Presidential election 2008: 2 days to go: Ma to forge `consensus' on boycott threat if elected

Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday clarified his warning on Tuesday that he would not rule out a boycott of the Beijing Olympics over Tibet if elected.

Ma promised that if he won on Saturday, he would seek consensus before deciding whether to boycott the Olympics. He also urged the public to take the human-rights situation in Tibet seriously.

Ma dismissed comments from Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) rival Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) that boycotting the Olympics would sacrifice the nation's interests, and said he would only boycott the Games under two conditions.

"[One] if the Chinese government continues its suppression of Tibetans, and [two] if the situation in Tibet worsens," Ma said as he campaigned in Taichung County.

"If the situation in Tibet gets any worse, I will seek a public consensus before declaring any boycott," he said.

In the face of challenges over his comments on Tuesday, Ma said he would not sacrifice the interests of the country's athletes, but that the Tibetans' rights should not be ignored, either.

"I made the assumption to raise public awareness of the human-rights issue, otherwise we would not be a country that values human rights," Ma said.

He condemned China for linking Tibet and Taiwan, while brushing off Hsieh's warning that Taiwan could become a second Tibet if Ma won the election.

"The Republic of China is a democratic country that enjoys sovereignty. We are not Tibet and we will not become another Tibet," Ma said.

"I will not turn Taiwan into another Tibet if elected," he said.

Ma said President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) had attacked him for being born in Hong Kong and had challenged his loyalty to Taiwan years ago during his first Taipei mayoral campaign, so he was not surprised that Hsieh had adopted the same tactics, accusing him of planning to seek unification with China if elected.

"The DPP has been portraying me as a pro-China person, but the tactic has not succeeded because I grew up in Taiwan and I will die and be buried in Taiwan," he said.

Meanwhile, Sports Affairs Council Chairman Yang Chung-ho (楊忠和) said yesterday there have been no changes in plans to send athletes to the Beijing Games.

Taiwan's participation will not change because of the Chinese military crackdown in Tibet or campaign rhetoric by any presidential candidate, Yang said.

He said the crackdown in Tibet and the Games are different issues that should be handled separately. He also accused Ma of flip-flopping on Olympic-related issues.

He said Ma condemned the government last year when it rejected allowing the Olympic torch relay to pass through Taiwan, but now Ma was willing to consider a boycott of the Games over Tibet.

He said Ma should not exploit the Tibet issue for his campaign at the expense of the nation's athletes, especially as the national team is honing its skills after years of preparation.

Additional reporting by CNA