[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 86 (Thursday, June 17, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1301-E1302]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       TRADE RELATIONS WITH CHINA

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. ASA HUTCHINSON

                              of arkansas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 16, 1999

  Mr. HUTCHINSON. Mr. Speaker, within the next month, we will take up 
the annual debate on extending normalized trade relations to the 
People's Republic of China (PRC). In light of this fact, I wanted to 
bring to the attention of the nation some of the efforts undertaken by 
the Republic of China (Taiwan) to have a positive influence on her 
neighbor across the Taiwan Strait.
  Dr. Koo Chen-fu of the Straits Exchange Foundation, a Taiwanese 
organization devoted to conducting cross-strait relations, spoke 
recently before the annual meeting of the International Press Institute 
World Congress and 48th General Assembly. Dr. Koo's comments about 
fostering productive dialog between his nation and the PRC were very 
informative, and I insert them in the Record in order that they might 
be of benefit to all of my colleagues in this body.

  Establishing Peaceful and Stable Relations Across the Taiwan Strait

                          (By Dr. Koo Chen-fu

       Honorable Public Opinion Leaders from Both at Home and 
     Abroad, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen:
       I feel greatly honored to be invited to participate in the 
     annual conference of the International Press Institute held 
     in the Republic of China. This year marks the first occasion 
     that the IPI has held an annual conference of such magnitude 
     in Taipei. Your meeting here is an affirmative of and 
     encouragement by the IPI for the ROC government's efforts in 
     promoting freedom of press over the past two decades and for 
     the entire press of our nation, which has worked diligently 
     to pursue the consistent advancement of the news industry.
       I would like to take this opportunity to discuss a major 
     issue that is currently confronting our general public: the 
     problem of having too much information, rather than too 
     little. I believe all of the people responsible for Taiwan's 
     media and communication sectors present today are proud to 
     have contributed to this hard-to-achieve status.
       On my way to the conference, I was wondering why the 
     prestigious sponsors of the conference invited me to deliver 
     a speech on this occasion. Knowing that a host of prominent 
     personages from all sectors around the world are 
     participating in this grand event, I felt every more 
     apprehensive, until I thought of a privilege I have over all 
     of you: seniority. I am 82 years old and in a society, such 
     as ours, that attaches great respect to elderly people, my 
     age, I suspect, was my ticket to attend this magnificent 
     conference.
       The topic I will speak to you about today is unquestionably 
     quite serious, but it is the subject specifically requested 
     by the sponsoring unit of this conference. I promise that I 
     will do my best to be concise and clear about a complex 
     matter.
       As you all know, the Republic of China was founded by Dr. 
     Sun Yat-sen in 1912, after the overthrow of the Ching 
     imperial dynasty. Then in 1949, the People's Republic of 
     China was established with Chairman Mao Tz Tung as its 
     leader. Thereafter, China as been ruled separately, with the 
     Chinese communists exercising jurisdiction on the mainland; 
     while ROC government exercising jurisdiction in Taiwan, 
     Penghu, Kinmen, and Matsu. China has not been united for the 
     past half century, and our situation resembles that of North 
     and South Korea. This is a very simple political reality, 
     known and accepted around the world.
       Beijing's claim that ``there is only one China and Taiwan 
     is part of China, and one China means the People's Republic 
     of China,'' or ``Taiwan is a renegade province of PRC'' not 
     only deviates from reality, but completely negate the truth. 
     It is my view that China is now divided, and both Taiwan and 
     the mainland are parts of China and the two sides of the 
     Taiwan Strait are ruled by two distinct political entities, 
     with neither subordinate to the other. What is important is 
     that both sides do not exclude the possibility of future 
     unification of China through the process of peace and 
     democracy, when time and conditions are mature.
       At the current stage of development of cross-strait 
     relations, the Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF), under the 
     authorization of the government, has from the very beginning, 
     stressed several key points. We have insisted on conditions 
     that respect historic facts and the status quo, safeguard the 
     well-being of the people of Taiwan, and normalize cross-
     strait relations. For humanitarian reasons, the ROC 
     government in 1987 began to allow our people to visit 
     relatives on the mainland and worked effectively to increase 
     mutual understanding and exchanges between the people on both 
     sides of the Taiwan Strait.
       Then, again in 1991, we terminated the Period of National 
     Mobilization for Suppression of the Communist Rebellion, 
     clearly manifesting our government's sincerity not to resolve 
