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DPP rivals battle it out in TV debate

Democratic Progressive Party Chairman Yu Shyi-kun, left, former premier Frank Hsieh, center, and Premier Su Tseng-chang shake hands before yesterday's televised debate between three of the DPP's presidential hopefuls in Taipei City. PHOTO: FANG PIN-CHAO, TAIPEI TIMES

Three of the Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP) presidential hopefuls took part in a TV debate yesterday, where they each emphasized the importance of Taiwanese consciousness and criticized their common enemy, former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) chairman Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九).

The three-hour debate was organized by the pro-independence Taiwan Society and was held in Neihu yesterday afternoon.

President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), who decided to attend the event at the last minute, listened to the debate from start to finish. However, he did not take part in the question-and-answer session or speak to the media.

Saying next year will be critical for the DPP and the country, DPP Chairman Yu Shyi-kun said that Taiwan must become a normal country and only the "Taiwan path" can guarantee the country's sustainable development.

"Taiwan and China are two different countries on either side of the Taiwan Strait," Yu said. "If I am elected president, I will not be bound to the `four noes and one without' pledge."

Chen made the pledge during his first inaugural speech in 2000. The pledge states that as long as China does not use military force against Taiwan, Chen promised that he would not declare independence, hold referendums on the nation's statehood, seek constitutional change, changes to national symbols, nor seek to abolish the National Unification Council and the unification guidelines.

Yu said that Taiwan must become a normal country, but it has been undermined by China's intimidation, the national identification issue and partisan feuding.

Admitting he was not an eloquent speaker, Yu said that the best national leader must organize a professional team to run the country, have a clear vision of the nation's future and act on what they promise.

Although he has consistently polled poorly compared to his rivals, Yu said he doubted the accuracy of the polls.

Former premier Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) emphasized the importance of reinforcing Taiwanese consciousness because he said it helps to push the name change campaign and constitutional reform. Hsieh, who has been harshly criticized for his theory of "a constitutional one China" (憲法一中), said that the essence of his theory was to get rid of "one China" in the Republic of China (ROC) Constitution and he realized it would be a time-consuming task.

Until the ROC Constitution is amended, Hsieh said the DPP administration must acknowledge the ROC Constitution, which is seriously flawed.

As long as opposition parties or China identify with Taiwan, Hsieh said Taiwan should be willing to co-exist with them.

Hsieh, a co-founder of the DPP's now disbanded Welfare State faction, stressed what he called the "four priorities." They are: "Taiwan first, the environment first, culture first and the underprivileged first."

Hsieh criticized Ma's "new four wants," saying that he sounded as if he was running for city mayor or governor of a special administrative region.

Ma's wants refer to: the people "want to eat, want to work, want good education and want social order."

Hsieh proposed deepening the nation's democracy and strengthening Taiwanese consciousness in a bid to reach the goal of constitutional reform.

Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) called for unity and the continuation of Taiwanese political power, saying that a divided country and a split political party would be powerless.

Saying Taiwan was an independent sovereignty and its constitutional name is the Republic of China, Su underlined the importance of Taiwan consciousness and supported the writing of a constitution that is suitable, viable and relevant to the needs of Taiwan's people.

Facing criticism from Yu that he had tried to team up with Ma to try to force Chen out of office at the height of last year's anti-Chen campaign, Su said it was untrue and that he did not meet Ma to discuss the matter.

The second half of yesterday's debate began with a question from Soochow University professor Lo Chih-cheng (羅致政), who asked how the three DPP candidates proposed to deal with the issue of Chen's "four noes and one without" promise to the US.

Yu said that the Taiwanese people's future and the nation's legal rights cannot be limited by any agreement or promise made with a foreign country.

"I think the issue is an internal one and only the Taiwanese people have the right to decide their own future," Yu said. "I believe that as long as the final decision is done using democratic mechanisms, it will definitely win support from the majority."

Hsieh said that the president's "four noes, one without" promise to the US had been made under political pressure and was therefore understandable.

However, like Yu, he said he would not make any deal with a foreign country without first obtaining the endorsement of the Taiwanese people, while he would also do his best to maintain friendly relationships with Taiwan's allies.

"After the `four noes, one without' promise was made, the US did not give us more space to survive in the international community. China will never recognize us as an entity," Hsieh said.

Su's remarks echoed those of Yu and Hsieh. He said that the decision to agree to such a promise must be based on a decision made by all Taiwanese people.

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