Joseph Wu finds that lie has cost him credibility

Presidential Office Deputy Secretary-General Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) came close to losing both his job and possibly his head after denying that President Chen Shiu-bian (陳水扁) was planning to visit Indonesia last week.

"The president will remain in Taiwan Tuesday [Dec. 17] through Saturday and if he takes a trip to Indonesia as reported, I will have my head come off," Wu said.

He made the remarks, accompanied by a denial the trip was being planned from Minister of Foreign Affairs Eugene Chien (簡又新), after an Indonesian newspaper reported on Dec. 14 that Chen was to visit Indonesia last Tuesday.

Presidential Office Secretary-General Chen Shih-meng (陳師孟) later disclosed that the president was forced to cancel the three-day visit due to pressure from Beijing.

The secretary-general's remarks embarrassed Wu, who had arranged the trip, and opposition law-makers took the opportunity to ask Wu to step down.

"This is the hardest time I've had since I took the post as the deputy secretary-general of the Presidential Office," Wu told the Taipei Times, adding that, for the first time, he had to lie to the press and ask his wife to help him shun calls from reporters.

"I fell foul of many reporter friends," Wu said.

The former academic specializing in international affairs said he now realizes what a difficult situation Taiwan's diplomats face. These representatives, Wu said, must not only fight China on the international political stage, but must also be careful in dealing with the media, the opposition parties and pro-China bureaucrats.

"When I was an academic, I was entrusted by the government to collect information, analyze what had happened in the past and offer my advice, and it was not my business whether the advice would be carried out," he said. "But now I am a government official -- everything I am doing is related to the future and every decision I make will affect the development of the state."

Wu admits he will have to change how he deals with the media, adding that must know when to shut his mouth and when to pretend nothing has happened.

As a senior political observer, Wu enjoyed a good relationship with both the DPP and the KMT and was a popular news commentator due to his non-partisan and outspoken character.

A senior official from the National Security Council (國安會) once praised Wu's ability to spread Taiwan's message.

"During the KMT regime, the government was short of a powerful and complete individual to fight China's official media," the official said. "Wu was believed to be a good bridge between Taiwan and the international community with strong knowledge of Taiwanese society, mainly because he is practical and non-partisan."

When former Presidential Office secretary-general Eugene Chien was selected to take over as minister of foreign affairs in the Cabinet reshuffle in January, Wu was put in charge of international affairs at the Presidential Office.

Since then, he has arranged four trips for President Chen and Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮). The trips are: Lu's trip to attend the conference of Liberal International in Europe in March, the president's trip to Africa in early July, Lu's surprise trip to Indonesia in August and first lady Wu Shu-chen's (吳淑珍) visit to Washington in September.

Wu said arranging trips to countries without official ties with Taiwan has shown him the importance President Chen's efforts to bring Taiwan to the world.