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No answers to
questions raised over service pact
By Lee Ken-cheng 李根政
During a visit to southern Taiwan, Premier Jiang Yi-huah (江宜樺) and Mainland
Affairs Council Minister Wang Yu-chi (王郁琦) held a meeting at the City God Temple
in Greater Kaohsiung’s Tsuoying District (左營) to alleviate public concerns about
the recently inked cross-strait service trade agreement.
In addressing spontaneous nationwide protests against the government’s despotic
house demolitions in Dapu Borough (大埔) in Miaoli County’s Jhunan Township (竹南),
the head of the City God Temple said: “Dapu concerns Miaoli. Don’t come to
protest the issue in Tsuoying or there will be trouble.”
This constitutes a threat to people expressing their opinions and is aimed at
dividing the public to serve his own interests.
The meeting on the service trade deal was touted as a two-way exchange between
the government and the public, but what actually happened was that attendees
were only allowed to ask Jiang questions, after which he would give out prizes.
Lunchboxes and noodles were also given out. The whole thing resembled the sort
of direct sales meeting for nutritional supplements aimed at cheating the
elderly that are often seen, and was intended to divide people and pull the wool
over their eyes.
To be allowed a chance to pose a question, I kept raising my hand and tried to
make myself heard. After stewards relented and allowed me to ask a question,
they kept telling me to stop and even interrupted me. After this, a few other
people tried to ask questions and express their opinions, but were totally
ignored. Many people would not accept this and launched into loud protests.
Then, the meeting moderator suddenly announced the meeting was over, and Jiang
and his entourage quickly left the scene.
If the cross-strait service trade agreement is really as great as the government
says it is, why did the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) not make any public
mention of it after holding 16 rounds of private talks on economic cooperation
with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)?
Why did they not dare discuss it in the legislature before signing it? Why was
Jiang unable to even handle a single question from the public in Tsuoying, and
why was he in such a hurry to get out of there? If that is not a sign of a
guilty conscience, then it is difficult to know what is.
What is the cross-strait service trade agreement?
The Ministry of Economic Affairs has said that it will help people conduct
business and boost Taiwan’s competitiveness.
However, in reality it is aimed at helping a small minority of Taiwanese
businesspeople and opening up Taiwan’s weak industries to Chinese investment.
More Taiwanese capital and skilled workers will end up in China, while those
parts of the service sector that remain will face strong competition from
companies backed by the CCP, which will take Taiwan apart until it controls all
of it.
At the explanatory meeting, Jiang and his entourage said that if the
cross-strait service trade agreement comes into effect, Taiwanese would be able
to “work hard” for Chinese businesses and that it would increase employment
opportunities.
Have things really become so bad?
At a time when Taiwan’s future is on the line, we have seen many people with no
political resources take a stand against what is going on.
Where are the people with a conscience in the KMT? Where are the Democratic
Progressive Party’s 40 legislators? And where are the Taiwan Solidarity Union
and the People First Party, who both claim to represent key minorities?
Apart from putting on an occasional show in the legislature and pretending that
they care, what else have they done?
Lee Ken-cheng is director of Mercy on the Earth, Taiwan.
Translated by Drew Cameron
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