Vice President Annette Lu's (呂秀蓮) trip to Jakarta last week marks a shift in the Taiwanese government's tactics in dealing with China's attempts to isolate it in the international community, sources said yesterday.
Sources from the Presidential Office said that President Chen Shui-bian (
"For fear of being regarded by the international community as a troublemaker, Taiwan in the past has often yielded to other nations' unfair treatment whenever they complained about pressure from Beijing," a source, who wanted to remain anonymous, told the Taipei Times yesterday.
PHOTO: CHU YU-PING, TAIPEI TIMES
"But now, Taiwan no longer wants to accept such unfair treatment," the source said.
Apparently as a result of opposition from China, Indonesia denied Lu entry to its capital, Jakarta, on Wednesday, forcing the vice president to fly on to Bali after waiting in the airport at Jakarta for two hours.
The source said that the Indonesian government had privately apologized and asked Taiwan to understand the difficult position it was in.
"But we did not accept [the apology]," the source said. "We made it clear that we would not tolerate the Indonesian government's move just because it said that it was under pressure from Beijing."
On Friday, Indonesia appeared to relent. Lu was allowed to enter Jakarta and met with congressmen and other former and incumbent government officials before flying back to Taiwan on Saturday.
"China can not make decisions for Taiwan," the source added. "If the Indonesian government wants to have any contact with Taiwan, it has to squarely face the existence of Taiwanese authority."
Insiders commented that Taiwan's government had a number of bargaining chips which it could use to negotiate with the Indonesians.
One issue is Taiwan's ban on the importation of Indonesian laborers, which it announced on July 31. Lu apparently met with Indonesia's labor minister to discuss the matter while she was in Bali.
Taiwan is also considering buying liquefied natural gas (LNG) worth NT$400 billion (US$11.79 billion) from Indonesia.
Hsueh Yi-cheng (
Nevertheless, the DPP has judged the trip to be a success, despite Lu's initial setback.
DPP Legislator Parris Chang (
"Lu's four-day trip to Indonesia was a very successful diplomatic breakthrough," said Chang, who also serves as the convener of Legislature Yuan's Foreign and Overseas Chinese Affairs Committee. "It has made Beijing lose face."
Nevertheless, Chang cautioned that further diplomatic initiatives would have to be carefully planned and conducted as part of a coherent strategy.
The Indonesia trip might also boost Lu's chances of securing her place as Chen's running mate in the 2004 presidential election.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
A wild live dugong was found in Taiwan for the first time in 88 years, after it was accidentally caught by a fisher’s net on Tuesday in Yilan County’s Fenniaolin (粉鳥林). This is the first sighting of the species in Taiwan since 1937, having already been considered “extinct” in the country and considered as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. A fisher surnamed Chen (陳) went to Fenniaolin to collect the fish in his netting, but instead caught a 3m long, 500kg dugong. The fisher released the animal back into the wild, not realizing it was an endangered species at
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and