Taipei Times: After US President George W. Bush met Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, he told reporters: "We oppose any unilateral decision by either China or Taiwan to change the status quo, and the comments and actions made by the leader of Taiwan indicate that he may be willing to make decisions unilaterally to change the status quo, which we oppose."
The media interpreted his remarks as clear opposition to Taiwan holding a referendum and suggested that this would have a negative impact on Taiwan-US relationship. What do you think?
Annette Lu (
PHOTO: CHANG YING-YING, TAIPEI TIMES
The US government, which admires democracy, freedom and human rights, surprisingly invited a leader from an authoritarian communist country to the White House while the leader of Republic of China [ROC], a country which fully practices the UN Charter, human rights and democracy, cannot be invited to visit Washington. The US still wants to please a dictator -- isn't that sardonic?
Bush did not make his point clearly in his remarks. He first warned China, and then when it came to Taiwan, he clearly pointed out the US opposed "a change of status quo," which Taiwanese read too much into.
Taiwan has been influenced by pessimism stemming from failures in the past -- the Taiwanese people were used to being administered and the good child has become a dumb child.
I hope our countrymen will not confine themselves -- because now they seem to want to confine the president and the vice president and tell them to stand in the corner as a punishment. It is China that has done wrong.
I think Bush's comments were minor criticism that were a major help to us. They helped Taiwan reach an emotional solidarity, and raised international concerns about the issue of Taiwan.
President Chen [Shui-bian (陳水扁)]did not fail this time, and Taiwanese should applaud him because we made another breakthrough in the international blockade, and had an opportunity to tell the world that "it is China who should have to stand in the corner." This is the responsibility of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the overseas embassies and representative offices.
I don't think the Bush administration dares make a final decision on these issues. It has to face the US Congress, the media and win re-election. It also goes to Iraq to promote democracy, so reasonably Taiwan did not lose.
Taiwan now has turned the tables -- moving from defense to offense -- and this is a starting point created by President Chen.
TT: Has there been a change in the Bush administration's friendly attitude toward Taiwan? Is the Bush administration Taiwan's window of opportunity?
Lu: I have to point out that the Taiwan Strait doesn't belong to Taiwan. Every day there are over 400 international ships are moving in and out of Taiwan Strait. If the stability in the area is destroyed, this would be an international problem and Japan, the US and [South] Korea would all feel the impact.
From the perspective of universal values, Taiwan and the US share the same values. In its 200-year history, the US has not had a record of sacrificing its own founding values to please its enemies. It can compromise with its enemies, but it has never really sold its partners who share the same values down the river, so I don't believe the US will sacrifice Taiwan.
The interests and the values of Taiwan and the US are the same, and we have to start from there. Our countrymen should understand that. They should not think that the president [Chen] has said and done the wrong things.
The president in fact has grab-bed the best opportunity to highlight the crisis that Taiwan is facing and try to make international society understand.
Three years ago there was a Hollywood movie -- Thirteen Days -- and if our countrymen watch it they will understand that the entire US was tense when there were only a few missiles in Cuba aimed at the US.
Cuba is some distance from the US, unlike the close distance between Fujian Province and Taiwan, and the hundreds of missiles aimed at us.
Therefore, by this chance, we need to make our countrymen become aware of the crisis, so Taiwan this time did not lose any points but scored some more. We have begun to raise awareness in Taiwan of national defense -- with this time and this chance.
Meanwhile, we want to tell the whole world that the threat posed by the hundreds of missiles deployed by China is more real than the virtual threat posed by the so-called weapons of mass destruction owned by [former president] Saddam Hussein in Iraq.
As long as we explain ourselves clearly to both international and domestic society, we will win on this issue.
TT: As vice president, what suggestions would you make to the new generation of the leaders in Beijing?
Lu: If China wants to play the role of a respected leader on the international stage in the 21st century, then the speeches and actions of its leaders need to make the public feel that China is acting according to universal values and international norms.
Now is not a time of military threat and oppression, now is a generation of `gentle country' power. Given that human-rights problems keep occurring in China -- if the basic issue of people's livelihoods does not match human-rights standards, China will not have the credentials to become the new world leader.
I want to quote from the Shang-hai Communique signed by China and the US in 1972. The Chinese side stated: `Wherever there is oppression, there is resistance. Countries want independence, nations want liberation and the people want revolution -- this has become the irresistible trend of history. All nations, big or small, should be equal: big nations should not bully the small and strong nations should not bully the weak. China will never be a superpower and it opposes hegemony and power politics of any kind.'
