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What Will Be the Actual Result of Taiwan Leader's 'Three All-out Efforts'?
On June 5, after his return to Taiwan from his visits to Central and South America, the leader of the Taiwan authorities declared: "going all out for diplomatic achievements during my visits abroad, going all out for economic development after my returning home, and going all out for the election at year-end". In the face of the happenings over the past one and a half months, can he tell what he actually wants to achieve in his "three all-out efforts"?
So-called "for Diplomatic Achievements When Abroad"His "actions" during his Central and South American tour should be pointed out here. He chose the time for his tour abroad shortly after getting hug quantities of arms the United States sold to Taiwan, this was the second time he visited the same region within nine months and gained several "major breakthroughs" in his transit visit to the United States, he intended to give prominence to his "diplomatic achievements", but actually he is faced with many awkward situations.
--In his Central and South American tour, the Taiwan leader not only gave from several million to tens of millions of US dollars as gift to each country he visited, he even granted two sums of special funds totaling US$370 million to the Central American region which was to be used for the "cooperative projects" between Taiwan and the said region as well as for related funds. This move was denounced by various Taiwan social circles. Just at the time, there came the news that Macedonia was to "sever diplomatic relations" with Taiwan, and two to three other countries having "diplomatic ties" with Taiwan were also wavering. On June 18, the Macedonian government formally declared normalization of relations with the People's Republic of China. The Taiwan authorities were forced to announce, several hours before this, "severing diplomatic ties" with Macedonia which had received well over US$200 million from Taiwan since 1999, this was mocked as "a loss of both money and dignity" by news media.
--In name, the Taiwan leader visited five Central American countries having "diplomatic relations" with Taiwan, in reality, he vigorously played up his transit visit to New York and Houston as "major diplomatic breakthroughs". He launched 16 rounds of activities during his only two-day stay in New York. In the view of the news media, The Taiwan leader tried so hard to "strengthen himself by depending on foreigners", it is hard for Taiwan to avoid being reduced to a "cat's-paw of Western anti-China forces". This is an "extremely great misfortune" for Taiwan. Reports say on June 13, the American ambassador to the United Nations told Taiwan correspondents: currently, it is absolutely impossible for Taiwan to achieve its aim of joining the United Nations. On the following day, Singaporean Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong said in the United States that the US President George W. Bush, while meeting him, indicated that he "does not support Taiwan independence". Around that time, an American poll revealed that about 75 percent of the people oppose US arms sales to Taiwan and "assisting Taiwan in its defense".
--The Taiwan leader deliberately declared during his visit abroad that "Taiwan is an independent sovereign state", Taiwan is different from Hong Kong and Macao, "the 'one country, two systems' principle doesn't suit Taiwan ". this statement obviously aims to confuse international public opinion. However, on the very day when he returned from his tour abroad, the poll published by Taiwan Wireless Satellite Information station showed 31 percent of the people interviewed favor the "one country, two systems" for future cross-Strait relations. The opinion poll conducted by Taiwan's United Daily on June 27 shows that 33 percent of the Taiwan public accept the "one country, two systems" principle. After Beijing succeeded in its Olympic bid on July 13, Taiwan's latest poll indicated the proportion of Taiwan public's acceptance of said principle had jumped to a record 48 percent. According to a media analysis, the main reason for this is: the comprehensive depression of the Taiwan economy and the sustained rise in the mainland's economy have presented a sharp contrast. The number of Taiwan people dissatisfied with Taiwan's political and economic situation respectively reached 70-80 percent, and the figure is likely to increase. From this it is very clear how the direction of public feelings is. It is futile for the Taiwan leader to vilify the "one country, two systems" principle in the international arena.
So-called "for economic development"It seems that he wants to devote special effort to changing Taiwan's economic gliding tendency. Ironically, on the eve of the Taiwan leader's tour abroad, Taiwan stock price dropped 5000 points, the business volume fell time and again to a record low since June 1996. On May 25 and 26, related Taiwan competent department twice published the "latest economic growth report", the first report showed the growth rate in the first quarter to be only 1.06 percent, a new quarterly low ever in the past 26 years; the second report showed the growth rate fell to around 1 percent from 3.91 percent estimated two months ago. On June 22, the accounting department of the Administrative Yuan announced the number of unemployment in May exceeded 400,000 people, with the unemployment rate reaching 4.22 percent. It is estimated that the unemployment rate in the whole year will reach a record high of 4.1 percent.
