The Presidential Office yesterday said there's little political significance in the participation of Kaohsiung Mayor Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) and Taoyuan County Commissioner Chu Li-lun (朱立倫) in the president's upcoming travels.
President Chen Shui-bian (
Hsieh and Chu confirmed that they will accompany Chen on the trip, during which Chen will attend the inauguration of Panamanian president-elect Martin Torrijos.
Hsieh is a Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) heavyweight and Chu a rising star in the opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT). Some analysts had questioned the political rationale of their joining Chen's entourage.
Hsieh's plan to join the trip led to speculations about his role within the DPP, whose chairmanship the president has announced that he wants to resign. Other questions were raised about Chu's participation, given that Chu's party's candidate challenging Chen Shui-bian's re-election bid has refused to concede defeat five months later.
"It is customary to have a number of mayors or county commissioners accompany a president during his diplomatic trip," presidential spokesman Chen Wen-tsung (
"Based on the same principle, [such officials] are invited to join the trip this time as well," he said. "There is no special consideration."
Echoing this remark, Chu said yesterday that non-DPP mayors and county commissioners had also been on Chen Shui-bian's previous visits abroad.
"Out of diplomatic courtesy, I've accepted the invitation" to join the trip, Chu said. "This ought to be a simple diplomatic visit. I hope outsiders would not overly interpret the matter."
Chu added that he had received consent from KMT party chairman Lien Chan (
Meanwhile, in response to a reporter's query about Premier Yu Shyi-kun's recent reference to this nation as "Taiwan, ROC," the presidential spokesman yesterday said that Yu's use of terminology has nothing to do with a change of the country's national title or national policy.
In his speech addressed to the Honduran Congress on Wednesday, Yu used the term "Taiwan, ROC," igniting political debate over the issue.
"Outsiders need not over-interpret the issue," said Chen Wen-tsung, adding that "ROC," "Taiwan" and "Taiwan, ROC" are terms that have often been used when referring to this country.
The presidential spokesman echoed the president in saying that a name change would not be considered in the upcoming revision of the Constitution.
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