Government officials and Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers yesterday rushed to slam Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) for calling the Republic of China (ROC) a government-in-exile while the DPP defended Tsai, saying her remark was taken out of context.
Tsai on Tuesday suggested in a speech at a book launch that from Taiwan’s perspective, the ROC government was a Chinese authoritarian government that had dominated Taiwanese politics for the last six decades. However, she also said that in the past few decades, with the rise of Taiwan’s democracy movement and replacement of Chinese interests with Taiwanese interests, the ROC government had become both legitimate and sovereign.
The KMT-led government, however, reacted strongly.
“Tsai’s comments belittled national dignity. It was a serious blunder that reflected self-denial and an opposition party of a democratic country should not hold such a stance,” Presidential Office spokesman Lo Chih-chiang (羅智強) said.
Lo accused Tsai of attracting support from extremists in the pan-green camp through rhetoric.
He also urged her not to manipulate the issue of national identity for campaign purposes, ahead of the November special muncipality elections.
“It was the first time Chairperson Tsai gave her stance on the status of the ROC. We are sorry that she chose to attract the support of deep-green supporters,” he said.
The term “government in exile” refers to a temporary organization with no authority to rule the country, Lo said, while the ROC government has enjoyed the authority to reign over Taiwan.
The “Resolution on Taiwan’s Future,” proclaimed by the DPP in 1999, also acknowledged Taiwan’s title as “ROC” in the Constitution, Lo said, adding Tsai’s comments were clearly contrary to reality.
“Did the former DPP government rule the country illegally for the past eight years? Does Tsai, as the DPP’s candidate in Sinbei City, decide to abandon her moderate approach?” Lo said.
Premier Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) said Tsai’s remark was “shocking,” and she should know what an exiled government means.
“She was once the ROC’s vice premier and Mainland Affairs Council chairwoman. Was she on the payroll of a government in exile?” Wu said.
Minister of the Interior Jiang Yi-huah (江宜樺) said some academics used to refer to the ROC government as a “government in exile,” but the official view is the “ROC government is the ROC government.”
KMT lawmakers questioned whether Tsai was crazy.
“When I first heard the remark, I thought it came from [former president] Chen Shui-bian [陳水扁]. [Did she make the remark] because she was possessed by Chen?” KMT Legislator Lee Ching-hua (李慶華) said.
KMT Legislator Lu Hsueh-chang (呂學樟) said the ROC would never be an exiled government because it has all the characteristics of an independent nation.
KMT Secretary-General King Pu-tsung (金溥聰) urged Tsai to apologize for her blunder.
Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴), director of the DPP’s Department of International Affairs, yesterday downplayed Tsai’s remarks, saying they were taken out of context.
Tsai was referring to historical events instead of the ROC’s current status, Hsiao added.
On what Tsai originally meant by her comments, Hsiao said: “The ROC did come to Taiwan as a government-in-exile in 1949, but in the last 60 years through our pursuit for and subsequent exercise of democracy … we can proudly say that Taiwan is a sovereign country. The [government] took Tsai’s remarks out of context and completely distorted the meaning.”
Standing behind Tsai’s comments, DPP caucus whip Chai Trong-rong (蔡同榮) said that, based on the Treaty of San Francisco, Taiwan’s status has remained undetermined in the post-World War II period.
“It’s correct to say that the [ROC] government was at the time a government-in-exile, the KMT had no basis for governing Taiwan [following the war],” Chai said.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY FLORA WANG, LOA IOK-SIN AND CNA
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
‘SECRETS’: While saying China would not attack during his presidency, Donald Trump declined to say how Washington would respond if Beijing were to take military action US President Donald Trump said that China would not take military action against Taiwan while he is president, as the Chinese leaders “know the consequences.” Trump made the statement during an interview on CBS’ 60 Minutes program that aired on Sunday, a few days after his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in South Korea. “He [Xi] has openly said, and his people have openly said at meetings, ‘we would never do anything while President Trump is president,’ because they know the consequences,” Trump said in the interview. However, he repeatedly declined to say exactly how Washington would respond in
RSS