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| MIGHTY MELONS Visitors to the annual Tropical Agriculture Fair in Pingtung walk below a trellis of loofah vines yesterday, the last day of the fair. The fair attracted more than 300,000 visitors, almost 100,000 more than last year.
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Ma aide in
green card mission: Hsieh
NOT ON THE AGENDA: John Feng
conceded that he met with AIT officials, but said it was to discuss the
election, not to cancel a US residency permit for the KMT candidate
By Shih Hsiu-chuan
and Mo Yan-chih
STAFF REPORTERS
Sunday, Mar 02, 2008, Page 1
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate Frank Hsieh's (謝長廷)
campaign team yesterday said that Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential
candidate Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) sent an aide, former diplomat John Feng (馮寄台), to
the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) on Thursday to sort out the matter of his
green card.
The Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times' sister newspaper) said in
a front page story yesterday that the Hsieh camp had been informed late on
Thursday night of Ma's move to send an unnamed aide to the AIT.
At a press conference yesterday morning, the Hsieh camp declined to reveal its
informant and did not name the aide, but said it had tried to verify the
information it obtained through the AIT and "other reliable channels," the
report said.
"We were concerned when we heard the response from the AIT, which told us it
could not confirm it. The AIT did not deny it either. We thought there must be
something fishy going on," Hsieh's spokesman Chao Tien-lin (趙天麟) told the press
conference.
When approached by reporters for comment at a campaign event in Taipei's Da'an
Park, Ma said he had not sent any aides to the AIT on Thursday to fill out
public Form I-407 for him.
Ma accused the Hsieh camp of making false accusations for political gains.
"It's totally untrue," Ma said, accusing a "certain newspaper" of cooperating
with Hsieh's camp by spreading rumors to manipulate voters.
Hsieh has alleged that Ma still has a valid US green card because he never
completed a Form I-407 to relinquish his permanent residency in the US, nor has
a US immigration court invalidated his card.
Ma has repeatedly dismissed the claim, saying that his green card automatically
became invalid in the late 1980s after he started traveling to the US on
visitor's visas.
The Central Election Commission said on Feb. 15 that it would employ the help of
foreign diplomatic missions in Taiwan to check whether either of the two
presidential candidates holds foreign citizenship. Both have formally consented
to the probe.
Ma's campaign team held a press conference at his campaign headquarter's
yesterday morning, rebutting the Liberty Times' report.
Ma's spokesman Tsai Shih-ping (蔡詩萍) accused the Hsieh camp of making false
accusations and said Hsieh and his staff should apologize.
The Ma camp wants nothing to do with Hsieh's smear tactics, Tsai said.
Hsieh's camp responded by holding a second press conference, during which Chao
identified Ma's aide only as a former diplomat surnamed Feng, who had been
instructed by Ma to go to the AIT.
Feng was at the AIT all afternoon, Chao said, calling on Ma to explain why Feng
went there and what he had done.
Chao was referring to the former ambassador to the Dominican Republic, who now
serves on Ma's campaign team as the director of the international affairs
section.
"Whether Feng was at the AIT to help Ma fill out Form I-407 or for other
formalities [a US green card holder has to] go through to invalidate the card,
as an informant had told us, we want Ma to tell the truth," Chao said.
"Could it be that Ma wanted to resolve his green card problem secretly, sending
Feng to the AIT on a national holiday instead of a business day?" he asked.
"What the informant told us was what he himself heard from Feng. Before we made
any allegations, we determined the context in which the dialogue took place as
well as the nature of the relationship between Feng and the informant," he said.
"The informant did not overhear this by accident."
The informant learned that Feng felt "relieved" after leaving the AIT, telling
the informant in private that "the green card problem was finally solved" Chao
said.
In response, the Ma camp held a second press conference later in the day, with
Feng in attendance.
Feng conceded that he had met AIT officials on Thursday, but said it was to
discuss the election and other political matters. He also said the meeting was
at the Grand Hotel, not at the AIT.
