Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06AITTAIPEI2974
2006-08-28 08:48:00
UNCLASSIFIED
American Institute Taiwan, Taipei
Cable title:  

MEDIA REACTION: CAMPAIGN TO OUST PRESIDENT CHEN SHUI-BIAN

Tags:  OPRC KMDR KPAO TW 
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DE RUEHIN #2974/01 2400848
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 280848Z AUG 06
FM AIT TAIPEI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 1853
INFO RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 5593
RUEHHK/AMCONSUL HONG KONG 6796
UNCLAS AIT TAIPEI 002974 

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: CAMPAIGN TO OUST PRESIDENT CHEN SHUI-BIAN


UNCLAS AIT TAIPEI 002974

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: CAMPAIGN TO OUST PRESIDENT CHEN SHUI-BIAN



1. Summary: Taiwan's major Chinese-language dailies focused their
coverage August 26-28 on the multiple efforts to oust President Chen
Shui-bian; the rally held by pro-Chen supporters in Taipei Saturday;
and the Mainland Affairs Council's announcement Friday of the
"Taiwan Strait Tourism and Travel Association" to negotiate with
China over cross-Strait tourism issues. Both the pro-status quo
"China Times" and pro-unification "United Daily News" front-paged a
likely announcement by former DPP Chairman Shih Ming-teh Monday
afternoon that the sit-in campaign to oust President Chen will kick
off September 9. The "China Times" also front-paged on August 26
the results of its latest joint survey with CTI-TV, which showed
that 42 percent of those polled said they support Shih's campaign,
while 20 percent said they oppose it. The same poll also found that
given Chen's insistence on staying on in his position and the DPP's
all-out effort to support him, 60 percent of the respondents said
they believe the chances are slim for Shih's campaign to succeed in
ousting Chen, and only 8 percent believe it will succeed.

On U.S. arms sales to Taiwan, the "China Times" ran a banner
headline on page four August 28 that said "Displeased with Taiwan
Stalling Arms Procurements, U.S. Arms Sales to Taiwan Downgraded: No
Budget, No Talks."


2. In terms of editorials and commentaries, a "China Times"
editorial criticized the DPP for its stubborn support of President
Chen regardless of right or wrong. The article said the DPP has
personally destroyed the two valuable assets that the party has been
most proud of: namely, the Formosa Incident and the 2002 transfer
of power. A separate "China Times" analysis said the DPP's all-out
effort to protect Chen will only destroy itself, while the KMT can
sit idly by and watch the DPP and Shih fight with each other. An
opinion piece in the limited-circulation, pro-independence,
English-language "Taipei Times" on the other hand, said Chen's
resignation would not solve any of the structural problems with
government, and instead, it could even trigger a more severe
political crisis. End summary.

A) "What the DPP Destroys Is in Fact Its Own Spiritual Assets"


The pro-status quo "China Times" [circulation: 400,000]
editorialized (8/26):

"Everyone knows very clearly that for the DPP at this moment, no
matter whether it supports Bian or opposes him, all the party core
cares about is the logic of power, which is totally irrelevant to
morality, a sense of values, or ethics. But during the party's
Faustian deal, perhaps only few clear-headed DPP members know in
their hearts that what the DPP has lost is far greater than what it
has gained. At least, just over the past few weeks, the DPP itself
has personally cleaned out, consumed, and even subverted the two
assets that it has been most proud of in the process of Taiwan's
democratization: namely, the Formosa Incident and the transfer of
power.

"The reason that the historical significance of the transfer of
power has grown dim is not entirely because of the campaign of one
million people to oust Bian, but mostly because of the DPP's
stubborn support for Bian without telling right from wrong, a move
which showed that the DPP has denied every one of the values that it
once upheld so highly about the transfer of power. The DPP's choice
to tie itself to Chen Shui-bian, something it has to do in terms of
political reality, is understandable. But has it ever occurred to
the DPP that even if President Chen may be able to complete his
term, he will be closely associated with the topic of 'resignation'
during the remainder of his term? Or perhaps Chen's approval
ratings will no longer rise again until he finishes the remainder of
his term. The result of the DPP's all-out effort to support Bian
will not help to redeem the party, but will only bury itself along
with Chen as he finishes his term. ..."

B) "Securing Bian May Likely Destroy the Green Camp; KMT Can Sit
Idly and Watch Others Fight"

Journalist Hsiao Hsu-tseng said in an analysis in the pro-status
"China Times" [circulation: 400,000] (08/28/06):

"How Ma Ying-jeou is going to deal with Shih Ming-teh's campaign to
oust Bian has become a topic that is being heatedly discussed in the
political arena. Perhaps some people in the DPP anticipate that
both Ma and Shih will 'get hurt.' But the DPP may fail to foresee
that the KMT will definitely 'sit idly and watch the others fight.'
The more concentrated the power to support Bian and oppose Shih
gets, the better news it is for the Blue camp. ...

"For the DPP, Shih's campaign to oust Bian is a battle to secure the
party's political power, which it must win, so it can put morality
and its values in a secondary position. But for the KMT, Shih's
campaign is actually a battle of values and interests inside the
DPP, ... and surely the KMT wants to sit idly and watch the two
fight each other. Given the facts that Chen will firmly stay on in
his position and that the DPP will persevere to protect Bian, the
result of Shih's movement is expected. Ma will walk away safely as
long as he sticks to his previous position of administration by the
law. Chen will win a bitter victory, but for the DPP and
heavyweights like Annete Lu, Yu Shyi-kun, Su Tseng-chang, and Frank
Hsieh, this will be a battle they are unlikely to win, and the only
difference is just how much each of them loses."

C) "Be Careful What You Wish for if Chen Goes"

Liu Kuan-teh, a Taipei-based political commentator, opined in the
pro-independence, English-language "Taipei Times" (8/26):

"... We should take seriously the public's craving for stability and
respect judicial procedures in unveiling the truth. If evidence
shows that Chen was personally responsible for illegal activity, he
should bear the political and moral responsibility and resign. Yet
Chen's resignation would not solve any of the structural problems
with government. Indeed, it could trigger an even more severe
political crisis. The pan-blue alliance would obstruct Chen's
successor and exploit the transfer of power. Can Taiwan afford a
prolonged crisis lasting until 2008? Can Shih guarantee - as he has
claimed - that the ruling and opposition parties will engage in a
rational dialogue if Chen resigns?

"As a country struggling to deepen its democracy, Taiwan yearns for
more discipline, institutionalization and order in all phases of its
national life. Upset with endless finger-pointing, a sense of
political unrest and instability, the manipulation of ethnicity and
the DPP's apparent trend toward political decay and corruption,
voters are looking for national reconciliation, a strong leadership
that can enhance an institutionalized system of politics, a truly
independent judiciary and relatively clean politics. ..."

YOUNG