Beware of tempting gifts from China, Lu cautions

PHOTO: TAIPEI TIMES

Taiwanese must fully understand that the Beijing authorities' desire to reduce Taiwan to the lowest level of government administration lies at the heart of the possible signing of a Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA) with Taiwan through the mediation of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Lien Chan (連戰), Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) said yesterday.

The CEPA that China has introduced in Hong Kong and Macao eliminates import taxes on farm goods and other products from these two places.

"The CEPA is a sweet dessert from Beijing to both Hong Kong and Macao. Now China wants to offer this `gift' to Taiwan through Lien Chan in a bid to send a clear message to Taiwanese people that, in its eyes, the status of Taiwan equals that of Hong Kong and Macau; they are all its local jurisdictions," Lu said.

"Do all [Taiwan's] 23 million people accept this? If we take this small piece of sweet dessert, we might inadvertently create a `big cake' [of opportunities] for China," she said.

"The CEPA is a sweet dessert from Beijing to both Hong Kong and Macao. Now China wants to offer this `gift' to Taiwan."

Annette Lu, vice president

"Taiwan can't be and refuses to be downgraded," she said.

The Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) yesterday urged the government to point out that Lien would be in violation of the law if he signs any form of agreement with China.

"Lien Chan has not been legally authorized to sign any pact with China," TSU Secretary-General Chen Chien-ming (陳建銘) said at a press conference.

Chen said that Lien should promote Taiwan's democracy and liberty in China than "let Communism destroy the Three Principles of the People."

Chen said that China released several political dissidents because of US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's visit.

"We strongly urge Lien Chan to ask China to improve its bad human-rights record by releasing more political dissidents," Chen said.

He said that the TSU had no comment on Lien's visit to his ancestral home in China.

"However, Lien should never sacrifice the Taiwanese people's common interests," Chen said.

He said that after Lien returns to Taiwan, the TSU would never let him abuse his influence in the Legislative Yuan to promote any agreement he signed with China.

"Please stop dreaming of turning Taiwan's Legislative Yuan into China's legislative bureau," Chen said.