Independence is the future
The Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) 16th national congress on July 20 aroused a great deal of attention because of the motion that the party’s independence clause should be frozen.
“Taiwan is an independent country, so the DPP’s charter does not need to list the independence clause any more — it must be frozen,” proposal sponsor Chen Zau-nan (陳昭南) said.
The argument that Taiwan is already an independent country is questionable. If Taiwan is already an independent country, then why is there not a country named Taiwan or the Republic of Taiwan? Why does Taiwan have to carry the name of Chinese Taipei or the Republic of China (ROC)? The ROC government-in-exile claims it owns the territory of China and Mongolia; that is nonsense.
While all the media focused on DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), waiting for her to slip up, she really disappointed them. She made good judgements and decisions.
The day before the meeting, Tsai told the public that independence has been a “natural ingredient” embedded in the younger generations and could not be frozen. So, at the meeting, she spent only a few minutes putting it aside for future discussion, and the meeting carried on smoothly.
Tsai returns to the DPP’s headquarters with a great mission in mind. On the night of Jan. 14, 2012, she told her supporters that she would come back and walk together with them over the last mile to build the nation. There has been a lot of discussion about how to make her dream come true. How far is this one last mile?
On May 25, 2011, Tsai said that the ROC is a government-in-exile, which really convinced the public that she was aware of Taiwan’s status. However, later that year, during her presidential campaign, she followed the DPP charter and said: “Taiwan is the ROC and the ROC is Taiwan,” which was disappointing and called her knowledge of the San Francisco Peace Treaty into question.
I guess Taiwanese learned and grew more mature from the Sunflower movement. As Tsai said, independence has been a part of us and is well embedded in our daily lives — how can we freeze it? It is heartening to see Tsai reassure the true value of our younger generations’ beliefs.
Yes, a political leader’s awareness of Taiwan’s status is closely related to the fate of the nation. Is Taiwan part of China? If not, then why do we keep saying that Taiwan is the ROC and the ROC is Taiwan?
While we relate Taiwan to the ROC, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) will have the right to claim on Taiwan because UN Resolution 2758 officially recognizes the PRC as the sole legal government of China. The ROC’s representative was expelled from the UN and the ROC is an exiled government.
Even though no one can confirm who the sovereign of Taiwan is today, we do know for sure it is neither the ROC nor the PRC, because in 1912 when the ROC was established, Taiwan was Japan’s territory. In 1949 when the PRC kicked out the ROC and established the Chinese nation, Taiwan was technically still Japan’s territory. On Sept. 8, 1951, under the San Francisco Peace Treaty, Japan renounced the right, title and claim to Formosa and the Pescadoes, but neither the PRC nor the ROC was the recipient.
How long is Tsai’s last mile to carry out her dream? It will not be long once the realization of Taiwan’s status sets in. As of today, no legal document can prove that either the ROC or the PRC have sovereignty over Taiwan.
I hope Tsai can continue her positive progress on the recognition that Taiwan is not part of China and that independence is an inalienable clause of Taiwan. It is a natural ingredient embedded in not only the younger generations, but also all future generations.
John Hsieh
Hayward, California
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