Waldron said one problem in dealing with China was that trade and economic relations were not genuinely free — the currency was not convertible, exchange rates were controlled, interest rates were essentially determined.
“If Taiwan signs an agreement in which she places her economic future in the hands of another vast population that is in flux and is ungoverned by any sorts of laws, then she is giving away another piece of her autonomy and her sovereignty,” he said.
“At a minimum, we should call for a full and open discussion of this agreement so that everyone in Taiwan is fully informed of what it says and what it means. But consulting the people of Taiwan is exactly the opposite of what the negotiators want to do,” he said.
Koh Sebo, a spokesman for the Taiwanese-American associations, said that the government in Beijing wanted to use an ECFA as a tool or first step to get Taiwan into the Chinese sphere of influence and put the Taiwanese economy “firmly in the grip of China.”
“If Taiwan becomes an unsinkable aircraft carrier for China the whole western Pacific will be threatened,” he said.
The last word came from FAPA president Bob Yang.
“Members of the US Congress have already referred to ECFA as a ‘Trojan Horse,’ a ‘cage’ and a ‘trap.’ We agree,” he said. “The bottom line is that ECFA is a political tool that masquerades as a trade instrument to achieve China’s ultimate goal of annexing Taiwan.”
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