Opposition takes aim at Chen over APEC absence

The KMT and People First Party yesterday criticized the DPP for taking advantage of Taiwan's absence from the APEC summit as a tactic to boost its election campaign, at the expense of national interests.

Both parties were upset by President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) performance at a DPP rally in Kaohsiung on Friday night.

During the event, Chen appealed excitedly to an anti-China audience to support the government's decision to be absent from the summit, blaming China for refusing to accept the envoy appointed.

KMT spokesman Wang Chih-kang (王志剛) said it was a "very pathetic" matter if the decision was a deliberate move intended to incite populism to win votes.

"We paid a dear price for such meager interest. This will cause great damage to the future development of the nation," warned Wang, who attended over a dozen APEC meetings between 1991 and 1999 when he held the positions of Vice Minister of Economic Affairs and Minister of Economic Affairs.

Wang said Taiwan should cherish every opportunity to attend APEC meetings, because APEC was the only international organization in which Taiwan could take part in an official capacity and on an equal footing with other member nations.

It was a known fact that China had never given up any chance to try to isolate Taiwan during the APEC meetings, and Taiwan had always been well prepared to cope with the problem in the past, Wang said.

In case Taiwan's dignity is damaged during a meeting, Taiwan's delegates must address the matter immediately, the KMT spokesman said.

"In international organizations, especially APEC, we must contend with China using our wisdom, rather than emotion," Wang said.

He called attention to the fact that all the other APEC member nations are China's allies and do not recognize Taiwan. Because of this circumstance, Taiwan would win little sympathy by becoming emotional.

PFP Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜) addressed the same issue during a campaign rally in Miaoli County yesterday.

Soong said he doubted if Presidential Office Secretary-General Yu Shyi-kun was telling the truth when he said that President Chen had planned "as early as six months ago" to appoint Li Yuan-zu (李元簇) as his envoy to the APEC summit.

Soong said, according to his knowledge, Chen always wanted to attend the summit personally, and only proposed to send Li at the last minute.

"This idea is to use our national interests as a bet in an election campaign, so that he can play a China-isolate-Taiwan card in the election," Soong said.

Soong said Chen was a "layman" when it came to governing the country and dealing with Chinese communists, though he was very skillful at campaign gimmicks.