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* A MONTHLY NEWSLETTER PUBLISHED BY THE DPPS DEPARTMENT OF
INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS.
Democracy &Progress
JANUARY2009
Happy Lunar New Year!
DEMOCRACY&PROGRESS
Department of
International Affairs
Democratic Progressive Party
8F, No. 30, Pei-Ping East Rd.
Taipei, Taiwan
t. 886-2-23929989 ext. 306
f. 886-2-23930342
e-mail: [email protected]
web: http://www.dpp.org.tw
Director:
Lin, Chen-wei
Deputy Director:Huang, Chih-ta
Editor-In-Chief:
Liu, Hsiaoching
Editor:
Mike Fonte
Staff Writer:
James Chen
Britt Mercadante
Dr. Tsai Ing-wens Open Letter to Members of the DPP: Break out
of
This Stagnation, Be the Party That Surprises Everyone (p2)
DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen Returns from a Successful
Relationship-Building Trip to Manila (p3)
Taiwan Human Rights Updates (Part 2) (p5)
Dr. Tsai Ing-wen received a delegation from Freedom House and
expressed her concern over problemswith freedom of speech, freedom
of assembly and political freedom in Taiwan.
Taiwan Citizen Conference on National Affairs(Part 1):What &
Why?(p7) Since President Ma Ying-jeou took office in May, his
government has carried out many policiesthat have resulted in the
erosion of the nations sovereignty, economy, democracy and human
rights.Thus, the DPP and TSU have decided to co-sponsor the Taiwan
Citizen Conference on NationalAffairs to provide the public with a
chance to voice their opinions.
2009 Three-in-One Local Election in Taiwan (Part 1) (p8)What is
the Three-in-One local election, how will the DPP nominate its
candidates this time and whowill the candidates be?
A Statement From The DPP in Response to Hu Jintao's
'Six-Points'
Proposition (p9)
The DPPs Appeal to the Ma Government to Voice Taiwans Support
for
Chinas Charter 08 Activists (p10)
A Response to the KMT-CCP Forum: The DPP Calls for Supervision
by
the Legislature and Citizen Participation & The Risks and
Effects of
Signing a Financial MOU with China (p11)
Highlights of the 2008 DPP Public Survey Results (p14)
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Open Letter to Members of the DPP:Break Out of This Stagnation,
Be the Party That Surprises Everyone
Dr. Tsai Ing-wen
January 1, 2009
A political party can survive in a society only if its policies
express
the peoples desire to push for social progress. If a political
party
becomes stagnant, stops moving forward and fails to respond to
the
peoples expectations, this party will inevitably lose the faith
and trust of
the people.
This is the belief I have held since the first day I became
the
Chairperson of the DPP. Every day I feel myself becoming more
DPP,
in that I have become aware of the great responsibility this
party
shoulders for Taiwan. For more than 200 days, I have gone over
many
things with each one of you: together we dried our tears and
worked
hard to get back on our feet following the election defeat
earlier this year; together on August 14 we
witnessed former President Chen Shui-bian holding his press
conference; together we took to the
streets on August 30th and October 25th respectively to protest
the incompetent administration of Ma
Ying-jeou and ask the Ma administration to admit responsibility
for its failing performance; together we
declared to the worldon November 6 that Taiwan is a democratic
and sovereign state.
In my heart, I know clearly that it is your support that makes
me a better chairperson. In return, myresponsibility is to reform
and improve the DPP. These past few days, I have met with many
people who
have sent their warmest support and highest expectations for the
DPP. Many of them didnt know each
other, but they all sent me the same message: the future of
Taiwan is in danger and the DPP must be
strong and stand by the people to overcome all the current
difficulties. Taiwan needs the DPP.
