Two ROC citizens ‘arrested’ in China
　

POLICE STATE: At about 6am on Friday, security officials showed up at the house where a woman and her 10-year-old daugher were staying and took them away

By Loa Iok-sin
STAFF REPORTER
Sunday, Aug 02, 2009, Page 1

“How can the people of Taiwan believe there can be friendly exchanges between China and Taiwan?”— Chang Ching-hsi, chairman of the Taiwan Falun Dafa Association

Falun Gong practitioner Shao Yuhua (邵玉華) — who came to Taiwan 11 years ago after marrying a Taiwanese man and now holds Republic of China (ROC) citizenship — and her daughter were allegedly arrested by state security agents in China, members of the Taiwan Falun Dafa Association said yesterday.

“My wife went back to her hometown in Nanyang, Henan Province, with our 10-year-old daughter to visit her family last month soon after the summer vacation started,” Shao’s husband, Cheng Shu-ta (鄭書達), told a news conference in Taipei yesterday. “Her family in Henan told me yesterday [Friday] that she — along with our daughter — were arrested by state security agents.”

Cheng said his wife had been staying with her sister Shao Yuxiu (邵玉秀), who is also a Falun Gong practitioner, during her visit to China.

At about 6am on Friday, a few men who identified themselves as agents from the Ministry of State Security showed up at the door and took away Shao Yuhua and her daughter, Cheng said. The men also took Shao Yuhua’s cellphone, baggage and passport, he said.

“So far, we’re still not clear where she is,” he said.

Although it was not clear why Shao Yuhua was taken away, Taiwan Falun Dafa Association chairman Chang Ching-hsi (張清溪) suspected it had to do with her being a Falun Gong practitioner.

“We urge [China] to release the two kidnapped ROC citizens and their families and relatives in China immediately. We want promises that no such human rights violations will be committed again,” Chang said.

“As an immigrant spouse from China, Shao Yuhua is supposed to be protected by governments on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, but she is now missing because of her spiritual beliefs,” he said.

“How can the people of Taiwan believe there can be friendly exchanges between China and Taiwan?” he asked.

Chang called on the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) and the Strait Exchange Foundation (SEF) to intervene.

After the news conference, Chang and several other Falun Gong practitioners went to the Landis Hotel where China’s Taiwan Affairs Office spokesman Yang Yi (楊毅) was scheduled to attend a dinner reception hosted by Taiwanese business leaders, hoping to deliver their petition to Yang.

However, Yang ignored the practitioners and walked straight into an elevator.

Contacted by the Taipei Times for comment, MAC vice-chairman Liu Te-shun (劉德勳) said that as soon as the MAC learned the news from the media, it “asked the SEF to get in touch with the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait to see how we can help.”

Taiwanese baseball team beats South Korea in Sapporo

STAFF WRITER, WITH CNA
Sunday, Aug 02, 2009, Page 1
　

The Taiwanese team yesterday beat South Korea 5-4 in the opening match of the final round of the 25th Asian Baseball Championships that began in Sapporo, Japan.

Good batting by Wu Tsung-chun (吳宗峻) put the team ahead 4-2, after trailing 1-2 in the third inning.

The score remained unchanged until the seventh inning, when pitcher Huang Chih-lung (黃志龍) ran into problems. South Korea seized the opportunity to level the score at 4-4.

The Taiwanese team had four consecutive hits in the first half of the ninth inning thanks to Lin Han-yi (林瀚一), Kuo Ming-jen (郭銘仁), Lin Kuo-min (林國民) and Lin Hung-yu (林泓育). Lin Hung-yu’s hit gave Taiwan a 5-4 lead.

Pitcher Wang Ching-ming (王鏡銘) performed well in the second half of the ninth inning to secure the victory.

Many overseas Taiwanese were present at the game and a Taiwanese student surnamed Wang, who is studying at Hokkaido University in Sapporo, brought the national flag while his friend wore a T-shirt with the word “Taiwan” written on it.

Wang said that as there are not many Taiwanese students in Hokkaido, he brought his Japanese roommate to help cheer the team.

Wang, who graduated from the veterinarian department at National Taiwan University, took up doctoral studies at Hokkaido University three years ago. When he learned that the baseball tournament would be played in Hokkaido a month ago, he immediately asked a visiting friend to bring a national flag.

Some Taiwanese tourists visiting Hokkaido were also among the spectators.

Beijing ups the ante on Kadeer, film festival
　

ORGANIZED: The organizers of a movie festival in Melbourne said their Web site was once again attacked by Chinese hackers. This time, online ticket sales were targeted

AP AND REUTERS, BEIJING AND MELBOURNE
Sunday, Aug 02, 2009, Page 1

China summoned the Australian ambassador to protest a proposed visit to his country by an exiled Uighur leader whom Beijing accuses of instigating recent ethnic riots that killed nearly 200 people, the Foreign Ministry said yesterday.

Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Zhijun (張志軍) called the meeting with Geoff Raby because of the trip to Australia this week by US-based Uighur activist Rebiya Kadeer, a ministry statement said.

China — one of Australia’s most important trading partners — has made repeated requests to the Australian government to refuse the Uighur activist a visa.

“Zhang expressed China’s strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition to the Australian side on its allowing the visit,” the ministry said.

The Chinese government says 197 people died and more than 1,700 were wounded in ethnic violence early last month in China’s predominantly Muslim region of Xinjiang. Beijing blames Kadeer for fomenting the unrest.

Kadeer, who heads the pro-­independence World Uighur Congress, an overseas group, has denied involvement in the rioting that broke out between Turkic-speaking Uighur residents and the majority Han Chinese.

On Wednesday, Kadeer said in Japan that 10,000 Uighur protesters had disappeared after the riots, and she demanded an international investigation.

The 62-year-old former businesswoman from Xinjiang is to attend a screening of a documentary about her life at the Melbourne International Film Festival on Aug. 8 and address the National Press Club in Canberra in a televised speech on Aug. 11.

ATTACKS

Organizers said yesterday that the film festival’s Web site had been attacked for a second time.

Online ticket sales were unavailable after an “attack of Chinese origin” resulted in all tickets being booked, a posting on the site said.

Late last month, hackers posted a Chinese flag on the festival’s Web site in an apparent protest at Kadeer’s planned appearance.

‘WELL ORGANIZED’

Festival director Richard Moore said the cyber attacks appeared to be well organized and would hurt the organizers financially because online transactions accounted for about 65 percent of all ticket sales.

Tickets were still available at the box office or by telephone.

“It’s a very, very concerted and pointed attack,” Moore said.

The incident was reported to police, but they were unlikely to be able to do anything about it because the attack appeared to have come from overseas.

Festival spokeswoman Asha Holmes said a site in Chinese had been discovered carrying instructions on how to attack the festival’s site.

“It is definitely China,” she said, but added the attack did not appear to be led by the Chinese government.

Moore said last week an official from the Chinese consulate in Melbourne asked him to pull the documentary about Kadeer. Chinese filmmakers — including Venice Film Festival winner Jia Zhangke (賈樟柯) — have withdrawn their movies to protest her visit.

Opening to PRC just starting: Ma
　

STRATEGY: Sun Zhe, an adviser to China’s Taiwan Affairs Office, said Taiwan may be playing into Beijing’s goal of using the economy to end any chance of independence

BLOOMBERG
Sunday, Aug 02, 2009, Page 3

President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) said in an interview on Friday that he’s only getting started in opening new economic links with China.

“We’re just at the beginning,” Ma said in an interview.

In the past 12 months, direct commercial flights have begun and Taiwan has opened up to Chinese tourists and relaxed rules for investment in China, and raised the cap on investment in China to 60 percent of a company’s capital from 40 percent. Last month, the government opened up 64 sectors in manufacturing, 25 in services and 11 public infrastructure projects to Chinese companies.

The two sides also ended a ban on direct shipping and postal links. Among the first parcels from China was a pair of giant pandas, Tuan Tuan (團團) and Yuan Yuan (圓圓), whose names refer to the Chinese word for “unity.”

The Ma administration said an economic agreement to cut limits on trade with China could boost exports by about 5 percent, or US$13 billion based on last year’s figures, and add 273,000 jobs.

Defending Taiwanese firms from Chinese investment may be problematic. The combined US$643 billion value of PetroChina, the world’s biggest company by market capitalization, and Beijing-based Industrial & Commercial Bank of China, is US$49 billion — more than the total value of Taiwan’s stock market.

“A Chinese bank could cover many Taiwanese banks,” Ma said in the interview. “That’s why we’re doing it cautiously. But the general policy is quite clear: We’re opening up.”

The US and other countries welcome the rapprochement because it relieves tension in an area that threatens security in the region more than the potential nuclear crisis in North Korea, Ma said.

Sun Zhe (孫哲), a senior adviser to China’s Taiwan Affairs Office, said Taiwan may be playing into China’s goal of using economic clout to end any chance of formal independence.

“There’s the intention or plan to try to enmesh Taiwan’s economy, to consolidate links between the two sides. So, in that way it will be more difficult for Taiwan’s independence,” Sun said.

Ma calls for ‘Tour de Taiwan,’ forgets there already is one
　

By Jenny W. hsu and Loa Iok-sin
STAFF REPORTERS
Sunday, Aug 02, 2009, Page 3

Wearing a light blue polo shirt and standing next to his bike, President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday touted the benefits of cycling in his weekly online video, saying that Taiwan, as the world’s largest bicycle manufacturer, should have a “Tour de Taiwan” competition around the island.