"I did not go to the AIT on that day," he told the press conference. "I did not
discuss Ma's green card with the officials or fill out Form I-407 during our
meeting."
He and the official discussed the presidential election and Feng took the
occasion to reiterate Ma's request that the AIT tell the media that his green
card is invalid.
Feng said Ma sent a letter to the AIT last week requesting that the AIT provide
documentation showing that his green card was invalid.
"I meet AIT officials regularly, so it's normal," Feng said.
Asked if he knew in advance that Feng intended to meet AIT officials, Ma said at
a separate setting yesterday that it was Feng's job to establish contacts and
relations with foreign media and representatives. It is unnecessary for Feng to
report about every private meeting he has with AIT officials, Ma said.
With regard to the discrepancies between the accounts provided by the informant
and Feng, Chao said the Hsieh camp would attempt to verify the details.
"I suspect that Feng only told part of the truth. He must have concealed many
facts," Chao said.
Commenting on the matter yesterday, Hsieh questioned Ma's credibility.
"In the morning, Ma called the report a serious accusation, but in the
afternoon, his camp admitted that the meeting took place," Hsieh said. "Ma
always modifies his previous remarks. He has no credibility whatsoever. How
would people relax with such an unreliable person leading the country?"
Asked for comment, AIT Spokesman Thomas Hodges said: "When it comes to the
Taiwan presidential election, the position of the American Institute in Taipei
and the US government is neutral."
He said the AIT was closed on Thursday because of the holiday.
Ma's campaign team issued a statement late last night demanding Chao offer an
apology within 28 days or else it would file a suit.
Chen
Shui-bian joins Frank Hsieh on the presidential hustings
A-BIAN IN ON THE ACTION: The president started to canvass voters for Hsieh at a rally in Taipei yesterday, as well as in Taichung County, Taichung and Miaoli County
By Shih Hsiu-chuan
STAFF REPORTER
Sunday, Mar 02, 2008, Page 3
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President Chen Shui-bian, right, and Democratic Progressive Party presidential candidate Frank Hsieh pose during a campaign event in Taipei yesterday.
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President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) yesterday shared the stage
with Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate Frank Hsieh (謝長廷)
and he called on supporters of "A-bian," Chen's nickname, to campaign for Hsieh.
The rally was the first time the two had shared the same stage since the
legislative elections in January.
"I hope you all bring the willpower you put into my campaigns in the past into
full play to campaign for Hsieh and [running mate] Su Tseng-chang [蘇貞昌]," Chen
said to hundreds of supporters, all members of the "Friends of A-bian," which
was established in 1998.
After the DPP suffered a defeat in the legislative elections, Chen said he would
not take part in campaign events for Hsieh, either in public or in the media, if
his participation were deemed to be a negative influence on the outcome of the
election.
However, Chen started canvassing voters for Hsieh not only at the rally in
Taipei yesterday, but also rallies organized by the "Friends of A-bian" in
Taichung County, Taichung and Miaoli County. He is also scheduled to do an
interview with the Public Television Service tomorrow.
Addressing the crowd at the rally yesterday, Hsieh said he appreciated Chen's
support for him.
Hsieh vowed to follow Chen's lead and give priority to Taiwan's interests if
elected president.
"Being president of the country is to be a defender of Taiwan's interests,
security and dignity," Hsieh said. "[Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT)
presidential candidate] Ma [Ying-jeou (馬英九)], who advocates a `cross-strait
common market,' is incapable of being such a defender."
With the implementation of a "cross-strait common market," Ma would remove all
tariffs imposed on materials and goods imported from China and lift bans on
Chinese workers, which would deal a heavy blow to local industries and result in
unemployment, Hsieh said.
While US Senator Hillary Clinton solicited votes for her resolution to counter
Chinese goods, and her rival Barack Obama has said he supports a prohibition on
toy products imported from China, during the US Democratic primaries recently,
is it not strange that one of Taiwan's presidential candidates would advocate
more opening up to China? Hsieh said.
