KMT calls for boycott of DPP plebiscite on UN bid
　

By Mo Yan-chih
STAFF REPORTER
Thursday, Mar 13, 2008, Page 1

The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday urged the public to support its referendum on "rejoining" the UN and boycott the Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP) referendum on joining the world body.

The two referendums will be held together with the presidential election next Saturday.

KMT Chairman Wu Poh-hsiung (吳伯雄) lashed out at President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) for using the referendum to manipulate the presidential election and provoke the US, which has expressed its opposition to the DPP's pursuit of "name change via the referendum."

"The DPP referendum has brought danger across the Taiwan Strait and squeezed Taiwan's international space," Wu said, announcing the KMT's decision after a meeting of the Central Standing Committee at party headquarters.

The DPP referendum proposes joining the UN using the name "Taiwan," while the KMT initiative calls for rejoining the world body under the name "Republic of China" or any other "practical title" that upholds the nation's dignity.

Wu said that the KMT-initiated referendum was an expression of the public's desire to join the UN and other international organizations in a flexible and pragmatic way without damaging US-Taiwan relations.

Wu and KMT presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou's (馬英九) campaign manager Chan Chun-po (詹春柏) said that the decision was a consensus reached between the party and the Ma camp, although some KMT members expressed their opposition to both referendums during yesterday's meeting.

"Although the KMT's version was presented by KMT vice presidential candidate Vincent Siew (蕭萬長), I will not support either referendum because of my opposition to holding them together with the election," KMT Legislator John Chiang (蔣孝嚴) said.

KMT Legislator Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱) and Taichung Mayor Jason Hu (胡志強) also called for a boycott of both referendums.

While urging voters to support the KMT's referendum bid, Wu said the party would respect members who boycott both referendums.

"We understand and respect such a stance. They plan to boycott both referendums as a protest against the president's manipulation of referendums," Wu said.

In response to Chen's offer to decouple the referendums from the presidential election in return for lowering the voting threshold for referendums, Wu said the threshold was set by the legislature and the KMT would not respond to the president's unreasonable request.

Wu said the party was willing to review the Referendum Law (公投法) after the election, but not now.

The Referendum Law requires a 50 percent voter turnout -- or approximately 8 million voters -- for the results to be declared valid.

Wu also promised to continue pushing a KMT proposal called "Taiwanese People's Demand to Join the UN" in the legislature.

In response to the KMT's decision, the DPP legislative caucus yesterday urged the KMT and its supporters to respect the spirit of democracy and participate in both referendums.

"The KMT is more than welcome to encourage its supporters to support or veto either of the two referendums but, please, do not give up your rights for both," DPP caucus whip William Lai (賴清德) said at a press conference.

Lai said that the KMT's proposal had been endorsed by more than 1 million people and boycotting it would mean contradicting itself.

"You can vote no, but you should participate in the referendum. That is the message we would like to deliver to the KMT and its supporters," Lai said.

Meanwhile, DPP presidential candidate Frank Hsieh's (謝長廷) campaign team yesterday lambasted the KMT for its contradictory position and "two-faced tactics" on the referendum.

"On the one hand, it seems it is in favor of the referendum, but on the other, it is boycotting it. This is dishonest," Hsieh spokesman Cheng Wen-tsang (鄭文燦) said.

As a responsible party, the KMT owes the public a clear account on where it stood or it would be cheating its supporters, Cheng said.

Human trafficking still a problem in Taiwan: US
　

WOMEN'S RIGHTS: The State Department's `Country Reports on Human Rights Practices 2007' said that rape and domestic violence also remained serious concerns

STAFF WRITER, WITH CNA, WASHINGTON
Thursday, Mar 13, 2008, Page 2

The US Department of State has ranked Taiwan's human rights situation last year as "commendable," with the exception of continued problems in specific areas, including official corruption and human trafficking.

"Taiwan generally respected human rights of its citizens; however, there continued to be problems reported in the following areas: corruption by officials, violence and discrimination against women, trafficking in persons and abuses of foreign workers," the department said in its annual rights report, 2007 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices.

There were also allegations of official corruption during the year even as authorities continued to take action to fight corruption, the report said. Allegations of vote buying persisted, but all political parties were publicly committed to ending the practice.

As of last June, prosecutors had indicted 970 individuals on corruption charges and had convicted 477 people, it said. The accused included 70 high-ranking government officials, 152 mid-level, 201 low-level and 23 elected officials, it said.

In terms of women's rights, the report said violence against women, including rape and domestic violence, remained a serious problem, with the Ministry of the Interior estimating the total number of sexual assaults being 10 times the number reported to the police.