However, an international event called the Tour de Taiwan already exists.

In a three-minute video clip shot in front of the Presidential Office, begins by praising the determination shown by competitors in the Tour de France and reminiscing about the 675km cycling tour he took around the country during his presidential campaign.

On that trip, he said, it struck him that Taiwan, as the leading maker of bicycles, should have its own race inspired by the Tour de France.

In reality, the Tour de Taiwan has been held since 1978, when it began as an international invitational event sponsored by local bicycle manufacturers like Giant Manufacturing.

The Tour de Taiwan has since been recognized by the Union Cycliste Internationale as an annual international cycling event.

Ma said he had started a “rite of passage” program in which youth are encouraged to cycle a certain number of kilometers.

“Tomorrow morning I will meet 100 20-year-old cyclists who completed a tour around the island,” Ma said. “I hope to share my riding experiences with them and I hope to turn cycling into one of Taiwan’s unique cultures.”

Ma said that in recent years, the government had invested a lot of money into making Taiwan a bike-friendly country. More than 1,100km of bike paths have been built and the government plans another 1,500km, he said.

Meanwhile, Web users combing Ma’s weekly video for mistakes criticized him for an error in his July 25 video.

In the clip, Ma says he will never forget being introduced by International World Games Association President Ron Froehlich as “president of the Republic of China” at the opening of the World Games in Kaohsiung on July 16.

Ma said Froehlich’s last name in English, but the Chinese subtitles translated Froehlich’s name incorrectly as “Fo Langqi” (佛朗契) rather than the official translation, “Lang Foqi” (朗佛契).

“You [Ma] should be more careful, especially considering you met him [Froehlich] in person at the opening ceremony,” an Internet user with the screen name “ianchen0524” wrote on the Bulletin Board System (BBS) PTT.

On the online social networking and micro-blogging service Plurk.com, a user with the screen name “icg508” said he wanted to pinch Ma’s cheek to make him “keep a little more awake.”

PTT user “lzhhilly,” on the other hand, said the Presidential Office should reward the first person to notice the error.

“Lzhhilly” was referring to the Presidential Office’s reaction to a blunder discovered by Internet users last month, when Ma pre-recorded his speech rather than producing it weekly as the Presidential Office had claimed.

At the time, the Presidential Office said it would present a gift to reward the anonymous Internet user who revealed the gaffe.

Beware Ma’s KMT chairmanship

Sunday, Aug 02, 2009, Page 8

As expected, President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) won the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) chairmanship election last Sunday — after all, he was the only candidate. Nevertheless, Taoyuan County Council Speaker Tseng Chung-yi (曾忠義) of the KMT has voiced suspicion that the number of voters may have been inflated. The party now owes its members and the public at large an explanation. If the allegation turns out to be true, it would be ample evidence that all that “Teflon Man” Ma has been saying is but empty words. However, it is easy to imagine that the party will blindly keep following wherever he goes.

Ma’s candidacy and election as chairman once again highlights his credibility problem. After the election, he said he only wanted the chairmanship to be able better to execute his presidential duties. He acknowledged that he had said he would not double as chairman before he was elected president, but said the sudden and sharp change in the economic situation and growing unemployment meant that the current situation differed sharply from the situation prior to the presidential election, and that he had never intended to deceive anyone.

However, the worsening economic situation and the difficulties people have making ends meet are the result of Ma’s inability to govern. Over the past year, he has led deregulation and opening up toward China, further weakening Taiwan’s economy to the point where it has had difficulty withstanding the impact of the global financial crisis.

The way to deal with flawed policies that have a negative impact on political results is to correct those policies, so what would be the use of doubling as chairman if Ma were unable to do so? What will he do if doubling as party chairman does nothing to help him improve the situation? Implement an imperial system to be able to really and truly “get a complete hold on power and take complete responsibility”? Should Ma fail to reverse the policies that have brought harm to both the country and the public over the past year, we can only assume that the reason he ignored his promise not to double as chairman is that he wants to expand his power and use the party apparatus to gain control over the KMT’s legislative majority and speed up the move toward “eventual unification.” Such political manipulation will turn the KMT and the Republic of China into Ma’s tools for bringing about unification and making him the hero of the nation.

Maybe Ma’s perennial arrogance toward members of the public and the KMT stems from a feeling that he sits at the top of all “high class Mainlanders” and is the most outstanding among a superior group of people. However, when dealing with the People’s Republic of China — and the leader of its one party dictatorship Hu Jintao (胡錦濤) — Ma suddenly becomes exceedingly modest and polite. After receiving Hu’s congratulatory telegram addressed to “Mr Ma Ying-jeou,” Ma replied using many polite and deferential phrases. Looking at this exchange as a study in political rhetoric, Hu is the elevated leader and Ma the lowly servant, clearly highlighting the relationship between a suzerain and its vassal state.

