VZCZCXYZ0009
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHIN #1756/01 2182238
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 062238Z AUG 07
FM AIT TAIPEI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 6265
INFO RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 7099
RUEHHK/AMCONSUL HONG KONG 8347

UNCLAS AIT TAIPEI 001756 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR INR/R/MR, EAP/TC, EAP/PA, EAP/PD -NIDA EMMONS 
DEPARTMENT PASS AIT/WASHINGTON 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OPRC KMDR KPAO TW
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: U.S.-TAIWAN RELATIONS 
 
 
¶1. Summary:  Taiwan's major Chinese-language dailies focused news 
coverage August 4-6 on next year's legislators' and presidential 
elections, on Taiwan's UN bid, on the joint efforts by Taiwan and 
the United States in successfully capturing five illegal Chinese 
immigrants at the Los Angeles International Airport Saturday; and on 
the raid of an illegal local cosmetics company disguised as an 
Australian firm.  The pro-unification "United Daily News" ran a 
banner headline on page four August 6 which said "Deputy Defense 
Minister Ko Cheng-heng to Visit the United States to Pave the Way 
for the [Planned Purchase of] Aegis-class Destroyers." 
 
¶2. In terms of editorials and commentaries, an editorial in the 
pro-independence "Liberty Times," Taiwan's largest-circulation 
daily, said the United States' recent moves in bowing blindly to 
communist China and suppressing democratic Taiwan have aroused 
certain anti-U.S. sentiments in Taiwan.  An editorial in the 
pro-independence English-language "Taipei Times" also criticized 
Washington's different treatments to Beijing and to Taipei. An 
editorial in the pro-independence, English-language "Taiwan News" 
chimed in by urging the United States to cherish Taiwan's democracy. 
 An editorial in the centrist, KMT-leaning "China Times" discussed 
the subtle changes in the triangular relationship among Taipei, 
Washington and Beijing recently and said such changes have put both 
Washington and Beijing in a dilemma.  A "Taipei Times" op-ed, 
written by former AIT Chairman Nat Bellocchi, urged Washington to 
establish constructive dialogue mechanism with Taiwan.  End 
summary. 
 
A) "The United States' Taiwan Policy Needs to Conform to Common 
Sense and Common Principles" 
 
The pro-independence "Liberty Times" [circulation: 720,000] 
editorialized (8/6): 
 
"... Since [President Chen Shui-bian's] transit in the United States 
en route to Central and South America is not totally necessary, the 
question regarding whether he should transit the continental U.S. is 
a matter that carries more symbolic than substantive significance. 
Indeed, transiting the continental U.S., particularly those big 
cities like New York or Los Angeles, may lead to some beneficial 
results such as the non-official meetings with passionate overseas 
Taiwanese, but still, there are evident restrictions to such 
activities.  More importantly, if those bureaucrats in the U.S. 
State Department insist on making a matter out of this routine 
practice and turning it into a tool to vent its complaints about the 
policy of Taiwan's elected president, our nation will weigh on it as 
well and will not yield [to the United States] blindly.  As it 
stands now, the abolition of the National Unification Council and 
the National Unification Guidelines in early 2006 as well as the 
plan to hold a UN referendum this year are all what an elected 
president must reasonably do to comply with the mainstream public 
opinion; they also indicated democratic Taiwan's sincerity in 
telling the international community that it is willing to handle 
peacefully its normal relations with communist China and to 
participate in the international organizations. 
 
"The United States, which proactively advocates democracy and 
practices it as a universal value, should reasonably support 
Taiwan's daring and resolute actions in practicing democracy and 
joining the international community.  It is a pity that the U.S. 
executive branch has often been inconsistent in its words and deeds 
when it comes to treating democratic Taiwan over the past few years: 
 From President Bill Clinton to President George W. Bush, from 
Secretary Colin Powell to Condoleezza Rice, what one often saw was 
 
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that when they praised Taiwan as a successful story of democracy, 
they were also restricted by the diplomatic needs of communist 
China.  Washington has constantly cited reasons such as the one 
China policy or [possible] alteration to the cross-Strait status quo 
to suppress [Taiwan's] procedures in concretely practicing basic 
democratic principles, such as the referenda.  Such inconsistency in 
[the United States'] words and deeds have aroused some anti-U.S. 
sentiments. ...  This anti-U.S. consciousness that appeared lately 
is an aversion stemming from the United States' blind bowing to 
communist China and suppressing democratic Taiwan. ..." 
 