As of last October, a total of 60,326 cases of domestic violence had been reported, marking a 2 percent increase over the previous year, the report said.

On human trafficking, Taiwan was primarily a destination for Southeast Asian and Chinese nationals trafficked into forced labor or sexual exploitation, the report said. There were numerous reports of women -- mainly from Indonesia, Vietnam, the Philippines and Thailand -- being forced or coerced into the commercial sex trade after receiving fraudulent offers of employment or marriage from dishonest labor or marriage brokers, the report said.

There were also reports of women being trafficked from Taiwan for sexual exploitation purposes to Canada, Japan, the UK, the US and other countries, the report said.

Last year, 423 persons were indicted for trafficking related offenses, an increase of 62 percent over the previous year, with some 350 cases still pending at year's end, the report said.

On abuse of foreign workers, brokers and employers regularly impose high brokerage fees and other charges on foreign workers, frequently using the debt as a tool for involuntary servitude, the report said.

The report also said that civilian authorities generally maintained effective control of security forces last year.

KMT, DPP clash at Hsieh's campaign office
　

By Ko Shu-ling
STAFF REPORTER
Thursday, Mar 13, 2008, Page 3

　

Clashes broke out yesterday afternoon when Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators barged into Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate Frank Hsieh's (謝長廷) Taipei campaign office.

Angered by allegations that First Commercial Bank had waived the lease on the office, KMT caucus whip Alex Fai (費鴻泰), along with KMT legislators Chen Chieh (陳杰), Lo Ming-tsai (羅明才) and Luo Shu-lei (羅淑蕾) and party supporters entered the office building at approximately 4pm.

Minister of Finance Ho Chih-chin (何志欽) was also with the group, as the KMT legislators, all members of the Finance Committee, had demanded that Ho accompany them since the ministry supervises the bank.

The group made its way past security guards and up to the campaign office on the 13th floor.

Police from Taipei Police Headquarters' Zhongshan Precinct were called in to maintain order after verbal and physical clashes took place between the KMT lawmakers and Hsieh supporters.

Fai sought refuge in a police car after being punched on the chin, while Lo fled the scene on foot. Angry Hsieh supporters dented the roof of the police car and cracked its windscreen.

Hsieh Hsin-ni (謝欣霓), a spokesperson for Frank Hsieh, suffered minor injuries during the skirmish.

Shouting "thief" and "criminal," Hsieh's staff urged the police to arrest the KMT legislators, claiming they might have stolen classified election documents.

Campaign manager, Lee Ying-yuan (李應元) said that prosecutors should question the lawmakers before releasing them.

"We haven't seen such violence in the run-up to an election for decades," he said. "This is the world's biggest election scandal. The KMT is using this shameful act to divert public attention from the scandal surrounding [KMT presidential candidate] Ma [Ying-jeou, 馬英九] and his losing campaign."

Lee said he told the crowd gathering outside the campaign office that the KMT legislators had interfered with the election and endangered the safety of a presidential candidate.

Hsieh spokesman Cheng Wen-tsang (鄭文燦) said that Ma should apologize for the behavior of the legislators.

Cheng said the legislators had trespassed and that the office was lawfully leased.

The crowd did not disperse until approximately 7pm.

Ma condemned the violence last night and expressed his regrets when asked to comment on the clash.

"I hope that similar incidents will not happen again in the next 10 days, so that we can have a clean and peaceful election -- it's very important for the development of Taiwan's democracy," he said.

Ma later offered an apology after learning that the conflict was sparked by KMT lawmakers attempting to enter Hsieh's campaign office without permission.

Hsieh's campaign said it would file a lawsuit against the lawmakers for forcible invasion and violations of the Presidential and Vice Presidential Election and Recall Law (總統副總統選舉罷免法).

The legislators said that they would file lawsuits against Hsieh's campaign staff for violating their personal liberty.

DPP wants lawmakers investigated
　

By Jimmy Chuang
STAFF REPORTER
Thursday, Mar 13, 2008, Page 3
　

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) yesterday asked for a special task force to investigate whether any lawmakers hold dual citizenship.

"We will file an official proposal asking Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) to organize a special task force to make sure that no [legislator] holds dual citizenship," DPP caucus whip William Lai (賴清德) told the media.

Lai's announcement follows a story in the latest edition of the Chinese-language Next Magazine, which said that Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Diane Lee (李慶安) is a citizen of both Taiwan and the US.

Article 20 of the Nationality Law (國籍法), which came into effect on June 20, 2001, states that foreign citizens are prohibited from holding government office.

If found to hold dual citizenship, deputy caucus whip Chiu Yi-ying (邱議瑩) said Lee would be required to return income estimated at NT$100 million (US$3.2 million).

