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Presidential remark sparks row

"It is like a cheap love story where the man proposes to his girlfriend and then tells her that he does not love her anymore and falls in love with another woman."

Lin Yi-shih, KMT legislator

A remark by President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) that not even former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) would be able to change the national title at present has sparked harsh criticism from the Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU), while the Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP) new ally the People First Party (PFP) jumped to defend Chen's statement.

During a videoconference with members of the European Parliament on Tuesday, Chen said that he could not change the nation's official name from Republic of China to "Republic of Taiwan" during his term in office.

"If I can't do it, I can't do it. Former president Lee Teng-hui was unable to do so during his terms in office and I believe even if he was the incumbent president, he wouldn't be able do it either," Chen said.

TSU caucus whip Lo Chih-ming (羅志明) said yesterday that Lee, the spiritual leader of the TSU, felt distraught by Chen's remark but vowed to continue promoting the name change and constitutional reform.

"Were it not for [Lee's] help, Chen would not have become president. President Chen should try to emulate the perseverance of the 84-year-old former president and mend the fences with him, or the public might think the president is an ungrateful man," Lo said.

Lo also berated Chen for using Lee as an excuse to shirk responsibility.

Lauding the achievements made by Lee during his 12 years as president, Lo said that Chen, instead of thwarting the efforts of pro-independence groups, should have encouraged these groups to pursue the cause of changing the national title and rewriting the Constitution.

"He can easily say that he cannot do it because his predecessor could not do it, but what then is the point of electing a pro-independence, Taiwan-born president?" he said.

PFP Legislator Li Yong-ping (李永萍), however, called on pro-independence groups to temper their criticism of Chen, saying the president was simply stating the truth and facing up to reality.

"The instability and confrontation of the past four years are the results of Chen's insistence on taking the `green' line and pushing unrealistic initiatives," she said.

DPP Legislator Chen Chin-jun (陳景峻) asked the TSU to be reasonable.

"The president's job is to set public policies based on public consensus. If the TSU found Chen's inauguration pledges acceptable before, why can it not accept the 10-point consensus reached during the Chen-Soong meeting now?" Chen Chin-jun asked.

Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Lin Yi-shih (林益世) expressed doubt about the candor of the president's words.

"I don't know whether what he says is true or not any more," he said.

"It is like a cheap love story where the man proposes to his girlfriend and then tells her that he does not love her anymore and falls in love with another woman," Lin said

Lin said that he hopes the reconciliation between the DPP and PFP is genuine and that the president is sincere about cooperating with opposition parties.

"I hope what he says is true and puts his promise into practice," he said, adding that the KMT will keep a close eye on Chen Shui-bian's words and actions.
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