ARATS chief Chen arrives to protests
　

'GOODWILL': Chen Yunlin wished his ‘compatriots’ happiness and safety on behalf of the ‘mainland,’ and said he respected the opinions of the Taiwanese
　

By Ko Shu-ling
STAFF REPORTER, TAICHUNG
Tuesday, Dec 22, 2009, Page 1
　

China’s top cross-strait negotiator arrived in Taichung yesterday for a five-day meeting with his Taiwanese counterpart amid protests at the airport and his hotel.

Waving to protesters standing outside the cordoned off area surrounding his hotel, Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait (ARATS) Chairman Chen Yunlin (陳雲林) told those who welcomed him inside the hotel that he had noted on his way from the airport and outside the hotel that many of his “countrymen” did not welcome him.

‘RESPECT’

Chen said he also saw many who supported his visit and wanted to see the ARATS and the Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) sit down and talk about and resolve the problems facing both sides of the Taiwan Strait.

“We fully respect the different opinions expressed by our countrymen,” he said.

“For those countrymen who welcome us, I want to say thank you. Thank you, my friends, for your hospitality,” he said.

Chen also thanked the security personnel supervising his visit, whom he referred to as his “brothers and sisters,” as well as Taichung Mayor Jason Hu (胡志強).
　

Saying that he represented his “fellow countrymen on the mainland,” the ARATS chairman added that he wanted to wish his 23 million “Taiwanese compatriots” happiness and safety.

Chen arrived at Taichung’s Cingcyuangang Airport an hour later than expected.

His entourage exited from one of the main back gates at the airport, avoiding pro-independence activists who had assembled at another gate.

He said he was “greatly excited” that the SEF and the ARATS could do something “practical” for the people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait.

MOVING FORWARD

Over the past year, Chen said the two agencies had signed nine agreements and one consensus, all of which were conducive to the two sides’ economic development and public welfare.

Furthermore, negotiations were conducted on an equal footing and communications were always friendly, he said. The two sides had reached consensus on numerous matters and were moving forward in a practical fashion, he said.

“History has proven and will continue to prove that cross-strait relations are continuing without interruption down the correct path,” he said. “The agreements also show that more people will benefit from them in a more direct way.”

Chen said an increasing number of people — especially “Taiwanese compatriots” — value the mechanism for negotiations between the two sides. The talks have advanced the bilateral economies and well-being of both sides, he said.

‘TEN SUPERHIGHWAYS’

But “there is still a long way to go,” he said. “There may be difficulties ahead, but as long as we keep moving forward, we will see a broader road leading to peace.”

Chen expressed sympathy for the victims of Saturday’s earthquake, which struck off the coast of Hualien County, killing one and injuring 12.

Chiang said the previous nine agreements and one consensus were “10 superhighways” enabling exchanges of people, capital and commodities across the Taiwan Strait.

“Our goal is to pursue peace in the Taiwan Strait and create a win-win situation,” he said.

Looking ahead, Chiang said the new year would be full of opportunities and challenges, but the wisdom and cooperation of the SEF and ARATS could turn challenges into opportunities.

Independence activists and civic groups vowed yesterday to stage more demonstrations against Chen’s visit and the cross-strait policies of President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration.

During the meeting this week, Taiwan and China are expected to sign economic agreements on fishing crew cooperation, agricultural quarantine inspection, industrial product standards, and inspection and certification.

Thousands of police deployed in Taichung
　

By Jenny W. hsu
STAFF REPORTER, TAICHUNG
Tuesday, Dec 22, 2009, Page 1

“Anything they sign has to be approved by the people of Taiwan, but we don’t even know what they’re going to sign.”— Huang Chun-jung, 27, protester from southern Taiwan

Heavily policed protests greeted Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait Chairman Chen Yunlin (陳雲林) yesterday upon arrival in Taichung for the fourth round of cross-strait talks.

