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Published: September 9, 2006
Legislator Bi-khim Hsiao and Professor Chih-cheng Lo field questions
in a live discussion with Washington Post website visitors
The Government Information Office (GIO) hosted an online discussion September 8 (Friday) with the aim of helping the world get a better grasp of issues concerning Taiwan's right to participate in the United Nations and its efforts to achieve that goal. The discussion, which, began at 9:00 p.m. Taipei time, was conducted by Washingtonpost.com's internationally popular "Viewpoint" forum.
On the Taiwan end of the discussion were Legislator Bi-khim Hsiao and Professor Chih-cheng Lo, chairman of the Soochow University Political Science Department and member of the executive committee of Taiwan Thinktank. After briefing members of the press and thanking the two for accepting his invitation to speak out for Taiwan in this first-ever live online outreach activity, GIO Minister Cheng Wen-tsang stayed on to watch and enjoy the lively discussion, calling it "very successful."
The hour-long Viewpoint chat attracted many participants from across the globe, whose 135 questions and comments demonstrated their deep concern about issues related to Taiwan's bid to gain representation in the UN, including human rights and international peace and security. Given the time constraint, however, Hsiao and Lo responded to 31 of the most representative questions.
A participant in Berlin asked whether participation in the United Nations is necessary for a country such as Taiwan, which has achieved impressive economic and political development without a seat in the UN, Hsiao responded by saying that it is "precisely because Taiwan has grown in economy and politics that we wish to be a normal country recognized by the international community and able to contribute our achievements to the world." She pointed out that Taiwan carries out numerous foreign aid projects in the fields of agriculture and medicine and that such projects could be "much more effective if coordinated with the various UN agencies."
In answer to a similar question from Princeton, New Jersey, Lo commented that Taiwan "would have done much better [economically and politically] if it were a member of the UN." Citing the 2003 SARS epidemic as an example, he noted that it was only after that tragic epidemic that the world fully realized that "Taiwan's exclusion from the WHO could be extremely costly."
When queried on the definition of "meaningful participation" in Taiwan's campaign to join the WHO, Hsiao replied that "Besides becoming a full-fledged member of the WHO, meaningful participation entails the ability of Taiwanese medical and health experts to take part in international efforts to combat diseases such as SARS and the sharing of relevant information through the agency."
On the topic of a draft resolution concerning the maintenance of peace in the Taiwan Strait that Taiwan's diplomatic allies have recommended to the General Assembly, a Viewpoint forum participant in Boston asked what the United Nations can do in that regard. Noting that the Taiwan Strait is recognized as a "flashpoint" in Asia, Lo stressed the importance of UN involvement by stating that in an increasingly interdependent world, "any tension or even military conflict in the Taiwan Strait could affect the whole region and the whole world." The United Nations could help prevent not only a regional but worldwide tragedy simply by promoting dialogue. "I think the UN can bring the issue to the table for discussion, or even invite both Beijing and Taipei to talk to each other at the UN," he said.
In answer to a question regarding how China strives to keep Taiwan excluded from the United Nations, Lo explained that "China uses both sticks and carrots to affect other countries' attitudes¡KFor instance, by giving foreign aid, Beijing has been wooing other countries to support its stance" and "sometimes uses [trade and economic] retaliation" against those who support Taiwan.
On the same topic, commenting on the veto power that China enjoys as a permanent member of the UN Security Council, Lo indicated that this fact does not mean Taiwan's efforts to join the United Nations are futile. After all, he noted, "Taiwan (ROC) had the veto power at the UN Security Council before 1971. But China (PRC) still entered the UN that year. So, Taiwan has to keep trying." Nobody can be certain about the future, he stressed, adding, "Remember, nobody predicted the collapse of the Soviet Union."
In response to a Canadian participant's expression of puzzlement at why China persists in blocking Taiwan's UN participation when it must realize that doing so will only push the Taiwanese people further away, Lo concurred, emphasizing that "China's efforts in isolating Taiwan internationally only alienate the Taiwanese people. Beijing may believe that what it has been doing will force Taiwan to come to China's terms. But that is counter-productive."
Responding to a participant in Dublin, Ireland on the same theme, Hsiao asserted that China's threats will not dampen "the desire of the Taiwanese people to be more internationally active. In fact, China has issued threats every step of the way [in Taiwan's march] toward full democratization." Although China labeled Taiwan's democratic elections as "provocative," she said, "that did not deter the progress that we made. We believe that international participation is a right of our people, just as selecting our own leader and government was a right we actively pursued for many years."
One of the participants, in Taipei, expressed concern that Taiwan may lack the will to maintain a strong defense capability. On this point, Hsiao remarked that "The people of Taiwan have fought long and hard for the democratic institutions that we enjoy today. As such, we are committed to defending the system that we all worked to create, preferably through diplomatic means. But under the existing military threat from China, we are also committed to strengthening our national defense," as demonstrated by the fact that "the government has submitted a special budget proposal to enhance our military preparedness." Although the draft bill has long been blocked by the opposition, she stressed that "efforts to enhance our defense and to garner opposition party support on this will be continuously pursued by this government."
In answer to a question concerning the seriousness of China's threat to peace and security across the Taiwan Strait, Hsiao remarked that "China has not ruled out the use of force against Taiwan. In fact, in the so-called 'Anti-Secession Law' passed by the National People's Congress last year, the Chinese [government] have provided themselves with the legal authority to use force against Taiwan." She went on to say that "There are currently close to 800 missiles, growing at a rate of 100 to 150 each year, deployed against Taiwan." Stressing that such actions must be taken seriously, she explained that "This threat is also the reason why a number of Taiwan's allies submitted a letter to the UN General Assembly requesting a proactive role for the UN in maintaining peace and security in East Asia," in hopes that it will treat the Chinese missile build-up with the same degree of concern as it has treated North Korea's recent missile tests.
Lo, meanwhile, emphasized that although the government of Taiwan wants to "beef up" its defense capabilities, its efforts in that regard are not intended to fuel an arms races with China. "What we have been doing is to maintain [a] credible deterrence posture against any possible military attack from China," he said.
The full transcript of the discussion is available at http://english.www.gov.tw/e-Gov/index.jsp
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