VZCZCXYZ0006
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHIN #4103/01 3461001
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 121001Z DEC 06
FM AIT TAIPEI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 3415
INFO RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 6081
RUEHHK/AMCONSUL HONG KONG 7307

UNCLAS AIT TAIPEI 004103 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR INR/R/MR, EAP/TC, EAP/PA, EAP/PD - DAVID FIRESTEIN 
DEPARTMENT PASS AIT/WASHINGTON 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OPRC KMDR KPAO TW
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: TAIWAN MAYORAL ELECTIONS 
 
 
¶1. Summary:  Taiwan's major Chinese-language dailies continued to 
focus its coverage December 12 on the aftermath of Saturday's Taipei 
and Kaohsiung mayoral elections, their impact on each political 
party's future development and on the 2008 presidential elections. 
The pro-independence "Liberty Times," Taiwan's largest-circulation 
daily, ran a banner headline on page three that read "DPP Pushes for 
3-in-1 Voting in 2008 [i.e. the legislative, presidential elections, 
and the referendum on retrieving the KMT's party assets]" 
 
¶2. In terms of editorials and commentaries, a "Liberty Times" 
editorial called Saturday's election results a significant warning 
signal for the KMT and its party chairman Ma Ying-jeou.  The article 
urged the KMT thoroughly to review its political line which deviated 
from Taiwan's mainstream public view.  An editorial in the 
pro-status quo "China Times" also said the KMT's top priority now is 
to construct its own discourse on nativism.  An editorial in the 
limited-circulation, conservative, pro-unification, English-language 
"China Post" said the election outcomes indicated "no improvement or 
progress, but prolonged woes for Taiwan."  An editorial in the 
limited-circulation, pro-independence, English-language "Taiwan 
News," urged both the Blue and Green camps to "cease cutthroat 
partisanship and engage in a more healthy and constructive form of 
competition."  End summary. 
 
A) "KMT Must Thoroughly Review Its Line That Deviates from Taiwan's 
Mainstream Public View" 
 
The pro-independence "Liberty Times" [circulation: 600,000] 
editorialized (12/12): 
 
"... In a nutshell, the results of last Saturday's Taipei and 
Kaohsiung mayoral elections are a big warning signal for the KMT and 
Ma Ying-jeou's plan for the 2008 presidential elections.  It seems 
that political maneuvering approaches that appeal to image-shaping 
no longer worked, and the seemingly impressive myth of Ma Ying-jeou 
is on the verge of falling apart.  Ma must demonstrate a more 
pragmatic leadership.  More importantly, the KMT must resolutely 
relinquish its ill-gotten party assets, act quickly to handle those 
party members who have been allegedly involved in corruption, review 
its drastic approach of showing opposition for opposition's sake, 
and genuinely play the role of a rational opposition party.  The KMT 
will then have a bright future in the wake of such thorough 
reforms." 
 
B) "Constructing Nativism Discourse Is the KMT's Top Priority" 
 
The pro-status quo "China Times" [circulation: 400,000] 
editorialized (12/12): 
 
"Results of the Taipei and Kaohsiung mayoral elections showed on the 
surface that the island's political landscape of the Blue camp 
keeping the north while the Green camp holding the south remains 
unchanged.  But in reality, the results indicated that the DPP, 
which has been dogged by corruption scandals over the past year, has 
at least held its ground and would not fall apart.  In contrast, the 
election results should be viewed as a setback for the KMT, which 
was generally believed to enjoy a higher approval rating prior to 
the elections. ... 
 
"... [T]he DPP's primary appeal for every election held after 2000 
remains the assertion of maintaining a nativist regime.  This 
strategy has all the more highlighted that insufficient discussion 
on nativism has become the KMT's Achilles heel regarding its future 
development.  The KMT should ponder the true contents of its 
discourse on nativism.  We want to remind the KMT that the party's 
future will be limited as long as it fails to have a comprehensive, 
convincing and reliable discourse on nativism. ..." 
 
C) "Ma's Loss Isn't Taiwan's Gain" 
 
The conservative, pro-unification, English-language "China Post" 
[circulation: 30,000] noted in an editorial (12/12): 
 
"Results of Saturday's elections show Taiwan's political landscape 
remains unchanged, with the pro-independence green camp keeping the 
south and the pan-blue opposition holding the north.  The Kuomintang 
(KMT) lost its best chance of wresting Kaohsiung from the 
scandal-plagued Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).  This means not 
improvement or progress, but prolonged woes, for Taiwan.  It was a 
setback for KMT chief Ma Ying-jeou, his first electoral defeat since 
becoming party chairman last year. ... 
 
"By helping the DPP candidate to win against the odds, the embattled 
president now can claim to enjoy considerable support among the 
fundamentalist supporters. Barring another scandal that directly 
implicates him, any further attempts to unseat him are futile.  Ma 
may come under scrutiny from within the KMT.  His leadership will be 
challenged and party members will criticize him for his 
unwillingness to sacrifice for the party.  His reluctance to resign 
from office after he was investigated by prosecutors for alleged 
embezzlement is no holier than that of the president. ..." 
 
D) "Voters Demand Healthy Competition" 
 
The pro-independence, English-language "Taiwan News" circulation: 
20,000 editorialized (12/12): 
 
"Besides displaying the strong will of Taiwan voters to maintain our 
hard-won democratic achievements, the results of Saturday's Taipei 
and Kaohsiung mayoral and city council polls sent a clear message to 
both the 'green' camp led by the governing Democratic Progressive 
Party and the 'blue' camp of the opposition Kuomintang that the two 
camps should cease cutthroat partisanship and engage in a more 
healthy and constructive form of competition.  ... The DPP's 
success in retaining its eight-year hold on Kaohsiung City and its 
fundamental base of electoral support in Taipei did show that 
inner-party calls for Chen to resign were premature and eased 
divisions and an emerging power struggle within the party.  The 
polls also put the DPP potential competitors for the party's 
presidential nomination back on a more or less equal footing, even 
though former premier and ex-Kaohsiung City mayor Frank Hsieh may 
have gained a slight edge in the wake of his impressive campaign in 
Taipei City and the contribution of his legacy in Kaohsiung to the 
narrow victory of DPP standard-bearer Chen Chu in the southern port 
metropolis. ... 
 
"The KMT's failure to 'win back' Kaohsiung after eight years of DPP 
administration is a timely 'wake-up call' to leaders and supporters 
of the pan-KMT camp on the widespread wishful thinking that Ma is 
'the one' who can easily recover Taiwan back for the former ruling 
party in March 2008.  Saturday's result also exposed to all Taiwan 
citizens the 'Achilles heels' of the KMT, namely its poor 
leadership, lack of clear or progressive policy for Taiwan and the 
persistence of its ingrained culture of institutional, not 
individual, political corruption. ...  On the other hand, the 
self-liquidation of the People First Party and the departure of PFP 
Chairman James Soong should free the KMT from political hijacking by 
the PFP remnants, especially on such issues as the long-delayed 
procurement of advanced defensive weapon systems from the United 
States and the long-frozen nominations to the Control Yuan. ..." 
 
YOUNG