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Negotiations on fishing dispute stall

NO PROGRESS: The government said relations with Japan remained firm, but there was no sign of a breakthrough that would protect fishermen from Japanese patrols

By Mac William Bishop and Jimmy Chuang

STAFF REPORTERS

The latest round of negotiations between Taiwan and Japan over fishing rights in the seas surrounding the disputed Diaoyutai island chain made little progress yesterday, ending only with an agreement to continue talks, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said yesterday.

The talks began with Taiwan's top representative to Japan, Koh Sei-kai, reiterating Taiwan's position that the Diaoyutais are part of Taiwan's territory. The president of the Japan Interchange Association, Masaji Takahashi, also repeated Tokyo's claim on the island chain.

The discussions, the 15th in a series of negotiations on the issue, were closed to the media, in large part because of protests by Beijing, which says that Japan must talk to China to resolve the issue.

Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs refused to comment on the issue, saying that there was no official government involvement in the talks.

However, one Japanese government official told the Taipei Times that senior officials from the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries as well as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs were "attending the talks in a private capacity."

The officials, who were meeting in Tokyo with their Taiwanese counterparts, agreed to another round of talks next March in Taipei, a MOFA statement said. The exact date of the talks has yet to be decided, and preliminary discussions will be held in October and January, MOFA said.

The Diaoyutais are held by the Japanese, who call them Senkaku-shoto. In recent months, the controversy over the sovereignty of the chain became a thorn in the side of Taiwan-Japan relations after local fishermen held a large-scale demonstration last month to protest what they called the unfair treatment they had received at the hands of the Japan Coast Guard.

Taiwanese fishing vessels apprehended in areas claimed by Japan are often detained and fined by the Japanese authorities.

Premier Frank Hsieh, meanwhile, said yesterday that the legal rights of fishermen would remain the government's priority in negotiations with the Japanese government.

"It is not fair and not a good idea to limit the area in which fishermen do their work because it is going to impact on their business," Hsieh said. "No matter what, we [the two governments] shall consider and work out what is the best for both countries' fishermen."

Hsieh said that the most important thing in negotiations such as these was how both governments were to enforce the law. He said that the income of fishermen would be hurt if both governments insisted on enforcing the law as a bottom line.

Hsieh said Japan and Taiwan had been friendly toward each other for a long period of time.

"The friendship shall continue, no matter what," he said.

The premier said that the Japanese government was still considering a new visa policy toward Taiwanese citizens which would allow visitors to enjoy visa-free entry.

He said Taiwan's government was also working on more friendly policies toward the Japanese, but he did not detail what the policy suggestions were.

"I believe in the wisdom of both the Japanese negotiators and the Taiwanese negotiators and believe that they will work out a solution that is best for both sides," he said.

The Presidential Office issued a press release yesterday clarifying Taiwan's stance on fishing disputes with Japan.

"The Diaoyutais belong to Taiwan; matters relating to this will eventually be solved through peaceful methods. Taiwan will not discuss the issue with China, and the rights of Taiwanese fishermen will be guaranteed before anything else," the press release said.

Military attache starts work at AIT next month

AP , TAIPEI

Serving US military officers will next month staff the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) for the first time since the US switched its diplomatic recognition to rival China 26 years ago, an AIT official said yesterday.

AIT spokeswoman Nadine Saik confirmed that at least one officer -- a US army colonel -- will arrive next month to take up the post of liaison affairs officer.

The liaison affairs officer is the equivalent of the military attache in a conventional US embassy.

Saik said the officer will take over from retired US military personnel who had been acting on a contractual basis.

The decision to send active-duty military personnel to AIT was first reported in the London-based military journal Jane's Defence Weekly several months ago.

The officer's arrival coincides with a period of rising tension between the US and China.

Earlier this month, the Pentagon released a report saying China was building up its military with the long-term goal of expanding its regional power well beyond Taiwan.

The report elicited an angry response from Beijing, which said it posed no threat to its neighbors.

Under the terms of the US Taiwan Relations Act, which was adopted in 1979 when Washington switched diplomatic recognition to Beijing, the US reserves the right to continue supplying Taiwan with defensive-weapons systems.

