Taiwan has a horror of something

 

Taiwan has a horror of something

Taipei ---
Twenty years after the Formosa incident in Kaohsiung, when members of the opposition clashed with military police, opposition leaders said Saturday (Dec. 4, 1999) a government apology is much desired, but forgiveness will also help to heal the wound, "reflecting on ourselves is the beginning to a better understanding of history. Forgiveness shows us the path to end pain," former Democratic Progressive Party chairman Shih Ming-teh said at the opening ceremonies for a series of events commemorating the December 10, 1979 Kaohsiung Incident. Shih, who was arrested during the incident and imprisoned from 1980 to 1990, lamented that "up to now, not only the rulers but also the suppressed still avoid honestly facing up to the past."

When a mainlander lived in Taiwan, has eaten in Taiwan and depend on Taiwanese people for about 50 years, why not love Taiwan as a member of Taiwanese? A few of them only want to be mainlanders, betraying Taiwan and selling out Taiwanese people.

In my eye, mainlanders shouldn't exist in Taiwan, because all Taiwanese people are mainlander also, but, on the other hand, "New Taiwanese" included whole people who lived in Taiwan, love Taiwan want to fight for Democratic Taiwan.

Weinberger said he sees two factors that could create instability and uncertainty in Taiwan (Dec. 3, 1999). "The first is next March's presidential election," he pointed out. The second is the threat from mainland China, which is "coupled with the very real worry of whether our administration's support remains firmly and decisively behind Taiwan, or it is tilting toward the People's Republic of China," he said.

Former U.S. Defense Secretary and chairman of Forbes magazine Caspar W. Weinberger said in recent article that Washington should make it clear that it will not allow conditions in Taiwan to be changed by force against the will of Taiwan's people.

Taiwan's Defense Ministry confirmed reported on Nov. 18, it was withdrawing regular troops from Taiping island, the biggest islet in the Sprately island group, and the Pratas islands in the South China Sea. The Spratlys, believed to rich in oil deposits, are claimed in whole or in part by Brunei, Mainland China, Malaysia, Taiwan, Vietnam, and the Philippines.

In the past 18 months, Taiwan's air force has lost four F-16s and five pilots. The F-16 fleet was grounded immediately after the accident until early September 1999, when the mishap was later confirmed to be related to engine problems. Either the problems are our training mission or mechanical design, the U.S.-made F-16 fighter air-craft should be concerned.

We agreed with DPP's Chen, what he has said in his foreign policy white paper issue on Sunday (Nov. 28, 1999) that opposition presidential candidate Chen Shui-bian called for broader participation by Taiwan in international bodies, while keeping a return to the United Nations its top goal, Chen also said, Taiwan's foreign policy should no longer be determined by Cross-Strait relations.

"Based on new internationalism, I want to build a new image of Taiwan as a responsible member of the international community," Chen told a new conference. "New internationalism," he said, refers to comprehensive participation. In international affairs, "under the primary goal of maintaining our independence and sovereignty, Taiwan must find a "new middle road" that can protect our national interests, such as military and economic security".

Basically, how to prevent Beijing's aggression from international communities that need political wisdom. Beijing has no reason to attack Taiwan and what is important is that the two sides forge solidarity among the people and avoid being splintered.

The ROC government has always stressed negotiation instead of confrontation, and that President Lee Teng-hui has said that Chinese people will help Chinese people. If both sides of the Taiwan Strait can continue to maintain a dialogue that Cross-Strait relations will improve.

"China's democratization is not only the blessing of the Chinese people but also the deepest concern of the people in Taiwan. We are willing to share Taiwan's experience of democratic development with China," --- Chen Shui-bian DPP Presidential candidate (Dec. 1, 1999) about WTO system that only leading rich nations by the European Union insist on being able to protect their farmers.

Meanwhile, the world's poorest countries, which agreed to open their markets to more imports during the previous trade round, are protesting that they have received the fewest benefits from increased liberalization. They want more time to accept more imports and they want richer nations such as the United States to become more willing to buy their products.

Thousands of protests marched through the city's downtown Seattle, claiming that ... This system despoils forests, threatens U.S. workers, denies human rights and won't protect the sea turtle from the ravages of Thai and Malaysian shrimpers (Dec. 1, 1999).

In Taiwan the government is willing to conduct dialogue and exchanges with mainland China in any location, including Macau, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) vice chairman Lin Chong-pin said on Nov. 29, 1999. In an effort to improve the current sluggish relations between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait. Lien explained Taiwan would like to boost bilateral exchanges and talks with the mainland on any occasion, so long as Taiwan's dignity and equality is fully protected.

Basically, Chinese people have become more individualistic, secular and cyclical toward politics. There are making gaps will widen between propaganda and reality, in which could achieve its purpose that under the pressure of government's communities. Jiang's dilemma is that he is a prisoner of the communist party he leads, 50 years after its revolution. Jiang understands the need for economic development, how to get people's richer than before is the major issue, but political openness is still out of the question.

Meanwhile, Jiang is still seeking his emperor's robes,
--- Mao exhorted China to stand up in the world,
--- Deng told Chinese it was glorious to get rich,

Jiang will continue to inspire the Chinese people toward international position. His big obsession is Taiwan, he want some kind of date for reunification. WTO may be as good as it gets for pre-unification.

Three weeks ago (Nov. 8, 1999), Harvard invited the presidents of seven Chinese universities to meet in Cambridge with five American counterparts. Over two days they held a series of discussions aimed at teaching the Chinese education how to lift their institutions to world class status. But it's no mystery why Chinese academia trails the western variety; there's not much freedom of thought on China's campuses. By not stressing the issue of academic freedom, Harvard President Neil L. Rudenstine apparently wished to avoid embarrassing his guests ...

In our view, China's top scholars needed to hear the truth.

In China, "you kowtow to me," Jiang played his hand brilliantly, with the November deadline for the WTO conference in Seattle approaching. He let Clinton know at a summit in Auckland in September that two sides could reopen discussion. But still he waited for Clinton to call him, twice, before he told his negotiator to go for a deal --- That's the emperor mentality.

 

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