Taipei Times: Considering the Taiwanese people's divided views about Taiwan's status and the need to heal feuds between political parties, do you agree that President Chen Shui-bian's (
Koo Kwang-ming (辜寬敏): Before last year's presidential election, Chen said he would introduce a new constitution in 2006 and enact it in 2008. After the election, he changed his position and said he would amend the Constitution instead.
PHOTO: CHIANG YING-YING, TAIPEI TIMES
Similarly, before the legislative election he pledged to rectify Taiwan's national name and make a new constitution. Since that election, however, he has talked more about inter-party cooperation.
My view is that Chen's pledges before these elections are things he sincerely wants to pursue. His post-election remarks are part of his political strategy.
But Chen has to keep his promises. This is the way to show he is a responsible leader. It is useless to talk about his ideals. He needs to be able to carry out the policies he said he would implement.
Chen's greatest shortcoming is that he withdraws whenever he cannot move forward. We can do this with our life plans, but in politics you cannot. If you cannot achieve what you want, you have to stay where you are. You wait until your time comes.
Chen is the leader of the country and his moving forward and backward affects the society. He is most preoccupied with performance when he makes decisions. This is his great weakness.
He thought about performance when proclaiming he would bring a new constitution to the nation, rectify Taiwan's national name and establish a state. When he thought the time was right to pursue these policies, he went forward and talked about these ideas all the time.
He should stick to the ideals even though sometimes the situation does not allow him to further these policies. But he would not stay where he was because he had no space to perform there. He withdrew.
His meeting with Soong received widespread media coverage. Newspapers reported on it day after day. Does the government need inter-party cooperation to launch policies? We have to re-examine this idea.
It is true that during Chen's first term, many new policies were blocked because the legislature would not pass them. But it is very wrong to say that the government can do nothing because it lacks inter-party cooperation.
Last year, Taiwan's economic growth rate reached 5.9 percent. The legislature first cut the government's proposed budgets but then passed them.
It is illogical to say inter-party cooperation is needed because the governing party holds fewer seats in the legislature than the opposition. I don't agree with the idea; we need to correct this.
Some people have said that since Chen can't run for re-election, he is now trying to establish his place in Taiwanese history. I can't stand this to hear this. Three years later, there will be no more President Chen. He is too proud to try to pursue a place in history. We are but glimpses in time.
Chen and Soong looked gratified after achieving their consensus. But the cost of reaching that consensus was too high.
TT: Do you regard Washington's adjustment or abandonment of its "one China" policy as a necessary step for the normalization of Taiwan's sovereign status and its relations with other countries?
Koo: Officials in Washington have told me their "one China" policy has been in place for decades. They said except for me, the government has never made any claims on the US' "one China" policy. Our relationship with the US is very subtle. I have told Washington that the Taiwanese awareness was not as strong as it is today.
The "four noes" pledge Chen made in his inauguration ceremony was not his own idea. Beijing came up with the idea and asked the US to tell Chen to say the "four noes" in his inauguration speech. Beijing promised to talk to him if he said the "four noes." Chen made the pledge, but has China talked to him? No. At that time, Washington officials' passing of the the message to Taiwan was regretted.
[Former US secretary of state] Colin Powell's recent remarks in Beijing were very disturbing to us because he denied Taiwan's sovereignty. China's proposed "anti-secession" law is partly a result of the wrong message that Powell delivered in Beijing.
TT: On Feb. 19, the US and Japan declared that a peaceful Taiwan Strait was one of their "common strategic objectives." Do you think Taiwan is playing an increasingly crucial role in the US and Japan's strategies to deal with a rising China?
Koo: Japan, feeling sorry for the war it had with China 50 years ago, usually tolerates China's deliberate, small acts of provocation. However, this has changed since Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi came to power. Koizumi is a strong defender of Japan's sovereignty. The intrusion of the Chinese submarine into Japan's territorial water really alerted Japan. China's military expansion also worries Japan and the US.
Japan always follows the US on the Taiwan issue. The US knows that as China's military increases, the "Taiwan problem" will only be harder to resolve. Japan, which was ambiguous on the Taiwan issue before, now knows more clearly what it should do. The US-Japan joint declaration is really helpful for Taiwan.
TT: How do you view the historic Koo-Wang meetings conducted by your brother, Koo Cheng-fu (辜振甫), the late chairman of the Straits Exchange Foundation, and his Chinese counterpart, Wang Daohan (汪道涵)?
Koo: The first time my brother and Wang met [in 1993], it was because there was a political need for a photo-op. The second time [in 1998], my brother prepared loads of information ahead of his departure for Shanghai and Beijing. He was prepared to respond to every situation. But when he spoke with the then-president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) before leaving, Lee told him "You don't need any of this ... Just tell them `freedom and democracy.'"
So, Koo said "freedom and democracy" to [then Chinese president] Jiang Zeming (
The point is we don't have a concrete policy with China. We speak of sincerity, peace, good will, etc, but are any of these concrete policies? If I were a Beijing official, I would be out of my wits dealing with Taiwan. Taiwan's been saying the same thing for decades. All Taiwan says is goodwill, goodwill, goodwill -- nothing constructive. Our opponents have a clear policy -- the "one China" principle.