In 2009, the DPP must be able to actively respond to the peoples
expectations by taking a leading
role in social progress. The DPPs social responsibility is
clear: if Taiwanese society becomes divided
under the administration of Ma Ying-jeou, the party must play a
role in bringing together public opinion; if
the government reverts back to its authoritarian nature, we must
preserve freedom and democracy; if the
government supports pro-big enterprise policies, we must speak
for the middle class, laborers and
farmers; if Mas cross-strait policies lean toward China too
much, the DPP must safeguard Taiwans
sovereignty and consolidate Taiwanese identity in civil
society,
2009 is a critical year for the DPP, and not only because of the
upcoming local elections for mayors
and county magistrates. The rights of the Taiwanese people have
been rapidly eroding, and, as a result,
the Taiwanese people have become frustrated, as they have lost
their faith in party politics. The failure
and incompetence of Ma Ying-jeous administration will not
automatically bring votes to the DPP. We have
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to allow people to observe our self-examination and change and
to see that our determined spirit serves
our society.
The DPPs next step should be the next step of Taiwan. In 2009,
we will present our view and take
action on DPP party reform, national polity, homeland planning,
economic development, cross-strait
policies and social justice. Our positions and action plan will
not be limited to a few articles in the
newspaper. We expect it will become a movement not just within
the party, but also within society. In
other words, we have to propose a comprehensive vision and plan
for Taiwan. And using it, we can have
a dialogue with intellectuals, social activists and
laborers.
This is where we can stand up again: only by clearly telling our
society about the DPPs policy
positions, and communicating directly with the people. By thus
encouraging each other and growing
together, we can make the rethinking of Taiwans future become a
national movement and have
sufficient energy to save Taiwanese society which is in danger.
This year we will co-host a 2009 Taiwan
Civil National Affairs Conference with civic groups to integrate
public opinion on national affairs; we will
have small-scale seminars with intellectuals and professionals
to discuss what Taiwan should do next;
we will hold a National Unemployment Conference to integrate the
voices of the unemployed and urge
the government to ensure their rights; we will enthusiastically
visit intellectuals and professionals and
ask them to stand up to safeguard our homeland; we will actively
visit towns and villages to explain what
the DPPs next policy proposals and positions are; we will take
to the streets with civic groups to present
our discontentment with the government. This is the future of
the party. In 2009, if we dont move forward,
we will lose the support of the Taiwanese people.
My dear Taiwanese, we are members of a party that has always
been surprising. When others
thought there was no hope for us, we survived; when others
thought we would never develop from ourroots, we always managed to
find a way. We will continue to progress. I believe that the next
time the
Taiwanese grant us the opportunity to rule, we will do a better
job!
DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen Returns from a
SuccessfulRelationship-Building Trip to Manila
Dr. Ing-wen Tsai led a delegation that visited Manila January
17-18, 2009 to engage in a
dialogue with the DPPs sister-party in Manila, the Liberal Party
of the Philippines (LP) and the Council of
Asian Liberals and Democrats (CALD), as well as to meet with the
Taiwanese community in Manila. The
delegation included Mr. Wen-tsang Cheng, the DPP spokesperson,
Mr. Fa-hui Shen, director of the DPP
Department of Social Development and Ms. Hsieng-hwei Chang.
Attending Taiwanese Compatriot Association in Philippine General
Assembly
The delegation also attended Taiwanese Compatriot Association in
Philippine General Assembly
attended by more than 400 Taiwanese oversea compatriots. Dr.
Tsai was invited to speak about
Taiwans democratic development in the meeting. She presented the
concept of Democracy 1, 2, 3:
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terminate 1-party dominance, push for 2nd-time democratic reform
and complete the 3rd-time peaceful
transfer of political power.
Dr. Tsai also stated that Taiwans democracy is still in
transition. Taiwan needs a meaningful and
strong opposition party to balance the KMT, which dominates both
legislative and executive branches;
otherwise, we may see a danger of roll-backs in Taiwans
democracy: either returning to the old
authoritarian regime or becoming Singapores model of
democracy.
She emphasized that the DPP cannot effectively
ensure by itself that the KMT will not take advantage of
its majority power. By establishing a platform to
coordinate different voices as well as initiate an
intra-party dialogue, the DPP will become a unified party
that at the same time appreciates diverse voices and
values.
