Green cards
and sovereignty
Thursday, Mar 06, 2008, Page 8
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou's (馬英九)
surreptitious hedge on the fate of Taiwan's sovereignty has come home to roost.
The uproar surrounding his loyalties stems from the KMT's haphazard handling of
Taiwan's sovereignty. This long-standing mindset is itself a manifestation of
the party's ultimate goal of uniting Taiwan with China.
The fact that Ma and the KMT are running his presidential campaign by focusing
on integrating Taiwan's economy into China's while muddling all underlying
sovereignty issues further underscores the urgency of vetting Ma in that
particular light.
During his mercurial rise Ma has at times attempted to convince the Taiwanese
people that he is a Chinese Taiwanese. Former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) once
even went so far as to proclaim Ma a "new" Taiwanese. Ma's US green card
brouhaha has complicated those claims.
Should it be found that Ma kept his green card in the closet for years, and that
the primary reason he tried to become an American in the first place was an
instinctive yearning to belong to a nation when the one he was attached to up to
that juncture was fast sinking into a "non-nation," the fundamental legitimacy
of Ma's candidacy would be called into question. It would indicate the lack an
undivided allegiance to Taiwan.
Significantly, Ma applied for his green card in 1974, three years after Chiang
Kai-shek (蔣介石) abandoned the Republic Of China's (ROC) seat at the UN and at the
height of public anxiety over the imminent derecognition of Chiang's ROC by the
US. Equally noteworthy is the fact that Chiang concurrently turned down an
opportunity to remain in the UN by refusing to define Taiwan's sovereignty,
marking the beginning of another chapter of the KMT's treachery toward Taiwan.
In other words, Ma was, if not still is, a person with a nation while nearly all
Taiwanese weren't, at least not with an internationally recognized one, a
reality which Chiang ascertained in 1971. This, combined with the fact that Ma
has always vehemently defended the notion that the ROC is a state, speaks volume
on Ma's disingenuousness.
Ma's constant aversion to an independent Taiwan compounds that outrage. So does
his continuing objection to a referendum for a UN bid using the name "Taiwan"
that would expand the nation's international space in the long run.
These sentiments reflect the contradiction of Ma's pursuing an office that
symbolizes Taiwan's sovereignty, the very subject Ma and the KMT are trying to
compromise at every turn.
The moral of Ma's situation should serve as a reminder to the Taiwanese people
of the relevancy of issues pertaining to democratization and sovereignty in this
month's poll.
Huang Jei-hsuan
California
Media
failing on international news
By Hsu Yu-fang 許又方
Thursday, Mar 06, 2008, Page 8
I often hear TV news broadcasters use the word "isolationism" when criticizing
the government's China policies. A closer look at the local TV news stations,
however, indicates that it is the local media themselves that are suffering from
isolationism.
I followed developments surrounding Kosovo's declaration of independence. Apart
from a few reports and commentaries in the print media, there was almost nothing
on the TV news apart from scattered mentions.
I was thus forced to turn to CNN, the BBC and other international media outlets
to gain a deeper understanding of events in Kosovo. This begs the question of
where those who don't speak anything but Mandarin or Hoklo should turn. Could it
really be that Kosovo's independence is of no interest at all to Taiwan, a
nation that wants nothing more than to become a full member of the international
community?
We will only be further disappointed if we look to TV news for information on
other international news related to Taiwan.
A week ago, several former US government officials and experts on East Asian
strategy in the Taiwan Policy Working Group published a report titled
Strengthening Freedom in Asia: A Twenty-First Century Agenda for the US-Taiwan
Partnership. In it, they make some important recommendations to the US
government, such as affirming Taiwan's leading position in Asia in terms of
technology, economy and democracy, confirming the strategic importance of Taiwan
and advising that the US must not see Taiwan as an adjunct to Sino-US relations.
The contents of the report were worthy of deeper analysis. Unfortunately, most
TV stations either ignored or only briefly reported it. I monitored one of the
news stations most persistent in its critique of the government for almost an
hour and it did not say a word about the report.
At a Washington seminar last month Bonnie Glaser of the Center for Strategic and
International Studies mentioned a study conducted by Chinese academics on
Taiwan's upcoming presidential election, citing their prediction that there
might only be a narrow margin of 6 percent between Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT)
presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)
candidate Frank Hsieh (謝長廷). Perhaps I am ignorant and ill-informed, but I do
not remember seeing this news reported on local TV.
Although such news events happen overseas and are categorized as "international
news," they are closely related to Taiwan in light of their regional
significance. But news stations either ignore them or only mention them briefly.
If the media are not active even when dealing with news related to us, how would
they deal with international news that appears to be unrelated to us?
As for the media channels that often push the government to loosen its
cross-strait policy, they themselves seldom report China's situation and
problems, and fail to give us an understanding of whether we are dealing with
friends or foes. Regardless of whether we support unification or independence,
shouldn't people on both sides of the Strait at least have some general
understanding of each other?
According to research, narratives of more than 1,000 words cause impatience in
most readers. Fewer people read newspapers now, and their in-depth grasp of news
correspondingly weakens. Hence the electronic media have become the fastest and
most convenient conduit for information.
But news stations are not fully realizing their responsibilities. They focus on
political confrontation, social incidents and even entertainment gossip,
bombarding the audience with the same news again and again.
Although some weekly news programs do occasionally cover international
headlines, the proportion is still insignificant -- let alone the fact that some
falsify news reports.
Even the most popular political commentary shows in Taiwan restrict themselves
to the confrontation between the blue and green camps without a sense of right
and wrong. Their general attitude is one of disinterest with any other issues.
No wonder the Taiwanese public is unaware of the international situation and has
little awareness for matters that should be general knowledge. This is a result
of the media's "isolationism," and their neglect to perform their duty to
disseminate information.
Hsu Yu-fang is an associate professor
of Chinese at National Dong Hwa University.