TT: What should our policy be?
Koo: In the past, the president really couldn't do anything concrete regarding cross-strait relations. So, all Taiwan could do was get a photograph and go to Beijing and Shanghai calling for democracy. Previously, our basic concern was that Beijing would start a war upon any significant political expression of independence. They have missiles targeted at Taiwan.
But now, we know that China could not possibly attack Taiwan. This is what I said 11 years ago. Taiwan built its economy step by step [after World War II] ... So many countries wanted to boost their economies after the war, but how many nations actually did it?
Now China's economic development is another miracle, even more miraculous than Taiwan's. It's had surprising achievements, but it has depended on external resources and technology. If there is a war across the Taiwan Strait, foreign investment will stop coming in. Economic growth will break down. So, I say, the Chinese people are not stupid. They're smart and practical. They won't sink their economy over Taiwan.
In the past, the world has looked down on the Chinese. Japanese and Europeans, even Taiwanese, looked down on them. But now, it's completely different. The Chinese now have a lot of achievements to boast about, and in five to 10 years, if peace is maintained, they could be the world's economic power. Five to 10 years is not a long time. You can see it. They will not throw all this away because Taiwan "provoked" them, or changed its name.
Also, Taiwan is a small country. The Chinese will think, "As China becomes more powerful, can you, this small island country, not follow?" So, China can ignore Taiwan now. They are big, we are small. If we can't force them to talk to us, then China is not going to give Taiwan the time of day. China doesn't need to. All the good will we extend is empty rhetoric. This is how I see it, but I hope that I'm wrong.
Right now what they [China] worry most about is that a decade's worth of economic development will be ruined because of Taiwan. They think it's not impossible ? If the US and Japan, under the new security objectives, truly challenge China, then what? I mean challenge with the intent to engage in war. Taking out China's air and marine forces is not a problem for the US and Japan's military forces combined. Then China's economy, its reputation will be in ruins. So, China is very concerned about Taiwan's relations with the US.
So I think, at this time, it is appropriate for us to propose a concrete plan for cross-strait relations. I have proposed that Taiwan and China be "brother states."
TT: How is this different from "one country on each side of the Strait"?
Koo: "Brother states" means that you are a country, and so am I. The relationship is genial, unlike that of "one country on each side." In Chinese history, the emperor Tsao Pi (
"People burn beanstalks to boil beans; The beanstalk burns beneath the pot; and the beans in the pot cry out. Born as they are of the same root, Why should they torment each other so much?"
Eight-hundred missiles, diplomatic bullying, all these tactics are aimed at Taiwan's survival. But we're brothers! Why pressure me like this?
TT: How should Taiwan respond to the proposed "anti-secession" law?
Koo: Powell went to Beijing saying Taiwan is not an independent, sovereign nation. This is a very grave problem. He didn't make the remark in Washington or anywhere else; he had to say it in Beijing. This is a fundamental problem for Taiwan. If Taiwan is not an independent sovereign nation, according to US secretary of state, then who holds sovereignty over Taiwan? This is a difficult question for us.
Our basic stance is that there are 23 million people living here. We've got a government, law and territory. It's not as if we borrowed our land from another country. And, Taiwan is self-governed. So, even though international law, the San Francisco Peace Treaty, does not clearly state who holds sovereignty over Taiwan, basically, it belongs to the 23 million people of Taiwan.
Beijing says it is going to enact this [anti-secession] law, but I think that it is impossible. Although, with China, they will do whatever they want to. But I think it's impossible because it would indicate that the US and the rest of the world admit that sovereignty over Taiwan belongs to China. This is unacceptable to the US, and of course, to us as well. The US will oppose this law, and it has already begun to express its opposition.
Come March, it's unclear if the National People's Congress will pass the law or what the text will be, but the US, Japan and Europe will all express opposition to the law.
We are directly involved in this. If we don't express our opposition, it's as good as admitting that we are part of them [China]. We have to belong to China for there to be problems of secession. Right now, you are you, and I am me -- what problems are there with secession?
TT: What should Taiwan's top priority be in handling ties with China and attaining international recognition? For example, should we push primarily for World Health Organization (WHO) participation, chartered flights?
Koo: Our governing party and our president, they love a performance. Chartered flights are a performance. The WHO used to be about attaining health and giving back. But under the administration's handling, it's become a show. It's as if WHO participation is necessary for health, as if we'd all die without it. That's impossible. All of this is a kind of performance, a political performance.
I don't think chartered flights make sense. Our businesspeople invest in China because it is a very good opportunity for them. They couldn't survive in Taiwan, so they went to China to make money. If you can make money in China, then you ought to spend an extra bit of money and time.
Can you afford it? Of course you can. If you can, then why do we need charter flights? The flights are just a political show.
We need to connect with the international community. It's beneficial to us... we shouldn't be limited to three links [direct links with China]. How about five links? Why is three links even a problem? It's because China doesn't recognize us as a country.
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