Dr. Tsai also initiated a fundraising activity, which was
well supported by those in attendance, during the meeting.
Through fundraising activities, the distance between the DPP
and the people is lessened. The number of people who
contribute donations is much more important than the amount
donated from each person. We would rather see more people
making small contributions than very few people offering a
big
donation, she said.
Meeting with LP Philippines and CALD
Among those who welcomed the delegation at the joint offices of
CALD and FNF were Hon. Jun
Abaya, MP, secretary general of LP, Hon. Dina Abad, a former
Member of Parliament and current chair
of the CALD Womens Caucus, Mr. Chito Gascon, Esq., director
general of LP, Mr. Lambert Ramirez,
executive director of the National Institute for Policy Studies,
Ms. Argee Gallardo, deputy director foradministration, Dr. Neric
Acosta, secretary general of CALD, Mr. Paolo Zamora and Mr.Carlo
Religioso,
program officers of CALD, Mr. Siegfried Herzog, the resident
representative of Friedrich Naumann
Foundation (FNF) Manila Office and Mr. Narwin Espiritu, the web
developer of FNF-Manila.
(From left to right : Dr. Tsai Ing-we n, Mr. Hung Chichua n,
former Com missioner o f Ove rsea s Comp atriot Affa irs Co mm
ission a nd
Mr. Hsieh, Shih-Ying, Co mm issioner o f OCAC and Presiden t o f
Taiwanese Co mp at riot Assoc iation in Philipp ine)
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(From le ft to right: From le ft-right : Mr. Shen Fa-Hui, Mr.
Che ng Wen-Tsang , Hon. Dina Ab ad, Mr. Sieg fried Herzog, Hon .
Jun
Ab aya , MP, Dr. Ing -wen Tsa i, Dr. Neric Ac osta , Ms.
Hsieng-hwe i Cha ng, Mr. Chito Ga sc on a nd Mr. Lam bert Ram
irez)
Dr. Tsai was thankful for the warm welcome the delegation
received, as well as for the valuable
information gained from the presentations and dialogue.
According to her, she now has a deeper
understanding and appreciation of the Philippines and the
history of the LPs struggle for democracy. Dr.
Tsai is convinced that democracy in action is significant and
vital. She realized that the LP and DPP
have been witness to the same difficult path endured by their
founders, as they had to make sacrifices
for the sake of freedom. She also said that relations between
the Philippines and Taiwan should be seen
as more than just about trade and business. Economic gains may
not be sustainable without
democracy, she further added. In closing, she reconfirmed the
commitment to building a stronger and
sustained partnership between the DPP and the LP through CALD in
order to promote and advance the
partnerships of liberals in the region and to safeguard
democracy and human rights in Asia.
The DPP and LP are founding member-parties of CALD. Since CALDs
inauguration in 1993, boththe DPP and LP have twice presided over
the CALD leadership. The DPP chaired the organization in
1995 and 2004, while the LP led CALD in 1997 and 2007.
Taiwan human rights updates (Part 2)
Dr. Tsai Ing-wen Receives A Delegation From Freedom Houseand
Expresses Her Concern Over Freedom Of Speech, Freedom Of
Assembly And Political Freedom In Taiwan
Freedom House held the global release of their flagship
publication, Freedom in the World, on January 13, 2009 in
Taipei, an event hosted by the Taiwan Foundation for
Democracy (TFD). This is the first time that Freedom House
has launched such a report in Asia. Dr. Tsai Ing-wen
received
the Freedom House delegation, which consisted of Mr.
Christopher Walker, Director of Studies of Freedom House,
Professor Bridget Welsh of Johns Hopkins
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University and Ms. Sarah Cook, Freedom House Asia Researcher, at
the DPP headquarters a day
before the event.
