[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 70 (Wednesday, May 16, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E819]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          SECOND INAUGURATION OF TAIWAN PRESIDENT MA YING-JEOU

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. JOE BARTON

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, May 16, 2012

  Mr. BARTON of Texas. Mr. Speaker, Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou will 
be inaugurated for the second and final time on Sunday, May 20th. In 
addition to its continued democratic development, Taiwan has undergone 
numerous unprecedented economic, travel and tourism changes--between 
itself and mainland China--since President Ma first took office four 
years ago.
  In July 2008, just over two months after taking office, President Ma 
launched the first regularized direct flights across the Taiwan Strait 
since the end of the Chinese Civil War in 1949. Such flights now number 
558 per week, having greatly eased the burdens of Taiwanese living and 
working in mainland China. It's also made life much easier for American 
tourists and businesspeople crossing the Strait instead of having to 
change planes in Hong Kong, or another third party port, as they once 
did.
  And in 2010, Taiwan enacted its Economic and Cooperation Framework 
Agreement (ECFA) with mainland China that zeroed out tariffs on a 
number of Taiwan exports to the mainland. Further ECFA liberalizations 
will follow. ECFA's allowed Taiwan companies to tap mainland consumer 
markets while allowing them to stay in Taiwan and trade from their own 
home base. ECFA's further offered Taiwanese greater consumer choice at 
more affordable prices, while additionally uncovering opportunities for 
U.S. companies that have operations on both sides of the Taiwan Strait. 
It's thus no wonder the American Chamber of Commerce in Taipei has, 
after years of calling for such changes, wholeheartedly applauded 
President Ma's economic openings. Slowly but surely, Taiwan's steadily 
reinserting itself into the global economic supply chain, strongly 
making its case for a resumption of Trade and Investment Framework 
Agreement talks with the United States.
  The influx of mainland Chinese tourists to Taiwan, allowed since 
2008, has boosted the island's economy while also exposing mainlanders 
to Taiwan's free society and vibrant democracy. This fact was most 
notable during Taiwan's January 14th presidential and legislative 
elections won by President Ma and his Kuomintang (KMT) Chinese party. 
Visiting mainlanders were mesmerized by Taiwan's televised debates and 
dueling public events, and their some of their cohorts back home even 
took to blogging about it. Last year, 1.8 million mainland Chinese 
tourists visited Taiwan. That's 30% of all 6.08 million tourists who 
visited Taiwan in 2011.
  On this, his second inauguration, I ask my colleagues to not only 
congratulate President Ma on his inauguration, but also on his openings 
to mainland China that have not just benefited Taiwan companies and 
consumers, but also U.S. economic interests and enterprises in the 
region.

                          ____________________