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| OUT FOR A STROLL Members of a traditional performance troupe walk through the streets of an Ilan County town yesterday at a festival organized by the National Center for Traditional Arts. Traditional performance troupes will perform on weekends throughout this month.
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US hopefuls
use China-bashing in Ohio
AP, WASHINGTON
Sunday, Mar 02, 2008, Page 7
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Democratic presidential hopeful Senator Barack Obama eats a tortilla during a campaign stop at the Sombrero Festival in Brownsville, Texas, on Friday.
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China has proven a reliable punching bag, and potential vote-getter, for US
presidential candidates: The fast-growing country's massive factories, staffed
by underpaid workers, fill US stores with tainted food and dangerous toys,
voters are told.
Candidates accuse China's government of crushing dissent and befriending thug
rulers in Sudan and Myanmar; Beijing's currency manipulation and trade
distortions, they say, make it impossible for US companies to compete.
As a crucial primary on Tuesday in the industrial, midwestern US state of Ohio
approaches, Senator Hillary Clinton and Democratic presidential front-runner
Senator Barack Obama are each working to convince voters that they are the
stronger candidate to confront China.
The campaign China-bashing offers another side to what US President George W.
Bush calls the "complicated" relationship with Beijing. His administration has
balanced criticism with a recognition of China as an important trading partner
and as a world power whose cooperation is needed to settle nuclear standoffs
with Iran and North Korea.
Voters are wary of China's rise. With US recession fears growing, many Americans
are more likely to think about jobs lost to China than about the low prices they
pay for Chinese products. Their view of China's power can also be exaggerated: A
recent survey found that four in 10 Americans believed China, not the US, was
the world's top economic power.
Candidates are trying to tap into that unease. Yet, despite the tough talk,
whoever wins the White House could take a more moderate approach The next
president will need Chinese help to confront a host of global issues important
to the US.
Clinton, in a foreign policy speech this week, dealt with voter discomfort with
China. "Today, China's steel comes here and our jobs go there," she said. "We
play by the rules and they manipulate their currency. We get tainted fish and
lead-laced toys and poisoned pet food in return."
Obama has recently called China "the biggest beneficiary and the biggest problem
that we have with respect to trade."
He spoke of Ohio workers watching equipment being "unbolted from the floors of
factories and shipped to China, resulting in devastating job losses and
communities completely falling apart."
In Ohio, where thousands of manufacturing jobs have disappeared this decade, the
complaints on China will appeal to voters.
"China is very front and center," Senator Sherrod Brown, an Democrat from the
state, said. "My guess is both candidates would acknowledge that trade is a
bigger issue in Ohio than even they knew."
China's economic and trade policies have long been criticized by US lawmakers
and manufacturers, especially as a huge US trade deficit with China has grown.
The trade gap has been blamed for contributing to the loss of 3 million
manufacturing jobs in the US since 2000.
Dozens of bills in Congress would punish China for what critics see as unfair
trade practices.
Ralph Cossa, president of the Pacific Forum CSIS think tank, said that whatever
the candidates say about China during the campaign, Bush's successor will find a
way to improve ties with China.
As Obama and Clinton fight for the right to face presumed Republican nominee
Senator John McCain, China is closely watching how it is portrayed by the
candidates.
Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi (楊潔篪) told reporters this week that he
spends "more time watching US television channels and reading US newspapers than
what I did in previous years."
Asked if US-China relations could be hurt by domestic US politics, Yang said it
is a "mainstream consensus" among Democrats and Republicans to "further grow the
relationship with China."
Recently, McCain has measured his comments on China, criticizing its pollution
and efforts on climate change.
He also has taken a tough line, saying the US "must take note" of China's
"warlike rhetoric" toward US ally Taiwan.
China's close economic and diplomatic relations with "pariah states" such as
Myanmar, Sudan and Zimbabwe will result in tensions, McCain wrote in the journal
Foreign Affairs.