In the face of such a difficult situation, the Taiwan leader has adopted the following "all-out effort" measures: First, ordering banks to relax money; second, establishing several more economic consulting institutions under his guidance, particularly holding so-called "economic development conferences"; third, changing the situation in which the opposition parties use their majority seats in the "Legislative Yuan" to obstruct implementation of his policy of so-called reviving the economy, in fact, he uses this as an excuse for him to create momentum for the election at year-end. As regards "relaxing money", people denounce it as "administrative intervention which is to no avail". With regard to "the convocation of economic development conference", public opinion maintains that just like concealing one's illness and refusing to consult a doctor, the Taiwan authorities hide their troubles and refuse to take remedial measures, so whatever conference is held, "it can hardly help development". The various social circles of Taiwan have pointed out that for the Taiwan authorities to rescue the economy from the deteriorating crisis, they must begin with the political field, eradicating "black-gold politics" and abandoning the "no haste, be patient" policy, so as to promote the reshaping of Taiwan's industries. Along with the deepening of cross-Strait economic inter-dependence, Taiwan must rely on the huge economic carrier of the mainland whether it wants to develop large-scale scientific and technological industries, or to modernize its traditional industries, or provide rooms for the survival of its small and medium-sized traditional industries. Given this situation, the fundamental way out for it is to improve cross-Strait relations, comprehensively review its economic relations with the mainland and quickly acknowledge the "one-China principle". The Taiwan leader, however, has so far refused to acknowledge that he himself is a Chinese, the Taiwan authorities have thus far clung to the "no haste, be patience" policy and obstructed implementation of the "three exchanges (exchange of mail, trade and air and shipping services). With regard to some plans for decontrol, Taiwan has time and again delayed implementation, that has naturally aroused the increasing dissatisfaction of the Taiwan people.
So-called "all-out-efforts for election at year-end"This is the very thing he really wants to do with might and main. Over the past year, the "all-people government" the Taiwan leader has sedulously tried to rig up has come to an end after 137 days due to divergence of views. Later, actually only a "minority government" was formed. In order to rid Taiwan of its predicament, Lee Teng-hui has put in good words for the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), preaching that the Taiwan leader "has done ever better". In response, the Taiwan leader has doubled his effort to create momentum, declaring that the elected DPP would become the first largest party, and political parties would be reorganized, the DPP would direct the organization of a coalition government. Some DPP members even stated bluntly their intention to organize a "native party" featuring the "collaboration between Chen Shuibian and Lee Teng-hui", so that a "native mainstream poll" has taken shape. On the afternoon of June 16, the Taiwan leader and Lee Teng-hui together attended the inauguration of "Bei She" with a strong "Taiwan independence" color. At the meeting, the two men delivered speeches, echoing to "Taiwan independence" elements' clamor for the "formulation of a new constitution" .With regard to Lee Teng-hui's open performance with the DPP, the Kuomintang denounced him as "flaunting the blue flag to oppose the blue flag" and as a "hidden traitor". Some members of the Kuomintang proposed expelling Lee Teng-hui from the Kuomintang. It is thus clear that after his downfall, this "trouble-maker" Lee Teng-hui still want to bring trouble to the Taiwan people, people of various social circles in Taiwan hate him bitterly..
People of various social circles in Taiwan have heightened their vigilance against the plot of the Taiwan authorities to collaborate with Lee Teng-hui in hoodwinking the people by exerting "all-out efforts for the election at year-end". News media have pointed out that the collaboration between Chen Shuibian and Lee Teng-hui aims to deliberately mess up the political arena and benefit from the election. This is as clear as the saying goes, "Sima Zhao's trick is obvious to every man in the street".
At a press conference on June 27, Hsu Hsinliang, former DPP chairman, said bluntly: the integration of Lee Teng-hui with the DPP would mean the "worst and most unfavorable development" for the future of Taiwan. Taiwan's economic problem is a problem concerning the two sides of the Taiwan Straits, if a wrong cross-Strait policy is adopted, improvement of Taiwan's economy would be impossible. It is evident the Taiwan leader's "three all-out efforts" mentioned above will lead Taiwan to a more chaotic and dangerous road.
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