Ex-official warns of ulterior aims in ‘peace accord’
　

A TRAP?: The nation’s former Mainland Affairs Council chairman fears the Ma administration will leave Taiwanese with only one option: unification
　

By Ko Shu-ling
STAFF REPORTER
Tuesday, Nov 17, 2009, Page 1

“It runs counter to his campaign promise, which said that the future of Taiwan must be decided by the 23 million people of Taiwan.”— Joseph Wu, former envoy to Washington

A peace accord Taipei and Beijing are seeking to sign is an interim accord paving the way for the ultimate goal of unification, an expert on cross-strait affairs said yesterday.

Joseph Wu (吳釗燮), a professor at National Chengchi University’s Institute of International Relations (IIR), said President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) made it clear in a speech at the London School of Economics and Political Science in 2006 that unification is the ultimate goal.

In the speech, Ma said that as the Republic of China Constitution is a “one China” constitution, “it does not rule out the option of eventual reunification between Taiwan and Mainland China if the overall conditions across the Taiwan Strait are ripe.”

To attain that goal, Wu said, the Ma administration will create the most favorable environment, adding that he is worried the administration will leave Taiwanese with the sole option of unification under a “one China” framework.

“It runs counter to his campaign promise, which said that the future of Taiwan must be decided by the 23 million people of Taiwan,” he said. “If the Ma administration accepts China’s ‘one China’ principle for the purpose of negotiating political issues with Beijing, Taiwanese and the international community will think it is a rash move.”

Wu made the remarks at a forum on a cross-strait peace agreement organized by the IIR yesterday morning.

While Taipei and Beijing intend to ink a peace agreement and end the state of hostility, Wu expressed concern that if negotiations are conducted under the presumption that the Chinese Civil War is still ongoing, what it amounts to is the Taiwan issue is China’s domestic affair.

Wu proposed bringing in international players during negotiations of a peace agreement.

Wu said that Taiwan officially ended its hostility toward China when former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) abolished the Temporary Provisions Effective During the Period of Communist Rebellion (動員戡亂時期臨時條款) in 1991.

“What China must do is end its hostility toward Taiwan,” he said.

Tang Shao-cheng (湯紹成), a research fellow at the IIR, however, said it was necessary for both sides to sign a peace accord as the Chinese Civil War is not yet over.

Under his proposal, both sides would agree to sign a peace accord on the basis of the so-called “1992 consensus” to end enmity and abandon military means to resolve disputes. He proposed replacing the word “capital” with “the location of the government” in the accord and the title of Ma and his Chinese counterpart, Hu Jintao (胡錦濤) with “leader of the Taiwan region” and “leader of the mainland region.”

As Hu is set to hand over power in March 2013 and Ma will take office in May 2012 if he wins a second term, Tang said it was more likely that both sides would sign a peace accord during this period.

“If all goes well, it might be possible they would win the Nobel Peace Prize,” he said.

Liu Guofen (劉國奮), a professor at Beijing’s Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said it was “impractical” for Taiwan to set a precondition that China remove its missiles targeted at Taiwan for negotiations on a peace agreement.

“As is known to all, the ultimate goal of the mainland is peaceful unification, not peaceful separation,” she said. “The peace agreement proposed by the mainland will not be an agreement on unification, but a temporary political arrangement for the peaceful development of cross-strait relations.”

She urged the “independence separatists” and “some DPP [Democratic Progressive Party] members” to refrain from “challenging” and “demonizing” Beijing and “distorting” its goodwill.

She opposed a role for the international community, especially Washington, in cross-strait affairs.

Liu urged the Ma administration not to stall the process, as it would not benefit China and place Taiwan in a less favorable position.

China detains activists as Barack Obama arrives

AP, BEIJING
Tuesday, Nov 17, 2009, Page 1

Police detained dozens of activists and petitioners in Beijing and elsewhere in China as US President Barack Obama arrived on his first state visit to the country, friends, family members and a human rights group said yesterday.

