According to an other report, Lu yesterday proposed five concepts for promoting Taiwanese tourism to representatives of the tourist industry who had been invited to participate in the delegation.

Participating in the meeting were Chang Fu-mei, head of the Overseas Chinese Affairs Commission (OCAC), Chen Chien-jen, Taiwan's top representative to Washington, officials from the American Institute in Taiwan and 12 members from Taiwan's tourism industry.

The five concepts were for the OCAC to assist in the establishment of a one-stop window for handling tourism exchange between Taiwan and Hawaii; for the Hawaiian government to help train and educate staff from Taiwan's tourism industry; that the OCAC should use different channels to promote the Taiwanese tourism industry; promoting "tourism diplomacy" by having government agencies invite their counterparts from other countries to Taiwan and arranging sight-seeing tours outside of Taipei; and calling for the tourism industry to develop tourism on Penghu and other outlying islands.

After leaving Hawaii, the delegation has a two-day transit stay scheduled in Los Angeles before heading to Panama. Lu will then continue to Paraguay where she will witness the inauguration of president-elect Nicanor Duarte.

KMT head praises Chiang Ching-kuo, slams president

By Sandy Huang

STAFF REPORTER

While reminiscing about late-president Chiang Ching-kuo's achievements, pan-blue alliance leaders yesterday criticized the DPP administration's economic policy as one lacking broad vision and keeping too close to business interests.

KMT Chairman Lien Chan made the remarks at a symposium co-organized by the Foundation for a Modern Legal System and the KMT-run think tank the National Policy Foundation. The stated purpose of the symposium was to hold discussions evaluating economic policies under the rule of Chiang Ching-kuo.

Chiang Ching-kuo inherited the reins of power following the death of his father, former president Chiang Kai-shek, in 1975 and ruled until his own death in 1988. The pan-blue camp gives Chiang the younger much of the credit for Taiwan's transformation from dusty backwater to an economic powerhouse.

In a bid to bolster its support in the runup to next March's presidential election, the pan-blue camp, which looks to Chiang Ching-kuo as its spiritual leader, has been attempting to cash in on Chiang's image and public nostalgia for the old days when the economy was doing well.

Listing Chiang Ching-kuo's legacy, Lien said that the most impressive achievement was Chiang Ching-kuo's courage to take responsibility in the face of setbacks such as the loss of the UN seat in 1971, termination of official diplomatic ties with the US in 1979 and the oil crises in 1973 and 1979.

With that said, Lien insinuated President Chen Shui-bian was one who "likes to put blame on anyone else except himself."

"We should look up to Chiang [the younger] as an model to [teach us]. not to let administrative decisions be dictated by political considerations," Lien told his audience, among which included several KMT's old guards such as former premier Lee Huan, Sun Yun-suan and former Control Yuan president Wang Tso-jung.

Painting the performance of the DPP administration as inferior to that of Chiang Ching-kuo's, Lien lashed at the Chen administration for knowing only how to build up national debt and not come up with substantial measures to bring down the gap between the wealthy and the poor.

Lien also criticized Chen's national policy advisers as merely a group of high-level business leaders.

PFP Chairman James Soong, another speaker invited to give a speech, delivered a volley of criticism at the DPP administration, criticizing its lack of direction and inability to implement measures.

He sang the praises of Chiang Ching-kuo's practice of making frequent visits to grassroots organizations and learning bout their needs.Analysts say that in saying so, Soong was insinuating that Chen's visits to various localities were merely for show, thus not truly to hear the voice from the grassroots.

Beware the undertow

Before people even had a chance to get over their shock and disbelief about the Chung Shan Institute of Science and Technology (CSIST) espionage case which made headlines last week, patrol boats of Taiwan's Coast Guard Administration and a suspected Chinese spy ship had the most volatile rendezvous in recent years. Although, in the end, there was no confrontation, it serves as a stunning reminder to the rest of us -- despite all the illusions of safety that may have been created by the busy and friendly cross-strait private economic and cultural contacts -- that there is a dangerous undertow beneath the surface caused by political rivalry.

