After having served as Taiwan's ambassador to Gambia and representative to the UK for a total of six years, I had been back in Taiwan for less than a month when I saw the campaigns for applying for UN membership under the name "Taiwan" by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and the one for returning to the UN and other international organizations under any practical name by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT).
After the whole process of promoting the campaigns, and the 500,000 people from all over the country mobilized to show their determination for the referendums on Sept. 15, the diplomatic impact and consequences at home and abroad have been among the strongest in 50 years of diplomatic history of Taiwan. I believe that these events will lead to quantitative and qualitative changes in the relations between Taiwan and the US, the US and China and China and Taiwan.
Diplomatic relations are a process of conflicts, compromises and concessions. This does not mean that relations on each side of this triangle will be much better now because of the success of the DPP and KMT campaigns for their UN referendums.
On the contrary, there might be even more issues that need to be talked about and solved by compromise, and the government should prepare appropriate measures to deal with this, to be able to face difficulties that might arise in the future.
As US Deputy Assistant Secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, Thomas Christensen said, Taiwan and the US are strategic partners in the safety and stability in East Asia. They rely on each other completely and as long as they trust, communicate with and are tolerant toward each other, there is no problem they cannot solve.
The question is whether the US sees Taiwan as an indispensable strategic partner. If it does, does it give Taiwan a certain amount of respect, or does it see Taiwan as a peon dominated by a strong country that can be sacrificed if necessary?
In my experience as a diplomat, the impact and results of the rallies on Sept. 15 are among the most important events in the last five decades of Taiwanese diplomacy, and this is a great thing.
First, it has internationalized the "Taiwan issue." It is the common consensus of know-ledgeable people in both the ruling and opposition parties that only if the Taiwan issue is internationalized, will Taiwan win international space for its struggle. But the media blockade in China, the US and Europe means the international dignity, democracy and human rights of the 23 million Taiwanese are completely ignored.
After the rallies on Sept. 15, Taiwan's international dignity and the unfairness that the country encounters are finally meeting with some reaction and sympathy.
Second, Taiwan has become a difficult issue for China and the US. In the past, Taiwan has been depicted as a little baby, trampled into the ground by many elephants. We cried out, only to be trampled even more viciously, until we couldn't cry anymore.
Nowadays, we can finally give a voice to our agony, but the problem has still not been solved. We know Taiwan's plan for solving the problem, but what are the plans of China and the US? Do these involve sitting down and peacefully negotiating with each other ? We'll have to wait and see.
Third, this finally does away with the "one China" policy and the myth that "Taiwan is a province of China." In the past, the KMT has always tacitly approved of the "one China" principle with declarations of the fairy tale that "Taiwan is a province of China."
The recent DPP and KMT campaigns and the rallies on Sept. 15 have exposed the lies of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon about Resolution 2758, which was adopted in 1971.
Fourth, Taiwan has won the respect and praise of democratic countries all over the world. The recent campaigns have attracted the attention of the international media and many organizations reported on it. In the joy of democracy, the 23 million people of Taiwan have shown their dignity as a peace-loving people who fight for their rights and interests, and this has been shown beyond doubt.
Fifth, Taiwan respectfully demands an improvement of Taiwan-US relations. Now that it has seen this manifestation of the collective will of the Taiwanese, the US must institutionalize channels for high-level communication. Trying to stay on a good footing with China in the short term only serves to accelerate China's economic and military rise, and in the end this will hurt the US.
Since Taiwan is an indispensable strategic partner of the US, we have to demand an improvement of Taiwan-US relations. The recent campaigns for the UN referendums show that the Taiwanese cannot accept the current status of Taiwan-US relations anymore.
Edgar Lin is chairman of the Coordination Commission of North American Affairs.
Translated by Anna Stiggelbout
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