Not only that — until he has officially taken up the chairmanship, Ma cannot call himself party chairman, but he also can’t use his presidential title in his dealings with China. This makes him an odd character without a title to his name, a simple commoner under Chinese rule. In addition, in the date of his reply to Hu, Ma gave the year as “98.” We all know that China uses the common era system, while Taiwan uses the Republican era system. Although Ma wrote “98,” he didn’t dare write “year 98 of the Republic” (民國98年). The KMT spokesperson tried to clarify the matter by saying that “98 is 98. Everyone knows that it means ‘year 98 of the Republic.’” That of course begs the question if “92” in the so-called “1992 consensus” — called simply the “92 consensus” in Chinese — means “year 92 of the Republic”? Of course not. It means 1992, which is year 81 of the Republic. But then, the “92 consensus” is also the product of much kowtowing to China; small wonder the KMT so happily abandons its Republican era system.

Ma will not be able to save the economy by combining the presidency with the KMT chairmanship. On the contrary, he will push the government’s flawed policies to the extreme, pushing unemployment first above 6 percent and then higher still, until people’s livelihoods are destroyed and the standard of living falls to the same level as China’s, all but paving the way for a Chinese takeover.

Ma’s policy changes over the last year have prioritized cross-strait relations and fawned on the Chinese leadership while neglecting the Taiwanese public. This has repeatedly showed us that in combining the presidency and the KMT chairmanship, Ma will lock his sights on China, making it impossible for Taiwan to turn adversity into victory. In other words, the day Ma was elected chairman of the KMT was the day Taiwan’s problems took a turn for the worse.
　

Fighting the communists amid talks with China
　

By Paul Lin 林保華
Sunday, Aug 02, 2009, Page 8

At the founding of the Taiwan Youth Anti-Communist Corps last month, we used a slogan of dictator Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石): “We shall win against communism, we shall build the nation” (反共必勝,建國必勝).

This may seem out of pace with the times, but is just a bit of sarcasm aimed at the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT). Our anti-communism is different from the KMT’s autocratic anti-­communism. It is the continuation of the democratic anti-communism proposed by the late activist Lei Chen (雷震), who fought against the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) tyranny in the name of freedom, democracy and human rights. We are not following former president Chiang Ching-kuo’s (蔣經國) “three noes” policy — no contact, no compromise and no negotiation — in dealing with the CCP. Instead, we try to find ways of fighting communism while maintaining contact with a rising China.

However, we must have an adequate understanding of the CCP to achieve our goal. According to an old saying, if you know both sides, you will win a hundred battles. We can’t deal blindly with the CCP and should therefore oppose extemporaneous contacts with China because not only do such contacts not promote anti-communism, they imply an acceptance of China’s united front tactics. A cold war with peaceful contacts is better than violent conflict. Fighting the CCP while maintaining contact implies fighting its united front tactics, which we must make efforts to understand.

So how do we fight the CCP while maintaining contact? One example is Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu’s (陳菊) recent trip to China. A Hong Kong-based reporter told me Chen left a good impression on Chinese intellectuals, as she spoke properly and politely and showed clarity of thought. Of course, not calling for Taiwanese independence could be regarded as one way of proper behavior. Nevertheless, she managed to preserve the current status of Taiwan’s sovereignty, completely outperforming her KMT counterparts.

The World Games in Kaohsiung were a great success and once again reflected the sovereignty of Taiwan. Not only did the Games display true Taiwanese values, they also won over World Games Association chairman Ron Froehlich. The most important goal of our anti-united front strategies are to win over middle-of-the road individuals confused by the CCP.

The CCP made concessions to Chen because her status was higher than that of the KMT chairman, and this is the result of President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) self-deprecation. Of course, Chen and the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) should not be complacent, but should continue to raise the status of Taiwan — not their individual status or the status of the DPP. If we rush into contacts with China, Taiwan’s status is bound to be reduced. Instead, we should adopt a gradual approach. Be it in dialogue at a distance or in face-to-face meetings, we must manifest Taiwan’s sovereignty and the values of freedom, democracy and human rights.

As Chinese deceived by the CCP take a belligerent attitude toward Taiwanese independence, the promotion of self-­determination to address freedom and human rights would facilitate winning the support of Chinese who also want democratic rights.

The DPP should work out a set of strategies to deal with China while it is still in opposition. Even if it makes mistakes, losses would be minimal. However, the DPP should respect different voices and not be so quick to accuse people of being traitors or spies, nor should it rely on past qualifications and refuse to hear other opinions. Our common goal is to safeguard Taiwan, so we should work together despite our different approaches and strategies lest the CCP or Ma sow discord and disunity.

Paul Lin is a political commentator.