More than 500 protesters mobilized by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and Falun Gong spiritual movement gathered on the main road leading to Taichung’s Cingcyuangang Airport, calling for Chen to be deported.

The group used balloons to form the characters “One Taiwan, One China” (一台一中), accusing President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) of kowtowing to Beijing and selling out Taiwan.

Police had barricaded the area surrounding the airport. Taichung County Police Bureau said about 1,000 officers were at the airport to ensure Chen’s safety.

Police officers stood on the roofs of homes near the airport with video recorders to collect evidence in case of clashes. Anti-riot police stood by with wooden batons and metal shields.

A string of minor scuffles broke out as protesters and unification supporters engaged in a shouting match, prompting police to dispatch its anti-riot squad.

Around 30 members of the China Unification Promotion Party were allowed into the restricted area because they had purchased plane tickets to Penghu. Once inside, they pulled out red banners about 40 minutes prior to boarding time to welcome Chen, shouting unification slogans.

Nine DPP Taichung County councilors who were sitting outside the airport lobby fired back, telling the unificationists to “get out of Taiwan and go back to China” and that “Communist Chen” was not welcome.

The two groups began shoving each other and hurling insults, but police did not arrive until a few minutes after the tension subsided. No injuries were reported.

DPP Taipei City councilor Chuang Ruei-hsiung (莊瑞雄) tried unsuccessfully to enter the airport lobby, but was apprehended by police guarding the door.

Chen left the airport through the back entrance, avoiding the front lobby and protesters waiting outside.

The DPP said it was “regrettable” that Chen was afraid to face the “real voice” of the Taiwanese.

“Anything they sign has to be approved by the people of Taiwan, but we don’t even know what they’re going to sign,” Huang Chun-jung, 27, a protester from southern Taiwan, said at the airport.

“We’re going to use peaceful means today to express our opposition,” Huang said.

About 200 protesters, organized by the DPP, shouted “Taiwan, China, one country on either side [of the Taiwan Strait],” as Chen was driven away on a guarded back road.

Falun Gong practitioners, a spiritual group that China has vowed to exterminate, gathered in groups at various intersections and open areas near the Windsor Hotel where Chen is staying.

When Chen’s motorcade arrived at the hotel, it was welcomed by protesters using air horns and chanting “Taiwan, China, one country on either side.”

A heavy police presence was stationed outside the hotel, which was surrounded by rows of barbed wire and a total of 5,000 officers deployed to keep order.

Meanwhile, the DPP held a meeting yesterday to discuss rapid responses to any emergencies that might arise during the talks.

DPP Secretary-General Su Jia-chyuan (蘇嘉全) said after the meeting that as a democratic and free country, Taiwan should honor freedom of expression and that it is inappropriate and unnecessary for police to tighten security in certain areas. Su gave assurance that the protests the DPP would stage in Taichung in the next few days would be peaceful.

He also cautioned protesters to watch out for their own safety and resist being provoked by agitators.

At a meeting on Saturday with Taichung Mayor Jason Hu (胡志強), Su told him that the protests would not involve any “sabotage,” to which Hu responded that while the city government respects the public’s right to protest, demonstrations should be peaceful.

Hu also said he had cautioned the police against overreacting when facing protesters.

At a separate setting yesterday, KMT caucus secretary-general Lu Hsueh-chang (呂學樟) urged the DPP to make protests peaceful.

“I’m going to call on DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen [蔡英文] to manage certain individuals [in the demonstrations],” Lu told a press conference, without clarifying what he meant.

Lu said the cross-strait agreements to be signed were meant to improve the livelihood of Taiwanese, adding that he could not comprehend the DPP’s opposition to them.
　

President reminds police to respect rights of protesters
　

By Ko Shu-ling
STAFF REPORTER, TAICHUNG
Tuesday, Dec 22, 2009, Page 1

President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday reminded law enforcement officers to honor freedom of assembly during cross-strait talks in Taichung and take security measures only when necessary.