B) "Carrots for China, Sticks for Taiwan" 
 
The pro-independence, English-language "Taipei Times" [circulation: 
30,000] editorialized (8/4): 
 
"It's a perfect juxtaposition: In the same week that Mattel pulled 
more than 1.5 million units of toys off the shelves, the US has 
offered would-be superpower China technical advice on how to export 
untainted food and drugs.  Despite years of exponential growth, poor 
Beijing is apparently still struggling with the concept of export 
quality. ...  Even so, the strength of the yuan and flagrant, 
unpunished intellectual copyright violations are putting pressure on 
members of Congress to demand retaliatory measures.  With the Bush 
administration in general, and the US State Department in 
particular, however, it's nothing doing: Diplomacy is all.  The 
offer of technical assistance is sensible: Americans and their 
companies have a lot at stake when China neglects responsibilities 
on health and safety. 
 
"And yet it is striking how the US consistently prefers 
encouragement and dialogue over criticism and punitive measures when 
it comes to the flagrant disregard for basic standards in China, 
standards that the industrialized world takes for granted.  If only 
Taiwan consistently enjoyed such treatment from Washington.  When 
President Chen Shui-bian about to embark on another Central American 
diplomatic tour, there are rumblings over whether the US State 
Department is going to punish him for supporting a referendum on 
Taiwan's entry into the UN. No punitive restrictions have been 
announced, although the pro-unification China Times - a frequently 
unreliable and mischievous source on US matters - claims that this 
is on the way.  If the State Department were to do so, it would be a 
most unfortunate reflection of a monolithic view on Taiwanese 
affairs and Taiwanese people.  It would also be a sad coda to the 
bridge-building trip to the US by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) 
presidential nominee Frank Hsieh, who seems to have gone out of his 
way to play ball with US officials all too easily unnerved by an 
'angry' China. 
 
"It is understandable, though not defensible, that the State 
Department would want to muzzle Chen, Even if what he says about 
Taiwan and the UN is perfectly true.  It is not understandable that 
the State Department would so pettily use stopover rights as 
punishment if Chen does not do its bidding.  There are other ways to 
place pressure on leaders.  One is to treat ordinary Taiwanese with 
a greater degree of respect.  An example of this would be to grant 
visa waivers for entry to the US to Taiwanese nationals, which a new 
law awaiting the signature of US resident George W. bush would 
allow.  This kind of bottom-up pressure is not achieved, however, by 
giving a head of state a smackdown for all to see.  At some point, 
if is wants to see results, the US government will need to speak to 
ordinary Taiwanese in a manner more eloquent and constructive than 
this. " 
 
C) "U.S. Should Cherish Taiwan Democracy" 
 
The pro-independence, English-language "Taiwan News" [circulation: 
20,000] editorialized (8/6): 
 
"... In our view, the adoption of any such measures to 'retaliate' 
against either Taiwan's application to join the U.N. or against the 
proposed bottom-up referendum campaigns on affiliating with the U.N. 
would gravely sully the U.S.' cultivated image of the world's model 
democracy. ...  In his March 28 rejection of Taiwan's depositing of 
its accession to the U.S.'s own Convention Against All forms of 
Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), U.N. Secretary-General Ban 
Ki-moom shamefully endorsed Beijing's drive to unilaterally change 
Taiwan's status by wrongfully declaring that "the U.N. considers 
Taiwan for all purposes to be an integral party of the People's 
Republic of China. 
 
"Moreover, in his rejection of President Chen's application for 
Taiwan's U.N.  membership, Ban grossly misinterpreted U.N. General 
Assembly Resolution 2758 of October 25, 1971 as the basis for his 
claim, even though the resolution only granted the U.N. seats for 
'China' to the PRC, but did not resolve or even mention the issue of 
Taiwan.  Regretfully, Bush has failed to openly take the U.N. 
secretary-general to account for Ban's endorsement of Beijing's 
 
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attempt to annex Taiwan and may thus be betraying his own stated 
ideals of "promoting democracy around the world. ... 
 
"The drive for Taiwan to join the U.N. as an equal and contributing 
member was also not manufactured by Chen, but was advocated by 
Taiwan democratic movement pioneers in the late 1970s and has long 
been promoted from the bottom up by a wide range of social forces, 
not just the DPP.  Indeed, the fact that the KMT itself has launched 
a bottom-up referendum campaign for U.N. 're-entry' confirms the 
depth of public feeling on this issue. ...  President Chen has a 
constitutional and legal right to call a 'defensive referendum' if 
faced with a direct challenge to our national sovereignty to give 
the Taiwan people a chance to express their voices.  As it is 
difficult to predict how such a decision would affect U.S.-Taiwan 
relations we urge Washington, together with other democratic powers, 
to cherish Taiwan's democracy and prevent the formation of a direct 
threat to our sovereignty by the authoritarian PRC." 
 
