Vice President Vincent Siew (蕭萬長) yesterday urged Beijing to face the reality that the Republic of China (ROC) does exist, saying that both sides must adopt a pragmatic approach to tackle cross-strait problems.
Siew said the ROC was the only legitimate government representing China between 1911 and 1949. The ROC relocated to Taiwan in 1949 and has since built Taiwan into a democracy.
“It has all the requirements of a country, including the Constitution, national flag and national anthem,” he said.
However, the reality of international politics was that many -countries recognize China, Siew said, adding that China must neverthless not forget that there are more than 20 countries that have diplomatic ties with the ROC.
“If China does not want to recognize the existence of the ROC, they should at least not deny it,” he said in an interview with cable station GTV aired last night. “On the basis of mutual non-denial, both sides can gradually understand each other and work things out. We won’t see an immediate result and it will take a long time.”
Cross-strait exchanges were important, he said, adding that it would be difficult for both sides to talk about more sensitive issues if there were no mutual trust.
Citing the example of North and South Korea, Siew said the Korean Peninsula is still divided despite the first summit meeting between the two Koreas.
“So it will be better to adopt a pragmatic approach and build more mutual trust,” he said. “Without trust, things will not work out even if there is a peace agreement.”
Siew said cross-strait ties have been positive, healthy and practical and have proceeded gradually over the past two years.
Cross-strait differences could not be resolved overnight, he said, and political issues would have to wait until economic problems were resolved.
Because Taiwan is an island, Siew said it was important to open up and connect to the world. More connections would bring more opportunities, he said, adding that it was the road Taiwan must take if it wanted to survive and prosper.
Facing the rise of China, Siew said Taiwan must engage China and go with the trend of regional and economic integration, if it could not turn the tide.
“Regional integration is the way to go, but we must not proceed hastily,” he said. “Many people have mixed feelings about regional integration. Some love the idea, but at the same time, they are also afraid.”
Siew urged Beijing to build the image of a peacemaker and refrain from developing into a hegemony.
He was glad to see that leaders from both sides of the Taiwan Strait began to touch on the possibility of removing missiles aimed at Taiwan, adding that he hoped it would happen soon. However, he said that the matter would rely on China.
In other developments, Premier Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) yesterday said that a meeting between President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤) did not look likely because two conditions have not been met.
A Ma-Hu meeting can only take place when there is a growing willingness and consensus among Taiwanese and when there is a higher degree of mutual trust between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait, Wu said when addressing a group of visitors from the Committee of 100, a US non-partisan organization composed of US citizens of Chinese descent.
“Not a single one of the two conditions can be dispensed with. Since the willingness and consensus hasn’t been reached within the country and both sides of the strait haven’t developed sufficient mutual trust, we haven’t seen any chances and opportunities for a Ma-Hu meeting,” Wu said.
Only when China admits that the ROC exists independently and has its sovereignty, as well as the realities of democratic politics, he said.
Leaders from both sides of the strait understand that pushing for internal reform is a country’s internal matter, while maintaining external cross-strait peace is the best policy to ensure that both sides benefit, he added.
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
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
‘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
Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chairman Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) yesterday appealed to the authorities to release former Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) from pretrial detention amid conflicting reports about his health. The TPP at a news conference on Thursday said that Ko should be released to a hospital for treatment, adding that he has blood in his urine and had spells of pain and nausea followed by vomiting over the past three months. Hsieh Yen-yau (謝炎堯), a retired professor of internal medicine and Ko’s former teacher, said that Ko’s symptoms aligned with gallstones, kidney inflammation and potentially dangerous heart conditions. Ko, charged with
RSS