Chiu said Lee earned approximately NT$19 million during her term as a Taipei City councilor between 1994 and 1998. Since 1998, Chiu said, Lee earned another NT$78 million as a lawmaker.

"In addition to leaving the legislature, she would be required to return the money," Chiu said.

Approached for comment, Lee dismissed the allegations.

Lee said she was granted a US green card approximately 20 years ago when her husband was working in the US. She said she obtained permanent residency in 1985 and US citizenship in 1991.

Showing the media two Taiwanese passports and two used US visitor's visas, Lee said she had given up her US citizenship after returning to Taiwan to serve as a government official.

"For many years, I've used my Taiwanese passport and US [visitor's] visas [to enter the US]," she said.

Lee declined to specify when and how she had given up her US citizenship.

None of the presidential candidates are British citizens, CEC confirms
　

By Loa Iok-sin
STAFF REPORTER
Thursday, Mar 13, 2008, Page 3

The Central Election Commission (CEC) said yesterday that the British government had responded to its inquiry and confirmed that none of the candidates in the presidential election are British citizens.

"The British Foreign and Commonwealth Office has confirmed that there are no records to indicate that presidential candidates Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) and Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) or vice presidential candidates Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) and Vicent Siew (蕭萬長) have been registered or naturalized as British citizens," a statement released by the CEC said.

CEC Secretary-General Teng Tien-yu (鄧天祐) said the commission received the information from the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office at around noon yesterday.

In late January, the Democractic Progressive Party's (DPP) Hsieh accused his Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) counterpart, of holding a US green card. In response, Ma said he once had a green card but it was invalidated in the mid-1980s when he traveled to the US on a visa.

Hsieh insists Ma's green card is still valid. Some members of the DPP and the party's supporters have speculated that Ma may be a US citizen.

To clarify the candidates' citizenship status, the CEC late last month made inquiries through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with the governments of the US, Japan and the UK.

Kaohsiung County Commissioner Yang Chiu-hsing (楊秋興) suggested last week that Ma may be a British citizen, as Ma was born in Hong Kong when it was a British colony. Ma's campaign said the allegation was laughable, but did not rule out legal action.

Survey finds 85 percent support Taiwan's UN bid
　

By Rich Chang
STAFF REPORTER
Thursday, Mar 13, 2008, Page 3

Eighty-five percent of respondents to a recent survey agreed that Taiwan should apply for UN membership, while 89 percent said Taiwan qualified for membership of the international body.

Eighty-nine percent of respondents to the survey, conducted in Taiwan by US-based Zogby International, agreed that the US should support Taiwan's efforts to join the UN.

"The vast majority [97 percent] said they agree that, when deciding whether or not to offer membership, the UN should treat all countries equally and without discrimination. Ninety-six percent believe that on the issue of UN participation, the US should respect every country's right to membership based on the principles of democracy and self-determination," a statement released by Zogby said.

Sixty-three percent of respondents agreed that Taiwan was a sovereign, independent country. Thirty-one percent said Taiwan's sovereignty was undetermined, while 5 percent said China held sovereignty over Taiwan.

Seventy-nine percent supported using the name "Taiwan" for a UN bid, while 64 percent said the "Republic of China" was preferable.

Ma misleading on unity

Thursday, Mar 13, 2008, Page 8

During Sunday's televised presidential debate, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) used the cooperation between EU members as a model for successful economic cooperation between China and Taiwan, or what has been called a "one China market policy."

The comparison is misleading. EU cooperation has been built over years on very strict principles, none of which apply to Taiwan and China.

The EU is composed of 27 independent countries. In other words, each member of the EU recognizes the other members as sovereign nations. This is the foundation for cooperation between European countries and a fundamental condition that does not apply to the relationship between China and Taiwan, as Beijing considers Taiwan a rebel province.

To join the EU a nation must meet the Copenhagen criteria laid down at the June 1993 European Council in Copenhagen, Denmark, which states that a nation must be a stable democracy, respect human rights and the rule of law, protect minorities and have a functioning market economy.

In other words, most of European countries want to form a unity with nations that are politically and economically free, humanitarian and believe that no one is above the law.

Again, none of the above-mentioned applies to China.

Is it then in the interest of Taiwan to join a "one China market" and economically unify with a country that believes in the rule of power, violates human rights and oppresses minorities -- a country that is still far from a free market economy.

Using the EU as an example shows that cooperation and a common market can be built only among countries that have the institutions to preserve democratic governance and human rights.

Hanna Shen
Taipei

　

China wants to manage US policy
　

By Sushil Seth
Thursday, Mar 13, 2008, Page 8

`With Taiwan's vibrant democracy, any ruling political party rash enough to embed with China might not have long to rule.'

