KMT's step back from China only fleeting: analysts

A decision by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) to ban its members from visiting China was designed to prevent the party from being associated with China's National Day, according to political observers.

The Alliance Against Selling Out Taiwan (反賣台聯盟), a group of legislators formed to counter the widespread allegation that the KMT is conniving with Beijing, said numerous members of the pan-blue camp had planned to attend the celebrations.

"Instead of being blatant and vociferous, the notice was the KMT caucus' tactful way of asking its members not to take part in China's National Day celebration," said Chin Heng-wei (金恆煒), a political observer and editor in chief of Contemporary Monthly magazine.

The alliance last Tuesday released a statement saying that China had extended invitations to pan-blue members for the National Day celebration on Oct. 1.

The statement said the invitations are being extended to people believed to "have made contributions in favor of the interest of China."

The KMT caucus last Wednesday issued a notice to all its members, asking them to temporarily suspend visits to China, Hong Kong and Macao.

KMT caucus whip Lee Chia-chin (李嘉進) said the notice was issued to reduce the chance critics might "defame" the party and accuse it of collaborating with China to sell out Taiwan.

"The political environment is becoming more sensitive now with the 2004 presidential election drawing close," said Lee, whose party, along with its political ally the People First Party (PFP), favors eventual unification with China.

"We decided to make such a request from our fellow members to avoid being painted by the media and other political parties as being in cahoots with China and thus impair the KMT-PFP alliance's chance of winning the presidential race next March," he said.

Lee said the notice was also designed to show the public that KMT legislators are giving their undivided attention to issues in the Legislative Yuan.

Citing the furor caused by PFP Legislator Kao Ming-chien's (高明見) participation this June in the World Health Organization's Global Conference on SARS, which he was accused of attending on the recommendation of Beijing, Chiu said the incident set a precedent for the pan-blue camp, prompting it to be more cautious with its public associations with China.

Chiu Hei-yuan (瞿海源), a sociology professor at National Taiwan University, also pointed to the connection between the KMT's temporary ban on its members visiting China and the Alliance Against Selling Out Taiwan's claim concerning the National Day celebration.

"It is understandable that the KMT, in a bid to protect its members from being fingered as conniving with China to sell out Taiwan, resorted to the measure," Chiu said.

Adding that the ban is only temporary, Chiu said what matters more is the stance and attitude of some legislators.

"It's undeniable that there are legislators whose political ideology is very close to that upheld by Beijing," Chiu said. "That is something that deserves more attention, as what they do and say in China might jeopardize Taiwan's interests."

The Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) questioned the motivation of legislators who visit Beijing.

"It doesn't matter that these legislators go to China; what matters is what their purposes are when they visit there," TSU caucus whip Chien Lin Whei-jun (錢林慧君) said.

Chien Lien said her party is now working to find out who the individuals are on China's invitation list.