     cross-strait problems by force. It was a pragmatic move, as 
     our government took the first step and demonstrated our 
     goodwill to acknowledge the existence of the communist 
     authorities. To help raise the living standards on the 
     Chinese mainland and develop its economy, Taiwan's business 
     sector has invested as much as US$25 billion across the 
     strait over the last ten plus years, creating a great number 
     of job opportunities for the people on the mainland and 
     contributing remarkably to the expeditious accumulation of 
     foreign exchange reserves for the Chinese mainland over the 
     recent years.
       In order to show the sincerity of the ROC government in 
     promoting peaceful and stable cross-strait relations, 
     President Lee Teng-hui made a six-point proposal on 
     normalizing cross-strait relations in April 1995. These 
     points are: 1. use Chinese culture as a base to strengthen 
     exchanges between the two sides; 2. enhance economic ties and 
     develop reciprocal and complementary cross-strait relations; 
     3. participate in international organizations on an equal-
     footing, thus allowing meetings of leaders from the two sides 
     in appropriate situations; 4. assert peaceful solutions for 
     any disputes which arise; 5. combine the efforts of both 
     sides to maintain the prosperity of Hong Kong and Macau and 
     enhance democracy in these two areas; 6. pursue future 
     national unification while respecting that China is currently 
     divided and ruled by different political entities.
       President Lee's understanding and perspective have provided 
     direction to SEF's tasks. We hope to establish a peaceful and 
     stable cross-strait relationship step by step, as follows:
       First of all, we have made all necessary preparations for 
     the coming of Mr. Wang Dao han, the senior chairman of the 
     Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait (ARATS). I 
     address him as ``senior'' because he is eighty-three years 
     old, and I'm a year younger than he is. I am expecting Mr. 
     Wang's visit as one which will renew the channel of 
     constructive discourse we first established during my trip to 
     mainland last October. The SEF will make arrangements for Mr. 
     Wang's ``getting to know Taiwan'' trip safe and comfortable, 
     so the mainland's leading persons will have a better 
     understanding and knowledge of Taiwan. And, for the above 
     mentioned reasons, I look forward to the Taipei meeting with 
     Mr. Wang, which will be held this autumn, so we can work 
     together to frame a peaceful and mutually beneficial 
     relationship for both sides of the strait.
       In addition, we will try to persuade the Beijing 
     authorities to reopen the institutionalized consultations 
     established during the Singapore round of the Koo-Wang talks 
     in April 1993. Regarding substantive issues, which most 
     concern the rights of the people, such as repatriating 
     mainland stowaways and hijackers, solving fishing disputes, 
     and dealing with illegal activities cooperatively, we hope 
     that interim agreements will be signed as soon as possible. 
     These agreements will form a basis from which to expand step 
     by step the content gained from future consultations or 
     important issues concerning both sides.
       I am well aware that there are people on the Beijing side 
     who anxiously promote political negotiations and dialogue 
     between the two sides. In fact, just as in the Shanghai 
     meeting last October, I would like to broaden the range of 
     subjects during the talk with Mr. Wang in the upcoming Taipei 
     meeting on whatever issues are of concern. If the meeting is 
     restricted only to talks about issues in a particular area, 
     it will minimize the effect of the agreement we may make. 
     This will not be beneficial for improving relations between 
     the two sides.
       The 1993 Singapore agreement was the first agreement which 
     was officially authorized for signature by both governments 
     and was approved by respective elected bodies after 
     separation on each side of the strait. If either of the two 
     parties was not willing to abide by the agreement, then the 
     confidence level for the signing of future agreements will 
     certainly be negatively affected. Over time, we will attain 
     more agreements concerning the people's rights and interest. 
     Thus, we can build mutual confidence through the accumulation 
     of interim agreements. This method gives us the ground work 
     for a solid foundations for peaceful and stable cross-strait 
     relations.
       Third, the two sides should gradually develop a confidence 
     building measure (CBM), in order to insure the peace of the 
     Taiwan Strait and the security of the Asia-Pacific region. 
     Beginning in 1991, the two sides set up the Straits 
     Exchange Foundation and the Association for Relations 
     Across the Taiwan Straits, respectively, to be the 
     institutionalized communication mechanism between the two 
     sides. This is the accepted communication channel under 
     the informalized relation between the two sides.
       For years, these two organizations have exchanged phone 
     calls and letters to conduct necessary contacts and 
     communication. In 1996, however, the Chinese mainland 
     unexpectedly launched a military threat against

