Academia Sinica President Lee Yuan-tseh (李遠哲) yesterday dispelled a rumor about his recent trip to China by saying that he had gone to Beijing to attend an academic conference rather than act as President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) special envoy.
"I visited Beijing last week to attend an international seminar. The trip had nothing to do with politics," said Lee. "I am neither a negotiator nor a `secret envoy.' I was not discussing cross-strait affairs," he said when attending at an international science seminar yesterday. "However, if my latest visit there can be regarded as a symbol of improvement in cross-strait relations, I will be happy with that."
This was the first time Lee has spoken publicly about his June 16 to June 22 trip to China.
Lee, a co-winner of the 1986 Nobel Prize in chemistry, had previously been blacklisted by Beijing because he publicly supported Chen as the DPP's candidate in the 2000 presidential election.
After Chen's inauguration ceremony in May 2000, Lee was invited by Chen to organize the "President's advisory group on cross-strait relations," which tried to integrate different ideas from the leading political parties and made suggestions to to the president about how to ease cross-strait tension.
Lee, while chairing meetings of the group, once said that if necessary, he would represent President Chen and visit China.
Yesterday he said that mediating cross-strait relations is "none of my business."
He stressed that his mission to head the advisory group was mainly to help forge a national consensus on the issue as everyone has an obligation to contribute to cross-strait rapprochement.
Lee said he went to Beijing to attend the International Symposium on Frontiers of Science -- an event organized by Beijing's elite Tsinghua University in celebration of the birthday of Chinese-American Nobel laureate Chen Ning Yang (楊振寧).
Lee said he could understand the media's duty to find stories, but noted that some of the reports about his visit were groundless.
"Some of the media said that I'd disappeared to engage in secret activities," Lee said. "I must say the rumor was totally untrue because I was always at Tsinghua during my visit.
"Though some problems and rifts exist between the two sides [of the Taiwan Strait,] people on both sides have shown more goodwill toward one another," Lee said. "I think cross-strait relations will improve in the future."
When asked about the recent struggle in the Legislative Yuan over the last week's confirmation vote, Lee expressed disappointment that Taiwan's politicians still wasted their time and resources on petty political disputes.
"What saddens me most is the incessant squabbling between the ruling and opposition parties," Lee said. "At a time when many countries around the world are endeavoring to upgrade their technology, Taiwan's political parties are squabbling."
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