Isn't it intriguing that a political party such as the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) would hold a demonstration to appeal to people and the Taiwanese government to focus their efforts on the economy rather than on politics?
In the martial law era, the KMT monopolized Taiwan's politics by enforcing its White Terror rule. Now, after polarizing Taiwan's politics since the transfer of power in 2000, it wants to shed its image as a political spoiler. This time, it wants the nation and its people to focus on the economy -- and leave politics to China and the KMT.
This is a deception. KMT Chairman Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) has vigorously talked about unification and cross-strait issues for the last couple of months. Unable to clarify his stance on the issues and make a sale, he has now retreated to asking people to stop the unification-independence quarrel and direct their efforts to economic improvement. That's something he's excelled at since selling billions of dollars of the KMT's ill-gotten assets.
Things like cross-strait relations, the economy and diplomacy all need to be heeded by Taiwan. Politicians and people should be encouraged to debate the issues fully and solve the issues according to their priorities, rather than retreat and seek a refuge.
The "status quo" is a temporary refuge for people who won't face a tough situation. This is an irresponsible approach for a sensible person, especially when a delay may aggravate the situation.
These days Ma, as KMT chairman, is back to playing the trick he does best: Being a darling of females. He portrayed himself as the Goddess Diana on a KMT Web site and tried to woo votes from women in Taiwan through such "soft" packaging.
Image is everything. Ma's deeds and words are nothing but politics. Groomed by a brutal, ruthless Leninist party, Ma is quite different from his predecessors. His gentle and soft pitch may win him many women's votes. But is that enough for a party that has never repented or been held accountable to win its 2008 presidential bid?
This is a serious question for all Taiwanese.
Yang Ji-charng
Ohio
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