Taiwan ex-President Ma attends forum in China
Former Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou has attended a forum in China to expand cross-strait exchanges.
China held the annual Straits Forum in Xiamen, Fujian Province, on Sunday. Xiamen is located west of Taiwan.
China's state-run media and other outlets reported that more than 7,000 people were invited from Taiwan, along with Ma, who belongs to Taiwan's largest opposition Kuomintang party.
Wang Huning, a member of the Chinese Communist Party's Politburo Standing Committee and the party's No.4 official, called for firmly opposing Taiwan's independence and external interference and protecting the peace and stability of the Taiwan Strait.
This comment apparently referred to Taiwan's ruling Democratic Progressive Party, which Beijing regards as pro-independence.
Ma said deepening cooperation under a common foundation against Taiwan's independence will help create a phase of peace and mutual benefit.
Beijing apparently wants to give a warning to Taiwan's ruling party under President Lai Ching-te by stressing interactions through Ma.
Taiwanese authorities said the forum is a united front platform by the Chinese Communist Party targeting Taiwan.
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Japan Times
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The Mainichi
3 days ago
- The Mainichi
Global perspective: Democracy, welfare are among Taiwan's fortes
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Second, the two-party system of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and the Kuomintang (KMT) has taken hold. There is a big difference in their stances on China, and in terms of policy, the DPP is progressive and the KMT is conservative. Politics is the same now as it was in the past, and there are constant struggles and scandals between and within parties. The DPP has long had fierce factional strife within the party, and the relationship between President Lai Ching-te and former President Tsai Ing-wen, who are in different factions, is complicated. President Lai's approval rating is declining. The KMT has overcome the crisis of dissolution and the younger generation has emerged, but regional bosses still have a stronger say, and former President Ma Ying-jeou is disrupting the party. Third, while trust in Japan is overwhelmingly high, trust in the United States is surprisingly low. 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Taiwan recently managed to shut down all nuclear power reactors. Everyone says that this was triggered by the Great East Japan Earthquake in Japan. But that's only half the truth. When I spoke with a figure involved in the drafting of the founding party platform of the DPP, which was established in 1986 at the same time as Taiwan's democratization, he said that the party's anti-nuclear policy had its origins in the Chernobyl accident in April of the same year. According to this figure, the DPP was originally modeled on European politics, focusing primarily on social democracies such as the Nordic countries. As mentioned above, social participation of women in Taiwan is among the best in the world and it is by far the most advanced in Asia. With the introduction of the quota system, more than 40% of the members of the national legislature are women. Same-sex marriage has also become legal, and the acceptance of foreign workers has been institutionalized as a measure against the declining birthrate. As mentioned above, the protection of indigenous peoples is also generous. During her presidency, Tsai Ing-wen publicly apologized for the mistreatment of indigenous peoples in the past. Utilities such as electricity, water, and transportation are also relatively cheap. Taiwan's consumption tax is 5 percent. The pensions of civil servants are being reformed, but the amount remains at nearly 70 percent of salaries before retirement. Fiscal discipline is solid. The fiscal balance is stable due to economic growth, and the outstanding debt is around 25% of GDP, which is one of the lowest in the world. It is a never-ending dream in Japan, which suffers one of the world's highest debt-GDP ratio. Welfare system supporting national security Certain historic backgrounds have contributed to the development of Scandinavian countries as welfare societies, but it was also the threat of the neighboring Soviet Union that drove them into that direction after the war. They needed to stabilize their countries, and welfare systems helped them achieve that. Former Taiwan President Lee Teng-hui said, "Taiwan's greatest security is to establish democracy." This is because it is judged that it will be easy to gain the understanding of the United States and other countries that would support Taipei. For Taiwan, which has already established democracy, transforming itself into a welfare state may strengthen internal unity and provide strong security along with strengthening military capabilities for deterrence. At Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, I asked officials there the following question: Isn't it an advantage for Taiwan to be a non-state in the current international system? In 2010, there were 23 countries that recognized Taiwan, but now the number stands at mere 12. Taiwan is not a member of the World Health Organization, and although there is a pavilion at the Osaka-Kansai Expo, the facility is not allowed to use "Taiwan" in its name. The arrangement was made either because of China's opposition or out of concern for China. Increased global awareness toward Taiwan However, Taiwanese people can now travel to around 140 countries and regions around the world without a visa with a "Republic of China" passport. Even under pressure from China, the world's recognition of Taiwan is actually increasing. In addition, in a globalized economy, Taiwanese businesses are very active, as in the case of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. The United States under the Trump administration is single-mindedly engaged in a tariff struggle stemming from unilateralism. China is strengthening its political control while calling for "free competition" in opposition to the United States. Russia is eager to fight a war. Everywhere in the world, there are desperate attempts to build national walls. In this inward-looking international order, non-state status seems to be working in Taiwan's favor. The staff of Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs listened to my paradox with wide eyes. Taiwanese people show smiles on their face and feel fed up in their hearts when they hear naive thinking that tends to be common among the Japanese, such as the self-proclaimed "pro-Taiwan" posture for the promotion of "anti-China" arguments, or the belief that Taiwanese people are pro-Japan because of the success of Japan's colonial rule. Japan has much to learn from Taiwan.
