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Our
future on July 28, 2004 Our
future is revealed by looking at the past By
Lee Teng-hui
On the surface, the nation seems to already have accomplished its
democratic reform process. However, judging from the performance of many
politicians and members of the media, the foundations of our democracy are
unstable. Particularly, the "Greater China" consciousness often overrides
democratic values, and is therefore threatening our democratic politics. Many media outlets are still controlled by this "Greater China"
consciousness, and a Taiwan-centric consciousness is often oppressed or smeared.
Under such circumstances, opinions that uphold democratic ideals based on
Taiwan's localization are especially valuable. The Lee Shiao-feng Column,
often published in the Liberty Times, serves as an example of this. Lee, a professor at Shih Hsin University, analyzes things from the
perspective of a historian. Using his articles to correct wrongs and fight
against the "Greater China" consciousness, Lee can be called a sharp
pen in Taiwan's democratization debate. On the one hand, he mocks and satirizes politicians with a sense of humor.
On the other hand, he interprets and analyzes news using his rich historical
knowledge, which makes his articles cheerful to read. Therefore, my wife and I have developed the habit of reading his column. My
better half particularly enjoys his column, and often cuts his articles from the
Liberty Times to preserve them. As Lee says, many people are opposing Taiwan independence while living in
an independent Taiwan. This is complete hypocrisy, and a matter of self-alienation. This phenomenon is shaped by many factors, but I believe that people's
ignorance of their own land is perhaps one of the main reasons. Taiwan has in the past experienced the rule of many foreign regimes. As
those in power change, the target of the Taiwanese people's identification also
changes, and so the teaching of our history has never completely taken root in
Taiwan. Lee has devoted himself to the teaching of history. Through the influence
of history, he hopes to help more people know this land and the history behind
it, so as to build their national identity. After all, people can only identify with their land after truly
understanding it. Identification without understanding is empty. Promoting Taiwan consciousness is not advancing the division of ethnic
groups. On the contrary, Taiwan consciousness is the glue that unites all
residents. I firmly believe that ethnic diversity is not the nation's original sin.
Instead, it is a precious asset bequeathed to this land by history. The
different ethnic groups in this nation will gradually form a community with a
shared destiny and generate even more splendid cultural sparks. If we all show compassion and tolerance, and put aside prejudices in order
to build national identity, the Taiwanese people will certainly create a diverse
and unique culture of their own someday. At that time, we will stride proudly
ahead and walk our own way. I believe that Lee's efforts over the years to write books and expound his
doctrines will not be in vain. Lee
Teng-hui is the former president of Taiwan. TRANSLATED
BY EDDY CHANG Lu
pushes for new global lobby group INTERNATIONAL
SPACE: Her eye on China, the vice president wants to build a network of offices
in 20 cities around the world to advance the interests of the nation Vice President Annette Lu is pushing for the formation of a worldwide
network of lobby groups that will mobilize on behalf of the nation in times of
need. Lu said the network, tentatively dubbed "Friends of Taiwan
International," would set up coordination centers in 20 cities this year. "We must bring together [important figures] in these major cities to
form the network so that they can provide assistance when Taiwan and its people
need help or suffer oppression by China," Lu said yesterday. During an interview with the Taipei Times and Liberty Times,
Lu stressed the importance of forging international space, expanding the
nation's visibility and creating more opportunities for it to enter key
international organizations. Lu did not say which part of the government would fund the network, but she
indicated it would operate from the office of the vice president. Lu said the second Democratic Pacific Assembly (DPA), to be held from Aug.
