[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 3]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 3650-3651]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      REMARKS IN SUPPORT OF TAIWAN

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. SHERWOOD BOEHLERT

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, March 7, 2005

  Mr. BOEHLERT. Mr. Speaker, recent reports suggest that the People's 
Republic of China may embark on a dangerous path that could destabilize 
the region. The PRC may be seeking passage of an ``anti-secession'' 
bill in a careless attempt to justify use of force against Taiwan. As 
everyone in this legislative body knows, Mr. Speaker, the PRC has never 
decried force as a means to take control of Taiwan, and this sort of 
provocative measure only serves to further corrode productive dialogue.
  As the democratic leader in the global world, we cannot stand for 
unilateral action by

[[Page 3651]]

the PRC against Taiwan. To echo the words of the Taiwan Relations Act, 
``any effort to determine the future of Taiwan by other than peaceful 
means'' is ``of grave concern to the United States.'' As two 
productive, industrialized nations charged with helping usher the world 
into the 21st century, it is imperative that the PRC and Taiwan work 
out their differences through peaceful dialogue.
  Given the recent tragedies that crippled South East Asia, now is not 
the time to threaten stability across the Taiwan Strait. If the ``anti-
secession'' bill were to become ``law'', the prosperity of 23 million 
people on Taiwan would be threatened. The Taiwanese live in a thriving, 
multi-party democracy. We cannot allow the light of Asian democracy to 
dim under the threat of military action. I urge my colleagues find 
their voices and oppose the passage of the anti-secession law.

                          ____________________