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Panama pledges firm support for Taiwan

Vice President Annette Lu, center, dines with Panamanian Second Vice President Dominador Kaiser Bazan, right, and Ruby Moscoso, the elder sister of Panamanian President Mireya Moscoso, at a dinner party in Lu's honor hosted by the Panamanian government. PHOTO: CNA

Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) said Tuesday that Panama's ruling and opposition parties have all promised to upgrade relations with Taiwan.

Lu made the remarks at a dinner party hosted by the Panamanian government in her honor.

Panamanian Second Vice President Dominador Kaiser Bazan, many other Panamanian officials, parliamentarians and social celebrities, including Ruby Moscoso, the sister of Panamanian President Mireya Moscoso, attended the party to welcome Lu and her entourage.

Lu said that Taiwan and Panama have a longstanding relationship because the two countries have shared values in promoting freedom, democracy, human rights and gender equality.

During her meeting with the Panamanian president earlier in the day, Lu said that Moscoso has reaffirmed her firm support for Taiwan.

"Moscoso told me that she had pledged support for [Taiwan] on her first day in office and will uphold this commitment until the last day of her term [Aug. 31, 2004]," Lu said, adding that Moscoso has also promised to take active steps to further boost cooperation with Taiwan during her tenure.

Lu said all of the three hopefuls intending to run for the Panamanian presidency have also promised to strengthen ties with Taiwan should they win the election.

According to the Panamanian Constitution, Moscoso cannot run for a second consecutive term. Moscoso said she is convinced that her successor will continue to maintain formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan.

Moscoso is scheduled to arrive in Taipei Aug. 21 for a state visit. During her stay, she will sign a free trade agreement with President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) to boost trade and economic cooperation between Taiwan and Panama.

Panamanian Second Vice President Bazan will also head a delegation to visit Taiwan in September, and President Chen is scheduled to make an official visit to Panama in early November.

All these exchanges of visits of high-level officials attest to the cordial ties between the two countries, Lu said.

Accompanied by a 43-member entourage, Lu arrived in Panama City Monday for a three-day visit after transit stops in Hawaii and Los Angeles where she met with many American politicians.

On Tuesday morning, Lu gave interviews to Panamanian news media and toured the Panama Canal and a folk culture center. Panamanian Vice President Bazan hosted a luncheon in honor of Lu and presented her with a medal in recognition of her contribution to promoting Taiwan's democratization and its relations with Panama.

Earlier in the day, Lu and Bazan also jointly presided over a ceremony marking the completion of a Taiwan-financed face lift of the building that houses Panama's Ministry of the Interior.

Lu told Taiwanese reporters covering her overseas journey that she hopes that her visit to Panama can help to consolidate bilateral diplomatic relations.

With the number of mainland Chinese immigrants to Panama increasing rapidly in recent years, Lu said the ethnic Chinese community population structure has undergone significant changes.

At the moment, Panama has about 80,000 mainland Chinese immigrants and 50,000 ethnic Chinese, while the number of new immigrants from Taiwan is only about 300.

Against this backdrop, Lu said, Taiwan must step up efforts to boost exchanges and cooperation with Panama.

After the Panama visit, Lu will fly to Asuncion to attend the Paraguayan presidential inauguration of Nicor Duarte tomorrow on behalf of Chen.

Lu will also deliver speeches at the Paraguayan parliament and at Asuncion University.

On her way back to Taiwan Aug. 20, Lu is scheduled to make a transit stop in Seattle for two days.
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