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Seeing through Ma’s
gimmicks
By Chen Mei-chin 陳美津
On Oct. 17, President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) discussed the idea of a peace treaty
with China within the next decade. He said that Taiwan would consider moving in
the direction of such an agreement if it had strong public backing, met the
genuine needs of the country and could be carried out under the supervision of
the legislature.
In another press conference on Thursday, Ma tried to make the idea of a peace
treaty more palatable to the voting public by saying that a referendum on the
issue could be considered.
Given the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) strenuous objections to a referendum
on issues such as the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA), this is a
curious turn of events.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) rejected Ma’s
proposal by saying it was “irresponsible and impetuous” and that it would serve
only to “put the nation’s future at risk.”
Citing the 17-point peace agreement Tibet signed with China in 1951, she pointed
out that despite promises to ensure genuine autonomy, freedom of religion and
Tibetan culture, the Chinese occupation of Tibet only brought repression of
Tibetan religion and culture, forcing Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama
into exile in 1959.
Chinese oppression in Tibet continues to this day. Since March, there have been
nine cases of self-immolation by Tibetan monks and a nun at Kirti monastery in
western Sichuan Province in China to protest Chinese occupation.
Is Ma ignorant of the lessons from Tibet? Why has he brought up the idea of a
peace deal with China now?
While it is not a new idea — it was floated even before Ma came to office in
2008 — Ma has previously been reluctant to discuss it because it could be
characterized as holding “political talks” with China (which he said he would
not do during his first term in office) and is perceived by many as a first step
on a slippery slope toward unification.
Is this another election gimmick in order to win votes?
It is no secret that Ma is in a very tight presidential race against DPP
candidate Tsai.
Tsai has been on the offensive and has launched a number of new ideas and
initiatives, building up momentum in her recent campaign swing through southern
and central parts of the country, leaving Ma and the KMT on the defensive.
Ma could be attempting to regain the initiative by diverting attention from his
broken promises on the economy, and focusing on what he sees as his strength:
cross-strait relations.
However, for many, in Taiwan and elsewhere, China is not that attractive
anymore: They see China’s economic bubble bursting at the seams, they see an
aggressive and belligerent China that is raising tension in the South China Sea
and not acting like a responsible international stakeholder.
As to what a peace agreement would actually encompass, Ma was conveniently
vague.
What does “genuinely meet the needs of the country” mean?
A “peace treaty” sounds nice, but would it be an agreement between two states or
would it mean absorption of Taiwan by China and thereby an end to its existence
as a free and democratic nation? Would it mean that China would agree to respect
freedom and democracy in Taiwan or would we see a replay of Hong Kong, where the
authorities in Beijing are gradually strangling freedom and democracy?
The proposal is really an empty shell, devoid of any serious content. Beijing
would still insist on its “one China” principle and that would seriously
undermine the freedom of Taiwanese to determine their own future free from
interference by China.
Taiwanese should remember the lesson of Tibet and see through this election
gimmick. Real peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait can only be safeguarded
if in January Taiwanese choose a president and legislative representatives who
will stand firm for Taiwan and its future as a full and equal member of the
international community.
Ma and the KMT are seriously lacking on this count.
Chen Mei-chin is a commentator based in Washington.
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