The Chinese side stated that it: `Firmly supports the struggles of all the oppressed people and nations for freedom and liberation and that the people of all countries have the right to choose their social systems according their own wishes and the right to safeguard the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of their own countries and oppose foreign aggression, interference, control and subversion.'
This is such a wonderful document. I present this solemnly to [Chinese President] Hu Jintao (
TT: How will the Chen-Lu ticket persuade the electorate to give it another four years?
Lu: When it comes to next year's presidential election, after four years [Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman] Lien Chan (連戰) and [People First Party Chairman] James Soong (宋楚瑜) have finally gotten used to being in the opposition, and Chen and Lu have become familiar with being in power.
If Chen-Lu ticket had not won the 2000 election, but the old powers had won, Taiwan might have gone into a situation we dare not imagine because there would have been no way to deal with corruption, and many concepts would have still remained stale, conservative and feudal.
At least we have proposed many new concepts. The Democratic Progressive Party's [DPP] economic achievements during these years in power can be divided into four aspects:
First, Taiwan has enjoyed a better economic growth rate than the European Union and Japan.
Second, Taiwan has had a lower unemployment rate than Hong Kong and the European Union.
Third, foreign exchange re-serves. In 2000 we had US$106.7 billion and now, after three-and-half years, it's US$203.8 billion -- that is to say that after four years, next May our foreign exchange reserves will be double what they were in 2000.
Fourth, in the Global Competitiveness Report by the World Economic Forum, Taiwan was ranked fifth in the world this year. The four countries in front of Taiwan were all North American and European countries. We were number one in Asia and Japan was only ranked 11th.
International society has been positive about us. How can we say that President Chen doesn't know how to run a country?
The transfer of power in 2000 has resulted in social chaos and political frictions, but that's an inevitable process.
A 55-year-old administration left us with a lot of baggage and corruption, and four years is too short a time. I don't think the transfer of power has been completed.
We succeeded in winning the country in 2000, but we will only start to govern the country in 2004.
In the past three years we have been eliminating old traditions and corruption, and we haven't got to the building stage yet.
It is only fair to give us another four years because if the Lien-Soong ticket wins next year, it could be seen as the return of the old power and an unfortunate turn of events for our countrymen.
TT: The opposing parties have tried to split different generations and ethnic groups, and accused the DPP administration of leaving huge debts for posterity. What do you think of that?
Lu: When the KMT stepped down in 2000, they left a debt of NT$2.5 trillion, including money that had gone to unknown destinations and perhaps disappeared through corruption. It was the KMT government that left a huge debt for posterity.
The DPP government has raised the [level of] government debt to finish the public infrastructure projects that were not done by the previous government. Now we are filling the holes left by the previous government, strengthening basic infrastructure such as drains and transportation.
The Taiwanese public has an average income of over US$13,000 per year, but people are not able to enjoy a proportional public infrastructure. There is also a gap between the resources enjoyed by northern and southern Taiwan and between urban and rural areas. These are all results of the previous government's mindset, because it thought it would only be in Taiwan for a short while.
In the past the government was overzealous about economic growth and sacrificed living standards and ecological protection to achieve that.
Now we have to pay the price and switch to sustainable development. It will cost us a lot but it's all for the good of our posterity.
TT: How will you help Chen in the election?
Lu: The electorate in this election is divided into three groups: pan-blue supporters, pan-green supporters and the neutral voters.
Most neutrals voters are rational voters who are closely observing the blue and green camps. They are the key to winning the election.
This is a positive trend -- the trend that Taiwan is developing, that is, the merging of independence and unification ideologies and embracing the neutral voters together, guided by the basis of rationality. The neutral voters have generated a certain impact on the election.
The pan-blue camp has given up its traditional ideology in order to grab the neutral voter market. It has embraced referendums and some other issues which it considered monsters in the past and is moving toward the DPP's position.
This result has been influenced by the neutral voters, and it's this rational force that forces the conservative pan-blue power to transform itself. It also liberates Taiwan.
This is Taiwan's political earthquake -- the freeing of political parties and ideologies. This is victory for the Taiwanese people.
This force is driving the political parties and elections away from a splitting of society and creating hatred between ethnic groups. Everyone is competing on a rational basis and this can all be attributed to this next election.
In the last election, Lien and Soong together grabbed nearly 60 percent of the votes, and Chen and Lu ticket only got 40 percent. This election will depend on whether the DPP administration has gained the support of the 20 percent of neutral voters after four years of effort.
Basically, I am discreetly positive about winning the election.
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