ECFA to continue despite poll outcome
　

TRANSPARENCY PROMISES: The president said he would forge ahead with the ECFA, but promised to keep the legislature informed and make the negotiations transparent
　

By Shih Hsiu-chuan and Ko Shu-ling
STAFF REPORTERS
Tuesday, Dec 08, 2009, Page 1

“There is no need to fine-tune our cross-strait policy.”— Wu Den-yih, premier

Premier Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) said yesterday there was no need to revise the government’s cross-strait policies despite the party’s lackluster performance in Saturday’s local elections.

Wu made the remarks when asked for comment on whether the poll results would affect the government’s plans for an economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) with China or its other cross-strait policies.

“There is no need to fine-tune our cross-strait policy,” Wu said, adding that the government would pursue policies in line with the principles of “putting Taiwan first” and “benefiting the public.”

An ECFA can be signed as long as three conditions are met: The nation needs it, the public supports it and there is legislative oversight, he said, adding that the ECFA will proceed as scheduled — meaning that it should be inked at the fifth round of cross-strait talks early next year.

“That’s the plan for now, but we need more public support,” Wu said. “Surveys conducted recently showed that approval rates were between 50 and 56 percent. If the rate goes above 60 percent and the disapproval rate falls below 20 percent that will be better for signing the ECFA.”

The government has not dispelled the public’s misunderstandings concerning the ECFA, Wu said, adding that it would step up its efforts.

“In southern Taiwan, there are people saying that the government has allowed [imports of] many agricultural products from the mainland since [President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) took office], but that’s not true … Also, on labor matters, there is a false rumor about [Taiwan importing] mainland workers [after singing an ECFA],” Wu said.

At a separate setting yesterday, Ma vowed to forge ahead with the ECFA, but promised to keep the legislature informed and make the negotiations and content as transparent as possible.

Ma said his administration would work to convince the public that not signing an ECFA would be detrimental to the nation.

“Our policy is to take a Taiwan-centric approach,” he said. “We will further the interests of Taiwanese. Cross-strait negotiations will benefit both sides if they are conducted under the principle of equality and dignity.”

Ma made the remarks while meeting winners of this year’s National Outstanding Manager Awards at the Presidential Office yesterday morning.

With the fourth round of high-level, cross-strait talks scheduled to take place in Taichung later this month, Ma said there would not be any “politically sensitive language” in the agreements to be signed because they were “very technical” in nature.

The talks between Straits Exchange Foundation Chairman Chiang Pin-kung (江丙坤) and his Chinese counterpart, Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait Chairman Chen Yunlin (陳雲林), will address four issues: fishing industry cooperation, quality checks of agricultural products, cooperation on inspection and certification, and preventing double taxation.

Ma said he has asked government agencies to make the four agreements as transparent as possible. Citing the financial memorandum of understanding (MOU) recently signed with Beijing, Ma said the public would know that it is not political as soon as the Financial Supervisory Commission makes public the content. In order to maintain the principles of equality and dignity, Ma said both sides had used less sensitive titles to dodge the sovereignty issue.

“Because the public is very concerned about this, we are very sensitive in handling the matter,” he said.

As the two sides will “exchange opinions” on an ECFA during the Chiang-Chen meeting, Ma said the government would report to the legislature before the ECFA is signed and send the agreements to the legislature for approval after they are signed.

“Thus there will be discussion and the information will be transparent,” he said. “If not, the public could misunderstand and we would have greater difficulty pushing this policy.”

Calling the ECFA necessary, Ma said it was not easy to sign free-trade agreements with the nation’s major trading partners because they were not diplomatic allies.

“But if we can make a breakthrough in an ECFA with the mainland, other countries may be more willing to negotiate with us and this is very important for Taiwan,” he said. “If we don’t overcome such obstacles, it will have a negative impact on Taiwan’s trading business. This is a problem that no party in power can avoid.”

On Chinese agricultural products, Ma said the government had not allowed imports of new products over the past 19 months, nor would they do so if the country signed an ECFA or “anything else,” he said.

At a separate setting yesterday, KMT Legislator Huang Chao-shun (黃昭順) said the KMT risked another blow in future elections unless the government revises its cross-strait policies.

“The ECFA, cross-strait policies and US beef [imports] caused the KMT to fail in [Saturday’s] elections. Voters taught the KMT a lesson. If it does not change, they will teach it another lesson,” she said.

Meanwhile, at the legislature, Minister of Economic Affairs Shih Yen-hsiang (施顏祥) agreed with KMT Legislator Lai Shyh-bao’s (賴士葆) proposal that a TV debate be held to inform the public about the ECFA.