Ma also asked government authorities to make public most of the visiting Chinese delegation’s itinerary after complaints about lack of transparency from journalists.

Presidential Office Spokesman Wang Yu-chi (王郁琦) briefed reporters yesterday after Ma chaired the Presidential Office’s regular morning meeting to discuss media coverage.

Wang said Ma made four points at the meeting. First, law enforcement officers should protect freedom of assembly and avoid security measures that are not necessary.

Second, the itinerary of Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait (ARATS) Chairman Chen Yunlin (陳雲林) should be as open and transparent as possible.

“The president thinks media and pan-green supporters should have access to information on Chen’s itinerary,” Wang said. “The government’s position is that it is unnecessary to take an overly cautious approach and keep information on Chen’s public appearances secret [until they occur].”

If information is made public in advance, misunderstandings can be averted, Wang said.

Third, Ma asked the public to excuse the inconvenience caused by traffic measures during Chen’s visit, as these were meant to ensure freedom of assembly, Wang said.

Finally, Ma hoped that foreign correspondents would contact government agencies in writing reports to avoid errors resulting from insufficient information.

Ma does not normally chair the media meeting but did so yesterday to keep abreast of agencies’ handling of the protests against Chen’s visit. Yesterday was the second time Ma has chaired the meeting. The last time was in November last year ahead of Chen’s first visit.

Premier Wu Den-yih (吳敦義), National Security Council Secretary-General Su Chi (蘇起), National Security Bureau Director-General Tsai Der-sheng (蔡得勝), Vice Minister of the Interior Lin Join-sane (林中森) and Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Secretary-General King Pu-tsung (金溥聰) also attended yesterday’s meeting.

An itinerary unveiled later yesterday showed the Chinese delegation would attend a banquet hosted by Miaoli County Commissioner Liu Cheng-hung (劉政鴻) tomorrow, followed by a tour of a science park in Taichung. Chen and his wife will also visit the Sanyi Woodcarving Museum. Chen will also visit the Zhenlan Temple in Dajia (大甲).

On Thursday, Chen and Chiang will visit the Chung Tai Zen Center of Sunnyvale, another temple. Chen will tour Sun Moon Lake before dining with Nantou County Commissioner Lee Chao-ching (李朝卿).
　

Officer penalized for using pepper spray on protesters
　

By Jenny W. hsu
STAFF REPORTER, TAICHUNG
Tuesday, Dec 22, 2009, Page 3

A Taichung City policeman was penalized yesterday for using pepper spray on two protesters on Sunday night, but the police said his demerit was for carrying non-standard equipment rather than for assaulting the protesters, adding that he acted in self-defense.

Taichung Mayor Jason Hu (胡志強) apologized for the incident and promised to look into the matter.

Hu has pledged to step down if any civilians are injured because of police misconduct under his watch.

The Taichung City Police Bureau said police officer Sung Kuo-tong (宋國棟) was part of a detail dispatched to disperse a crowd of pro-independence supporters protesting the fourth round of cross-strait talks after a Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) rally ended on Sunday night.

The protesters, led by Taiwan Association of University Professors chairman Tsai Ting-kuei (蔡丁貴), reportedly attempted to barge into the fenced-off area around the Winsdor Hotel where the Chinese delegation is staying during its five-day visit.

A physical altercation occurred when police tried to disperse the crowd, a police press release said, adding that fourth precinct deputy chief Lu Chin-lung (盧進隆) was hit in the neck by a protester’s placard during the scuffle.

The statement said that Sung, a self-defense instructor, was trying protect his superior and himself when he used the pepper spray on the protesters.

The two people, one of whom was Tsai’s wife, sustained minor eye injuries and were released from hospital after treatment.

The police agreed that Sung was in the wrong for carrying pepper spray, which is not standard police equipment, but said his actions were in self-defense.

Sung was penalized for carrying non-standard equipment and has been removed from the assignment.