Nations are
two-faced
Sunday, Mar 02, 2008, Page 8
While we may congratulate the nations that have recently recognized Kosovo for
their boldness or principled assertions of self-rule, we may now take fresh
occasion to scold them all for their continued scorn of Taiwan's national
sovereignty. And while the merits of Kosovo's case for independence have at
least lingering grounds for debate, there is no uncertainty, outside the scope
of China's flagrantly false propaganda, that Taiwan is anything but an
independent nation.
For the sake of clarity, let it be understood that Taiwan has first, a polity of
citizens, second, a democratically elected president and legislature, third, a
military that is comprised of citizens, fourth, a national currency that is
recognized internationally, fifth, a national passport recognized
internationally and sixth, clearly defined national borders and territory, which
are not in dispute.
If a declaration of independence is necessary, then many of the speeches made by
the sitting president or his predecessor would suffice, as they contain such
verbatim phrases. If historical reference is necessary, one may see that Taiwan
and the outlying islands that constitute its national territory have never at
any time been the property or jurisdiction of the People's Republic of China.
While nations accept Taiwan's money and passports (not to mention technology
exports), they continue the disrespectful, two-faced behavior of voting against
Taiwan's annual appeals to join the UN.
Mark Cartwright
Yuanlin, Taiwan
Identity is
the issue posing the greatest risk
Sunday, Mar 02, 2008, Page 8
`There is still no effective domestic consensus on Taiwan's being an
independent and sovereign state.'
In his book Risk Society, sociologist Ulrich Beck proposed the concept of a
"risk society." He used this concept to highlight the unpredictable high risks
that modern technology brings, such as nuclear disaster or global warming. The
concept implies that risk distribution has become a major issue external to
wealth distribution and can only be prevented by the concerted effort of
humanity as a whole.
At our current level of development, the risk society concept can of course be
applied to Taiwan, which is why the members of the public who questioned the two
presidential candidates during the first televised presidential debate were so
concerned with environmental issues.
Of all the challenges that Taiwan may face in future, however, the most
important may be the risk posed by our fuzzy national identity. In other words,
because Taiwan is so restricted internationally by the "one China" concept, it
has never been able to participate as a normal state at any level of global
governance, instead being abandoned by the international community.
In the domestic political arena, this peculiar international status translates
into a "unification or independence" complex that has resulted in a confused
understanding of national identity. This in its turn has led to the insight that
Taiwan is a "risk state" that continuously has to deal with a stream of domestic
and international attacks and attempts at division.
One example of this is how, when Taiwan's representatives were stopped from
attending the inauguration of South Korea's president a few days ago, some
people in Taiwan said that Taiwan should not have sent "national"
representatives, but rather "party" representatives if they wanted to be assured
admittance.
This kind of discourse highlights the huge differences that exist within Taiwan.
There is still no effective domestic consensus on Taiwan being an independent
and sovereign state, not to mention a consolidated view of "national behavior"
shared by the whole citizenry that would serve to strengthen Taiwan's risk
management ability.
Against this ominous domestic backdrop, what kind of national leader should we
elect? The Taipei Society (澄社) is gathering academics in preparation for a
comprehensive investigation into the presidential candidates' personal
character, their team, policy suggestions, executive abilities and vision. The
most crucial components in this inquiry are their positions on the issue of
national status and in what direction they want to take Taiwan.
Taiwan is not a normal state, a position that implies many unpredictable
dangers. Because of this, the national leader must not be a president for an era
of tranquility. Instead, he must at all times display strong determination and
visionary decision-making to lead the country out of this dangerous situation
and on toward independence to avoid becoming an appendage to another state.
Whether we will elect a president capable of shouldering the important task of
leading a "risk state" will depend on our ability to understand Taiwan's
difficult situation.
Ku Chung-hwa is a professor in the
Department of Sociology at National Chengchi University.