President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) yesterday compared the Chinese Communist Party's rule to those of ancient Chinese imperial dynasties, saying that the "dictatorial empire" developed by Beijing would collapse sooner or later.
"The `one China' policy is actually a political myth to be used for consolidating the new `Chinese Empire,'" Chen said when he met Ross Terrill, author of The New Chinese Empire and head researcher at Harvard University's Fairbank Center for East Asian Research.
"I have noticed that the book pointed out the fact that the concept of `China' was born in late phase of the Manchu Dynasty, not 5,000 years ago," Chen said.
PHOTO: CNA
"And I agree with the perspective that the major difference between a modern nation and an empire is how they are created: an empire is built on military force while a modern state is born on the basis of all inhabitants' approval," Chen said.
"Therefore, the Chinese Communist regime, which is nothing but a reproduction of an ancient Chinese autocratic empire, will fall someday as its imperial predecessors in Chinese history did."
During the meeting, Chen endorsed Terrill's many points of view in his book, and he urged China to learn from Taiwan's democratic experiences.
In his book, Terrill says that the end of the Chinese party-state is at hand. He points to a number of conditions that might lead to the collapse of China, some of which played key roles in the fall of earlier dynasties, such as the Chinese polity's inability to handle succession and legitimacy issues; a revolt by farmers, especially in the peripheral provinces; and the emperor's misjudgment of the power of outsiders.
Chen also echoed Vice President Annette Lu (
"Though my ancestral home was in Shao-an County (
"Where my ancestors came from is one thing, but nationalistic identification is another, and they should not be confused," Chen said.
He said that the concept of China is significant in the fields of culture, civilization and even the way of life.
"But a political `China' will be built through democratic procedures, especially relying on the development of democracy," he said.
Terrill agreed that every election in Taiwan had facilitated the consensus of a new nationalistic identification.
Meanwhile, Chen reaffirmed that his promise of writing a new constitution was an undertaking in line with democratic processes and should not be described as a timetable for Taiwan independence.
"Beijing assumes that Taiwan's democratic reform, including the realization of a new constitution for meeting Taiwan's reality, is a move toward independence," Chen said.
"It is immoral and irresponsible," Chen added, "and the constitutional move will not be postponed because of Beijing's opposition."
MORE VISITORS: The Tourism Administration said that it is seeing positive prospects in its efforts to expand the tourism market in North America and Europe Taiwan has been ranked as the cheapest place in the world to travel to this year, based on a list recommended by NerdWallet. The San Francisco-based personal finance company said that Taiwan topped the list of 16 nations it chose for budget travelers because US tourists do not need visas and travelers can easily have a good meal for less than US$10. A bus ride in Taipei costs just under US$0.50, while subway rides start at US$0.60, the firm said, adding that public transportation in Taiwan is easy to navigate. The firm also called Taiwan a “food lover’s paradise,” citing inexpensive breakfast stalls
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
CROSS-STRAIT: The vast majority of Taiwanese support maintaining the ‘status quo,’ while concern is rising about Beijing’s influence operations More than eight out of 10 Taiwanese reject Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework for cross-strait relations, according to a survey released by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday. The MAC’s latest quarterly survey found that 84.4 percent of respondents opposed Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for handling cross-strait relations — a figure consistent with past polling. Over the past three years, opposition to the framework has remained high, ranging from a low of 83.6 percent in April 2023 to a peak of 89.6 percent in April last year. In the most recent poll, 82.5 percent also rejected China’s
PLUGGING HOLES: The amendments would bring the legislation in line with systems found in other countries such as Japan and the US, Legislator Chen Kuan-ting said Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Kuan-ting (陳冠廷) has proposed amending national security legislation amid a spate of espionage cases. Potential gaps in security vetting procedures for personnel with access to sensitive information prompted him to propose the amendments, which would introduce changes to Article 14 of the Classified National Security Information Protection Act (國家機密保護法), Chen said yesterday. The proposal, which aims to enhance interagency vetting procedures and reduce the risk of classified information leaks, would establish a comprehensive security clearance system in Taiwan, he said. The amendment would require character and loyalty checks for civil servants and intelligence personnel prior to
RSS