Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Chairman Joseph Wu (
"Restricting our options ? might enable us to curry favor with Beijing, but it will damage what leverage we have in negotiations," read a press release the council issued yesterday.
Wu's remarks were in reference to the People First Party's (PFP) draft cross-strait peace law, which was reviewed by the legislature's Home and Nations Committee yesterday for the first time. It must be approved by the entire legislative floor before it can be adopted.
Wu voiced concern that the bill might violate the constitutionally mandated separation of powers, as well as the inclusion of controversial notions, such as the "1992 Consensus." It also codifies the "four noes" pledge that President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) made in 2000.
The PFP's draft cross-strait peace law provides for the establishment of a 17-member council to be elected from all political parties by lawmakers in accordance with the proportion of party representation in the legislature. According to the bill, the decisions the council members, or "ambassadors of peace," arrive at are legally binding.
The council is tasked with arriving at specific agreements with China on several fronts, including direct trade, postal and transportation links, a demilitarized zone, the protection of the investment rights, and medical and educational benefits, of the Taiwanese business community in China, a cross-strait free-trade pact, facilitation of agricultural trade and tourism, the management of financial services, participation in international organizations, a cross-strait summit and a peace accord.
The Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) has proposed an anti-annexation law, its equivalent of the PFP's bill. The bill paves the way for employing a referendum or constitutional reform to ensure the nation's sovereignty. In addition, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) is also expected to make available its own version of the bill, which was formulated alongside the MAC, at a later date.
Evaluating the PFP's cross-strait law, Wu stressed the importance of "playing by the rules of the game," referring to the need for a system of checks and balances among government agencies to be respected.
"No political party has 100 percent backing of the people. And so we need government, and must abide by the Constitution," Wu said.
He said that as far as he could tell, the council stipulated in the PFP's draft cross-strait peace law simultaneously carried advisory, legislative and executive duties.
"Constitutionally, the Executive Yuan must answer to the Legislative Yuan. Will the Legislative Yuan answer to the Legislative Yuan?" Wu asked.
PFP Legislator Supo Kao (高思博) clarified that the council was not merely a legislative agency, but would merge presidential, executive and legislative efforts. He added that amendments on controversial aspects of the law were forthcoming but did not elaborate.
Wu also highlighted that legislation on cross-strait matters must be founded on the highest degree of domestic consensus possible.
"If we set the `1992 consensus' in law before a domestic consensus is reached, it will forever be a controversy," Wu said.
The PFP bill explains in a footnote that the "1992 consensus" holds that the "one China" principle refers to the Republic of China and not the People's Republic of China as its sole government.
The DPP administration holds that no such consensus existed before 2000 when the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) coined the term.
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