It certainly was not the first time that suspected Chinese spy ships had openly entered Taiwan's territorial waters. Since April and May of this year, a number of them had approached dangerously close to the eastern and southern coast of Taiwan at least a dozen times. In fact, Xiangyanghong 14, the Chinese ship claiming to be conducting oceanographic research when approached by coast guard vessels on Wednesday, had previously intruded into Taiwan's 20km Exclusive Economic Zone. The stunt shook the Ministry of Nation Defense strategists to the bone, since it revealed a lethal blind spot in the radar-detection range of the Taiwan military near Orchid Island.

In the past, the military had typically resorted to passively monitoring the activities of these suspected spy ships from both the air and sea. This was obviously because these ships all claimed to be conducting legitimate oceanographic research, and because Taipei remains ambiguous regarding the sensitive issue about the delineation of its territorial waters. Of course, there is also the danger of being yanked into the depths of a cross-strait military clash.

However, this time around, Taiwan adopted a somewhat tougher stance in dealing with Xiangyanghong 14. For the first time, not only did the coast guard put the Chinese ship under close surveillance, but actually attempted to board the ship for inspection before it finally left. This subtle change in attitude by the military reflects the emergence of a new awakening about how safe the cross-strait relationship is -- an attitude prompted in part by the CSIST case.

Ironically, while this may be a new realization for some people in Taiwan, Beijing has never had any misconception about what Taiwan is to China -- a renegade province that must be disciplined into submission, even if the use of force is necessary.

A most clear indication of what Beijing thinks about the cross-strait relationship is the ongoing "spy war" in which Taiwanese businessmen are playing increasingly prominent roles. On the one hand, the Chinese authorities recruit them to spy in Taiwan; and on the other hand, they have become Beijing's main targets for investigations on the suspicion of spying on China.

To Beijing, another group of potential spies working for Taiwan are Taiwanese scholars and ethnic Chinese scholars engaging in research activities in China. The most obvious example is the US-based democracy activist and Chinese scholar Yang Jianli, who was arrested last April and then tried behind close doors last week by Beijing on charges of engaging in espionage activities on behalf of the Taiwan government. On Wednesday, a Taiwanese scholar was also detained and interrogated by the Chinese national security authorities for three days in Shanghai.

It is only at times like these that you can feel the pull toward actual confrontation -- the last thing that Taiwan wants. Reading the warning signs is essential to effective self-defense and survival. All we need to do is read the sign on the beach of which China already is certainly aware: "Beware -- dangerous undertow."

Protecting sovereignty paramount

By the Liberty Times editorial

After news surfaced about the alleged Chinese infiltration of the Chung Shan Institute of Science and Technology (CSIST) through Taiwanese businessman Yeh Yu-chen, the public became highly concerned. Even the US expressed concerns that Taiwan's military technology had been stolen. Reportedly, besides this known espionage case, the government has also targeted several individuals, including retired military officials, Taiwanese businessmen and members of the media, for investigation. Some of these investigations are about to be concluded. Such incidents are simply the tip of the iceberg for China's unification campaign, reminding us that we must remain ever vigilant.

In the past, the military intelligence work was often thought of as tight-knit. Anti-infiltration training and education within the military was also well implemented. Therefore, Chinese infiltration plots were usually prevented. However, in recent years, repeated incidents of infiltration by Chinese spies have occurred.

Not only were retired military officials and intelligence personnel placed on China's payroll, but even military and intelligence personnel in active service. The situation indicates that many loopholes or even derelictions by the relevant government agencies exist in our anti-infiltration network. Therefore, it is imperative to investigate and punish those guilty of dereliction.

