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Editorial: Tiptoeing around independence

President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) for the first time yesterday made a public address on cross-strait relations in his capacity as DPP chairman. Chen said the guidelines for the party's handling of cross-strait affairs is the "resolution regarding Taiwan's future" (台灣前途決議文) that was adopted by the DPP in 1999. The resolution essentially states that Taiwan is already a sovereign country called the "Republic of China," and that any change to this status quo must be determined by all of the people of Taiwan.

Chen's gesture yesterday was necessary. Even before Chen had taken over the chairman's seat, debate had begun to resurface concerning the so-called "Taiwan independence clause" that is a part of the DPP's platform, in which the goal of establishing a "Republic of Taiwan" is outlined. As the chairman of the DPP, Chen has vowed to faithfully follow the DPP's platform, which would include the controversial clause. But the clause is obviously at odds with Chen's duty as president under the ROC Constitution.

In fact, this concern was raised in 1999 before Chen was elected to the presidency. At the time, the DPP hoped to resolve the dilemma by adopting the "resolution regarding Taiwan's future" that recognizes Taiwan as a sovereign country called the ROC. Concerns over the independence clause also played a role in Chen's decision to stay out of party affairs immediately after taking office.

Since the "Taiwan independence clause" remains part of the DPP's platform, some argue that the "resolution regarding Taiwan's future" is just a mere statement lower in status than the party's official platform. This argument is not without some merit. The passage of a resolution requires approval by the party's national congress by a majority, while any amendment to the party's platform requires two-thirds of the vote. So debate surrounding the independence clause continues, despite a subsequent amendment to the party's constitution putting the resolution on the same level as the party's platform, and despite an explanation from former DPP chairman Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) that doing so means the resolution takes precedence over the independence clause.

But none of these efforts have ever successfully cleared doubts about the DPP and Chen. The opposition camp continues to criticize the president. In fact, in response to Chen's invitation to a party leadership summit, KMT Chairman Lien Chan (連戰) again raised questions regarding the DPP's "Taiwan independence clause." Moreover, he said the clause was a big eyesore to Beijing as well and something that can't possibly be constructive to the cross-strait relationship.

On the other hand, neither the DPP nor Chen can afford to advocate the outright removal of the independence clause. While most people -- probably including a good majority of the so-called "independence fundamentalists" -- can accept the characterization that "Taiwan is already an independent sovereign country named the `ROC'," and are not in any hurry to declare the founding of the "Republic of Taiwan," removing a clause advocating a long-held dream is entirely a different matter. Chen and the DPP would wind up alienating a large part of the pan-green camp. With the 2004 presidential race just around the corner, that's the last thing they want to do. Nor can they forget that, just last week, former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝), the spiritual leader of pro-independence camp, openly advocated an official declaration of Taiwan independence in 2008.

Unable to remove the "Taiwan independence clause," Chen chose to openly endorse the "resolution regarding Taiwan's status," so as to downplay the weight of the clause and struggle free of its restraints.
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