The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) last month launched its campaign touting its successes ahead of the nine-in-one elections, but a closer examination of President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) performance suggests that the party lacks the proof to back its words, the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) said at a news conference in Taipei yesterday.
Comparing the elections to a mid-term exam, Acting KMT Culture and Communications Committee Director-General Tang Te-ming (唐德明) said that he wanted to direct attention to Tsai’s performance regarding three test questions — diplomacy, cross-strait relations and national defense — in comparison to the performance of former presidents Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) and Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九).
The president has direct authority over the three areas under the nation’s semi-presidential system of governance, Tang said.
Photo: Shih Hsiao-kuang, Taipei Times
Regarding changes in the number of Taiwan’s diplomatic allies, Chen lost nine allies, but established official ties with three new ones, while Ma only lost one, he said.
As of May, two years into Tsai’s presidency, the nation has lost four diplomatic allies, he said.
The health ministers under Chen were not invited to the World Health Assembly (WHA), but those under Ma were invited eight years in a row, he said.
The Tsai administration has yet to receive an invitation to attend the WHA, he said, adding that to make matters worse, Taiwanese reporters were last year barred from the assembly.
The nation set up no overseas representative offices during Chen’s term, two during Ma’s term and none so far during Tsai’s presidency, he said.
As for cross-strait ties, Ma’s administration loosened restrictions on Chinese visiting Taiwan. Their numbers rose by 3.43 million from 2008 until the end of his term in 2016, Tang said, adding that the number of Chinese visitors decreased by 750,000 last year.
Overall, the number of visitors to Taiwan increased by 1 million during Chen’s terms, 6.6 million during Ma’s terms and by only 50,000 during Tsai’s presidency, he said.
Regarding cross-strait academic exchanges, diplomas conferred by 155 higher-education institutions in China gained recognition in Taiwan during Ma’s term, while the number of Chinese students studying at Taiwanese higher-education institutions rose from 1,488 in 2008 when Ma took office to 2,134 in 2016, Tang said, adding that the number of Chinese students studying in Taiwan is about 800 this year.
On national defense, both Chen and Ma claimed sovereignty over Itu Aba Island (Taiping Island, 太平島), with Ma inaugurating a new runway at Taiping Island Airport, which was overseen by the Republic of China Air Force, he said.
Tsai has yet to claim sovereignty over the island and has ordered fishermen not to go there unless there is an emergency.
Chen’s policy for national defense was “engage beyond the borders,” which showed that he did not want potential conflicts with the People’s Liberation Army to affect Taiwan proper, while Ma adopted an “end-to-wars strategy,” Tang said.
“Multilayered deterrence,” the policy adopted by Tsai, proposes a three-tiered defense strategy that starts at sea before moving toward the shoals and ending on the shores, Tang said, calling into question its ability to protect Taiwan proper.
In conclusion, Tsai is definitely the worst president Taiwan has ever had, he said.
By holding the news conference, the KMT has chosen to act as China’s mouthpiece, endorsing Beijing’s bullying tactics, DPP spokesman Cheng Yun-peng (鄭運鵬) said.
The KMT’s arguments were a tacit acknowledgment that the Ma administration had to gain Beijing’s consent before it was allowed to participate in any international event, he said, adding that such belittlement of Taiwan misled the international community into thinking that Taiwan was part of China.
During Tsai’s presidency so far, the US passed the Taiwan Travel Act allowing bilateral visits between high-level officials and the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019, which allows Taiwan and the US to conduct joint military drills, Cheng said, adding that both acts signal the consolidation of Taiwan-US relations.
Meanwhile, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has voiced Japan’s support for Taiwan to join the Japan-led Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership.
The president has spared no effort in defending the nation’s sovereignty and Taiwanese dignity, Cheng said, adding that it is regrettable that the KMT’s political leaning could become the greatest risk to the nation.
Additional reporting by Su Fang-ho
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