Taiwan Leader's Recoil Betrays His Shame: Editorial

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Friday, August 09, 2002

Taiwan Leader's Recoil Betrays His Shame: Editorial

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Chen Shui-bian's hasty backdown after his provocative remarks on Saturday disclosed his guilty conscience. At the weekend the "president" of Taiwan told a gathering of pro-independence activists there was one country on each side of the Taiwan Straits.

"We must be clear about this," he said.

Three days later, Chen regretted his clarity, saying he did not actually mean what he said.

"Equal sovereignty" was a more appropriate summary of his speech than "one country on each side," he argued.

"President" Chen's incoherent comments about the island's ties with the mainland has won him a reputation as a political chameleon.

This is not the first time he has been forced to eat his words.

Despite a pledge after becoming "president" in 2000 to show "goodwill" to the mainland and not pursue independence, Chen on several occasions last month threatened to walk down a "Taiwanese road" should the mainland fail to "respond positively" to his conditions for talks across the Taiwan Straits.

What he meant at the time was evidently different from what he said on Tuesday - "a road of democracy, freedom, human rights and peace."

The mainland's pursuit of peaceful reunification and generous offer of greater autonomy for Taiwan than Hong Kong and Macao enjoy under the "one country, two systems" framework shows a genuine appreciation for democracy, freedom, human rights and peace.

Push for a road of democracy, freedom, human rights and peace is therefore not able to be used to blackmail. Chen knew that. His back-pedalling showed he was ashamed of his remarks.

It has got people wondering what is on Chen's mind.

There is speculation that Chen was using the mainland's pending leadership change as a distraction to try and move one step further on his way toward independence.

If that is his motivation then he is seriously mistaken.

No mainland leader or government could afford to lose Taiwan.

Historically, China has never given up a square metre of its territory without a good fight.

Some analysts attributed Chen's comments to his frustration and that does make some sense.

His appeals to Taiwan businesses to "go south," which literally means dumping the mainland for Southeast Asia, fell on deaf ears. Instead, pressure on his administration for open and direct cross-Straits commercial links increases each day.

Chen cannot be anything but disillusioned seeing that his push to use direct cross-Straits links as a bargaining tool has backfired.

But if he resorted to this sort of hysteria to win respect, he has made another mistake.

Chen's call for cross-Straits negotiations "without any precondition" does have a precondition - he wanted to be treated as the leader of an independent sovereign state.

One of the points Chen made on Tuesday to explain away his ambition for independence was that he had never changed his faith and beliefs since assuming the "presidency."

But from his descriptions of Taiwan and the mainland as "equal sovereignty," to "one country on each side," the only thing that remained unchanged is an impulse to drive the island away from the rest of China.

Chen has always urged the mainland to "face reality." It is true that the two sides of the Taiwan Straits is ruled by two separate administrations. But that in no way changes the reality that Taiwan is a part of China.

The world knows that and so does Chen.

Taiwan's stature as an independent sovereignty is a mirage that exists only in the dreams of "president" Chen and his followers.

Prior to his predecessor and mentor, the then "president" Lee Teng-hui, the focus of rivalry between the two sides was over one single question - who qualifies as the legal representative of China though international law has chosen the People's Republic of China on the mainland.

The first "president" in Taiwan, Chiang Kai-shek, left behind an unfinished dream to "recover the mainland."

His continued use of the name "Republic of China," a name this country adopted after the overthrow of the Qing Court in 1911, reflected his ambition to reclaim jurisdiction over the mainland.

He never meant the Taiwan island itself constituted the "Republic of China."

The so-called 1992 consensus between the two sides, which reiterated that there was only one China, had its roots in that understanding.

Chen's game of words may swindle some people at times, but it cannot change reality. Unless he gets rid of the fantasy and comes to terms with reality, Chen does not deserve respect or a seat at the negotiating table.

There is also a hunch that Chen wanted to stand up against the mainland to garner votes for his party and himself in preparation for the upcoming elections.

The slogan-shouters at Saturday's convention were but a handful of desperadoes who wanted to gamble with the well-being of 23 million Taiwanese.

A survey by the Taiwan-based cable network ETTV showed "president" Chen's approval rate sinking to 46 per cent after his bravado from 60 per cent in May.

Taiwan stocks nosedived to an eight-month low on Monday, plunging 5.8 per cent.

Multiple opinion polls on the island reported the public's anxiety about Chen's senselessness and he has now shifted the blame to the mainland.

He has accused it of "militarily intimidating" Taiwan and urged it to promise to renounce the use of force.

Chen must recognize that the mainland is only reacting to his provocation.

Chen has repeatedly said he had no intention to seek independence.

The mainland made it crystal clear it would not use force unless the island declares independence or foreign intervention takes place.

It is fully justifiable for a country to defend itself when its territorial integrity is threatened.

Whether or not the mainland renounces the use of force is not an excuse for Chen if he has a clear conscience.

China Daily contributes to this editorial

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