US embassy cable - 04TAIPEI3905

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 TAIPEI 003905 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR INR/R/MR, EAP/RSP/TC, EAP/PA, EAP/PD - 
ROBERT PALLADINO 
DEPARTMENT PASS AIT/WASHINGTON 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OPRC, KMDR, KPAO, TW, Cross Strait Politics, Domestic Politics, Foreign Policy 
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: U.S.-CHINA-TAIWAN RELATIONS 
 
A) "An Expected Scheme: A Lie That Takes Several Years 
to Finish Saying It" 
 
An editorial in the conservative, pro-unification 
"United Daily News" commented (12/8): 
 
". [T]his constitutional storm will last through 
President Chen's whole second term.  The prices to be 
paid within and outside the country are unpredictable. 
The result is very likely that the Republic of China 
will split again but the national name still cannot be 
changed .. 
 
"It is clear now that this constitutional reform plan 
will definitely become a swindle.  President Chen has 
said many lies in his four and a half year presidency. 
Many of his words have been proved to be lies. 
However, even though the idea of `name rectification 
and a new constitution' or `constitutional reform' has 
lingered for several years, now is not the end yet. 
The expected expiration time for this lie can be as 
late as 2008 at least.  Therefore, in spite of the fact 
that it will prove to be a scheme after all, President 
Chen cannot be prevented from continuing to tell this 
lie and finishing this well-known scheme in 2008." 
 
B) "The United States Must Not Deprive Taiwan People's 
Rights to Conduct a Referendum on `Taiwan 
Independence'" 
 
The conservative, pro-unification "United Daily News" 
editorialized (12/4): 
 
". The current situation goes like this: every time 
Washington reminds President Chen Shui-bian to stick to 
his `four No's' pledge, Chen will reply that [his 
pledge] `remains unchanged and will not be changed 
during his term of office.'  But after a while, Chen 
will turn his head and start to throw out various 
issues like `to change Taiwan's national emblem,' `to 
break the bird-cage-like referendum law,' `to institute 
Taiwan's first new constitution,' and `don't think that 
I dare not hold a referendum on Taiwan independence.' 
His moves, as a result, has forced the United States to 
remind him again of the `four No's' pledge.  Such a 
cycle has repeated itself more than ten times over the 
past few years. 
 
"Such a cycle shows that the United States' attempt to 
curb Taiwan independence simply by restraining 
President Chen is doomed to fail.  For Chen, he can 
continue pledging the `four No's' policy while at the 
same time manipulating the Taiwan independence issue. 
All he needs to do is just repeat his `four No's' 
pledge to the United States again and again.  In the 
end, the only effect that will be achieved from 
Washington's disallowing Chen to hold a `referendum on 
Taiwan independence' will be to save Chen the trouble 
of having to face the test of Taiwan's public opinion 
directly, while he can continue manipulating his route 
to step on the edge of Taiwan independence.  In other 
words, the United States' move to deprive the Taiwan 
people's right to conduct a referendum on Taiwan 
independence will not only fail to restrain Chen from 
manipulating [the] Taiwan independence [issue], but the 
move itself will also become a political rampart to 
provide shelter for Chen to manipulate Taiwan 
independence. . 
 
"Now Taiwan's democracy has developed to a stage that 
the most critical and the last issue about its 
democracy and constitutional rule is whether it wants 
to declare Taiwan independence and establish a new 
country.  Washington thought it could curb the Taiwan 
independence [movement] by restraining Chen, but in the 
end, it turns out that the democratic constitutional 
rule of the Republic of China has been kidnapped by the 
ever-changing [manipulation] of the Taiwan independence 
[issue].  Actually all the United States has to do is 
to decide what position it will take and what it will 
do once Taiwan declares independence, and it can leave 
everything to the Taiwan people to decide via a 
democratic and constitutional procedure.  Instead, the 
situation nowadays is that the United States has become 
a political rampart for those who manipulate the Taiwan 
independence [issue], and the Republic of China has 
lost its normal constitutional rule and real democracy! 
 
"The United States has failed to stop President Chen 
from continuing to manipulate the Taiwan independence 
[issue], and it has deprived the Taiwan people's rights 
to say no to being manipulated by Chen and the Taiwan 
independence [issue].  Washington thought once it puts 
Chen under control, it could control Taiwan 
independence, too.  But such a misjudgment has taken 
away the rights of 23 million Taiwan people to 
seriously face the Taiwan independence issue and 
jointly make a democratic public decision on the issue. 
The current situation shows that not only has the 
United States failed to control Chen, but it has also 
become the protector of Chen and Taiwan independence. 
Not only so, [the United States] has also made all the 
Taiwan people, the constitution of the Republic of 
China, and Taiwan's democracy hostages kidnapped by 
Chen and Taiwan independence.  Is this the ending that 
the United States has hoped and arranged for Taiwan?" 
 
C) "Only by Insisting on Democracy and Self- 
Determination Can Taiwan's Sovereignty Be Secured" 
 
The pro-independence "Liberty Times" commented in an 
editorial (12/4): 
 
". Honestly speaking, it is completely Taiwan's 
domestic affair for the Taiwan people to act in 
accordance with a democratic procedure to institute a 
new constitution, establish a country based on their 
ideals, and select a name for their country that they 
can identify with.  These moves are also in accordance 
with the principle of self-determination stipulated in 
the United Nations' Charter.  Judging from the 
perspective of democracy, all democratic countries 
should be happy to see such developments.  Take the 
United States as an example: Washington's continuous 
arms sales to Taiwan and its assistance in deterring 
attacks from China against Taiwan are equivalent to 
recognizing Taiwan as a country independent of the 
People's Republic of China.  It is such a paradox, 
however, that the United States currently does not 
recognize the R.O.C. but only recognizes Taiwan 
according to the `Taiwan Relations Act.'  Moreover, 
because of China, the United States persuades Taiwan 
not to change the name of its country or to call itself 
Taiwan.  China, on the other hand, threatens Taiwan not 
to change the name of its country and also forbids the 
use of the name R.O.C. in the international community. 
Viewed from this perspective, isn't the United States a 
hostage of China's hegemonic discourse? ." 
 
D) "Taiwan Must Not Fear China's Intimidation When It 
Carries out the Plan to Rectify Its Name and to 
Institute a Constitution" 
 
The pro-independence "Liberty Times" said in a separate 
editorial (12/6): 
 
". Currently, the countries that are most sensitive to 
Taiwan's move to rectify its name are, without doubt, 
China, and the United States that is misguided by 
China.  China's over-bearing attitude towards Taiwan 
has nothing to do with the name Taiwan uses [to call 
itself] but has a lot to do with whether Taiwan 
recognizes itself as a part of China.  This is not an 
issue that can be discussed rationally.  As a 
democratic nation, however, the United States should 
not follow China's lead and oppress Taiwan in a way 
that violates international customs and the U.N. 
charter.  ... [A]ccording to the Taiwan Relations Act, 
Taiwan is viewed as a legal subject by the United 
States.  Under such circumstances, isn't the United 
States, which is kidnapped by China's politics and, 
thus, questions Taiwan's rectification of its name via 
a democratic procedure, stuck in a predicament? ." 
 
PAAL