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 (
PHOTO: FANG PIN-CHAO, TAIPEI TIMES
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.
CREDIT-GRABBER: China said its coast guard rescued the crew of a fishing vessel that caught fire, who were actually rescued by a nearby Taiwanese boat and the CGA Maritime search and rescue operations do not have borders, and China should not use a shipwreck to infringe upon Taiwanese sovereignty, the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said yesterday. The coast guard made the statement in response to the China Coast Guard (CCG) saying it saved a Taiwanese fishing boat. The Chuan Yu No. 6 (全漁6號), a fishing vessel registered in Keelung, on Thursday caught fire and sank in waters northeast of Diaoyutai Islands (釣魚台). The vessel left Keelung’s Badouzih Fishing Harbor (八斗子漁港) at 3:35pm on Sunday last week, with seven people on board — a 62-year-old Taiwanese captain surnamed Chang (張) and six
RISKY BUSINESS: The ‘incentives’ include initiatives that get suspended for no reason, creating uncertainty and resulting in considerable losses for Taiwanese, the MAC said China’s “incentives” failed to sway sentiment in Taiwan, as willingness to work in China hit a record low of 1.6 percent, a Ministry of Labor survey showed. The Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) also reported that the number of Taiwanese workers in China has nearly halved from a peak of 430,000 in 2012 to an estimated 231,000 in 2024. That marked a new low in the proportion of Taiwanese going abroad to work. The ministry’s annual survey on “Labor Life and Employment Status” includes questions respondents’ willingness to seek employment overseas. Willingness to work in China has steadily declined from
LEVERAGE: China did not ‘need to fire a shot’ to deny Taiwan airspace over Africa when it owns ‘half the continent’s debt,’ a US official said, calling it economic warfare The EU has raised concerns about overflight rights following the delay of President William Lai’s (賴清德) planned state visit to the Kingdom of Eswatini after three African nations denied overflight clearance for his charter at the last minute. Taiwanese allies Paraguay and Saint Kitts and Nevis, as well as several US lawmakers and the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC) condemned China for allegedly pressuring the countries. Lai was scheduled to fly directly to Taiwan’s only African ally from yesterday to Sunday to celebrate the 40th anniversary of King Mswati III’s accession and his 58th birthday, but Seychelles, Mauritius and Madagascar suddenly revoked
The number of pet cats in Taiwan surpassed that of pet dogs for the first time last year, reaching 1,742,033, a 32.8 percent increase from 2023, the Ministry of Agriculture said yesterday, citing a survey. By contrast, the number of pet dogs declined slightly by 1.2 percent over the same period to 1,462,528, the ministry said. Despite the shift, households with dogs still slightly outnumber those with cats by 1.2 percent. However, while the number of households with multiple dogs has remained relatively stable, households keeping more than two cats have increased, contributing to the overall rise in the feline population. The trend
RSS