D) "Predicament and Dilemma in the Triangular Relationship among 
Taipei, Washington and Beijing" 
 
The centrist, KMT-leaning "China Times" [circulation: 400,000] 
editorialized (8/5): 
 
"The triangular relationship among Taipei, Washington and Beijing 
has been in the process of subtle interactions over the past few 
years.  On the one hand, Washington and Beijing have attempted to 
box the triangular relationship in a certain 'status quo' by 
constantly announcing their positions.  On the other hand, however, 
the DPP in Taipei has been constantly trying and testing in an 
attempt to push the envelop of the 'status quo.' ...  But the 
evolvement of certain situations lately has made the situation more 
complicated, and it is difficult to predict how the situation will 
evolve in the next stage. ... 
 
"First, differences have unusually occurred in the strategies of the 
Green leadership elites in carrying out their goals. ...  As a rule, 
after Frank Hsieh has formally become [the DPP] presidential 
candidate, all the party operations should run with Hsieh as the 
center.  But what happened in reality was that each authority agency 
is working its own way like a carriage drawn by many horses running 
in different directions.  For example, a minute ago Hsieh was 
telling Washington that he will not push for a UN referendum [sic], 
the next minute President Chen wrote a letter to the UN Secretariat 
expressing Taiwan's position on 'applying for the UN membership 
under the name Taiwan.'  The party machine led by You Shyi-kun then 
submitted a 'Normal Country Resolution,' which was directly aiming 
at Hsieh's 'constitutional one China' doctrine. ... 
 
"The second change in situation was that the Blue camp obviously no 
longer wanted to play the role of a firewall in the triangular 
relationship among Taipei, Washington and Beijing. Unlike what 
happened in 2004, leadership elites in the Blue camp, starting from 
Ma Ying-jeou, did not criticize the Green camp for its moves pushing 
for the UN referendum; instead, they followed suit and announced 
that they will launch a referendum on rejoining the UN.  To avoid 
pressure from Washington, Ma Ying-jeou even plans not to go to the 
United States! ... 
 
"Such new changes have put Washington and Beijing in a dilemma. 
Washington's predicament is that none of its powerful moves, be it 
an elaboration on its position, postponement in the arms deals, or 
even lowering its treatment for [Taiwan] leaders transiting the 
U.S., seems to be able to punish Chen Shui-bian, but it may very 
likely directly impact the campaigning of Hsieh.  This is a result 
that Washington will not be happy to see. ..." 
 
E) "Better Dialogue in the Triumvirate" 
 
Nat Bellocchi, former chairman of AIT and now a special adviser to 
the Liberty Times Group, opined in the pro-independence, 
English-language "Taipei Times" [circulation: 30,000] (8/6): 
 
"... There are numerous reasons why constrictive dialogue between 
Taipei and Washington has suffered in recent years.  The US has made 
commitments to both Taiwan and China.  Changing those commitments 
would be difficult.  For one thing, Beijing has refused to accept 
any real dialogue with Taiwan unless the latter surrenders.  And 
Taiwan especially since it became a democracy - seeks high-level, 
open dialogue so that it can fully represent its people. ...  The US 
must find the political will to become more involved and should try 
to find ways by which it can more efficiently discuss developments 
in the Strait with its Taiwanese counterparts. 
 
"Taipei and Washington must hold frequent bilateral talks -- not 
through single envoys or from time to time, but rather on a regular 
basis.  Both should bolster their representative offices to provide 
policymakers back home better information upon which to develop 
their policies.  The present system of US-Taiwan relations began 
some 27 years ago.  Back then, the two enjoyed close relations. 
When, years later, Taiwan turned into a democracy, the expectations 
were that the relationship would only become even closer.    A quick 
glance at TV and newspapers in Taiwan suffices to demonstrate how 
things have changed. ... 
 
"At the same time, US interests have changed, as it faces a 
different set of problems. Despite its preference for a peaceful 
resolution in the cross-strait conflict, the truth of the matter is 
that relations between Taipei and Beijing have deteriorated.  Given 
this reality and without a change in policy, the US could soon be 
seen to be complicit in Beijing's suppression of Taiwanese 
democracy. ...  It took the missile crisis of 1996 to prompt change 
in the military relationship.  Military-to-military communication 
between Taiwan and the US has continued to grow, but for political 
reasons the quality of diplomatic channels has deteriorated. 
 
"In all, from now until 2009 and given everything that will happen 
in between, we can expect the US-Taiwan relationship to be a highly 
complex one. As such, failure by these two countries to establish 
constructive dialogue mechanisms could give rise to serious 
problems.  Before crisis hits, routine meetings at the governmental 
level -- or, if needed, between officials who have taken temporary 
leave of their official positions in office -- should be held so 
that concerns and opportunities can be thoroughly discussed.  Doing 
so is in the US' interest, Taiwan's interest - and even in China's 
interest.  What is not in the US's interest is to continue to allow 
Beijing to determine the nature of the US-Taiwan relationship." 
 
YOUNG