13 to Aug. 15, would also bring influential figures and heads of state to the
country to discuss cooperation on a wide range of issues, including regional
security, ocean resources, industrial development and technology exchange, along
with the promotion of democracy. The assembly was formed last year to facilitate communication between the
nation's allies in Central America and the Pacific and between other Pacific and
East Asian countries, as well as promoting democracy, human rights and freedom. "Last August, 68 important figures from 24 countries, including five
vice presidents, attended the first assembly," Lu said. "This year, we
are honored that incoming Salvadoran President Elias Antonio Saca has promised
to participate in the second session of the assembly." Lu said another main theme of this year's assembly is to encourage young
talent to develop experience in international contexts and to promote the
nation's achievements internationally. RIDICULE On this theme, she continued to invoke Central America, a subject which has
caused her to be the object of ridicule in recent weeks for suggesting that
victims of Tropical Storm Mindulle relocate there. "Younger generations are attracted to Japanese and Korean pop
culture," Lu said. "I will therefore promote Latin pop culture in
universities and colleges. Next year, when our allies in Central America jointly
celebrate their anniversaries of independence, [our] young people can launch a
Latin Festival on all campuses." Lu said that demonstrating the nation's concern for its Central American
allies could cement relations in the region and eventually prompt more countries
to support its bid to join the Organization of American States. "Taiwan needs the support of another nine countries to become an OAS
member," Lu said. "The third DPA and the [campus] Latin Festival next
year may serve as a bridge for the government in developing relationships with
the nations of Central and South America." SUPERVISION When asked about "black terror," a term she used to criticize
media comments leveled against her, Lu said she had meant to remind the public
to supervise the performance of the media and to guide reporters so that they
exercise "real freedom of the press." "You know that the Aboriginal communities misunderstood my recent
remarks about the ecological crisis and emigration policy after the tropical
storm damaged mountain areas in central Taiwan," she said. "Some reporters with the evening papers, who must file their stories
by noon, attended meetings organized by my office to discuss land reconstruction
and immigration policy for only a short time before leaving to write their
stories, which were very different from what actually happened," Lu said. "Then, TV reporters followed the evening papers with their evening
news programs and late-night talk shows. Then the next day's newspapers produced
stories based on the wrong information provided by the evening papers," she
said. "It's like a rumor mill, and its product -- malice and incorrect news
coverage -- misleads the public and causes more disputes," she said.
"So I have called it `black terror' to express my regret over the
degeneration of the media." Enforce
order, reform the judiciary One of the most intense gun battles ever between the nation's police and
criminals took place in Taliao township in Kaohsiung County early Monday
morning. Although two criminals were arrested, the prime suspect, Chang Hsi-ming
, and two other gang members managed to escape. Later, we saw on TV how police confiscated arms and advanced equipment in
the criminals' homes. According to reports, these criminals have received
guerrilla warfare training in Cambodia. By comparison -- apart from their
superiority in numbers -- the police lag far behind in terms of firepower and
protective gear. Small wonder that the criminals managed to escape. Chang's gang has been active in the south of the country for the last
several years, gaining a fierce reputation. The gang's criminal activities bring
to mind the 1998 kidnapping and murder of Pai Hsiao-yen-- daughter of popular TV
entertainer Pai Ping-ping -- which caused rumors of emigration among wealthier
members of the business community. According to police data, an average of more than 80 kidnappings have taken
place annually over the past 10 years. The victims of these kidnappings have
been students and businesspeople. Such a high number of serious crimes every
year is causing alarm bells to go off, due to the threat presented to the
nation's social order. To calm public opinion, police must quickly arrest the culprits and solve
this case. More important, public concern is focused on the question of how the
government will display its determination to effectively attack such crime and
maintain social order. On television we saw police take great risks when dealing with Chang and
his associates. Despite the police's relatively inferior firepower, the spirit
of self-sacrifice with which they carried out their duties deserves acclaim. But
when we see the courts releasing criminals on bail who were captured with such
difficulty by police -- giving them the chance to escape overseas -- we really
have to say something in support of our hardworking policemen. The escape of
Hsueh Chiu, wanted for a shooting, is an important example of this. There are
other cases in which people charged with economic crimes have escaped abroad
while on bail. Social order is the basis of a society's economic development. Therefore,
faced with the perception of increased lawlessness in our society, the
government should order the coast guard, airport staff and customs officials at
commercial ports and fishing ports to increase their vigilance regarding weapons
and drugs smuggled into the country, and act to stop the flow of illegal
immigrants from China, as these crimes easily lead to other crimes. The government should also consider making substantial reforms to the
judicial system, especially the much-criticized procedures for bail and parole.