The DPP yesterday offered free legal assistance to the two individuals if they choose to sue over the incident.

DPP Secretary-General Su Jia-chyuan (蘇嘉全), who is heading the DPP’s ad-hoc emergency response center, advised all protesters to carry a cellphone or video-recording device at all times to collect evidence on any provocative actions of the part of the police.

“Taiwan is a free democratic country with freedom of speech being the most important value. All people are entitled to speak freely. The police have zero excuse to shortchange the people’s right to express themselves,” Su said.

KMT denies 'selling out' Taiwan
　

By Mo Yan-chih
STAFF REPORTER
Tuesday, Dec 22, 2009, Page 3

The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday dismissed Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) accusation of selling out Taiwan in the fourth round of cross-strait negotiations and urged her to offer evidence of the government damaging Taiwanese sovereignty.

“We urge Ms. Tsai to give solid evidence and show which of the four major issues in the cross-strait negotiations sell out Taiwan. Which issue damaged the nation’s sovereignty?” KMT spokesman Lee Chien-jung (李建榮) said at KMT headquarters.

Straits Exchange Foundation Chairman Chiang Pin-kung (江丙坤) and Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait Chairman Chen Yunlin (陳雲林) are scheduled to sign agreements today covering fishing industry cooperation, quality checks of agricultural products and cross-strait cooperation in standardized inspections.

The two sides will also “exchange opinions” on an economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA), which President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) has said the ­government hopes to sign with Beijing next year.
　

The DPP said Ma’s intended trade deal would flood Taiwan with cheap Chinese products, make Taiwan more reliant on China and prompt massive job losses.

“Our president has turned blind to the possibility that jobs will be lost” after signing the ECFA with China, Tsai told protesters on Sunday.

“We oppose the Ma government striking any under-the-table deal with China,” DPP spokesman Tsai Chi-chang (蔡其昌) said yesterday. “Right now many agreements with China are not monitored by the legislature nor approved by the people, and they could hurt Taiwan’s economy and cost many jobs.”

Lee brushed off the DPP’s criticism against the government’s non-transparency in its policy-making decision process on cross-strait issues and challenged Tsai Ing-wen for also failing to disclose the contents of negotiations during her tenure as chairperson of the Mainland Affairs Council.

The KMT also urged the DPP to offer “alternative plans” to an ECFA if they oppose signing one.

“Has the DPP ever signed any FTAs [free-trade agreements] with the US, the European Union or ASEAN countries?” Lee said.

Lee dismissed Tsai Ing-wen’s claim that Ma refused to communicate with opposition parties and urged her to not “distort” the truth.

Learning the lessons of Kaohsiung

Tuesday, Dec 22, 2009, Page 8

On Dec. 10, 1979, the publishers of Formosa Magazine, a dissident monthly of which only four issues had been published, held a public meeting in Kaohsiung to mark Human Rights Day. The rally ended with clashes between the public and police and military personnel, in which dozens of people were injured. Two days later, the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) government arrested dissidents in a mass roundup.

Independent legislator and Formosa Magazine publisher Huang Hsin-chieh (黃信介) and others were tried for sedition, convicted and sentenced to long jail terms. This event came to be known as the Kaohsiung Incident. This month, 30 years after the incident, the Kaohsiung City Government and civic groups have been holding activities to commemorate this key event in the history of Taiwan’s democratic development.

The crises and opportunities highlighted by the incident have important implications for today’s Taiwan, where democracy is on the retreat and national sovereignty is being whittled away. People in Taiwan should look back at what happened and, as was stressed at a commemorative evening held at Kaohsiung’s Dagangpu Circle (大港埔圓環), the scene of the original events, we should strive for democracy, solidarity and love for Taiwan.