Lai said the ECFA lacked public support mainly because the ministry had not succeeded in promoting the advantages of the pact. He suggested a TV debate could help.

Shih said many people in farming regions remained unconvinced that the ECFA would not result in imports of Chinese workers and agricultural products, despite repeated assurances from the ministry.

Some underground radio shows are misleading people about the ECFA, Shih said, adding that a TV debate “could be planned” as Lai suggested.

In related news, Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) said that Taiwan must try to sign free-trade pacts with the US, Japan, Singapore, the EU and Southeastern Asian countries after inking an ECFA, as this would ease public misgivings about relying too much on China.

Wu also said that a minor Cabinet reshuffle was planned for Dec. 20.

Wu dismissed allegations that the reshuffle was related to the elections, but said: “It would be suitable for excellent county commissioners and city mayors to continue to serve the public in the Executive Yuan or at state-run enterprises once they retire as local government heads.”

Taipei prosecutors question former Chen housekeeper
　

By Shelley Huang
STAFF REPORTER
Tuesday, Dec 08, 2009, Page 2

Taipei district prosecutors yesterday questioned a former housekeeper of former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) on suspicion that she had given false testimony when questioned before about Chen's expenses.

Lo Shih Li-yun (羅施麗雲), known to many as “Mrs Lo,” worked for more than a decade for the former president and his wife Wu Shu-jen (吳淑珍) and developed a close relationship with them.

Lo mainly worked as a caregiver for the former first lady. She was also partly involved in the family's expenses because she was often sent out to buy food or supplies for the former first family.

The Taipei District Court had asked prosecutors to investigate Lo and others who had been questioned before regarding the former first family's expenses. Lo is suspected of purposely giving false testimony and destroying evidence to protect the former president and his wife from being convicted of embezzlement.

Lo and her husband, both of whom had been summoned by district prosecutors for questioning on suspicion of perjury, arrived at the Taipei District Prosecutors' Office yesterday afternoon, but declined to say anything to reporters.

Prosecutors said Lo and her husband had previously testified that Chen used part of the money from the presidential “state affairs fund” to award her and her husband for their work for the family. However, the district court asked prosecutors to investigate the matter and gather evidence on whether the two were telling the truth about Chen's use of public funds.

On Sept 11, Chen and his wife were convicted by the district court of a number of charges, including embezzlement of the “state affairs fund.” Their cases are both under appeal.

Interaction with other nations aids rights, Wang says
　

By Jenny W. hsu
STAFF WRITER
Tuesday, Dec 08, 2009, Page 3

Increased participation in international organizations and signing trade pacts with major countries besides China are major factors that will contribute to human rights, Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) said yesterday.

Speaking at a press conference held to publicize Shih Hsin University’s yearly survey “Taiwan: Civil Liberty and Political Rights,” Wang, who also serves as the chairman of the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy, said increased involvement in UN specialized agencies would ensure the public of better access to information and help Taiwan connect with the rest of the world.

After its accession to the World Health Assembly as an observer this May, Taiwan is vying to have more “meaningful participation” to two UN specialized agencies — the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the International Civil Aviation Organization.

Wang said the nation’s continual survival and its human rights hinge upon the support of the global community. Moreover, as the government looks to sign an economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) with Beijing, it should also expedite signing similar trade pacts with other key players, such as the US, Japan, the EU and ASEAN nations.

By forging stronger economic ties in these regions, Wang said, it will lessen public concern over Taiwan’s dependency on the Chinese market and boost the country’s competitive edge.

Wang urged bipartisan support for the two UN human rights covenants that President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) recently signed — the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights — and also urged the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) to stop paralyzing the legislature over the opening up to US bone-in beef imports.

Ma is scheduled to officially announce that the nation has signed the two UN covenants on Thursday.

The survey was conducted on a sample of 1,068 respondents and it covered six areas — personal liberty, individual freedom and equality, religious freedom, freedom to assemble, freedom to vote and access to public services.

The survey showed that, while the respondents gave the human rights situation a score of 3.26 out of five, the so-called “social elite” gave a slightly higher score of 3.37. The term “social elites” refers to academics and “experts,” the university said.

The survey also showed that vote-buying is still considered a prevalent problem and the respondents also questioned the government’s emergency response abilities.

While the “social elite” gave a 3.61 mark for the freedom to assemble and join civic groups, the public only marked it 3.25, possibly a result of disagreements over the contents of the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法), academics said.

Freedom of mobility received the highest score of 4.07 and 4.27 from the public and the “social elite” respectively, the poll showed.