Dr. Tsai first expressed her admiration for Freedom Houses
long-term efforts to research and
monitor countries practice of democracy, political freedom and
human rights worldwide. She said
Freedom in the World has been recognized internationally as a
very credible monitoring report and has
a significant impact on global democratization. She also
expressed her appreciation for Freedom
Houses support as well as its concerns for Taiwans recent
developments. While the Ma administration
has boasted about stabilization and progress in relations
between Taiwan and China, and in the
process labeled protesters and demonstrators as troublemakers,
Freedom House expressed its
concerns over Taiwans human rights and political freedom crisis
that was hiding behind this success.
Concerns over the Assembly and Parade Act ()Dr. Tsai briefed the
delegation about the current situation by placing special emphasis
on an
independent judicial system, free media and freedom of assembly.
Since on the following day (January
13, 2009) the Legislative Yuan was going to review the amendment
on the Assembly and Parade Act
(), she pointed out that the DPP does not oppose amending the
Act but believes that ademocratic government should provide maximum
protection for freedom of speech and freedom of
assembly. However, the current amendment proposed by the
Executive Yuan was even more restrictive
than the current law. The amendment restricts people more than
it protects them. This is not
acceptable to theDPP and numerous civic groups, she said. She
explained that the three major
problems in the amendment are: (1) the obligatory report
requirement that gives the government an
excuse to intervene in every rally and assembly; (2) the
restricted area clause has been removed from
the amendment, but new measures, such as a line of control and
safe distance, have been included;
and (3) though criminal offenses have been removed from the
amendment, more administrative
penalties have been added, which will further affect the peoples
freedom of assembly.
(From left to right: Ms. Amy Hsieh, Dr. Lin Wen-che ng , Vice
Presiden t o f Taiwan Founda tion fo r Demo c rac y, Dr. Mr.
Christop her
Walker, Direc to r of Stud ies of the Freed om House, Dr. Tsai,
Ing-we n, Ms. Sara h C oo k, Asia Resea rche r of Free do m House
and
Professor Bridget Welsh, Academic Advisor of Freedom House and
Johns Hopkins University Professor)
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Taiwan Citizen Conference on National Affairs(Part 1):
What Is Taiwan Citizen Conference on National Affairs &Why
We Need It?
Why is the Taiwan Citizen Conference on National Affairs
necessary?
Since President Ma Ying-jeou took office in May, his government
has carried out many policies that have
resulted in the erosion of the nations sovereignty, economy,
democracy and human rights, all of which
have turned the Taiwanese peoples high expectations towards Ma
Ying-jeous administration to deep
disappointment and anxiety. Despite growing frustration and
anxiety among the people, the KMT
government, seemingly reverting to its authoritarian past, has
refused to listen to public opinion. Taiwan
now faces its most serious challenge in decades.
Thus, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and Taiwan
Solidarity Union (TSU) have decided to
co-sponsor the Taiwan Citizen Conference on National Affairs to
provide the public with a chance to
voice their opinions.
What is the purpose of the Taiwan Citizen Conference on National
Affairs?
The objectives of the conference are to:
1. Propose a basic direction for Taiwans society and offer a
blueprint for the next five to ten years in
the nations development.
2; Apply pressure on the government by ensuring that the
concerns and wishes of the public are
broadcast through every possible medium.
3. Institute immediate action by promoting those practical
issues that reach a consensus within the
conference - in particular for those which would help
disadvantaged groups.
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Who will be invited?
Everyone who cares about the future direction of Taiwan. We will
invite researchers and academics from
think tanks and universities, lawmakers and representatives of
political parties, experts and activists in
various fields, as well as government officials and policy
advisors from Ma administration to join in the
discussion.
How will it proceed?
There are two main parts in the conference agenda:
I. Current Financial and Economic Situations in Taiwan and the
Impacts on Social Security
(1) Three town meetings, served as preparatory meetings, will be
held in Kaohsiung (January
16), Taichung (February 6), and Taipei (February 13). The
objective is to gather inputs and
ideas from the public through brainstorming and panel
discussion.