International rights groups have urged Obama to raise human rights concerns during a four-day trip to China that began on Sunday night and will include a meeting with Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤). China frequently conducts crackdowns on dissent ahead of major events, such as last year’s Olympics and this year’s National Day celebrations.

Activist Zhao Lianhai (趙連海), who organized an online support group for parents whose children were sickened by tainted milk last year, was taken away by police from his home late on Friday night, his wife Li Xuemei (李雪梅) said.

Officers also confiscated his computers and other equipment during the raid. Li said they returned the following day with documents for her to sign that said Zhao had been “criminally detained” for “provoking an incident.”

Chen Jianfang, a petitioner from Shanghai who traveled to Beijing with 200 others, said the group wanted to welcome Obama and draw his attention to China’s human rights violations. But several dozen of her companions were rounded up by Beijing police when they arrived at the government’s petition office yesterday, she said.

“They are detaining people everywhere, even if they are only petitioning normally at the state petition office and are not holding any banners or shouting any slogans,” she said.

Chen said that most of the petitioners have had their homes destroyed and their land taken away without getting fair compensation.

A Hong Kong-based rights group said that more than a dozen activists in Beijing, Shanghai and elsewhere in the country had been detained or placed under house arrest in a bid to muffle their criticism during Obama’s visit.

The activists were openly warned against “making trouble” during Obama’s visit, China Human Rights Defenders said.

In a statement, the group urged Obama to raise concerns about the practice during his upcoming meetings with Chinese leaders, and to demand the immediate release of those detained in connection with his visit.

Presidential Office softens stance on PRC repression
　

By Shelley Shan
STAFF REPORTER
Tuesday, Nov 17, 2009, Page 1

The Presidential Office last night sought to water down remarks by President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) after he blamed China earlier in the day for blocking the nation’s attempt to participate in the UN Framework Conventions on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

Speaking to reporters at the Presidential Office during a prize-giving ceremony yesterday morning, Ma, speaking English, said: “We try very hard to participate at least in the events of some specialized agencies of [the] UN. I don’t think the general assembly means too much to us, but if we can make it to, say, the UNFCCC [that would be desirable]. Of course, all this has to be actually in a way clear[ed] by mainland Chinese. They try to block our participation in the international events. But as we improve [our] relationship with them, they seem to be much more, I would say, relaxed in this area.”

Last night, Presidential Office spokesman Wang Yu-chi (王郁琦) said China blocked Taiwan’s participation in the convention, but added that Taiwan’s relationship with China had improved since Ma took office, and that Ma did not say that Beijing’s suppression had resulted in Taiwan being forced to participate via an NGO this year.

The U-turn came a day after Taiwan was prevented from attending a 19-nation breakfast meeting on the last day of the APEC to discuss climate change.

Taiwan was the only APEC member not invited to the breakfast.

Former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) chairman Lien Chan (連戰), Taiwan’s representative at the APEC meeting, said on Sunday that Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd told Taiwanese delegates on Saturday that the other countries used the breakfast meeting to plan for the UNFCCC conference that will take place in Copenhagen next month. Rudd said Taiwan was not invited to join the breakfast meeting because it is not a UN member, Lien said, adding that the meeting was not under the APEC framework.

Lien also said that he was not authorized to address any issues related to the UNFCCC.

Democratic Progressive Party spokesperson Tsai Chi-chang (蔡其昌) said that Taiwan was excluded from participating because of interference, opposition and persecution from the Chinese government.

“The diplomatic truce policy of the Ma administration has become a diplomatic shock,” he said, adding that the administration should defend Taiwan’s authority in a more active and flexible manner.

In other news, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Javier Hou (侯清山) said yesterday he was “very confident” that any potential statement jointly delivered by the US and China would not damage the interests of Taiwan, nor will it exceed the boundaries of promises made by the US government.

“We are aware that the US and China may issue [a joint statement],” Hou said. “Regarding this, we have set up a task force to closely monitor interactions between these two countries.”

Hou also said that the title and formality used to present the statement would be secondary and that the most important thing would be content. The ministry will communicate with the US should the content risk harming the interests of Taiwan, he said.

