President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) remarks on Sunday about Taiwanese independence did not violate his "four noes and one without" pledge, nor were they targeted at former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝), the Presidential Office said yesterday.
Chen caused a stir when he told attendants at the Formosan Association for Public Affairs' 25th anniversary dinner that "Taiwan will say yes to independence, Taiwan will be correctly named, Taiwan will have a new constitution, Taiwan will develop and there is no left-right political axis in Taiwan, just the question of independence or assimilation."
Sedition charges
Less than thrilled by his remarks, People First Party (PFP) lawmakers filed sedition charges with the Supreme Prosecutors' Office yesterday against Chen, saying they hoped Chen could be tried because he does not enjoy immunity from such charges.
Some said Chen's speech was a counter attack against Lee, who recently said that independence was not an issue because Taiwan is already independent.
Others argued that Chen's comments violated the "four noes and one without" pledge he made in his 2000 inauguration speech.
The "four noes and one without" pledge stipulated that as long as China does not intend to use military force against Taiwan, Chen will not declare independence, hold referendums on Taiwan's nationhood, seek changes to the national title, enshrine "state-to-state" relations with China in the Constitution, or abolish the National Unification Council and unification guidelines.
Damage control
Presidential Office Deputy Secretary-General Chen Chi-mai (
"The president said Taiwan will say `yes' to independence, but he did not declare independence. He said Taiwan will have a new constitution, but he did not say he will change the nation's title," Chen Chi-mai said.
Chen Chi-mai also dismissed talk that the president's remarks were in conflict with the Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP) platform, which declares that Taiwan as an independent, sovereign state.
"It is a fact that Taiwan is a sovereign nation independent from the People's Republic of China," he said.
Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰), another deputy secretary-general of the Presidential Office, dismissed speculation that the president's remarks were intended to boost the DPP's chances in upcoming elections. He said the president had simply felt it was an appropriate time to point out that the nation's sovereignty was under constant threat from China and to spell out future policy goals.
"If the president's remarks were targeted at anyone, they were targeted at China," Cho said.
Cho said the US government had not commented on President Chen's speech, but repeated that the comments should not be controversial because they did not violate the "four noes and one without" pledge and were consistent with what the president had said before.
People First Party (PFP) and Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers, however, criticized the president for trying to spark a war with China.
"[The president] has committed the crime of sedition by making remarks at the risk of triggering a war. He should face the law for that," PFP caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (
PFP Spokesman Lee Hung-chun (李鴻鈞) said the party would boycott the national budget in the legislature if the president continued to push independence.
KMT lawmakers, meanwhile, said the president's comments were part of a strategy to win votes for the DPP in the legislative and presidential elections.
"[The president] hopes that military conflict [caused by his calls for independence] will divert public attention away from the DPP's poor performance and his embezzlement scandals," KMT Legislator Su Chi (蘇起) said.
"If China attacks Taiwan for seeking independence, Chen could then proclaim martial law and suspend the legislative and presidential elections," KMT caucus whip Hsu Shao-ping (
Saying that the KMT "firmly opposed the president's comments," acting KMT Chairman Wu Poh-hsiung (吳伯雄) said that "President Chen should explain to the public whether his `four noes and one without' promise is still in effect."
Former KMT chairman Ma Ying-jeou (
"The Republic of China is a sovereign, independent country and we have never doubted this," Ma said. "Why do we need to announce independence again?"
Ma added that President Chen often forgot what he had said, so the public should not take him seriously.
Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) Secretary-General Chien Cheng-shan (錢橙山) told a press conference yesterday that "everyone is very clear that Chen made the remarks to target former president Lee."
"The president's remarks were illogical because the DPP's Resolutions Regarding Taiwan's Future passed in 1999 stipulate that Taiwan is an independent state. We believe the public will pass their own judgment on his statements," Chien said.
Chien added that the TSU would not support any presidential hopeful who said that Taiwan should declare independence because the TSU believed that Taiwan had become an independent country after the nation's first direct presidential election in 1996.
DPP Chairman Yu Shyi-kun, however, said President Chen's remarks were in synch with the DPP's core values.
The Cabinet also supported the president.
"Taiwan is an independent country. In accordance with the Constitution, its name is the Republic of China [ROC]. The ROC and the People's Republic of China are two political entities that exist concurrently and are governed by two separate governments," Cabinet Spokesman Cheng Wen-tsang (
Former presidential adviser Koo Kwang-ming (
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said it expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-Wong tomorrow, which it said would possibly make landfall near central Taiwan. As of 2am yesterday, Fung-Wong was about 1,760km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, moving west-northwest at 26kph. It is forecast to reach Luzon in the northern Philippines by tomorrow, the CWA said. After entering the South China Sea, Typhoon Fung-Wong is likely to turn northward toward Taiwan, CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張峻堯) said, adding that it would likely make landfall near central Taiwan. The CWA expects to issue a land
Taiwan’s exports soared to an all-time high of US$61.8 billion last month, surging 49.7 percent from a year earlier, as the global frenzy for artificial intelligence (AI) applications and new consumer electronics powered shipments of high-tech goods, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. It was the first time exports had exceeded the US$60 billion mark, fueled by the global boom in AI development that has significantly boosted Taiwanese companies across the international supply chain, Department of Statistics Director-General Beatrice Tsai (蔡美娜) told a media briefing. “There is a consensus among major AI players that the upcycle is still in its early stage,”
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said it is expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong this afternoon and a land warning tomorrow. As of 1pm, the storm was about 1,070km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, and was moving west-northwest at 28 to 32kph, according to CWA data. The storm had a radius of 250km, with maximum sustained winds of 173kph and gusts reaching 209kph, the CWA added. The storm is forecast to pass near Luzon in the Philippines before entering the South China Sea and potentially turning northward toward Taiwan, the CWA said. CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張峻堯) said
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi yesterday said that China using armed force against Taiwan could constitute a "survival-threatening situation" for Japan, allowing the country to mobilize the Japanese armed forces under its security laws. Takaichi made the remarks during a parliamentary session while responding to a question about whether a "Taiwan contingency" involving a Chinese naval blockade would qualify as a "survival-threatening situation" for Japan, according to a report by Japan’s Asahi Shimbun. "If warships are used and other armed actions are involved, I believe this could constitute a survival-threatening situation," Takaichi was quoted as saying in the report. Under Japan’s security legislation,
RSS