(2) Conference schedule:
Time: February 21 and 22, 2009
Venue: Howard International House (30, Xinsheng S. Rd., Sec. 3,
Taipei)
II. Social Reform and Reconstruction of National System
(1) Town meeting schedule: (tba)
(2) Conference schedule:
Time: Mid-March, 2009 (tba)
Venue: (tba)
(For mo re informa tion, plea se refe r to the DPP website:
http://www.dpp.org.tw/)
2009 Local Election in Taiwan~ Part 1
Three-in-One Local Election Coming Up at the End of 2009!
What is the Three-in-One local election?
The "Three-in-One Election" is an election of county
magistrates, county council members, and
township governors for twenty-one counties and
province-administered cities in Taiwan (not including
the centrally-administered cities of Taipei and Kaohsiung).
How is the DPP nominating its candidates this year?
Candidates are normally nominated based on the DPP party
platform, which dictates that the
candidates participate in a party primary election. But this
year, the 13th DPP National Party Congress,
the highest decision-making body of the DPP, resolved to unify
the party and best utilize the limited
resources and person power available. They reached this decision
on July 20th, 2008. Instead of
competing in a party primary, the nominations would be
undertaken through cooperation and negotiation.
The National Party Congress thus authorized the Central
Executive Committee to set up a special task
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force responsible for the nomination of 2009 county magistrates
and mayors for province-administered
cities candidates.
Leading the special task-force is Jia-Chyuarn Su (), a former
member of parliament andformer Minister of Interior Affairs.
Who has been nominated so far? Yunlin County: Su, Ji-feng ()
(current Yunlin magistrate)
Pingtung County: Tsao, Chi-hung () (current Pingtung
magistrate)
Yi-Lan County: Lin, Tsong-Shyan () (current Lo-Tung town
governor)
Hsin-chu County: Perng, Shaw-jiin () (former Member of
Parliament)
Keelung City: Lin, Yu-Chang () (member, the DPP Central
Executive Committee)
Taichung City: Lin, Jia-long () (former deputy secretary-general
to the President)
Taitung County, Liu, Chou-hao () (former Judge, Tai-tung
District Court and former Deputy
Magistrate of Taitung County)
Chia-Yi County, Tu, Shing-Che ( ) (Member of Parliament,
National Policy Advisor of
Presidential office and Director General, Department of Health,
Executive Yuan)
Tai-Nan City: Lai, Ching-Te () (Member of Parliament)
Kaohsiung County: Lin, Tai-Hua () (former Member of
Parliament)
Penghu Co unty: Tsa i Chien-hsing () (former spokesperson of
Kaohsiung City Council)
(For mo re informa tion, plea se refe r to the DPP website:
http://www.dpp.org.tw/)
Statement in Response to Hu Jintao's 'Six-Points'
Proposition
(DPP Department of International Affairs)Taiwan is an
independent, sovereign state whose sovereignty belongs to the
twenty-three million
Taiwanese people. Taiwans future has to be decided by the
Taiwanese- this is not only the DPPs
position, but also the position held by a majority of Taiwanese
society. China has to understand and
respect the fact that, in a democratic country, no one has the
right to ask people to relinquish their
freedom of expression.
We feel that the biggest problem between Taiwan and China right
now is not how the DPP is acting
but how the Taiwanese people perceive China. China consistently
flaunts the success of its Taiwan
policy, yet this policy is based solely on military threat,
diplomatic blockade, economic exploitation and
all kinds of political intimidation. China continually attempts
to internalize the cross-strait issue, which
downgrades Taiwan to yet another region of China and transforms
Taiwan into another Hong Kong or
Macau. Chinas intentional ignorance of the true feelings of the
Taiwanese has made true harmonization
between the two sides impossible.
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express our strong dissent concerning the actions of President
Ma, and urgently demand that he
condemn the actions of the Chinese officials responsible for the
human rights crimes committed
against the leaders of Charter 08.