[[Page E1302]]

     Taiwan and unilaterally suspended the functions of the two 
     organizations for more than three years. It is a situation we 
     deeply regret.
       Under the influence of democracy and freedom, Taiwan is 
     becoming increasingly liberalized and advanced. Such an 
     environment has exerted a direct impact on the SEF to be more 
     flexible and open, when holding consultations with ARATS. Let 
     me assure you that the ROC government is fully confident and 
     sincere in resolving any political differences between the 
     two sides via consultations. Even so, we will not hold talks 
     with the Chinese mainland under such unfriendly conditions as 
     political inequality, diplomatic interference, and military 
     threat. National security and dignity are what I myself and 
     the SEF personnel constantly must bear in mind, when we 
     exchange contacts with the Chinese mainland. I believe that 
     these two criterias are also the two foremost concerns of the 
     people of Taiwan.
       In recent years, I have observed that Beijing has been 
     withdrawing from the position that ``we can talk about 
     anything'' toward a parochial mentality that ``we can only 
     talk about political issues.'' This confuses us.
       I would like to take this opportunity to call on Beijing to 
     return to the consultation table as soon as possible, to 
     establish mutual trust between the two sides through 
     consultations, and to adopt necessary and positive measures 
     to insure the peace and stability of the Taiwan Strait.
       Fourth, the two sides should expand items and the scope of 
     exchanges and cooperations and treat each other with 
     sincerity through reciprocity, in order to ultimately 
     normalize bilateral relations. During the past 50 years, the 
     two sides have accumulated individual experiences of 
     development that can be exchanged to assist each other. In 
     the past, we have proposed that the two sides conduct 
     exchanges and cooperate in the areas of agriculture, 
     scientific technology, economic development, and rule by law. 
     We have also suggested the two sides deal with the Asian 
     financial crisis together, in order to jointly contribute to 
     the prosperity and stability of the Asia-Pacific region.
       Unfortunately, we have not had any positive response from 
     Beijing, to date. In the future, we will continue to 
     encourage and persuade the Chinese mainland to pragmatically 
     respond to our constructive proposals. We will also unfold 
     various cooperation plans with Beijing to increase mutual 
     trust, achieve consensus, and ultimately attain the goal of 
     establishing normalized relations between the two sides.
       Ladies and gentlemen, during the past four decades, the ROC 
     has managed to create miracles in economic development and 
     political democratization, under unfavorable natural 
     environments and conditions. Naturally, we wish to achieve 
     more, and it is our hope that we can bridge the gap of the 
     Taiwan Strait in economic and political developments by 
     appropriate interaction and constructive dialogue between the 
     both sides of the Taiwan Strait. This will help us to realize 
     the natural reunification of both sides in a peaceful and 
     democratic way.
       At the threshold of the twenty-first century, with the Cold 
     War era ended, I sincerely hope that the Chinese mainland 
     will discard the remnants of the Cold War ``zero-sum'' 
     thinking and expand their horizons to join us in building a 
     peaceful and stable relationship for both sides of the Taiwan 
     Strait, under conditions which respect the political status 
     quo of both sides.
       As time is pressing, let me finish my speech here. Thank 
     you very much. And I wish all the distinguished participants 
     of this conference health and confirmed success.

     

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