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China
wants a war on Aug 23, 2004 Yu
Shyi-kun says China wants a war NATIONAL
INTERESTS: Speaking to a group in New York, the premier said it was an open
secret that China wants to push the US out of the Asia-Pacific By
Ko Shu-ling
China is secretly mapping underwater terrain in the Pacific in preparation
for an eventual conflict with the US there, reports yesterday quoted Premier Yu
Shyi-kun as saying. Chinese surveillance ships sailed close to Japanese waters 14 times last
year and seven times this year, and have also sailed "numerous times"
just east of Taiwan, the state-funded Central News Agency quoted Yu as saying
during a transit stop in New York on his return from Latin America. "China's behavior has clearly violated the national interest of the US
and its founding spirit," Yu said, according to Chinese-language newspaper.
"I'm calling on American people to support Taiwan for the sake of world
peace, safety and stability of the Asia-Pacific region and the world's military
security." The moves were a strong sign that China was preparing for a military action
that might involve sending a fleet of submarines to cross the US defensive line
along Japan, Taiwan and the Philippines, Yu was quoted saying. China "is preparing to confront the United States in the
Pacific," Yu was quoted as saying during a banquet with Taiwanese in New
York on Saturday. Yu also called China "the source of chaos" in the world with its
aggressive arms buildup and its suppression of human rights both in China and in
the Chinese territory of Hong Kong, the United Evening News reported. Yu also lambasted the "unification law" Beijing has been trying
to create, saying that the law is designed only to change the status quo in the
Taiwan Strait. The law would serve as a legal basis for using military force
against Taiwan, analysts say. Responding to Yu's remarks, Cabinet Spokesman Chen Chi-mi said that the
premier was merely stating the facts. "China's so-called `unification law' is tantamount to an authorization
to invade Taiwan," Chen said. "Beijing has posed a serious threat to
Taiwan and the region because of its military build-up." Chen also painted Yu's talks as a way to address the issue of cross-strait
peace and stability. "Safety and stability in the Taiwan Strait is an issue that concerns
not only Taiwan, but also the US, because it corresponds with its national
interest," Chen said. "I'm sure neither the US nor any other country
in the region and in the world would be happy to see a military imbalance in the
Taiwan Strait."
Tibetans
losing hope that Dalai Lama will return
Chinese
degrees no use to Taiwan Just in case we were in doubt as to what "loving your country"
means, the Great Jogger gave us all a little homily on that topic Saturday as
part of his proposal that the nation recognize Chinese university degrees. To
which the only appropriate reaction is to ask, in the mode of former East German
spymaster Markus Wolf, which country is it exactly that this man claims to love?
Ma Ying-jeou said that when trying to decide whether something is done out
of love for the country or in an attempt to harm it, one must look at whether
the policies are beneficial or detrimental and should not resort to formalistic
ideological bickering. In short, he was echoing the words of his role model in
advising us to "seek truth from facts." One wonders what is meant by formalistic ideology here. The best example
that we can think of is the concept that Taiwan has to unify with China come
what may, which Ma's allies and backers in Beijing were reprising over the
weekend. But what Ma seems to be saying is that we should ask of any policy not,
"Does this conform to our ideological principles?" but instead
"Is it any use? Will it actually do any good?" So, in the case of
recognizing Chinese university degrees, will it? Even the laziest of thinkers -- Ma, for instance -- should be aware of the
three most important issues. The first is that Taiwan already has a glut of
tertiary education places. After the huge expansion of universities in the
mid-1990s -- which followed England's disastrous example of calling every
twopenny technical college a university because "distinctions are
artificial" -- there are now more places than there are students. The
result is severe competition among universities for students, less money for
institutions to spend, and a lowering of standards all around. Into this mix Ma wants to introduce Chinese universities. These have become
the last resort for those unable to get into universities here. Their entry
standards are lower and they are far cheaper than studying anywhere else abroad.
With Taiwan's tertiary educational sector is already in crisis, it is hard to
see why even more competition should be a good thing. A second consideration is the quality of Chinese degrees. China has over
1,000 tertiary education facilities granting degrees. It is fair to suppose they
are not all of a uniform standard. And given that the current tertiary education
system has been in existence for less than 25 years -- having previously been
destroyed with the closing of universities during the Cultural Revolution -- it
is certainly valid to question what the standards of these various institutions
might be. The only way to answer this would be for assessors appointed by Taiwan's
Ministry of Education to go to China, visit each institution, talk to faculty,
staff and students, wade through research theses, and try to get a grasp of
whether standards at the Harbin University of Commerce, for example, are
comparable with those of institutions in Taiwan. This kind of survey would take
a long time and need cooperation from Beijing -- which so far has never been
offered. Finally, along with the standards issue, we might point out that university
attendance in China still involves compulsory classes in China's loathsome
politics. Ma says we allow people to study in the US; why not in China? To which
one answer might be that Taiwanese students at US universities are not
rigorously indoctrinated in a politics that is antithetic to the very survival
of their country. Perhaps this latter reason is a "formalistic" consideration. But
the two prior ones are eminently practical; Taiwan's swift recognition of
Chinese university degrees will do it no good at all. China, however, has much
to gain, which gives us an interesting insight on which country Ma loves.
Beijing's
policy will backfire China is desperate to stem Taiwan's further drift from its sphere of influence. Beijing has threatened Taiwanese businessmen in China because they supported President Chen Shui-bian. Taiwanese companies have invested an estimated US$100 billion in China over the past decade alone. Indeed, Taiwanese businessmen are the principal movers and shakers in the Chinese economy. But these people know that China will not allow anything to stand in the way of the annexation of Taiwan so they keep their mouths shut. When Taiwan's government recently held its annual meeting in Taiwan for China-based Taiwanese executives, Beijing was busy applying pressure to prevent them from attending the meeting. The Chinese people are proud to have 5,000 years of history in which every government was the winner of a revolutionary war. When the government became corrupt, it was overthrown. The government and the people understood the game and how it was played. Now it is the 21st century and the world has become a "global village." When the Soviet Union allowed the Berlin Wall to collapse, it disintegrated into many independent states. The Beijing government has allowed some degree of economic freedom. The Chinese people have begun to travel overseas. It is only a matter of time before these same people will ask for more freedom and democracy and will eventually threaten the existence of the Communist Party. Threatening Taiwanese businessmen is certain to backfire and persuade foreign investors to cut back their investments in China. Economic prosperity in China will suffer. My advice to the Beijing government is to embrace the values of freedom and peace like they have embraced capitalism. Dr.
Tien C. Cheng Chair,
Global Alliance for Democracy and Peace, Chicago
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