Ma urges Chen, Lien to debate referendum

Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) thinks the presidential candidates should hold a debate late next month on the legitimacy of the referendum.

As for the debate topic, Ma suggested: "Is the March 20 referendum being held to deepen democracy or to violate the law and abuse power?"

Ma made remarks yesterday after the weekly municipal meeting, when asked if he accepted the challenge Taipei County Commissioner Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) issued on Wednesday to debate on the referendum -- or shut up.

Su issued the challenge after learning that Ma had criticized President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) insistence on holding a referendum, labeling it "flagrantly criminal" and "apparently in violation of the law." Su said Ma's opposition to the referendum was a case of local government rebellion against the central government.

Su said that Chen's referendum conforms to the law and should be respected by the heads of local governments. He said Ma could not explain the law and had concocted a charge against the president, a move which he labeled "anti-democratic."

Ma yesterday called Su's statement "overbearing."

"Since Commissioner Su and I are not the presidential candidates, I believe no one wants to see us debate. Let's save it," Ma said.

Ma urged Su to help bring about a debate on the referendum between Chen and Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Lien Chan (連戰).

He suggested the pan-green and pan-blue camps mobilize academics to discuss and seek solutions on the issue of "when democracy clashes with law and order."

Ma reiterated his belief that the referendum would violate the law and said it was not fair to label him as "anti-democratic."

"I am not against the referendum. On the contrary, I support it," Ma said. "What I am against is illegality."

Ma said he felt as if he had been hit by a series of bullets during Wednesday's Cabinet meeting when he was criticized by several officials including Kaohsiung Mayor Frank Hsieh (謝長廷), Mainland Affairs Council Chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and Minister of Justice Chen Ding-nan (陳定南).