Poll blow may stall China ties, forum told
　

ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT: Law professor Raymond Wu said he foresaw a 'temporary pause' in cross-strait ties, but the government's China policies would not change
　

By Ko Shu-ling
STAFF REPORTER
Tuesday, Dec 08, 2009, Page 3
　

Cross-strait interaction may be suspended following the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) setback in Saturday’s local elections, but the government’s cross-strait policies are unlikely to undergo major changes, a panelist attending a forum on the elections said yesterday.

Raymond Wu (吳瑞國), a law professor at Fu Jen Catholic University, said he foresaw a “temporary pause” in cross-strait relations, especially political issues, but he did not expect to see any major change to the government’s China policy.

“I don’t see any changes in terms of direction or the administration’s efforts to build a closer economic relationship with the Chinese mainland in the foreseeable future,” he said in English. “I certainly think that signing an economic cooperation framework agreement [ECFA] next year will be a possibility.”

Wu made the remarks at a forum conducted in English and organized by the Taiwan Thinktank to discuss the results and implications of Saturday’s elections.

The KMT clinched 12 of the 17 counties and cities in the elections, but only won 47.88 percent of the total vote, a drop of 2 percent from the 2005 elections.

While the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) secured only four of the counties and cities, it received 45.32 percent of the total ballot, a 7.2 percent increase.

Describing the elections as a “momentum builder,” Wu urged the DPP to refrain from “exploiting the situation” by staging violent protests during the visit of China’s Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait Chairman Chen Yunlin (陳雲林) to Taichung later this month.

“The DPP should protest, voice their discontent for being neglected, excluded from cross-strait relations. They [grievances] are all legitimate,” he said. “If they think this [strong showing in Saturday’s elections] is a blank check from voters to go all-out on cross-strait exchanges, I think it will backfire.”

For Beijing, Wu said the elections would make China realize that the DPP remained a viable player in Taiwanese politics. Therefore, the public should not be surprised to see Beijing continue its efforts to reach out to the DPP.

“I don’t want to rule out the possibility that one of the DPP’s leading politicians or personalities may pay a visit to the mainland in the foreseeable future,” he said.

Michael Hsiao (蕭新煌), executive director of Academia Sinica’s Center for Asia-Pacific Area Studies, said Saturday’s elections were definitely a “mid-term examination” for President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), despite his party’s comments to the contrary.

Hsiao said although it was inappropriate to see the local elections as a no-confidence vote in Ma, voters, especially those in rural areas, are worried about losing their jobs when the government signs an ECFA with Beijing.

Hsiao said he hoped the Ma administration would slow down the pace of its China policies and cancel Chen’s planned trip. If Ma continues to ignore public sentiment, Hsiao said, he would agitate the DPP and the public and stir up more resentment.

Analyzing the KMT’s setback, director of the DPP’s International Affairs Division Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) said the poor performance was the result of voters’ dissatisfaction with Ma’s incompetence, his arrogance and his government’s failure to listen to the needs and demands of the public, specifically on his policy toward China. She said China policy was moving too fast without there being adequate communication with the public on the process, which was moving ahead in a “not very transparent” way.

Saturday’s elections were an asymmetrical battle, she said, in terms of resources and access to the media, as the government is the biggest player in the media market.

The DPP was “out of the hospital bed” and taking its first steps, she said, adding that the patient was in the recovery phase and was being nursed back to health.

Tsai soars, but image needs a tweak

Tuesday, Dec 08, 2009, Page 8

Following the gains the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) made in the local government elections on Saturday, the popularity of DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) has increased alongside the power she wields within the party. The results of a survey announced yesterday showed that her approval rate is now 43 percent, up from 27 percent in May, while that of President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) has slipped from 52 percent in May to 33 percent.

Though some interpreted Saturday’s elections as a “mid-term” exam for Ma and a gauge of the DPP’s chances in the legislative and presidential elections in 2012, the results are not, on their own, sufficiently positive to represent a shift in the fortunes of the green camp.

In fact, given the many blunders committed by the Ma administration since it came to office in May last year — from its mishandling of Typhoon Morakot to its disregard for opposing voices on its cross-strait policies — Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) candidates did surprisingly well in distancing themselves from the increasingly toxic central government, demonstrating yet again that politics are, above all, local.

In a way, if we look at Saturday’s elections as a referendum on the KMT in general and Ma in particular, we could argue that the party passed, while Ma came close to flunking. This shows us that voters are capable of distinguishing one from the other and that Ma’s misfortunes will not inevitably drag the KMT down. As more than two years separate us from the critical elections, the KMT will have sufficient time to rebuild its image and perhaps rid itself of members who risk undermining its chances of remaining in power. This could even mean nixing a Ma candidacy.