Hou made the remarks at the Legislature’s Foreign and National Defense Committee, where lawmakers raised concerns over the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ grasp of the implications of US President Barack Obama’s visit to China.
　

Ma turning Taiwan into 'police state,' Chen's office says
　

By Ko Shu-ling
STAFF REPORTER
Tuesday, Nov 17, 2009, Page 3

Former president Chen Shui-bian’s (陳水扁) office yesterday criticized law enforcement agencies for conducting long-term surveillance operations on elected representatives, urging the administration to stop such practices in the run-up to the planned visit of China’s top cross-strait negotiator next month.

In a statement, the office said Huang Kuo-chan (黃國展), a Tainan City Police Department captain, confessed during a court hearing on Aug. 5 this year that part of his job was to gather intelligence on Tainan City Councilor Wang Ding-yu (王定宇) of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).

Wang was sentenced to four months in prison after he was convicted of harassing a visiting Chinese official in an incident that was widely televised last year.

The incident took place on Oct. 21 last year when Zhang Mingqing (張銘清), vice chairman of China’s Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait (ARATS), was visiting Taiwan to attend a seminar in Tainan. Wang was accused of pushing Zhang to the ground to protest his private visit to the city’s Confucius Temple. Zhang, who suffered minor bruises, filed a complaint with local authorities and cut short his visit.

Zhang’s visit preceded that of ARATS Chairman Chen Yunlin (陳雲林), the highest-ranking Chinese envoy to visit Taiwan in 60 years.

Wang denied that he had pushed Zhang, arguing that Zhang simply lost his balance.

As Chen Yunlin is scheduled to visit Taiwan again next month for the fourth round of cross-strait negotiations to be held in Taichung, Chen’s office yesterday urged the administration to protect the human rights of all Taiwanese and ban security personnel, intelligence agencies and police forces from breaking the law and abusing their power by gathering intelligence on members of the opposition and ordinary people.

The former president’s office yesterday made public Huang’s testimony and said it wanted to show the public how the administration of President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) is turning Taiwan into a “police state.”

In the testimony, Huang said he was supposed to follow Wang and gather information when Wang’s defense lawyer asked Huang what his duties were on the day of the incident. He said he did not have any personal connection with Wang and that he was not the only elected representative under surveillance.

Ma opposes legal revision for US beef
　

MA SKEWERS DPP'S PLANS: The Presidential Office said if the Act Governing Food Sanitation were amended, it would violate the protocol on beef signed with the US
　

By Ko Shu-ling
STAFF REPORTER
Tuesday, Nov 17, 2009, Page 3

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) is unlikely to get its wish to ban “risky” US beef products by amending the Act Governing Food Sanitation (食品衛生管理法) after President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday clearly opposed such a legal revision.

Presidential Office Spokesman Wang Yu-chi (王郁琦) said Ma hoped that cross-party negotiations chaired by Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) yesterday afternoon would produce a satisfactory result.

If caucus leaders could not reach a consensus, the matter would be put to a vote today, Wang said, adding that Ma hoped the speaker would be able to find a solution that satisfied both sides.

Wang Yu-chi said Ma had “expressed his anticipation” that the ban would not be enshrined in the law and that Wang Jin-pyng was responsible for inter-party negotiations.

Wang Yu-chi made the remarks after the president’s weekly lunch with top goverment officials including Wang Jin-pyng.

Wang Yu-chi said the administration’s aim was to protect public health and reduce doubts about the safety of US beef and beef products. At the same time, they hoped to maintain the nation’s credibility and see the ruling and opposition parties abide by an agreement reached during the last round of cross-party negotiations, he said.

Caucus leaders agreed on Nov. 3 to ban the import of “risky” US beef products, but they did not see eye to eye on how to achieve it. While the DPP caucus wished to enshrine the ban in the Act Governing Food Sanitation, the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) wanted to apply administrative measures to conduct strict examinations of the products which would effectively stop them entering the country.

Wang Yu-chi said if the act were amended to include the ban, it would violate the protocol signed by Taipei and Washington.