Actually, the CSIST case is much more than just an espionage case. It cannot be seen as a simply a case of successful Chinese infiltration. We believe that what is most notable about the case is it highlights some people's lack of national identification with Taiwan. The existence of this phenomenon is essentially the nursing ground of successful Chinese infiltration. Plus, the ruling and opposition camps have become obsessed with promoting cross-strait relationships, completely ignoring legislative work needed to build an adequate national security network. As a result, many injuries that could have been prevented instead had to be treated afterward. If things continue this way, Taiwan will sooner or later sink to the bottom of the ocean.

Over the past decade, the internal political bickering has been endless, and national identification of the ruling and opposition camps has become increasingly polarized. Those politicians with an ambiguous national identification have repeatedly used the promotion of cross-strait exchanges to echo China's view, in which Taiwan's sovereign status is dwarfed. They have been willing to serve as weapons used by China against Taiwan.

In recent years, the most glaring example is the way that the pan-blue lawmakers have repeatedly organized delegations to visit China, behaving as if they were "provincial representatives" in front of Chinese leaders. Moreover, some opposition politicians who used to exalt anti-communist ideals now join forces with China in selling out Taiwan. Their conduct is truly shameful.

In recent years, more than a few retired military officers and soldiers unable to adjust to the democratization of Taiwan have moved to China. Some of them not only continue to receive retirement pensions from Taiwan, but in fact help out China both openly and covertly to push for Chinese unification. The resulting harm to Taiwan is not hard to imagine. A minority of intelligence personnel commited crimes in Taiwan and then escaped to China to seek asylum. China welcomes these people with open arms, on the condition they pass on intelligence. Some lawmakers revealed that a few CSIST personnel invested in China after their retirement from the military. Many of them were then bought off by China. Now this problem is hitting the military intelligence agencies of Taiwan as well.

Another reason that China has been able to get away with infiltrating Taiwan is fact that we are a democratic society. As a democratic country, Taiwan protects the freedoms and rights of people. Under the protective umbrella of democracy, those who work for China can freely sell out their country. Moreover, pro-China camps and the media often speak out in their defense. Even in situations where they were caught spying for China or selling out intelligence, they are defended under the name of freedom and human rights. This is no different from trampling democracy in the name of democracy.

It is worrisome that it is not just the military intelligence that is being leaked to China. In recent years, many people who became jobless after the change of government, or who retired from government agencies or government research institutes resentfully went to China in search of opportunities. Their bargaining chips for opportunities in China were often government's confidential manufacturing know-hows, and agricultural technologies. As for China, they also target those who are out of power and resentful of the reality for recruitment as infiltration tools. Individuals such as these who bring Taiwan's confidential technologies and know-how to China, yet bring back the unification virus to Taiwan are sources of much danger.

Not long ago, SARS, which originated in China, hit Taiwan due to similar reasons.

President Chen Shui-bian indicated that the cross-strait contacts are very frequent and intensive. Therefore, there is truly no need to further relaxation of control on such contacts, and to sacrifice the national sovereignty, dignity and people's safety and welfare for the convenience of of a small minority. The CSIST espionage case is another threat to Taiwan's security. The incident demonstrates that what ought to be on our mind is most certainly not the relaxation of regulations on cross-strait relationships, but to give top priority to the protection of the welfare of the nation and the people.

During the last legislative session at the Legislative Yuan, because the opposition and ruling camps hold divergent views about how much cross-strait exchanges ought to be deregulated, the bill amending the statute governing the cross-strait relationships was not passed. Now the CSIST case reminds both sides about the need to control and manage cross-strait contacts. After years of massive deregulation, Taiwan's security has been plunged into grave peril.

Therefore, the statue governing the cross-strait relationship must be amended to give tougher regulations. All other relevant domestic laws must adhere to the principles of equal sovereignty on the two sides of the Taiwan Strait, and "one country on each side." Do not allow those who have betrayed Taiwan to hide in the shadows. Don't give them the opportunity to become China's fifth column in Taiwan. To keep the democratic order of Taiwan from collapsing internally, our countrymen should use their votes to filter out politicians whose hearts belong to China. Do not let those who have betrayed Taiwan to continue sucking dry the hard-earned money of the taxpayers.