President Lee Teng-hui (
"If they understood such logic, there would be no reason to threaten to attack Taiwan," Lee said, during a visit to Tainan County in support of KMT presidential candidate Lien Chan (連戰).
"In order to maintain the Republic of China's existence, nothing can compare to democratization, liberalization and human values. Actually, this is even more powerful than missiles or weapons," Lee said.
Lee said tension in the Taiwan Strait combined with Taiwan's democratization and economic development, have brought attention and respect to Taiwan from other countries.
"Because we have established democratic institutions and a flourishing economy, Taiwan has been regarded as a beacon by the rest of the world," Lee said.
If China really wants to be prosperous, Taiwan has no choice but to stick to its democratic path, Lee said.
While China has fingered Lee as the source of trouble in the Taiwan Strait, saying he is a separatist, Lee said this was far from the case.
"China might have some different opinions about me, some have said I want to promote separatism, but today I would like to clarify my stance that we would never attempt to engage in an independence movement and I am not a separatist in any way," Lee said.
"For the sake of China's long-term development, if Taiwan fails to [stay on a democratic course] then where can we find hope?" Lee said.
Speaking to a group of elementary school teachers in Tainan County, Lee said China still has much to learn from history.
"Over the past 5,000 years of Chinese civilization, Chinese have never admitted their mistakes. Instead they blamed everything on outsiders," Lee said.
"Take the upcoming presidential election for example. China has performed military maneuvers and even recently released a `one China' white paper. Such psychological shortcomings are China's biggest defects," Lee said.
During his 12 years as President, Lee said he had endeavored to create a new culture in Taiwan rather than fighting with others for political power.
"Democracy and identity are the X and Y axes of Taiwan's development blueprint for the future," Lee said.
"We are attempting to forge a new civilization; this is our greatest goal," Lee said. "I hope Taiwan will not just become China's center, but a stage for the whole world as well," he added.
In addition to delivering a speech on cross-strait ties, Lee took the opportunity to attack both DPP presidential candidate Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) and independent candidate James Soong (宋楚瑜).
"If Taiwan wants to step into the 21st century, our fellow citizens should never cast their ballots for someone who lacks administration skills and maturity. We cannot risk gambling on our country's development. If we fail, the result would be terrible," Lee said, referring to Chen.
On the other hand, Lee said: "We can never tolerate someone who claims he loves Taiwan but has sent huge amounts of money to the US," referring to Soong's alleged irregular financial dealings involving family accounts at Chung Hsing Finance Bills Corp.
Lee urged his loyal supporters to transfer their support to Lien.
"Although I am already 80 years old, if Lien needs my advice on agriculture policy, I would like to be Lien's consultant," he said.
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