The Kaohsiung Incident took place at a time when political, economic and military powers were all concentrated in the hands of the KMT. Taiwanese were not allowed to set up their own political parties, so all dissidents were known as dangwai (黨外) or “outside the party.” Their demands — the right to form parties, abolition of martial law and freedom of speech — were simply basic civil rights that people desired following Taiwan’s economic take-off.

After it was launched in August 1979, Formosa Magazine stirred up a lot of interest precisely because it reflected the will of the people. However, the KMT regime, still reeling from the shock of the US government’s decision to break off diplomatic relations at the beginning of that year, was determined to maintain its rule.

Instead of responding positively to the public’s wishes for quick progress toward democracy and freedom, the authorities tried to use the incident to root out the cream of the dangwai opposition and consolidate its hold on power.

It can therefore be said that the way events unfolded was planned by the KMT authorities. The incident itself happened on the evening of Dec. 10. The next day, every newspaper carried reports of clashes in which soldiers, police officers and members of the public were injured.

One day later, as the KMT and the state cranked up its propaganda machine, almost every media outlet changed its tune, stressing only injuries to soldiers and police officers, with no further mention of members of the crowd having been beaten. Newspaper editorials proclaimed “handling extremists who provoke a riot is not against democratic principles.” Papers carried “special reports” that vilified opposition activists as “people with shady backgrounds and acting as if possessed.”

Speaking on TV, hack political commentator Ting Chung-chiang (丁中江) claimed that the dangwai had not had their fill. Portraying himself as a modern version of legendary Qing Dynasty official Wu Feng (吳鳳), Ting offered to go to the gates of the opposition so that they could kill him.

Ting was by no means the only media figure who collaborated with the authorities’ efforts to turn public opinion against the dissidents by screaming blue murder and fabricating all kinds of accusations. In the early hours of Dec. 13, the authorities took the next step with a wave of arrests, netting almost all the main dangwai figures in one fell swoop. Even former Provincial Assembly member Lin I-hsiung (林義雄), who had not been at the scene of the incident, was not picked up.

Clearly, the charges of rioting and rebellion leveled by the authorities were baseless. The reality is that the KMT regime laid a trap for the opposition by provoking a bloody incident.

All of a sudden, Taiwan was thrown into the darkest days of state terror since the 228 Incident of 1947. Luckily, pressure from the US forced then president Chiang Ching-kuo (蔣經國) to promise that those arrested would be tried in public and that no death sentences would be imposed.

While the trial was underway, Lin’s mother and two of his daughters were murdered in cold blood in their home. This crime provoked public outrage and was strongly condemned at home and abroad. It opened the eyes of Taiwanese to the violent nature of the KMT party-state apparatus.

More importantly, the trial allowed the public to hear the defense presented by the accused. For many people, this was a profound initiation in democratic ideas. Minds that had been sleeping in seclusion were now awakened.

Finally, Chiang had no choice but to give in to public opinion by speeding up the pace of democratic reform. Within the next 10 years, the ban on forming political parties was abolished, martial law was lifted, the ban on unapproved newspapers and magazines came to an end and general elections were held for all seats in the National Assembly.

The reward won through the sacrifices and hard work of the victims of the Kaohsiung Incident was that Taiwan broke free of the shackles of authoritarian rule and started out on the road to a new climate of democracy and freedom.

Taiwan today, however, is a society that has not completed the process of transitional justice. People in general still do not know how to delve into the truth about major events of the post-war decades and seek redress for them.

The 228 Incident occurred more than 60 years ago, but even the number of victims and the circumstances of their deaths remain unclear. The murders of Lin’s mother and two of his daughters remain unsolved.

President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), who in the wake of the Kaohsiung Incident used his position as editor of the Free Chinese Monthly to slander the dangwai, has never apologized for it.

The KMT, which ordered the clampdown, has no genuine intention of facing up to its history and repenting. Many former accomplices of the dictatorship are still in positions of influence, which they use to prevent a full revelation of what happened. Painting a distorted picture of historical events, they seek to manipulate public debate and blur collective memories.