In Response to the KMT-CCP Forum: DPP Calls for Supervision of
theLegislature and Citizen Participation
In a speech concerning the 4th Cross Strait Economic and
Cultural Forum (KMT-CCP Forum)
given at a Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) policy symposium,
Dr. Tsai Ing-wen stated Ma
Ying-jeous announcement that the policy of effective management
had become history was a cause of
worry. The DPP administrations policy of effective management
was a risk management measure and
not an act of self-isolation. The Ma administrations wholesale
opening up to China without instituting any
defensive or risk management controls will cause great harm to
the Taiwanese economy.
Dr. Tsai also brought up other points of concern:
1. Damage to Taiwans democracy and government accountability The
KMT-CCP
platform has taken the lead in establishing the cross-strait
agenda and turning it over to the
Ma government to execute. However, the direction of the nation
must be decided by its
people, and the peoples choices must be carried out through
democratic processes. The
Chinese Nationalist Partys (KMT) actions have seriously eroded
the authority of government
institutions and turned Taiwans democratically elected
government into a puppet of a single
political party. This greatly harms Taiwans democratic system as
well as the faith and trust
that the public holds for the government. We do not wish for
Taiwan to return to the
party-state of the past which is exactly what the situation is
in China. Taiwan is a democratic
and progressive country. Why should we regress into the same
state as China?
2. Lack of transparency The topics under negotiation at the
KMT-CCP forum involve
important national issues dealing with the economy,
transportation, and national security.
However, the negotiation process lacks transparency and
supervision by the legislature.
Cross-strait talks should never become like backroom
negotiations. Ma Ying-jeou should
clearly explain to the Taiwanese people what the channels and
content of discussions are.
The KMT, which has been leading the process, has its own
commercial and political interests,
but it has not taken any measures to avoid conflicts of
interests. We are worried that the
KMT will lead Taiwan down a road of no return.
3. The government wields too much power over the administration
of cross strait issues
while the legislative supervisory mechanisms are too weak and
inadequate. On July 16,
1992, the Legislature passed the Act Governing Relations between
Peoples of the Taiwan
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Area and the Mainland Area (Cross Strait Relations Act) which is
one of the most important
laws that provides the framework for interactions between Taiwan
and China. This law
covers everything from contractual agreements between
governments to contacts between
private organizations to personal issues such as marriages and
inheritance.
However, Dr. Tsai pointed out that this law is seriously
deficient in setting up legislative
supervisory mechanisms for cross strait affairs. The text of the
law only briefly mentions that
any cross strait agreements which involve writing or revising
laws must be evaluated by the
Legislature. Everything else is just sent to the Legislature for
reference. The law also is
clearly deficient in the area of legislative supervision of
cross strait agreements. For example,
it does not specify whether the Legislature has the authority to
amend agreements. The law
does not specify how amendments would affect the agreements
validity or execution. Such
an enormous amount of power given to the executive is a cause
for concern in Taiwan where
the ruling party has an inordinate amount of power.
4. Dr. Tsai stated that Ma Ying-jeous view of the DPPs effective
management policy as
ideological in nature is a serious mistake. This shows that the
Ma administration has
completely no regard for the small and medium-size enterprises
and traditional
manufacturing companies that have been hurt by the establishment
of direct links. He has
ignored the threats of higher unemployment faced by the people.
He has also neglected the
importance of a national economic defense mechanism in the face
of the globalization of
economic activity. When the DPP was in power, it performed an
Evaluation of the Influence
of Cross Strait Direct Air Links which provided a comprehensive
examination of the
opportunities and risks of direct links. However, the Ma
administration has only parroted thepart about the opportunities
and remained silent on the risks. In contrast to the
KMTs risky cross strait policy, the DPP cares about how the
direct links have caused
traditional manufacturers to relocate abroad or downsize, the
dumping of agricultural
products from China, how agricultural products can compete with
low-priced products from
China, the closing or idling of factories and the accompanying
unemployment, and how to
control the spread of diseases. However, no matter how loud our
voices are, the government
has not proposed a single economy security plan or precautionary
measure. The Ma
administration only cares about the winners of the direct links
and ignores the
disadvantaged losers.