In recent years, US military officers have helped Taiwan conduct computer-simulated military exercises targeted against China.

Groups call for the establishment of the `Taiwan Republic'

By Mao Huan-wen

CONTRIBUTING REPORTER

"We all know that, according to the San Francisco Peace Treaty signed in Sept. 8, 1951, Japan renounced its claim to Formosa and to Pescadores, which means that Taiwan has been an independent ever since."

Wang appealed to the public to discard the "unreasonable" Min-Kuo calendar system introduced to Taiwan when the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) fled to Taiwan in 1949. He also called on the public to consider Sept. 8 "Taiwan Republic" independence day.

The campaign organizers chose Ferrari red as the color of the T-shirt, as red symbolizes enthusiasm, sincerity, and bravery. The snake logo on the collar signifies respect for Taiwan's Aboriginals, and is also a sacred spiritual sign of the Rukai Tribe, Wang said.

"We plan to take a sightseeing tour to Pengjia Isle, Huaping Isle and Mianhua Isle to awaken the Taiwanese consciousness," Wang said.

"On Sept. 8, we are going to hold a flag-raising ceremony for the `Republic of Taiwan' on Ketagelan Boulevard in front of the Presidential Office. This day is significant because it is the 54th anniversary of our independence, and a candlelight gathering is planned for 7pm on the same day," Wang said.

Asian security put at risk by Taiwan's exclusion from ASEAN forum: analysts

Asia's main security gathering, which convened in Laos yesterday, has a gaping hole because it does not include Taiwan, one of the region's most worrying flashpoints, analysts said.

The 25-member ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) covers virtually every country in East Asia, including North Korea and Myanmar, but even Asia's pariah states have what Taiwan lacks -- a level of regional diplomatic recognition.

The fact that none of the 25 participants in the ARF consider Taiwan an independent country means membership for Taipei is "just not going to happen," according to Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer.

"The ASEAN Regional Forum is where nations, sovereign governments get together so Taiwan obviously wouldn't qualify," Downer said yesterday.

Only 26 countries recognize Taiwan, and as a result Taipei is excluded from many organizations for which sovereign statehood is a requirement.

"I don't see Taiwan being as a separate country in the ARF in the foreseeable future," EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana told a briefing in Laos.

At a security forum such as the ARF, this is particularly unfortunate given Taiwan's crucial position in Asia's complex strategic geography, according to Dennis Hickey, a political scientist at Missouri State University.

"In order for any multilateral security forum to even hope to operate effectively in this region, it must include all parties to the major disputes -- including Taiwan," he said.

The situation in the Taiwan Strait is so unpredictable that it may actually be more sensitive than the Korean Peninsula, Hickey said.

The Chinese military has deployed about 700 missiles targeted at Taiwan and has repeatedly threatened to invade if Taipei formalizes its independence.

"What is most worrisome for the international community is that China has been continuously upgrading the quality and quantity of its strategic guided-missile unit," President Chen Shui-bian said earlier this week.

"The expansion of China's military ambition and capabilities constitutes a direct threat to democratic Taiwan, and more importantly, a potential danger to the security and peace of the Asia-Pacific region, and even of the world as a whole," he said.

The ARF could conceivably operate as a platform for states to work out differences such as this peacefully, according to Hickey.

"Certainly in the interest of ensuring stability and prosperity in the region, a formula may be found whereby both China and Taiwan can participate in a regional security forum like ARF," he said.

But for the time being, it appears the ARF will just have to accept not having Taiwan among its ranks.

The intensity of Chinese emotions on the issue could make it too sensitive for the ARF to handle, said Lee Wei-chin, an expert on Taiwan's security at North Carolina's Wake Forest University.

"Of course, the exclusion of Taiwan will not make any security forum in Asia complete," he said.

"However, under China's pressure, ARF members might feel that they would not be able to contribute a lot to the resolution of the Taiwan issue," Lee said.

A separate security setting, involving the US and Japan but excluding Southeast Asia, would be a better forum for discussions about Taiwan, he said.

