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Lee Teng-hui lashes out at DPP constitutional reform

Former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) yesterday criticized the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) administration, saying that its governance was based on empty promises and that the last constitutional reform was a step backward in the nation's democratic development.

Lee said he was very disappointed when President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) bowed to pressure from the US and made the "four noes and one without" pledge in his 2000 inaugural speech.

The pledge stipulates that as long as China does not have the intention to use military force against Taiwan, Chen would not declare independence, hold referendums on Taiwan's nationhood, seek changes to the national title, enshrine "state-to-state" in the Constitution, or abolish the National Unification Council and unification guidelines.

"With the pledge, many things cannot be done," Lee said while addressing a half-day forum coordinated by the Formosan Association for Public Affairs (FAPA) and Taiwan Advocates. "That is the essence of the many problems we face today."

On Chen's vow to deliver a new constitution by last year and implement it by next year, Lee said that many felt hopeful about the DPP administration, but the party's promises turned out to be empty.

Yesterday's forum, titled "The Difficulty and Breakthrough of Enacting a New Constitution," was organized to mark the 25th anniversary of the establishment of FAPA.

Lee said Taiwan has been an independent nation since May 1, 1991, when he abolished the Temporary Provisions Effective during the "Period of National Mobilization for the Suppression of the Communist Rebellion [動員勘亂時期臨時條款]."

DPP Chairman Yu Shyi-kun, who came to the event to offer his regards, however, put things differently when approached by media for comments.

Yu said Taiwan is not an independent, sovereign state because it has yet to obtain de jure independent status.

Lee told the forum that, despite the six rounds of constitutional amendments, the Republic of China Constitution was not perfect.

He pointed out Article 4 in particular, which mentions the national boundaries but does not clearly define the "existing national boundaries."

An interpretation by the Council of Grand Justices in 1993 also failed to define the highly sensitive issue.

Lee said the lastest round of constitutional reforms in 2005 was a step backward in the country's democratic development and that it created more problems than it resolved.

The high threshold for constitutional amendments diminishes the odds of using legal means to change the name of the country and enact a new constitution, Lee said.

Halving the legislative seats will expand the power of legislators and the new electoral system was also bound to create unequal representation in big and small constituencies, he added.

To solve the problem once and for all, Lee said it was necessary to write a new constitution that was suited to the nation.

Once obtaining the public consensus on the issue, it would be easier to revamp the Referendum Law (公投法) so that direct democracy can be installed and people do not need to rely on the legislature to initiate constitutional reform, Lee said.
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