In contrast to what democratic countries did in containing the spread of communism during the Cold War, China is now containing democracy by continuing to oppress the freedom of choice of the Taiwanese people, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said on Tuesday.
MOFA released a commentary, which was jointly written by minister Mark Chen (陳唐山) and three other vice ministers, concerning the rise of China.
The release of the statement was timed to coincide with China's publication of its Foreign Policy White Paper for 2006, which came out last Thursday.
The MOFA paper criticized China's rise for threatening its democratic neighbors. It said that the Cold War containment strategy used by democratic countries against communism has now been reversed by authoritarian China, which is using its economic might to contain the spread of democracy.
"The cross-strait situation is entirely the opposite [of the Cold War situation] and this is demonstrated by China's denial of the Taiwanese people's right to peaceful development and freedom of choice.
"Taiwan's situation is neither a problem to cross-strait relations nor to China's internal affairs, rather it should be seen as a gauge for whether democracy in Asia is really progressing or going backwards," the MOFA statement said.
The commentary pointed out a number of problems accompanying the rise of China, including corruption: China ranked 78th out of 159 countries in terms of government corruption in this year's Transparency International survey.
The huge increase in China's military expenditure, which lacks transparency and yet is increasing at a much faster rate than its economic growth, has also caused great alarm among its neighboring countries, the paper said.
The MOFA singled out China's expansionary foreign policy as one of the most serious problems behind the rise of China. Although China still has about 150 million people living under the internationally defined poverty line of US$1 a day and is still a receiver of international aid, it cancelled 10.5 billion yuan (US$1.3 billion) in debt it was owed by 31 African countries in 2002
In addition, the MOFA commentary said that China's exploitation of cheap labor and its frequent violations of international environmental and labor standards means it has become a predator in the international economic system, causing the economies of many other countries to suffer and shrink.
While many countries are enthusiastically engaging with China, the MOFA urged these countries not to sacrifice the principles of democracy and human rights, which are vital to the interests of democratic countries situated in close proximity to China, including Taiwan.
In ensuring cross-Strait peace, the MOFA suggested that a UN-level inspection of the cross-Strait security situation in which the staff or inspectors dispatched by the UN are held accountable and make regular reports on security in the Taiwan Strait region.
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