Hsieh says Ma is colluding with China

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) yesterday accused his Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) counterpart, Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), of colluding with Chinese leaders over the holding of a referendum on UN membership.

"Ma made promises to Chinese leaders when he was the KMT chairman," Hsieh said. "They most likely included carrying out the promises made by former KMT chairman Lien Chan [連戰]. Ma owes the public an explanation if he encounters any difficulties or contradictions in putting them into practice, because they could affect Taiwan's future."

NO EVIDENCE

Hsieh did not provide any evidence to substantiate his claims.

Hsieh made the remarks in Taichung City yesterday morning in response to a press report about Beijing's concern over the KMT's proposed referendum on UN membership.

Hsieh was in Taichung visiting a technology company in an industrial park.

He said it was important to maintain Taiwan-centered consciousness because this was the key to ensuring the safety of China-based Taiwanese businesspeople.

Taking the recent Shin Kong Group commercial dispute as an example, Hsieh said that the group leader returned to Taiwan when he encountered difficulty.

"Where would he go if Taiwan did not exist?" Hsieh asked.

Hsieh was referring to an incident in which Shin Kong Mitsukoshi department store general manager Steven Wu (吳昕達), who leads a group of Taiwanese staff operating Shin Kong Place in Beijing, was reportedly prevented from leaving China by Beijing authorities just before he was scheduled to return to Taiwan for a conference.

As Taiwan has a sound economic environment, Hsieh said that the government must team up with the private sector to map out a strategy to keep research and development (R&D) in Taiwan, while relocating manufacturing and sales to China.

R&D

Emphasizing that research and development is pivotal to Taiwan's economic development, Hsieh said that the government's goal is to boost R&D to 3 percent of gross national product. He will make an effort to boost R&D growth by 15 percent if elected president, he said.

Meanwhile, Ma said yesterday he was determined to push for the country's "return" to the UN amid speculation that China sent him a letter expressing its dissatisfaction with the referendum proposal.

"I've never heard of [the letter]. Neither do I feel any pressure [over the referendum]," Ma said when approached by reporters for comment.

Asked whether he had misgivings about China's opposition to the KMT's referendum bid, Ma said: "No, absolutely not."

As China had made its stance on the referendum issue known to the public, there was no need for it to convey its opinions through other channels, Ma said.

A report in the Chinese-language China Times yesterday said Ting Yuan-chao (丁遠超), Lien's secretary, confirmed two weeks ago that Lien had received a letter from China and was asked to pass it on to the party's leaders.

The report said Chinese officials responsible for Taiwanese affairs had decided the referendum was "inappropriate."

Ting was unavailable for comment yesterday, while KMT leaders denied the letter existed.

KMT Secretary-General Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) said he didn't know anything about the letter, while KMT Spokesman Su Jun-pin (蘇俊賓) said the China Times report was "groundless."

"The KMT is pushing for the country's return to the UN. This will not change because of Chinese pressure," Wu said.