China's leadership has tended to largely follow Deng Xiaoping's (鄧小平) advice to "hide our capacities and bide our time." What it means is that Beijing should avoid confrontation with the West, principally the US, until it is in a position to prevail.

And its priority area to prevail is Taiwan. Since the US is committed to help Taiwan defend itself in the event of a Chinese attack, it would mean having to confront the US.

A virtual showdown in the Taiwan Strait in 1996, with two US warships cruising in that direction, had a sobering effect on China.

Since then Beijing has followed a mixture of strategies, including legislative annexation of Taiwan and declaring in essence that any declaration of independence in Taiwan would require China, under its domestic legislation, to take military action.

And to impress its seriousness, Beijing is building up a huge arsenal of missiles targeted at Taiwan by reportedly adding "more than 100 missiles a year to the 1,000 already aimed across the Taiwan Strait."

The context for this new evaluation of the Chinese threat is the Pentagon's annual report to the US Congress on China's military buildup, with another double-digit increase of about 18 percent in its military budget.

China's military spending, according to official figures, recorded an average annual rise of close to 15.8 percent between 2003 and last year.

The official figures, in any case, are a gross underestimation and the real annual defense spending is likely to have been double the official figure, or US$150 billion.

The People's Liberation Army is being transformed, according to the Pentagon evaluation, from a mass army "designed for protracted wars of attrition on its territory to one capable of fighting and winning short-duration wars along its periphery against high-tech adversaries."

And here Taiwan fits into the Chinese scheme of things, if Beijing were to consider a military option.

Even if the military option is not exercised, it nevertheless has to be pretty serious and credible to have the desired effect, as with the massing of hundreds of missiles aimed at Taiwan.

China would like to avoid military confrontation with the US over Taiwan or anywhere else, with the US being by far the strongest military power.

Hence it has a mix of other strategies. Within Taiwan, for instance, it has managed to create important political and business constituencies that favor accommodation with Beijing regarding Taiwan's political status.

These groups, like the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), do not necessarily want to abandon Taiwan's identity but might explore an arrangement to maintain autonomy within the "one China" principle.

Beijing has often maintained that it is prepared for talks within the "one China" formula. And if China, and a KMT government in Taipei, were to work out a formula that rules out a separate Taiwan, any US commitment to defend Taiwan might become redundant.

But it might not be all that simple because any working arrangement between Beijing and Taipei will have a long time frame. And a new government in Taiwan will not be all that keen to abjure US protection during a long transitional relationship between Beijing and Taipei.

At the same time, there is also the "little" matter of considering the popular opinion in Taiwan. The Taiwanese do not want confrontation with China.

But, at the same time, they don't seem keen to be absorbed into it. With Taiwan's vibrant democracy, any ruling political party rash enough to embed with China might not have long to rule.

While China might find living with a new KMT government (if voted into power) congenial, it cannot count on a smooth political trajectory. And the US commitment to defend Taiwan is likely to remain relevant.

Beijing is aware of this, and hence is continuing to build its military capability designed, in the short and medium term, to deter the US from taking on China.

In other words, the US might find the cost of confronting China prohibitive.

And here China's rapid buildup of its submarine fleet is quite instructive. In a recent report from Beijing, New York Times correspondent David Lague wrote: "American and other Western military analysts estimate that China now has more than 30 advanced and increasingly stealthy submarines, and dozens of older obsolete types."

They believe that "by the end of the decade ? China will have more submarines than the United States, although it will still lag behind in overall ability," Lague said.

Another way by which China seeks to manage the US is by creating political leverage on international issues that are important to Washington.

So much so that a view is gaining in some quarters in Washington that Beijing could be a useful partner in managing some of these issues.

This view is reflected in a recent Foreign Affairs article. Authors Stephanie Kleine-Ahlbrandt and Andrew Small wrote: "In just two years, China has moved from outright obstructionism and a defensive insistence on solidarity with the developing world to an attempt to balance its material needs with its acknowledged responsibilities as a major power."

"And so when Washington and its allies formulate their policies toward pariah states, they should assume that China, although in some respects an obstacle, is now also a critical partner," they wrote.

With the US looking to Beijing for support on international issues at a time when Washington is overstretched, Taiwan tends to become a side issue.

The problem, though, is any sign of appeasement on Taiwan would be read by China as the US' faltering resolve to keep actively engaged in the Asia-Pacific.

Some of the regional countries are already factoring this into their policy formulations by seeking political accommodation with China as the pre-eminent regional power.

Sushil Seth is a writer based in Australia.