While praising a US academic's suggestion to designate Oct. 25 as "national independence day," President Chen Shui-bian (
"To declare Oct. 25 as Taiwan's independence day is to declare Taiwan's independence," Chen said. "It is a serious matter and requires careful discussion."
He made the remarks while meeting two representatives of Pepperdine University: Michael Warder, vice chancellor of the California school, and Bruce Herschensohn, a professor of public policy who served in the administrations of US presidents Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan.
Herschensohn said Taiwan's bid to join the UN under the name "Taiwan" was futile, therefore Chen should take a historic step in the last year of his second term and make Oct. 25 a national holiday.
Oct. 25 is the day the Republic of China withdrew from the UN in 1971.
"Over the years, you have done everything in the world to try to accommodate the international community," Herschensohn said. "You can't win. Take exactly the opposite course."
He said the people of the US are less impressed with the UN. If he were giving a speech and said the US should get out of the UN and the UN should get out of the US, he could guarantee there would be applause.
"Therefore, if you made [Oct. 25] a national holiday, from that day forward you wouldn't have to sit in the same room with some significant governments that are murderers, hostage-takers, rapists and terrorists," he said.
"So you celebrate Oct. 25. That becomes your day of independence without declaring it, as we have July 4," he said.
Describing the proposal as an "innovative" idea, Chen said the country would continue its efforts to enter the UN and WHO and that he hoped to see a referendum on joining the UN under the name "Taiwan" held in tandem with either the year-end legislative elections or next year's presidential election.
The president drew a round of laughter when he asked his guests if his "four noes" pledge would become "three noes" if he declared independence.
The "four noes" are the pledges Chen made in his inaugural speech in 2000, when he promised that as long as China did not use 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 back an independence referendum.
Chen said Taiwan has no intention of competing with China in the UN, but the People's Republic of China cannot represent Taiwan and its 23 million people.
Herschensohn said that while the US government embraces a "one China" policy, it calls for a two-state resolution of the Israel-Palestinian issue.
"Does the Palestinian Authority deserve independence, but Taiwan not?" he said.
"Taiwan has no desires on taking over China, but the Palestinian Authority has admitted desires to take over Israel. Taiwan is a friend of the United States. The Palestinian Authority is not a friend," Herschensohn said.
US President George W. Bush has praised the people of Iraq for going to the polls to vote on a referendum on a new constitution, Herschensohn said, so Taiwan could make a case for a similar referendum because the US believes in democracy and independence more than anything else.
Chen said he wished American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Director Stephen Young were there to hear Herschensohn's comments.
Herschensohn said that he met Young on Monday but had not discussed his ideas with the envoy.
Young represents the US State Department and he represents himself, Herschensohn said.
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