In his address to the World Federation of Taiwanese Associa-tions, President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) made three succinct points. First, Taiwan should go its own way. Second, Taiwan is a sovereign and independent state, and Taiwan and China -- one country on each side of the Taiwan Strait -- should be clearly separated. Third, the 23 million people of Taiwan are the only ones who can decide Tai-wan's future. For the future of Taiwan, everyone should seriously consider the importance and urgency of a referendum.
The brave and righteous voice of Chen, unequivocally stating facts and expressing the collective mind of the people of Taiwan, should be given both domestic and international support. Any-one who recognizes Taiwan as his country, regardless of ethnicity, is Taiwanese, and should lend his support to Chen in defense of Taiwan.
Looking back at the period since Chen became president, we see that he has made repeated shows of goodwill toward China, including the "five no's" introduced in his inauguration speech, the cross-strait integration model from his cross-century talks and the liberalization of the "small three links."
The main purpose of Chen's actions is the hope that Taiwan and China will be able to maintain goodwill, a conciliatory attitude and a spirit of cooperation in order to work together toward reconciliation and permanent peace in the Taiwan Strait -- under the premise that Beijing has no intent of using military force against Taiwan.
China has not only failed to reciprocate this goodwill, but has also added insult to injury by increasing pressure on Taiwan. Beijing insists on the "one China" principle in international diplomacy, and damages Taiwan both by using money to buy over Taipei's diplomatic allies and by exerting pressure to block Taiwan's participation in international organizations.
China will not renounce the use of military force against Taiwan and it is undertaking further preparations for a military invasion. China's military threat removes the Taiwanese people's right to the freedom from fear. This threatens to destroy the peace and is illegal under the UN charter. This concerns the entire international community and should be condemned.
As a sovereign and independent state, Taiwan should go its own way. Just as Chen said, our own Taiwanese way is the way of democracy, freedom, human rights and peace. Democratic Taiwan and communist China have indeed become fiercely opposed to each other.
Now is the time for the US and other peace-loving nations to review the outdated "one China" policy and take a hard look at Taiwan and China as separate countries. It is also time for the people of Taiwan to reflect on the meaning of unity.
Chen Lung-chu is chairman of the New Century Foundation.
Translated by Perry Svensson
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