If the amendment were to institute strict inspection measures on the products, however, it would not violate the country’s international obligations, Wang Yu-chi said.

He said while there had been no word from Washington on the administration’s plan to use administrative means to obstruct imports, he believed the US government “would understand” as long as it did not violate the protocol.

Under the terms of the protocol, US bone-in beef, ground beef, bovine intestines, brains, spinal cords and processed beef from cattle younger than 30 months that have not been contaminated by “specific risk materials” would be allowed to be imported into Taiwan.

Negotiations chaired by the Speaker on amendments to the act broke down yesterday. Caucus leaders agreed to resume talks today.

DPP Legislator Wang Sing-nan (王幸男) said there was no room for concession, adding that his caucus would “express the strongest protest using the strongest means.”

“It is the KMT’s call whether they want to force through the amendments or move DPP lawmakers out of the legislative floor,” he said.

Opposition voices absent from cross-strait forums
　

By J. Michael cole
STAFF REPORTER
Tuesday, Nov 17, 2009, Page 3

“Zheng Bijian can come to Taipei and claim that the Taiwanese independence movement is doomed ... but academics from the opposition are not invited.”— Joseph Wu, former Mainland Affairs Council chairman

The government made no effort to invite voices from the opposition to a recent series of forums on cross-strait diplomacy, a former Taiwanese government official said yesterday.

Commenting on the sidelines of a forum on a cross-strait peace agreement at National Chengchi University’s Institute of International Relations (IIR), Joseph Wu (吳釗燮), former Mainland Affairs Council chairman, said agencies under President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration had failed to invite academics from the pan-green camp or former government officials to the forums, at which former Chinese Communist Party officials and Chinese academics were invited to speak.

“They had to invite me [this morning] because I’m a fellow here at the IIR,” Wu, the sole pan-green voice at the forum, told the Taipei Times, adding that the situation had been similar at a pair of forums held over the weekend to mark the 60th anniversary of cross-strait relations.

“[Chinese President] Hu Jintao’s [胡錦濤] confidant Zheng Bijian [鄭必堅] can come to Taipei and claim that the Taiwanese independence movement is doomed and some retired People’s Liberation Army general can threaten us the next day, but academics from the opposition are not invited,” Wu said.

When the Democratic Progressive Party was in power, we always made sure to invite those from the other camp to such events, he said.

This one-sided debate is hardly conducive to the process that is required to build consensus on cross-strait matters, Wu said, adding that pro-Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) academics had a tendency to mirror Ma’s “polite” approach to China, which involves no criticism of Beijing’s human rights record.

“Topics such as a peace agreement are very important and this is the first time that both sides discuss them openly,” Wu said.

Unfortunately, with opposition voices absent there is no plurality of voices and the Ma administration can give the impression that its policies are widely supported, he said.

Wu also said that the American Institute in Taiwan had not been informed about the forums, adding that this was reminiscent of the US government being kept in the dark during negotiations on Taiwan’s participation at the World Health Assembly earlier this year.

Let them come, let them speak

Tuesday, Nov 17, 2009, Page 8

With closer, more frequent and open cultural and academic exchanges across the Taiwan Strait, the administration of President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) may hope to foster an image of rapprochement, if not understanding. While such contact is not new and happened, albeit in a low-profile fashion, during the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) administration, the seniority of the Chinese officials and academics invited to speak at forums in Taiwan and the coverage the meetings have received is unprecedented in 60 years of cross-strait diplomacy.

If this weekend’s series of forums are any indication of the shape of academic debate to come, however, the Ma administration could be in for a surprise, for the Chinese officials who spoke in Taipei made it very clear that they are in Taiwan to dictate and to threaten — not to listen or learn.

When Chinese President Hu Jintao’s (胡錦濤) confidant and alleged ghostwriter Zheng Bijian (鄭必堅) tells an audience in Taipei that the Taiwanese independence movement is doomed to fail, or retired People’s Liberation Army general Li Jijun (李際均) threatens Taiwanese with a choice between war and accepting Beijing’s “one China” policy, they are not here to build consensus. Not only that, they underscore the antiquated groupthink that characterizes Chinese officials’ view of Taiwan.

