[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 43 (Friday, April 7, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2433-S2434]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          DEMOCRACY IN TAIWAN

  Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President, on March 18th the people of Taiwan elected 
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) leaders Chen Shui-bian, former mayor 
of Taipei, to be President, and Annette Lu to be Vice-President of 
Taiwan.
  This was an historic vote, representing the first recorded, peaceful 
transfer of power in any Chinese political system in 5,000 years. A 
free and fair vote by 80 percent of the electorate occurred without 
violence with a military that remained in the barracks.
  It was a vote with implications not only for the people on Taiwan but 
also for China and the United States.
  First, the vote represented a rejection by a majority of the voters 
of the traditional ruling Kuomintang Party (KMT) and a vote in favor of 
political reform and change in Taiwan. There was a clear desire by the 
people to cleanse the political system that they viewed as corrupt. 
That the DPP could win a national election after having only been 
formed in 1986 indicates the maturity of the political system, as well 
as the deep desire for change.
  The first steps by President-elect Chen Shui-bian indicate the 
political sophistication of Taiwan's future leaders. He made 
conciliatory statements towards China, stating that he would avoid 
declaring independence and emphasizing that ``the people's top priority 
is peaceful cross-strait relations'' while declaring his willingness to 
``negotiate cross-strait air travel, trade and investment, peace 
agreements, and military conference-building measures with the 
mainland.'' He has offered to meet with China's leaders, even to travel 
to Beijing. His party is now considering dropping its pro-independence 
policy in its party platform.
  He has nominated the current Kuomintang Defense Minister, Tang Fei, 
to be his Premier. General Tang was born in China. And in another step 
towards reform both major parties have reached an agreement to reduce 
the powers of the National Assembly and to strengthen those of the 
Legislative Yuan, the nation's parliament.
  The breath of fresh air blowing through Taiwan has not been matched 
in Beijing. In the run-up to the election the only wind out of China 
was the fierce breath of threats. Central Military Commission Vice-
Chairman General Zhang and Vice Premier Qian Qichen both declared that 
``Taiwan independence means war.'' A People's Liberation Army 
publication stated that ``the PLA is determined to liberate Taiwan. If 
they meet hard resistance, then they can choose to use weapons of mass 
destruction, like neutron bombs.''
  Since the election, there has been some diminishment of the intensity 
of the attacks but Beijing remains consistent in its criticism and 
insistence on Taiwanese concessions. Last week, at a conference on 
Taiwan in Washington organized by the Center for Strategic and 
International Studies, PLA Senior Colonel Luo Yuan observed that ``if 
you no longer acknowledge you are Chinese and sell off Chinese national 
interests, the Chinese government will definitely punish this national 
traitor. [. . .] Once the Taiwan independence provokes an impasse, then 
we have no choice but the use of blood to uphold the authority.'' 
China's official Xinhua News Agency has commented that ``Lee Teng-hui's 
ignominious fate proves that all those who engage in `Taiwan 
independence' and splittism and try resorting to trickery to hoodwink 
the world will come to no good end. The wages of sin is death.'' Vice 
Premier Qian has insisted that there can be no negotiations with Chen 
or his envoys unless he accepts the principle that Taiwan is part of 
China and commits to negotiating only over the modalities of 
reunification.
  The quandary China finds itself now in is typified by the Beijing 
waiter, quoted in a recent Washington Post article, who commented as he 
watched news of the Taiwan elections, ``their lives are better than 
ours, economically and politically. They have more freedom. They can 
elect their leaders.''
  One of the first actions by the Taiwanese political parties was to 
reform its political structure by reducing the role of the National 
Assembly sending another powerful signal to the Mainland where its 
hand-picked, 2,978 strong, National People's Congress delegate just met 
for stage-managed debates.
  China's leaders have been struggling to earn the degree of legitimacy 
through economic reform alone and through the continued use of force to 
suppress dissent that Taiwan's leaders have earned at the ballot box 
through the exercise of free speech and free trade. No longer can 
China's leaders look across the Straits and see a mirror of themselves 
in Taiwan's former exiled rulers.
  Instead they see an example of a political system which evolved in a 
few short years from totalitarian rule to a democracy. Martial law rule 
ended in Taiwan in 1987. A new legislature was elected in 1992. There 
were presidential elections in 1996, local elections in 1997 and 1998, 
and a second presidential election in 2000.

[[Page S2434]]

  China's Deputy Chief of Mission in Washington Liu Xiaoming described 
Taiwan's presidential election as ``a local election in an area of 
China.'' Yet, even if his description is accepted, it demonstrates how 
far the rest of China has to go: in China, a germinating democracy has 
not progressed beyond the stage of local village elections. Municipal 
or national elections have yet to be held.
  As President Clinton so succinctly observed, ``the election provides 
a fresh opportunity for both sides to reach out and resolve their 
differences through dialogue.''
  Ironically, it is China, which had urged Taiwan to adopt direct 
trade, postal, and telecommunications links while Taiwan under 
President Lee rejected such direct ties, that now rejects President-
elect Chen's offers to institute direct contacts.
  There apparently is the perception even inside China that their 
policy needs to be changed. One official was quoted over the weekend as 
saying, ``we are painting ourselves into a corner. We are tough when we 
should be soft and passive when we should be taking the initiative.''
  Yet, even as Taiwan has grown apart from China, it has also grown 
closer. It has invested $24 billion in China and China now accounts for 
23 percent of all Taiwanese exports. Taiwan's and China's economic 
progress have become mutually self-sustaining.
  As a result, we should not be painting China into a corner now. As it 
attempts to come to terms with the new realities in Taiwan, we should 
be taking steps to welcome China into a greater, more responsible role 
in the international system. A critical step in that regard is granting 
China Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR). This critical vote in 
the U.S. Congress promises to open up China's markets to greater 
competition and more goods from the West. PNTR does not mean that China 
will be a democracy, nor does it mean instant benefits for the American 
economy, but it is a step towards integrating China into the new world 
community.
  Shortly after China joins the World Trade Organization, Taiwan will 
join. This is the third new reality with which American policymakers 
must contend. Taiwan has changed. It is not the single-party 
dictatorship which it was when the Taiwan Relations Act or the three 
communiques were promulgated. It is a vibrant democracy with a strong 
economy. It has long clamored to be allowed to play a more active role 
in the world community by providing assistance to international aid 
organizations or in UN Specialized Agencies. Can a new role be found 
for the Taiwan of today in tomorrow's world? Finding one may well be 
the key if China and Taiwan are to resolve their differences and 
achieve conciliation.

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