Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Central Committee member Sean Lien (連勝文) yesterday accused President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) of intending to turn Taiwan into the “Asian version of Cuba,” saying the president’s “misguided economic policies and conflict-prone ideologies” would steer the nation toward a doomed path.
Based on his observations of Tsai and her Cabinet members’ performance over the past 100 days, as well as their handling of new media, Lien said on Facebook that he is gravely concerned that Taiwan could become like Cuba during the Cold War.
“Looking at the past decades in Cuba, the leftist regime has internally stepped up purges against its political rivals and adhered to socialist economic policies, while externally clung to ideologies and embroiled itself in a longstanding wrangling with world power the US,” Lien said.
Due to its conflict with Washington, Havana gradually became isolated and marginalized in the international arena, Lien said, adding that it was the Cuban government’s isolationism and left-wing economic policies that paved the way for poverty and financial woes.
Lien said that while Tsai has defined her administration as a “problem-solver” since taking office in May, it has only created new problems.
“Many of Tsai’s campaign slogans were based on leftist socialism. They might have struck a cord with voters during the election period, but would soon be proven to be utterly infeasible after the president was sworn in,” Lien said.
Lien said the inability to address conflicts between employees and employers, and other ill-devised economic policies, could lead to fiscal overdraft, business exodus and a rising youth unemployment rate.
The worst of all problems facing the Tsai administration is the stalled cross-strait ties, Lien said, adding that it could take a toll on Taiwan’s economy.
“The worst-case scenario is that both sides of the Taiwan Strait become mired in a severe long-term standoff or even some kind of conflict, as it could result in Taiwan being isolated again and descend into a closed and decaying ‘lost paradise,’” Lien said. “If even Cuba has come to the realization that closed-door policies do not work, how much more time is Taiwan going to waste on wrong policies and conflicts induced by ideologies?”
Despite mounting pressure from China, Tsai has only recognized that a cross-strait meeting took place in 1992, rather than recognizing the so-called “1992 consensus,” prompting Beijing to suspend cross-strait communication mechanisms.
The “1992 consensus,” a term former Mainland Affairs Council chairman Su Chi (蘇起) admitted making up in 2000, refers to a tacit understanding between the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Chinese government that both sides of the Taiwan Strait acknowledge there is “one China,” with each side having its own interpretation of what “China” means.
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