Still, the DPP has been handed an opportunity to regain momentum and to rebuild itself after years of decline. A main component to that effort will be rebranding the party as one that is more middle-of-the-road than that which, in the public eye, had grown increasingly nationalistic and exclusionary during former president Chen Shui-bian’s (陳水扁) second term. This, above all, will require efforts to convince the public, investors, the business sector and the international community that it is not anti-business or, as some media continue to characterize the DPP, “anti China.”

What it must make its detractors realize is that despite its pro-independence platform, the DPP does not advocate policies that pretend that China does not exist, nor does it seek to fuel animosities in the Taiwan Strait. It is ossible to be pro-independence and to seek closer, friendlier relations with Beijing, which, for the most part, is what the DPP tried to achieve while in office. The perception of the DPP as a “radical” and “anti-China” party may be unfair, the result of a smear campaign by Beijing, the KMT and pan-blue media, but as long as that image endures, the DPP’s chances of winning enough people to its side — and this means light-blues — to stage a comeback in 2012 will be slim.

Tsai has reached a point where people are more likely to listen to her. Now’s the time for her to engage in public diplomacy to dispel the myths that have long haunted her party and to rid it of those who risk undermining its image as a responsible alternative to the KMT.

Loud and clear, she must state that the DPP is not “anti” anything — above all China — but rather that it stands “for” many things.

Ethics must outweigh press freedom
　

By Ko Yu-fen 柯裕棻
Tuesday, Dec 08, 2009, Page 8

‘When commercial media outlets start making noise about how they are reporting news from the perspective of the common people and claiming that they are giving people the news they want, they are doing the exact opposite.’

The recent negative attention surrounding Next Media’s News-in-Motion died down more quickly than expected, as the company, the Taipei City Government and protest groups were satisfied with how the issue was resolved. The conflict was a contest between many parties, including many media outlets. In the end, the incident was solved to everyone’s satisfaction, which is very rare indeed.

However, the incident raised several issues that we have to deal with to improve the local media environment.

From a legal standpoint, we must ask whether using classifications to indicate that content may be unsuitable for certain viewers is the best way to deal with every kind of news content. Is it appropriate to prohibit people from subscribing to a certain media outlet or advocate blocking links to certain media sites if public or government institutions deem their content to be inappropriate?

While these methods do not harm press freedom, they do affect readers or viewers of such media.

Also, while the government’s excuse of “I am not allowing you to view this for your own good” may make media outlets change their practices temporarily, do we want this kind of conservative thinking in the long term?

On the other hand, the commercial competition in the media market has turned this issue into something more than a debate about press freedom. To use an expression commonly seen in the Chinese-language Apple Daily, the media has been “played to death.” This is how press freedom has been “played to death” by commercialization: Because people enjoy sensational news reports, media outlets do their best to cater to the tastes of their audience. This has caused news reporting to become increasingly lowbrow.

However, as soon as anyone demands that controls over news be enforced, there is danger of restricting press freedom. This means that anyone calling for self restraint or control of news content may be infringing on press freedom, and they may be branded conservatives.

So, in today’s commercialized media world we still advocate press freedom, but apart from venting our anger on bulletin board services or personal Web pages, what else can we do when the content of news is inappropriate?

First, we should get rid of the misconception that commercialization represents the public. Commercialization does not equate representation of public opinion and interests. Media commercialization represents the opinions and interests of media moguls.

When commercial media outlets start making noise about how they are reporting news from the perspective of the common people and claiming that they are giving people the news they want, they are doing the exact opposite. We can see this in how they go to all lengths in their satirical and mocking social news reporting.

If they really wanted to report news from the perspective of the public, how could they so happily feed off victims and other unfortunate involved parties, especially stories that affect the poor or the disadvantaged? Each picture of a bloody corpse is that of a victim of a crime or accident, and each family where incest has occurred has its own heartbreaking story. Every elderly person, woman or child who has been a victim of domestic violence should be treated with dignity and be given his or her right to privacy.

If commercial media outlets were really concerned about the public, how could they capitalize on people’s sufferings the way they do?

In the face of commercialization, conservatives demand more media controls, while the middle class advocate mainstream moral ethics. However, restrictions and moral ethics are not the mainbases for media reform.

Journalistic ethics has never been a simple opposition between the conservative middle class and mass commercialization. We should take a more active approach to discussing the public and class issues that appear time and time again in social news reporting. We should also angrily protest against and resist the commercialization that takes place in the name of freedom.

We really need to create a new theory of media reform. I say this because demanding journalistic ethics and dignity is not a conservative idea, but a progressive one. As for those commercial media outlets that only want to make money despite pledging to place the public first, all I can say is that they are even more hypocritical and conservative than any of the stories they have ever reported.

Ko Yu-fen is an associate professor of journalism at Cheng Chi University.