President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday called for the drafting of a “code of conduct” for retired generals after a former general on a visit to China was quoted as saying that the Republic of China (ROC) Army and the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) are both “China’s army.”
Retired generals should put the interests of Taiwan above all, present a transparent itinerary and exercise prudence when visiting China, Presidential Office spokesman Fan Chiang Tai-chi (范姜泰基) quoted Ma as saying at the Presidential Office.
“Retired generals are not government officials, but their words and actions remain very sensitive ... If the media reports are true, then the [general’s] comments went against national policy and should be condemned,” Fan Chiang said.
According to Fan Chiang, Ma was “stunned” when he learned of the reported quote.
Ma’s directive follows Taiwanese media citing a Chinese media report quoting PLA Major General Luo Yuan (羅援) as saying that a Taiwanese speaker recently told a gathering of retired generals from both sides of the Taiwan Strait in China: “From now on, we should no longer separate the ROC Army and the PLA. We are all China’s army.”
The Chinese report identified the speaker as retired Air Force General Hsia Ying-chou (夏瀛洲).
DENIAL
Hsia denied making such a remark, but the reports sparked criticism from both Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers, who urged the government to set clear rules on military personnel exchanges with China.
Ma yesterday met with National Security Council Secretary-General Wu Wei-chen (胡為真), Minister of National Defense Kao Hua-chu (高華柱) and Veteran Affairs Commission Minister Tseng Jing-ling (曾金陵) to discuss the incident.
Ma said government bodies should strengthen efforts to promote the administration’s cross-strait policy, especially its “three noes” policy of no unification, no independence and no use of force, Fan Chiang said.
Ma said that even if Hsia was misquoted, the government “has learned a lesson” from the incident, Fan Chiang said.
Unconvinced, the DPP called on Ma to pay the “ultimate responsibility,” saying Hsia’s alleged comments had demoralized the armed forces and “harmed national sovereignty.”
APOLOGY
“It’s the result of the [government’s] attitude of bending over backwards and constantly seeking China’s favor that Ma, the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, has adopted since assuming office,” DPP spokesperson Lin Yu-chang (林右昌) said. “He should correct the public perception and personally apologize to the public.”
The DPP has asked for a full review of the pension benefits that retired senior officers who have traveled to China still enjoy, saying it is “unfair” for Taiwanese taxpayers to be subsidizing their “Chinese ideals.”
While some DPP lawmakers demanded the government immediately revoke Hsia’s pension and other retirement benefits, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus whip Hsieh Kuo-liang (謝國樑) said the government needed proof first that the former general broke the law before it could withhold his pension.
“It is unreasonable to make such a demand when we’re still trying to determine whether he actually made those remarks,” Hsieh said.
Hsia has stressed that he never made the comments when questioned by the media.
In the face of the media scrutiny, the retired general yesterday said that KMT and Ma administration officials had also frequently traveled to China.
“I am of the Shandong temperament and the government’s attitude on this issue is quite heart chilling,” Hsia said, alluding to the stereotypical depiction of people from China’s Shandong Province as being hot-tempered.
“If President Ma Ying-jeou wants to find somebody to blame, just pick me,” he said, adding that it was in the interests of cross-strait peace that retired generals weren’t spending their days resting at home, but spending their own money to travel to China.
Hsia said the government’s treatment of retired officers was being watched by those still in service.
As for Ma’s demands that retired officers should ensure that their visits to China are conducted in a transparent manner, and that they should watch their words and actions, Hsia said the government does not have an agency retirees could report to even if they wanted to.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY VINCENT Y. CHAO AND CNA
CHAOS: Iranians took to the streets playing celebratory music after reports of Khamenei’s death on Saturday, while mourners also gathered in Tehran yesterday Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in a major attack on Iran launched by Israel and the US, throwing the future of the Islamic republic into doubt and raising the risk of regional instability. Iranian state television and the state-run IRNA news agency announced the 86-year-old’s death early yesterday. US President Donald Trump said it gave Iranians their “greatest chance” to “take back” their country. The announcements came after a joint US and Israeli aerial bombardment that targeted Iranian military and governmental sites. Trump said the “heavy and pinpoint bombing” would continue through the week or as long
TRUST: The KMT said it respected the US’ timing and considerations, and hoped it would continue to honor its commitments to helping Taiwan bolster its defenses and deterrence US President Donald Trump is delaying a multibillion-dollar arms sale to Taiwan to ensure his visit to Beijing is successful, a New York Times report said. The weapons sales package has stalled in the US Department of State, the report said, citing US officials it did not identify. The White House has told agencies not to push forward ahead of Trump’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), it said. The two last month held a phone call to discuss trade and geopolitical flashpoints ahead of the summit. Xi raised the Taiwan issue and urged the US to handle arms sales to
State-run CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油) yesterday said that it had confirmed on Saturday night with its liquefied natural gas (LNG) and crude oil suppliers that shipments are proceeding as scheduled and that domestic supplies remain unaffected. The CPC yesterday announced the gasoline and diesel prices will rise by NT$0.2 and NT$0.4 per liter, respectively, starting Monday, citing Middle East tensions and blizzards in the eastern United States. CPC also iterated it has been reducing the proportion of crude oil imports from the Middle East and diversifying its supply sources in the past few years in response to geopolitical risks, expanding
Pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai’s (黎智英) fraud conviction and prison sentence were yesterday overturned by a Hong Kong court, in a surprise legal decision that comes soon after Lai was jailed for 20 years on a separate national security charge. Judges Jeremy Poon (潘兆初), Anthea Pang (彭寶琴) and Derek Pang (彭偉昌) said in the judgement that they allowed the appeal from Lai, and another defendant in the case, to proceed, as a lower court judge had “erred.” “The Court of Appeal gave them leave to appeal against their conviction, allowed their appeals, quashed the convictions and set aside the sentences,” the judges
RSS