Consequently, Dr. Tsai stated that the DPP will always be
helping the public to understand the
problems present in the policymaking and overall defensive
mechanisms for cross strait affairs. The
DPP will be launching two important social movements. The first
will call for the immediate revision
of the Cross Strait Relations Act so that the Legislature
retracts the outsized authority given to
government departments.
Dr. Tsai said, The writing of that law occurred in a specific
historical context, but we have
already entered a new era. Cross strait political and economic
interactions are much more complex now
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and a diverse set of opinions exist in a democratic society.
There, Legislature must provide a strong
check and balance against the executive. The Legislature, which
is made up of different political parties,
should be a tangible and effective check against the
executive.
For the second social movement, the DPP hopes that the people
will retract the authority they
have given to the executive and legislative organs in the area
of cross strait issues. There should be
room for the people to exercise direct authority over the
carrying out of cross strait policy. Therefore, the
DPP will propose an amendment to the Referendum Law that will
give the public the authority to
express their opinion towards cross strait issues instead of
just turning it over to representative
groups to handle.
The Risks and Effects of Signing a Financial MOUDr. Tsai stated
that the signing of a financial supervisory memorandum of
understanding (MOU) is
a neutral issue. Whether it benefits or harms Taiwan depends on
three things: 1. Whether there is
sovereign equality, 2. Whether there is adequate risk
management, and 3. What the overall economic
benefits are.
1. Sovereign equality: If Taiwan is forced to sign something
like a Closer Economic Partnership
Agreement (CEPA), this would seriously harm Taiwans sovereignty.
We strongly demand that
the KMT not sacrifice our sovereignty and dignity in order to
reach an agreement.
2. Risk management: If Taiwan does not establish precautionary
measures when opening itself up
to mutual establishment of bank branches, it will face the
following risks. The Financial
Supervisory Commission has also failed to explain whether it
will institute any protective
mechanisms:a. Allowing Taiwanese banks to set up branches in
China: If ten banks in Taiwan decide to
establish five branches in China, they will need to transfer
$NT50 billion over as
operating capital. If the Chinese government depreciates their
currency, this will lead to a
liquidity crisis that will force the Taiwanese bank headquarters
to transfer more funds to
sustain their branches in China. When a problem occurs between
Taiwan and China,
Chinese account holders will most likely seek to withdraw their
funds which would affect
the banks liquidity and result in a systemic crisis for
Taiwan.
b. Allowing Chinese banks to set up branches in Taiwan: Chinese
bank branches in Taiwan
will be able to have access to personal, commercial, and
relational data from the Joint
Credit Information Center (JCIC). The financial condition of
Taiwanese businessmen will
also be exposed. Under a situation in which hostility still
exists in the political cross-strait
situation, this is undeniably a serious security hole through
which confidential information
may be obtained. Chinas primary ambition in signing an MOU is to
obtain JCIC data.
Has the Ma administration been aware of this?
3. Evaluation of Economic Interests: There are actually limited
economic benefits for liberalizing
financial exchanges. The government should not make
exaggerations:
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a. When Wang Chien-shien was Finance Minister, he approved too
many applications to
set up banks which led to the overly competitive nature of
todays banking market in
Taiwan where interest rates have remained low for a long period.
This is the reason why
many banks wish to set up branches in China at this time.
b. However, if one combined all 37 banks in Taiwan into a single
bank, its size would still be
smaller than the Bank of China, Chinas fourth-largest bank.
China also places all sorts
of restrictions on foreign banks which would most likely limit
any gains that Taiwanese
banks would have from setting up operations in China.
c. The government should think through whether obtaining these
benefits is worth the cost.
In consideration of the risks and benefits, has the government
come up with any
precautionary measures to manage risk?
Highlights of 2008 DPP Public Survey Results(DPP Survey
Center)
Period between the Parliamentary Election and President Mas
Inauguration:
Nearly 60% of respondents were satisfied with the results of the
Legislative Yuan elections;
however, nearly 50% of those polled were worried that the KMT,
which won the majority of the
seats, may abuse its majority power and funnel benefits to
limited groups of people.
