Former president Lee Teng-hui's (
The pledge stated that as long as Beijing had no intention of using military force against Taiwan, Chen would not declare independence, change the national title, ensconce the "state-to-state" model of cross-strait relations in the Constitution, hold a referendum on independence or unification, or abolish the National Unification Council and guidelines.
Lee's office issued the denial yesterday in response to a report in the Chinese-language China Times. The report said that the "one without" was not in the original draft of Chen's speech, and that it was Lee who suggested that Chen include it in order to "safeguard the country's interests."
"President Chen never consulted former president Lee during or after the drafting of the inauguration speech, so how would [Lee] make any suggestions [to the president]?" Lee's press statement asked. "The report is false and we are sorry that it has confused the public."
Chen's intention to abolish the unification council and guidelines has generated considerable concern among certain groups. According to the China Times report, Chen decided to abandon the "one without" condition after he suffered setbacks to his "middle course" policies and after China's refusal to negotiate with the government.
The abolition of the unification council and guidelines, the article said, reflected Chen's desire to "surpass Lee and leave no burden for future generations."
Meanwhile, regarding speculation that Chen will restate his "four noes" pledge when he announces the abolition of the unification council and guidelines, DPP Legislator Lin Cho-shui (
"The `four noes' pledge is all about Taiwan's sovereignty, while the abolition of the unification council is relatively unimportant," Lin said.
"Restating the `four noes' pledge would be no different from selling the country out in return for [the abolition of the unification council]," Lin said.
Meanwhile, Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (
"I don't think the US will accept Chen's restating the `four noes' as a compromise to abandoning the `one without,'" he said.
Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) was sentenced to six months in prison, commutable to a fine, by the New Taipei District Court today for contravening the Personal Data Protection Act (個人資料保護法) in a case linked to an alleged draft-dodging scheme. Wang allegedly paid NT$3.6 million (US$114,380) to an illegal group to help him evade mandatory military service through falsified medical documents, prosecutors said. He transferred the funds to Chen Chih-ming (陳志明), the alleged mastermind of a draft-evasion ring, although he lost contact with him as he was already in detention on fraud charges, they said. Chen is accused of helping a
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