With the 18th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre approaching, President Chen Shui-bian (
"The Chinese government must think about how to utilize its growing national strength and learn a lesson from the rise of other big powers," Chen said. "It will bring happiness to the people of China, Taiwan and the world if China transforms itself from the role of a potential invader, attacker and destroyer to a peaceful, safe and constructive force via a democratic system."
Chen made the remarks in the latest issue of his weekly electronic newsletter.
Chen said history has proven that a strong but undemocratic country is often dangerous and aggressive. Three of the most prominent examples were Japan, Germany and the Soviet Union, he said, because their rapidly growing economies and authoritarian rule led to militarism and hegemony.
Since the military crackdown on the Tiananmen Square protests in 1989, Chen said China's military spending has seen double-digit growth each year, well exceeding its economic growth and self-defense requirements.
As China has grown from a regional power to a global military power, Chen said its military buildup has a far-reaching influence on China itself and the world.
Over the past 18 years, China has experienced dramatic changes, but the only thing that remains unchanged is its one-party, authoritarian reign and merciless suppression of freedom and democracy, Chen said.
Likening Chinese Communist Party's rule to the wax and wane of the moon, Chen said that China has its bright side, but there is always the dark side to counter any positive developments.
While most people were overwhelmed by China's economic development, they tended to ignore China's notorious human rights record, social instability and the fact that it is not democratic, free or humane.
From 2003 to 2005, Chen said the frequency of demonstrations and the number of protesters in China has increased by 15 to 18 percent annually.
China has enjoyed unprecedented economic growth since President Hu Jintao (
China has topped the chart of countries detaining journalists over the past eight years, Chen said, and it was hard to imagine that in a knowledge-based age China has more than 300,000 "Internet police" constantly monitoring the on-line activities of Chinese netizens.
A 72-year-old man in Kaohsiung was sentenced to 40 days in jail after he was found having sex with a 67-year-old woman under a slide in a public park on Sunday afternoon. At 3pm on Sunday, a mother surnamed Liang (梁) was with her child at a neighborhood park when they found the man, surnamed Tsai (蔡), and woman, surnamed Huang (黃), underneath the slide. Liang took her child away from the scene, took photographs of the two and called the police, who arrived and arrested the couple. During questioning, Tsai told police that he had met Huang that day and offered to
LOOKING NORTH: The base would enhance the military’s awareness of activities in the Bashi Channel, which China Coast Guard ships have been frequenting, an expert said The Philippine Navy on Thursday last week inaugurated a forward operating base in the country’s northern most province of Batanes, which at 185km from Taiwan would be strategically important in a military conflict in the Taiwan Strait. The Philippine Daily Inquirer quoted Northern Luzon Command Commander Lieutenant General Fernyl Buca as saying that the base in Mahatao would bolster the country’s northern defenses and response capabilities. The base is also a response to the “irregular presence this month of armed” of China Coast Guard vessels frequenting the Bashi Channel in the Luzon Strait just south of Taiwan, the paper reported, citing a
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BETTER SERVICE QUALITY: From Nov. 10, tickets with reserved seats would only be valid for the date, train and route specified on the ticket, THSRC said Starting on Nov. 10, high-speed rail passengers with reserved seats would be required to exchange their tickets to board an earlier train. Passengers with reserved seats on a specific train are currently allowed to board earlier trains on the same day and sit in non-reserved cars, but as this is happening increasingly often, and affecting quality of travel and ticket sales, Taiwan High-Speed Rail Corp (THSRC) announced that it would be canceling the policy on Nov. 10. It is one of several new measures launched by THSRC chairman Shih Che (史哲) to improve the quality of service, it said. The company also said
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