From the arms procurement plan to the current APEC controversy, Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (
As expected, Beijing this year has blatantly criticized President Chen Shui-bian's (
Caught in the middle, Wang can only pin his hope on the communication platform between the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), which KMT Chairman Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) has promised to activate in a bid to help negotiate with China over his trip to South Korea.
Hailing the president's selection of Wang as an "astute move," Hsu Yung-ming (徐永明), a political analyst and a research fellow at Academia Sinica, said that the attempt is aimed at countering Beijing's two-handed strategy as well as increasing Wang's political leverage, especially since Wang's resounding defeat in the KMT chairmanship election.
If Wang eventually attends the event, Hsu said that Chen will have achieved a diplomatic coup. If not, the president can use it to say that the pan-blue camp possesses no advantage in dealing with China.
"No matter what the outcome will be, Ma is the ultimate loser," Hsu said.
Hsu said that Ma has made two mistakes in the matter.
Upon learning that the president had picked Wang as his representative to the APEC summit, Ma showed displeasure and said that he felt improperly neglected in the process because he was not informed of the decision in advance, neither by Wang nor the Presidential Office.
Although he soon changed his view to say that he would be happy to see Wang represent the president, Hsu said that Ma made another mistake by promising to activate the KMT-CCP communication platform.
If Wang eventually gets to go, Hsu said that it will give the public the impression that the matter can only be settled via private channels between the two parties.
If Wang is rejected, it will send out a clear message that the KMT does not enjoy such a good relationship with its CCP counterpart.
"It will only prove that the so-called 'KMT-CCP platform' is nothing but Beijing's united-front strategy and that Beijing is ferocious to not only the Chen administration but also the KMT," he said.
Judging from Beijing's abhorrence of Chen, Hsu said he suspects it is unlikely that Wang would attend the meeting because Beijing cannot afford to let Chen score on the diplomatic front.
Although Beijing is well aware that Wang is keen on going, it would rather upset Wang than please Chen, he said.
Echoing Hsu's opinion, Chen I-shen (陳儀深), deputy chairman of the Northern Taiwan Society, said Ma is putting himself and his party in a cul-de-sac, although it is an opportunity for the KMT to prove that it can negotiate with China.
Even if the KMT manages to convince Beijing to let Wang attend the meeting, Chen I-shen said that it may give the public the impression that the KMT and CCP can strike under-the-counter deals at any time to decide the nation's affairs.
In addition to the APEC controversy, Wang has been facing an unprecedented challenge to his authority and been caught in the cross-fire between the pan-blue and pan-green camps.
One of the most recent examples is the use of legislative security officers to maintain order on the legislative floor. Wang has received much criticism for rejecting the two camps' requests to bring in security officers to stop disruptions, on the grounds that the measure would only create more problems.
Hsu, however, complimented Wang for doing a good job.
"It was a smart move for Wang to step down from the position of KMT vice chairman because he does not need to carry out the chairman's orders any more and can concentrate on his sole job as legislative speaker," Hsu said.
Another example is Wang's stance on the long-stalled special arms procurement budget bill.
Determined to play a more dominant role in the controversial issue, People First Party (PFP) Chairman James Soong (
Fearing to lose ground in a potential merger with the PFP, Ma has sided with Soong.
Caught in the middle, Wang raised political eyebrows when he proposed that it was time to push the arms procurement bill through to the legislature's National Defense Committee for review.
No matter whether the KMT lends its conditional support to the arms procurement plan after the year-end elections, as long as Wang remains neutral, it is to the advantage of the pan-green camp.
Wang will also be rewarded for his impartiality, and the APEC appointment is a perfect example.
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