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Examination Yuan head talks about Chen's challenges

Finding ways to stabilize Tai-wan's economic and political situation is the biggest challenge facing President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) during his second term, Examination Yuan President Yao Chia-wen (姚嘉文) said on Saturday.

Giving a speech at a workshop jointly organized by the Asia Research Center at the London School of Economics and Political Science, Taiwan's Institute for National Policy Research and the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy, Yao said that Chen, who won his second term by a slim margin, has his work cut out maintaining balance between people who support him and those who do not.

Another challenge facing the president is how to improve ties with the US and Japan, Yao said.

A third challenge is how to reopen dialogue with Beijing, which is difficult in light of the fact that Beijing insists on Taiwan knuckling under and accepting Beijing's "one country, two systems" premise before agreeing to talks with Taipei.

Yet another challenge is rewriting the Constitution to replace the existing one, which is out of date, Yao said.

Lo Chih-cheng (羅致政), executive director of the Institute for National Policy Research, predicted that Chen will follow a moderate line in diplomacy in light of his narrow election win. However, there are some thorny diplomatic questions to be sorted out, among them a NT$610.8 billion (US$18.23 billion) deal for arms purchases from the US, Lo said, adding that unless the Democratic Progressive Party can win a majority in the Legislative Yuan elections at the end of the year, he will not have a free hand in diplomacy.

Lai Yi-chung (賴怡忠), a researcher at the Taiwan Think Tank, claimed that Taiwanese people feel closer to the Japanese and Americans than they do to the Chinese, with only 10 percent viewing themselves as Chinese.
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