This is precisely why the KMT was able to restore itself to power. The difference now is that, whereas the Kaohsiung Incident eventually led to advances in freedom and democracy, today freedom is on the wane in Taiwan and democratic gains are being reversed. The police are going back to their old habit of intimidating people.

At least the authoritarian regime of 30 years ago was clear about the true nature of the Chinese Communist Party and drew a line between friends and enemies. Today the successors of that regime have abandoned this clarity and adopted policies of surrender.

Looking back 30 years to the Kaohsiung Incident, the most important thing for Taiwanese is to revive the spirit of the time. In the darkest days of state terror, citizens, through their actions, force the country’s rulers to change direction. Turning crisis into opportunity, they created a whole new outlook for Taiwan and changed the fates of future generations.

That is the spirit Taiwan needs again today, if it is not to perish.

US should stop fooling around and back Taiwanb
　

By Nat Bellocchi 白樂崎
Tuesday, Dec 22, 2009, Page 8

Policymaking is always an art of finding a balance between continuity and change: Governments want to maintain what is perceived as good or beneficial for their respective countries and at the same time make progress in the right direction. Circumstances change and force people, organizations and governments to adapt to the new circumstances.

The US itself is built on the precept of change. The nation was born out of the belief that Americans have the vision, ingenuity and perseverance to make the world a better place. Thus, our policies have always supported change … in the right direction. That is why it is peculiar that in one specific area we cling to the “status quo” — our policy toward Taiwan.

In the 1970s, the US ceased recognizing the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) government and established relations with Beijing, but it did not recognize Chinese claims to Taiwan. It said Taiwan’s future needed to be determined peacefully and with the express consent of its people.

This move was designed to buy time. Subsequently the Taiwanese were able to transform their political system into a vibrant democracy, and in the 1990s this new democracy started to aspire to membership in the international family of nations as an equal member. However, the US response was to continue to relegate Taiwan to an unofficial, second-class status.

This international isolation was aggravated in 1998, when then US president Bill Clinton pronounced the “three noes,” one of which was that the US “does not support Taiwan’s membership in international organizations that require statehood.”

While the US had not actively worked in support of Taiwan’s membership in international organizations between 1979 and 1998, it had also not opposed it, and it had certainly not attached the condition “that require statehood.” This new phrase certainly offered an interpretation that a policy change had occurred, since it seemed to alter the US position that Taiwan was “a state with which we do not have diplomatic ties” to “we do not consider Taiwan a state.” The Clinton administration maintained that it had not changed its policy. But it weakened Taiwan’s international position.

Clinton also limited the US position on Taiwan’s future status when he stated that the US “does not support Taiwan independence.” The Chinese spun this to mean that the US “opposed” independence. In fact, the US had been agnostic on the issue, neither supporting nor opposing either independence or unification as long as the process was peaceful and democratic. So Clinton also reduced Taiwan’s options on this point.

All of this is important in view of the references in the US-China Joint Statement issued at the end of US President Barack Obama’s visit to China, in which the two countries “reiterated that the fundamental principle of respect for each other’s sovereignty and territorial integrity is at the core of the three US-China joint communiques.” The US said this paragraph only referred to Tibet and East Turkestan, but China’s foreign ministry emphatically stated it also referred to Taiwan.

These episodes illustrate how little attention and import the US has given to Taiwan. By clinging to an imaginary “status quo” we have allowed China to whittle away Taiwan’s room for maneuver and consequently our own ability to maneuver. What has been gained by limiting options?

By pretending to maintain stability and the status quo, we have undermined the possibilities for change in the right direction: a furtherance of democratic principles. The US should be pointing to Taiwan as a model for peaceful transition to a system that is designed to endure peaceful transitions of power.

Nat Bellocchi is a former chairman of the American Institute in Taiwan and a special adviser to the Liberty Times Group. The views expressed in this article are his own.