There is no doubt that Chinese political thinking has matured in the past decades and is no longer a communist monolith. Chinese Communist Party (CCP) cadres today are better educated, better traveled and increasingly refined in their view of the world. One core issue that has remained frozen in time, however, is that of Taiwan, which has not lost its nationalistic and emotional value to Chinese. As a consequence, where Chinese officials are willing to listen, learn, adapt and build consensus on matters of less importance to Beijing, Taiwan and “one China” remain exceptions — taboo subjects that brook no opposition or divergence of opinion. Even the newer generation of Chinese thinkers, such as Fudan University’s Jian Junbo (簡軍波), perpetuates the language of intolerance and war in its discourse on Taiwan.

This explains why the Zhengs and Lis who spoke over the weekend sounded so ideological and implacable — like old textbooks that failed to evolve with the circumstances.

For the Taiwanese independence movement, this is a good thing, and more CCP officials should be allowed to speak in Taiwan. If they’re willing to crucify themselves in public by putting their intolerance and ignorance on display, then so be it. More Taiwanese will realize that Ma’s sweet talk about peace and warmer ties is nothing more than wishful thinking. This will make it increasingly difficult for the Ma administration to ignore the opposition — both political and, increasingly, in the business sector — as it forges ahead with less-than-transparent negotiations with Beijing, because an increasing number of Taiwanese will see that Chinese goodwill is a mirage, a facade that its emissaries cannot be bothered to keep up on Taiwanese shores.

The DPP’s International Affairs Department director, Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴), understood that perfectly when she put Chinese Consulate-General in Fukuoka Wu Shumin (武樹民) on the spot in June by translating his threats to Taiwan into English — comments that were then picked up by news outlets, revealing the wolf in the diplomat’s suit.

Chinese officials are more than welcome to come to Taiwan and learn about its democracy, tolerance and way of life. If, however, they come to dictate and threaten, we’ll be doing more than listening.

NASA on a crusade to debunk 2012 apocalypse myths NASA


Tuesday, Nov 17, 2009,Page 13

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The world is not coming to an end on Dec. 21, 2012, the US space agency insisted in a rare campaign to dispel widespread rumors fuelled by the Internet and a new Hollywood movie.

Sony Pictures’ latest big screen offering 2012 arrived in theaters on Friday, with a US$200 million production about the end of the world supposedly based on myths backed by the Mayan calendar.

The doomsday scenario revolves around claims that the end of time will come as an obscure Planet X — or Nibiru — heads toward or collides into Earth.

The mysterious planet was supposedly discovered by the Sumerians, according to claims by pseudo-scientists, paranormal activity enthusiasts and Internet theorists.

Some Web sites accuse NASA of concealing the truth on the wayward planet’s existence, but the US space agency denounced such stories as an “Internet hoax.”

“There is no factual basis for these claims,” NASA said in a question-and-answer posting on its Web site.

If such a collision were real “astronomers would have been tracking it for at least the past decade, and it would be visible by now to the naked eye,” it added. “Obviously, it does not exist.”

“Credible scientists worldwide know of no threat associated with 2012,” NASA insisted.

Initial theories set the disaster for May 2003, but when nothing happened the date was moved forward to the winter solstice in 2012 to coincide with the end of a cycle of the ancient Mayan calendar.

But NASA insisted the Mayan calendar in fact does not end on Dec. 21, 2012, as another period begins immediately afterward. And it said there are no planetary alignments on the horizon for the next few decades.

And even if the planets were to line up as some have forecast, the effect on our planet would be “negligible,” NASA said.

Among the other theories NASA has set out to debunk are that geomagnetic storms, a pole reversal or unsteadiness in the Earth’s crustal plates might befall the planet.

And while comets and asteroids have always hit the Earth, “big hits are very rare,” NASA noted. The last major impact was believed to be 65 million years ago, spurring the end of dinosaurs.

“We have already determined that there are no threatening asteroids as large as the one that killed the dinosaurs,” the space agency said.