Dec. 24,1998---Tony Blair, Bill Clinton, Gerhard Schroder, Jacques Chirac

[ Up ]

 
 

Taiwan Tati Cultural
And Educational Foundation
B16F, No.3 Ta-Tun 2St.
Taichung, Taiwan, ROC
December 24, 1998.

Dear Mr. Prime Minister Tony Blair,
   Mr. President Clinton,
   Mr. Chancellor Gerhard Schr"der,
   Mr. President Jacques Chirac,

Beijing, Dec. 23 ---

Mainland Chinese authorities on Wednesday turned their sights on the published and entertainment industries, having cracked down on dissidents in recent weeks. Under new rules carried in major newspapers, book and magazine publishers well as music producers, and filmmakers face life in prison if they were found guilty of inciting to subvert state power.

Meanwhile, the beleaguered band of mainland Chinese dissidents still at liberty following a heavy handed crackdown from Beijing announced plans for a 100-day hunger strike Wednesday and called for help from the international community.

Some 214 activists from 21 provinces and cities around the country said in a fax that they would start the hunger strike from Christmas Eve with dissidents taking turns to fast for 24 hours at a time. "We are expressing our protests at the persecution from the government with hunger strike" said the 214, including Beijing-based Ren Wanding who has been frequently detained in recent weeks.

Exiled mainland Chinese human rights activist Wei Jingsheng yesterday (Dec. 23, 1998) advised Taiwan's top negotiator Shi Hwei-yow on tactics to be used in Cross-Strait negotiations, suggesting the Taiwan authorities may employ him as adviser on Cross-Strait relations. "I was very concerned about the Koo-Wang meet while in the U.S.. I was worried Taiwan would have fell into the communist's trap" Wei said. "And at the early stage there were indeed several risky situations.

But at the end of the day it's fortunate you didn't get trapped" Wei added.

"It's no easy task to deal with the communists because they rarely mean what they say. Most of the time, they would give you a big blow when you're not alert" Wei pointed out. "If someday the communists promise to talk with President Lee Teng-hui you (Taiwan) should think it over very carefully. Remember, there must be something dodgy when the communists make an offer so easily" Wei warned.

Both Taiwan and Beijing have vowed to terminate hostility against each other before moving toward closer partnership. But Wei also showed a distrust in Beijing's attachment to the consensus. "It's no problem if the deal were between two honest gentlemen. But the communists are no gentlemen.

They are villains who never mean what they say" Wei argued. "Deng Xiaoping deployed a system which created lots of bourgeois and bureaucrats. He had hindered possible democratic development in the mainland China" Wei criticized. "And as for Jiang Zemin, I don't think he is qualified for the ranking because what he has been doing is simply carrying on Deng's policies, which does not at all help the mainland's modernization" Wei said.

Also the Chinese democracy fighter offer his perception of Taiwan's three leaders of the Kuomintang government, which receded to the island following its defeat in the 1949 Chinese civil war. "Chiang Kai-shek was not bold enough to carry out democracy. But as far his dictatorship is concerned, he failed to compete with the communist religious-dictator Mao Zedong" Wei commented.

Chiang Ching-Kuo wanted democracy but did not create a climate suitable for the system. And at last it is Lee Teng-hui who finally succeeded in transforming Taiwan to a democracy" Wei said.

In our view; Beijing government is very hard to be trusted by its promise, Wei said that, we said also. That the psychologic defense mechanism is the only ban for communist China. Only democratic mainland China can save the soul of Beijing's leaders.

 

 

Sincerely Yours,
Yang Hsu-Tung.
President of
Taiwan Tati Cultural
And Educational Foundation

 

Back Up Next