Commentary: Lee Teng-hui's New Move Deserves Serious Attention
BEIJING, September 16 (Xinhua) -- Xinhua News Agency issued a commentator's article today, which is titled "Lee Teng-hui's New Move Deserves Serious Attention."
The commentator's article said a series of events with connections in Taiwan have drawn the close attention of people, and these event are all concerning Lee Teng-hui's advocacy of a separatist policy.
In fact, it was Lee Teng-hui who manipulated events behind the scenes, and these events also betrayed countless links between Lee Teng-hui and the Democratic Progressive Party, which has been bent on the independence of Taiwan.
The "Third National Assembly" adopted a bill on September 4 extending its term of office by over two years, from the original May 18, 2000, to June 30, 2002.
The mass media in Taiwan reacted strongly on learning of this, and some called the term extension a rarely seen farce "putting money into one's own pocket," as each "congressman" can receive an annual salary of more tan 6 million Taiwan yuan.
Taiwan media reports revealed that the adoption of the bill was a plot carefully planned by the Kuomintang and the Democratic Progressive Party, and that Lee Teng-hui knew all about it before the bill was passed.
Some said that the final goal of the "extension of the term of office bill" is to "freeze the current constitution and draft a Taiwan basic law."
A senior Kuomintang official claimed after the adoption of the bill that the "congress" will draft a "basic law or fundamental law" for Taiwan during its extended term of office.
The Taiwan mass media pointed out that the nature of the so- called "basic law or fundamental law" is a "Taiwan independence constitution."
These moves indicate that although Lee Teng-hui failed to get on the agenda the incorporation of his "two states" remarks into the constitution, he is determined to choose a successor within the framework of his separatist line.
In a related development, some members of the Democratic Progressive Party announced the formation of a "new constitution working group" on September 7 and plan to push ahead the drafting and formulation of the "new constitution" before Lee Teng-hui's term of office expires next May.
Lee Teng-hui has been continuing to advocate his "two-states" position on various occasions in Taiwan, and the commentary says that it is very hard for him to change his ideas, and he will go on making trouble.
It stresses that "we should be on high alert over Lee's new moves, and we will deal a head-on blow to whatever bad thing he does."
The commentary also appeal to the Taiwan people to be prudent and not to follow Lee Teng-hui, as some mass media on the Taiwan Island have pointed out that the "constitutional amendment" would mean the start of calamities for the people of Taiwan.
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