At the heart of the controversy over President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) proposal to scrap the National Unification Council and unification guidelines are the pledges made by Chen in his first inaugural address. Many feel that in making the pledges, Chen created more problems for himself than he resolved.
Vice President Annette Lu (
She also claimed that the precondition did not exist when the pledges were made.
PHOTO: CHANG CHIA-MING, TAIPEI TIMES
Chen promised that as long as Beijing had no intention of using military force against Taiwan, he would not declare independence, change the national title, enshrine the "state-to-state" model of cross-strait relations in the Constitution or hold a referendum on independence or unification.
Chen's final pledge was that abolishing the NUC and unification guidelines "would not be an issue."
Peng Ming-min (
"He has lost a lot of supporters because of that," Peng said.
Peng, however, said that he believes there are complex reasons for why Chen did so. He also believes that Chen was well aware that he would run the risk of losing support by making the pledge.
Chen was later criticized for agreeing to discuss the issue of "one China." Beijing, however, insisted on setting that as the precondition for the resumption of cross-strait talks.
As the US government has expressed the hope that Chen will reiterate the pledges, Peng said that he wonders why the US did not strongly condemn China's Anti-Secession Law, the enactment of which he sees as more serious than doing away with the unification council and guidelines.
Peng said that he cannot be certain whether Chen will reiterate the pledge, but that the US government must realize that the premise of the pledges no longer exists, as the status quo in the Taiwan Strait is dynamic, rather than static.
"US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld once said that China is the only country in the world that is not threatened by any other country," Peng said. "It makes me wonder why China keeps making double-digit increases in its military budget each year. The answer is simple and clear: they want to make themselves so strong that the US won't be able to interfere in whatever happens in the Taiwan Strait. When China is ready, the first thing they will do is change the status quo."
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
The Sports Administration yesterday demanded an apology from the national table tennis association for barring 17-year-old Yeh Yi-tian (葉伊恬) from competing in the upcoming World Table Tennis (WTT) United States Smash tournament in Las Vegas this July. The sports agency said in a statement that the Chinese Taipei Table Tennis Association (CTTTA) must explain to the public why it withdrew Yeh from the WTT tournament in Las Vegas. The sports agency said it contacted the association to express its disapproval of the decision-making process after receiving a complaint from Yeh’s coach, Chuang
Control Yuan Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) tendered his resignation last night, admitting that he had misused a government vehicle, as reported by media. His resignation was immediately accepted by the Control Yuan. In a statement explaining why he had resigned, Lee apologized for using a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a pet grooming salon on May 20. The issue first came to light late last month, when TVBS News reported that Lee had instructed his driver to take the dog to the salon. The news channel broadcast photos that it said were taken by an unnamed whistle-blower, which purportedly showed the
A former officer in China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) who witnessed the aftermath of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre has warned that Taiwan could face a similar fate if China attempts to unify the country by force. Li Xiaoming (李曉明), who was deployed to Beijing as a junior officer during the crackdown, said Taiwanese people should study the massacre carefully, because it offers a glimpse of what Beijing is willing to do to suppress dissent. “What happened in Tiananmen Square could happen in Taiwan too,” Li told CNA in a May 22 interview, ahead of the massacre’s 36th anniversary. “If Taiwanese students or
RSS