CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM EFFORT SPARKS DEBATE WITHIN

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 TAIPEI 003394

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/26/2031
TAGS: PGOV TW
SUBJECT: CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM EFFORT SPARKS DEBATE WITHIN
DPP BETWEEN MODERATES AND INDEPENDENCE ACTIVISTS

REF: TAIPEI 03310

Classified By: AIT Acting Director Robert S. Wang,
Reasons: 1.4 (b/d)


1. (C) Summary: Divisions within the ruling DPP between
moderates and independence activists are complicating the
process of producing an acceptable constitutional revision
proposal for the party's Central Executive Committee (CEC) to
consider on October 4. Originally focusing on two
constitutional revision drafts, one presidential and one
parliamentary, the DPP is now also exploring drafts that to
varying degrees touch on sensitive sovereignty issues in
response to objections raised by independence
fundamentalists. President Chen, whose comments on
constitutional revision on September 24 further energized the
fundamentalists, only touched briefly on the topic in
speeches on September 28 and September 30 (Septel). DPP
Chairman Yu Shyi-kun has called a meeting of party,
government, and legislative leaders on October 2 to work out
a compromise before proposed revisions are submitted to the
CEC. End Summary.

Early Drafts Focus on Government Restructuring
-------------- -


2. (C) The DPP team responsible for drafting the party's
proposal for a revised constitution originally prepared two
versions, one for a parliamentary system of government and
the other for a presidential system. On September 20,
National Taiwan University Professor Chen Ming-tong
introduced these two alternative drafts to the DPP Central
Standing Committee and explained that the sovereignty
provisions could not be touched, because of their sensitivity
and President Chen's previous commitments. The proposals
instead offered alterations to various articles of the
existing constitution aimed at "rationalizing" Taiwan's
current government structure, seen by critics as a relic of
the age of authoritarian one-party rule. When later
presented at the September 24 DPP forum on Constitutional
revision, neither draft contained significant changes to the
sovereignty provisions of the Constitution (Articles 1-6).

Independence Fundamentalists Go on the Offensive
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3. (C) At the September 20 CSC meeting, Chen Ming-tong and
DPP International Affairs Director Winston Dang separately
told AIT, several Deep Green independence fundamentalists
emotionally objected to the absence of changes to the
Constitution's sovereignty provisions. Lawyer Chen Chi-sen,
chair of the DPP's Arbitration Committee, led the revolt,
joined by CSC members Truong Chai (LY member) and Yeh Chu-lan
(acting mayor of Kaohsiung),according to the press. Dang
told us that Chen Chi-sen is an important elder in the
independence movement and controls a significant group of DPP
supporters. