Hong Kong Commentator on Ma's Recent Moves

A translation of an article from a Hong Kong paper on Ma's regressive two-region theory.

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Hong Kong Wen Wei Po Online in Chinese 08 Sep 08

"Wen Wei Forum" article by senior commentator Chi Shuo-ming: "Intentions Behind Ma Ying-jeou's 'Two-Area' Theory"

The other day, Taiwan "President" Ma Ying-jeou gave an exclusive interview to the Mexican newspaper, El Sol de Mexico, during which he again made special remarks on cross-Strait relations. He maintained that the relationship between the two sides of the Strait is a special relationship, but not a state-to-state relationship. Subsequently, Wang Yu-chi, spokesperson for Taiwan's "Presidential Office," offered the media an interpretation: According to the provisions of the "Constitution of the Republic of China [ROC]," relations between Taiwan and the mainland are relations between "the Taiwan area and the mainland area;" the "ROC" is a state with independent sovereignty; although Taiwan and the mainland are not in a position to recognize each other, they can at least refrain from mutual denial. If this is where the argument stopped, it would give no cause for much criticism. But the problem is that Taiwan would not stop here. It wishes to broaden its international space and use the same logic to come to the following conclusion: Since the mainland is committed to non-denial, it should, implicitly, acquiesce in Taiwan's joining international organizations around the world whose members are states with independent sovereignty. This is probably the undeclared intention of the "two-area" theory that Ma Ying-jeou has put forward!

A Self-Contradictory Proposition

This is in itself a self-contradictory proposition: It is an area, but it is referred to as a state with independent sovereignty and, further to that, "the mainland area" is requested not to deny it. Although it is quite a mouthful, what it will eventually lead to cannot be clearer. Ma Ying-jeou is hoping that Beijing will let Taiwan have a place in the international arena, like what happened to East Germany and West Germany and what is happening to South Korea [ROK] and North Korea [DPRK]. He started off by defining the two sides of the Taiwan Strait as two areas under one China, before pointing out that the Taiwan area is the "ROC" with independent sovereignty and, further to that, claiming that this reality is not denied by the People's Republic of China [PRC]. Consequently, Taiwan is free to have its international presence felt extensively and join international organizations that are open to states with independent sovereignty only. After that....

In fact, Ma Ying-jeou's "mutual non-denial" is meaningless as far as Beijing is concerned. Beijing does not care about Taiwan's non-denial. The international status that the PRC is enjoying at present will not be shaken under any circumstances because of Taiwan's denial. Conversely, Taiwan has a greater need for Beijing's non-denial in order to win more international space. The CPC did have a history of non-denial of the ROC at one point, but that was before 1949. Even when the CPC was going to overthrow that regime, they could not deny its existence. But after the Kuomintang government was overthrown and relocated to Taiwan, when it attempted to stay on the international stage as a state with independent sovereignty, Beijing had no choice but to reject it.

A Ploy of Defensive Offense

In fact, when the Wang-Ku meeting resulted in the "92 Consensus" and suggested that the two sides of the Strait express their own interpretations of one China separately, it was saying that you may interpret or express your status as a state with independent sovereignty, but you must not demand that Beijing acknowledge or refrain from negating this expression of yours. As a matter of fact, it was for the very purpose of negating this expression of yours that the two governments advanced diametrically different expressions, which were expressions of mutual denial. The original purpose of "one China, separate expressions" was mutual denial: I do not recognize you and you do not recognize me; I deny you and you deny me. That is why the two sides had their own expressions that were different, without departing from the principle of "one China." The theory of "mutual non-denial" just presented seems out of tune with "one China, separate expressions."

"Diplomatic truce" that Ma Ying-jeou suggested is in essence none other than a ploy of defensive offense to win an international status at the end of the day. This is because Ma Ying-jeou is aware that given the current international clout of the Beijing government, Taiwan is unlikely to be able to buy "diplomatic ties" with more countries, even if it depleted its foreign exchange reserves. He is in no position to take on Beijing on the diplomatic front. That is why he first proposed "diplomatic truce" and then came up with the "two-area" theory, before trying to obtain the pass to the international community in the name of "mutual non-denial," so that "one China, separate expressions" would become more operable in the international arena.

Economy Before Politics

I believe Beijing is fully aware that Taiwan badly needs an international status and Taiwan should have an international status. During the first meeting between the leaders of the two ruling parties, the Kuomintang and the CPC, in Beijing in May 2008, CPC General Secretary Hu Jintao gave the assurance that he had noted this aspiration of the Taiwan public. But the cross-Strait relations had regressed under the rule of the Democratic Progressive Party that is in favor of "Taiwan independence" over the years, creating a host of burning issues that were crying out to be solved, so Beijing had to shelve disputed issues and work on the easier issues before tackling more difficult ones. Ma Ying-jeou was hoping for an "instant improvement" of Taiwan's economy after he took office, but it has turned out to be his own wishful thinking. After eight years of wallowing in the Chen Shui-bian [Ch'en Shui-pien] mire, compounded by the deterioration of the international economic environment, Taiwan's economic recovery will be, inevitably, slow in coming.

Similarly, benefiting from the positive interactions following the inauguration of Ma Ying-jeou, the cross-Strait relations are presenting a new profile. Taiwan's wish list is very long. It is not that Beijing is unwilling to give what Taiwan wants, but it has to do it step by step according to the principle of putting economy before politics and working on the easier issues before tackling more difficult ones. If agenda is anything to go by, even the "Chiang-Chen meeting" between the Straits Exchange Foundation and the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits, slated for this October, cannot possibly solve all political and economic issues at one fell swoop.

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The Taiwan News editorialized on the two-region idea the other day, pointing out just how bizarre it is:

Besides attempting to resurrect the fantasy of an all encompassing ROC cherished by the Chiangs which had been negated by Taiwan's bottom-up democratization, Ma has blatantly transgressed his mandate as the elected president, not regional chief executive, of Taiwan's 23 million citizens.

After loudly touting his "love for Taiwan" and declaring just before the polls that "Taiwan's future can only be decided by the 23 million people of Taiwan," Ma had immediately switched in his May 20 inaugural speech to unilaterally declare that "all the people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait belong to the Chinese race" and further negated Taiwan's actually existing independence with his arbitrary claim that Taiwan is not a "state."

Ma's arbitrary redefinition of "special state-to-state relations" into "region to region" relations is by no means harmless. His definition of Taiwan as a "region" undermines our claim to full, equal and distinct representation in the international community as a democratic independent state and negates the right of democratic self-determination of our 23 million people under the principle of "people's sovereignty" embraced by Lee and underlining the DPP's May 1999 "Resolution on the Future of Taiwan."

Ma's redefinition also opens questions about his own status, namely whether he considers himself to be the constitutionally mandated head of state of the state composed of Taiwan's 23 million citizens, the "chief executive" of a "region" or, megalomanically, the sole legitimate "president" of a "great ROC" including over 1.3 billion people in the PRC, Mongolia and Taiwan.

We support former president Lee's position that Ma's unilateral "redefinition" of Taiwan from a democratic and independent state into a mere "region" betrays his electoral mandate from our 23 million citizens and can be called 'traitorous."

We call on Ma to either retract his statement, submit his definition that Taiwan is merely a "region" for approval or rejection by our 23 million citizens through national referendum or resign his post for having won election through fraud.

Yes, we're slouching toward the Taiwan SAR.....

[Taiwan]