TSU doing a lot better than some analysts expected

Although it only has 13 seats in the Legislative Yuan, the TSU has become an effective force in the legislature by raising issues close to the hearts of Taiwan's people, political observers and party members said yesterday on the first anniversary of the party's founding.

Six months ago, Taiwan's political circles were expecting to see the TSU's inexperienced legislators make fools of themselves. But the party has manipulated several controversial issues and pushed the ruling DPP to the middle ground, enlarging the pan-green camp's political territory, they said.

"We've seen the TSU aiming at enlarging the political territory for the DPP to stabilize Taiwan politics," said Lee Shang-ren (李先仁), the director of the TSU's policy center.

"After the DPP slowly moved toward the middle ground and became more conservative, we were able to take over the pro-independence stage and create controversial issues to attract the media's attention," Lee said.

Analysts said that the TSU had succeeded in establishing a clear political identity in the year since its founding.

Known for its pro-independence stance, the TSU has proposed making Hokkien an official language and suggested requiring presidential candidates be born in Taiwan.

Following the same rationale, the party has also opposed direct links with China and the lifting of restrictions on the nation's chipmakers that prevent them from setting up 8-inch wafer foundries in China.

"Their ability to raise issues has been even better than that the DPP or the PFP," said Wang Yeh-li (王業立), a political scientist at Tunghai University. "The TSU lawmakers have voiced what Taiwanese people wanted to say but were reluctant to."

TSU officials say drawing criticism from the country's main ethnic groups and political parties over its controversial stance is really a tactic it is employing to allow the party to grow.

"We have tried to take a lead in the conflicts between the pan-blue and pan-green camps," Lee said.

Others say the TSU merely reflects political and ethnic differences that have existed in Taiwan for a long time.

"Pro-independence sentiments have existed in Taiwan since 1990," said Michael Chang (張茂桂), a social scientist at Academia Sinica who specializes in Taiwan's ethnic issues. "They were just voiced by different individuals or groups.

"The TSU has neither made any significant changes to, nor created any ethnic disputes in, Taiwan's political scene, since these ethnic disputes are to be expected in Taiwan." he said.

Many predicted the party wouldn't last long. Even President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) once likened the fledgling group to the New Party -- a pro-unification party that has almost collapsed nine years after its founding.

To avoid going the same way as the New Party, the TSU should handle its relationship with the DPP carefully and avoid weakening both parties, said Chiu Hei-yuan (瞿海源), a sociology professor at National Taiwan University.

"The party's political identity is not like that of the New Party, which was replaced by the PFP after a short time. On the other hand, its future development will be limited," Wang said.