Chang snaps at Lee for `alien regime' speech

The son of late president Chiang Ching-kuo (蔣經國) yesterday spoke in defense of his belated father, accusing former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) of being disgraceful for leveling unfair criticism against his father.

KMT Legislator John Chang (章孝嚴), the illegitimate child of Chiang, said his father devoted his life to Taiwan and served the country until his death. He also said his father's views had ushered Taiwan into an age of economic prosperity.

The lawmaker, who recently obtained a new ID card to recognize former president Chiang as his biological father, deemed Lee's remarks on Sunday against Chiang to be "outrageous" and "disreputable for Lee himself and disrespectful to my father."

While talking to his supporters in Ilan, Lee said over the weekend that Chiang simply sought to buy people's hearts to consolidate his power by extending favors to Taiwanese when he started to recruit native Taiwanese in the government in the 1970s.

As one of Chiang's targets, Lee was promoted as a minister without portfolio, but he said Chiang had failed to buy his heart as a result.

In the early 1970s, then-premier Chiang carried out a policy to recruit a large number of younger local Taiwanese politicians into the KMT and local government, which was then dominated by old-guard KMT exiles from China, to the government.

Dubbed as Chui Tai Ching (吹台青), the movement indirectly triggered the onset of localization in the KMT.

Leading politicians nowadays such as Lee, KMT chairman Lien Chan (連戰), recently-retired finance minister Lee Yung-san (李庸三) and former Judicial Yuan president Shih Chi-yang (施啟揚) are among the group.

Lee on Sunday urged the public not to allow the DPP to suffer defeat at the hands of the KMT in the 2004 presidential elections.

Lee, the former KMT chairman who was ousted from his party over two years ago, branded Lien Chan "the new representative of alien power" on the grounds that Lien only recognizes the KMT as it was 14 years ago, when it was run by a dictatorship.

Lien had said earlier that he would like to sever his ties from the 14 years of rule during which Lee was the head of the party.

Lee's painting of the KMT as an alien power yesterday drew criticism from the KMT.

The KMT's legislative whip Lee Chuan-chiao (李全教) said the KMT has adhered to the localization policy introduced since the Chiang era and added that Lee was underestimating people's wisdom when he referred to the KMT as an alien regime.

Instead, the lawmaker said Lee should be held responsible for "black gold" politics during his 12 years in power and his two-year cooperation with the DPP government.

Tzeng Yung-chuan (曾永權), executive director of the KMT Central Policy Coordinating Commission, said there was no foreign power after the localization policy had been pushed by Chiang, Lee and Lien or after the DPP came to power.

"People only feel humiliated by [Lee's] remarks," he said.

"There is no distinction between a new or old regime, only between good or bad. It is natural to choose a more capable leader if the current one is bad."