The core of ARF are the 10 members of ASEAN: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. Other members include Australia, Canada, China, the EU, India, Japan, Mongolia, New Zealand, North Korea, Papua New Guinea, Pakistan, Russia, South Korea the US, and, as of yesterday, East Timor.

"The selection of Puli as our party's birthplace embodies our determination to see the world from a Taiwanese perspective, and the holding of the inaugural ceremony in a farmhouse will accentuate our grassroots-oriented ideology."－ Hsu Teng-kun, spokesman for the TNP's organizing committee

A group of pro-independence activists said yesterday they will form a new political party bearing a Chinese title close to that of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), and which supports Taiwan's eventual reunification with a democratic China.

"The Taiwan Nationalist Party [TNP] will be formally inaugurated in a farmhouse in Puli, Nantou County, on Saturday [today]," said Hsu Teng-kun, a spokesman for the party's organizing committee.

Hsu said he did not think the new party's title would cause any confusion with the KMT.

"Our party is by no means a namesake of the KMT," Hsu said. "In Taiwan's politically divided society, voters won't be confused by party titles. In Taiwan, anybody who sees the word `Taiwan' in our title will understand what our party stands for."

"Voters also easily understand what the KMT stands for when reading the word `China' or `Chinese' in its title," he said.

Hsu said the party has chosen Puli as its birthplace mainly because the township is located at the heart of Taiwan.

"The selection of Puli as our party's birthplace embodies our determination to see the world from a Taiwanese perspective, and the holding of the inaugural ceremony in a farmhouse will accentuate our grassroots-oriented ideology," Hsu said. "Our party will reflect and put forward ordinary people's voices and opinions. It won't be led or dominated by a handful of political figures."

"This grassroots operating style will distinguish us from other political parties," he said.

In the face of criticism about the party's title, Hsu said the party's founding members have agreed to keep a low profile.

"We only invited former president Lee Teng-hui to attend the inaugural ceremony, but because of his busy schedule, Lee won't be able to attend," Hsu said.

Following the ceremony, Hsu said, the party's founding members will travel around the nation to publicize the party's ideals and recruit members.

US Representative Robert Andrews, a Democrat, submitted a congressional resolution on Thursday calling for enhanced security for Taiwan.

The resolution says that the US should abolish all restrictions on visits to Taiwan by high-level US military officials to help safeguard US security interests in the Asia-Pacific region. It says that Washington should sell the AEGIS system to Taipei to help Taiwan defend itself against potential Chinese missile attacks.

The resolution says that the deployment by China of hundreds of ballistic missiles aimed at Taiwan threatens the security and stability in the Taiwan Strait.

The resolution urges US President George W. Bush to have officials raise these concerns with Chinese officials, and demand an immediate and unequivocal renunciation from Beijing of any threat to use force against Taiwan.

Richard Hartzell's various musings to the Taipei Times in which he concludes that, to put it simply, Taiwan is a "foreign territory under the dominion of the US," may have some merit in fact, but the problem is this: No one cares.

How many column inches could be filled in this newspaper by listing the war crimes (in fact) and contraventions of the Geneva Conventions (in fact) by the US in Iraq and Guantanamo Bay, Cuba?

The illegal use of cluster bombs and the improved version of napalm? The "intelligence and facts being fixed around the policy"?

The list goes on and on, yet one thing shines through like a diamond-piercing light: No one cares.

These things are happening or have happened right under the noses of everyone on the planet and will affect relations among nations for at least a generation, probably longer. But no one cares.

The fact is that even if Hartzell is correct in his assessment, the incidents surrounding Taiwan's status were too long ago, too far removed from anything relevant today and would necessitate some inconceivably massive and influential expression of concern by the US -- clearly more than it is showing at present for point-blank international illegalities and bald-faced misprision -- the same country that Hartzell exhorts to see the truth in the Taiwan issue.

Hartzell might as well have deciphered a new line from the Rosetta Stone for all his theory is worth.

Interesting as an academic study, it's useless and obscure in today's world of contempt for the rule of law.