相信台灣：阿扁總統向人民報告), was released yesterday. Chen and first lady Wu Shu-chen (吳淑珍) attended the party for its release together and answered questions from the media.

  In the second chapter of Chen's new book, headed "International Diplomacy," he discusses issues concerning his plan for a "defensive referendum," which he has pledged to hold on March 20, the day of the presidential election. He also elaborates on his appeal for a new constitution to be ratified in 2006.

  Talking about current tensions between Taiwan and the US over Chen's insistence on holding the referendum, Chen said that communication between the two countries was based on "whether Taiwan has violated the `five noes,'" but he stressed that a pre-condition was that "China must renounce the use of military force against Taiwan."

  "The international community can not ask Taiwan to abide unilaterally by the `five noes' and just ignore China's intention to use military force against Taiwan and the actions it takes to enable it to do so," Chen said.

  Chen says in the book that he can understand the US government's concerns about maintaining its national, political and even, he said, "election campaign" interests. As a democratic country just like the US, Chen said, Taiwan must appreciate those concerns.

  "We will consider the concerns of the US, Japan and the European Union when deciding on the content and wording of the referendum," Chen says in the book. "But we will neither give up our own national interests nor allow the international community to take the threats of China's missiles targeting Taiwan for granted."

  He said in the book that even though Taiwan has a firm friendship with the US, it still needs to develop "normal space" to survive in the international community and allow all of its people to live in freedom and dignity.

  "So, if my bid to win re-election is affected by the push for a referendum and a new constitution -- even if it leads to my losing the election -- I will accept it willingly," he says.

  Focusing on this strong statement, the media asked the president to elaborate, and Chen reaffirmed that he wished to shoulder full responsibility for continuing to democratize the nation, which he reasserted has nothing to do with declaring independence and certainly would not violate the "five noes."

  "On the road to democracy in Taiwan there remain only two things to be accomplished; one is the referendum and the other is a new constitution.," Chen said.

  "I hope to accomplish at least one of those two missions in my first term," he said.
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