In addition, it should act quickly to improve the weapons and armor available to
the police and make a greater effort to search out weapon caches and shops for
customizing weapons to convince the public that it is serious about maintaining
social order. Otherwise, if people live their lives under the threat of crime and fear
that whatever money they earn may eventually amount to nothing, then even if the
government earmarks tens of millions of NT dollars to advance economic
development, what will be the point? We believe that many people would be happy to earn a little less if they
could be assured that they and their families will live peacefully and safely in
the future. The government should take this basic need of its citizens seriously,
making the improvement of social order and the reform of the judiciary matters
of urgency. Biggest
threat is selfish politicians By
Cao Changqing The Democratic National
Convention, which opened July 26 in Boston, made me think of the Chinese
Nationalist Party (KMT) and the People First Party (PFP). Neither of these
parties had primaries as part of their presidential nomination processes.
Nominees are primarily decided by party chairmen, and they usually nominate
themselves -- as if no one else inside their parties were eligible to run for
the presidency. But the most despicable thing is this: After losing the presidential
election twice, both KMT Chairman Lien Chan and PFP Chairman James Soong failed
to learn from party leaders in Western democracies, who probably would have
stepped down from their posts. Rather, they have used excuses, such as the March
19 assassination attempt and the presidential vote recount, to stay in power. This is like two bullies going to a restaurant. When it's time for the
restaurant to close its doors, the two refuse to pay or to leave, claiming that
the food was too salty and the wine too sour, and that a gunshot outside has
also ruined their appetite. They know that if they don't make these excuses,
they will have to pay and leave at once. The foundation of a democratic system is playing the game by the rules.
Those defeated in elections should admit their failure and withdraw from the
game right away. The KMT and the PFP had no democratic competition before the
presidential election. Months after the election they have still refused to
admit defeat. This is worrisome indeed. What blocks the nation's further
development, and most endangers the country, is not necessarily autocratic
China. Instead, it may be politicians who care only for power rather than the
nation's future. The best protection for the nation's security is not the nation's modern
military force, nor the US. It's the degree of maturity of the nation's
democratic system. No matter how much the Chinese Communist Party threatens
Taiwan, the free world will not tolerate a democratic country being swallowed by
an autocratic one. Those who vow to protect Taiwan are liars if they do not
first protect democracy. Cao
Changqing is a writer based in New York. TRANSLATED
BY EDDY CHANG KMT
misses another chance The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) missed an opportunity to come to terms with its past. It complained that the scheduled legislative election date of Dec. 11, one day after the 25th anniversary of the Kaohsiung Incident, was politically motivated to benefit the Democratic Progressive Party and harms the chances of its legislative candidates. Therefore, it urged that the day be changed to the traditional last Saturday of November or first Saturday of December. The complaint itself is a self-fulfilling prophesy. Raising the issue focused voters' attention on the KMT's past persecution of democracy advocates, and thereby reminded voters of its unsavory past. In this sense, the KMT and its candidates are already prejudiced. Instead of focusing on winning the election by crying foul, the KMT should use the anniversary to come clean by admitting its past mistakes while taking the initiative to disclose the truth about the White Terror era and the 228 Incident. A willingness to confront its past, to ask voters for forgiveness and to reconcile with its past will help it win votes. Bickering won't. Objecting to the election date reflects a guilty conscience and a conscious effort to avoid past mistakes. Until the KMT understands why it has lost credibility with voters and the party takes positive steps to earn voters' trust, control of the government will remain out of its reach. Kenneth
Choy Hong Kong
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