Approval Rate for the President and the Cabinet
1. The approval rate for President Ma Ying-jeou has been sharply
declining since he took office
in May. Before his inauguration, his approval rate topped off at
70%. After his second month in
office, however, it dropped to approximately 50%. By August, it
had fallen to well below 40%,
and dipped to under 30% in the following month of September.
2. Women have formed the majority of support for President Ma
(the approval rate among
women was nearly 80% during his second week as president);
however, after the third month
of his tenure, 60% of women said they were not satisfied with
President Mas performance.
3. The approval rate for Premier Liu Chao-shiuan is slightly
lower than President Mas, but has
declined in a similar manner consistent to that of the
Presidents.
4. The approval rate for members of the cabinet has also
experienced fluctuations. When
Premier Liu first came to the office, Minister of Foreign
Affairs Francisco Ou () andMinister of Defense Chen Chao-min ()
were the least popular members of the cabinet;however, Economics
Minister Yiin Chii-Ming () and Finance Minister Lee Sush-derhave
since replaced them as the two least popular members of the
cabinet.
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5. The approval rate for the Cabinet has dropped sharply. On
average, 60% of respondents (by
September, this number reached well over 80%) said they would
like to see the cabinet
reformed and members re-shuffled.
Economic issues
1. When President Ma first came to office in May, about 50% of
respondents said that they had
confidence in the governments ability to stabilize the consumer
prices. After Mas first month in
office, though, 63% said they were not satisfied with the
governments performance.
2. When the government first proposed its Strengthen Regional
Constructions, Expand Domestic
Demand program to the public, only 40% of the public supported
the program while 53% of
respondents preferred a direct tax return.
3. More than 60% of respondents did not believe President Ma
would be able to achieve his
6-3-3 (6 percent annual economic growth, per capita GDP of
US$30,000 and unemployment
of less than 3 percent) campaign promise.
4. 71% of respondents said their property and assets have
depreciated under Mas administration,
while 65% felt the standard of living has declined.
5. Approximately 70% of respondents felt pessimistic about their
personal economic situation for
next year.
6. About 4,000,000 of the employed population have been affected
by negative economic shock,
as seen in a decrease in salary and unpaid leave but an increase
in unpaid working hours.
Cross-strait issues and sovereignty issues
1. 67% of respondents said they cannot accept President Mas
statement that Taiwans relations
with China is a non-state-to-state relationship
2. 51% of respondents opposed Mas diplomatic truce with
China
3. 66% of respondents thought the Ma government will lead Taiwan
toward the direction of
unification with China
4. 51% of respondents worried that President Ma will not be able
to safeguard Taiwans
sovereignty when negotiating with China.
5. The general reception of the Taiwanese public towards China
is negative: 58% think China is
hostile to Taiwan, 85% think China is autocratic, and 75% think
China is black-hearted.
6. 56% of respondents thought the KMT-CPP Forum not appropriate
and 76% of respondents felt
the ruling party should consult and reach a consensus with the
opposition party before
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initiating negotiations with the Chinese government.
7. 84% of respondents think that when agreements or treaties are
made by the two sides, they
should be ratified by the Legislative Yuan or a referendum.
8. 47% of respondents thought improving relations between Taiwan
and China will be beneficial
to Taiwans economy while 49% disagreed.
9. 55% of respondents said that the Presidential Offices
response to the opposition partys
invitation to a debate on sovereignty and cross-strait policy by
saying people have made their
choice in the presidential election, so there is no need for
further debates on this issue was
not appropriate.
10. 54% of respondents thought President Ma has sacrificed too
much to China.
11. 44% of respondents said they trust President Ma on handling
cross-strait affairs, while 50%
said they do not trust President Ma.
Chinese envoys visit to Taiwan in November 2008
1. 52% of respondents thought the safety measures adopted by the
police during Chens visit
were not appropriate.
2. 76% of respondents agreed that the police should not have
prohibited any demonstrations or
protests so long as they were conducted in a peaceful
manner.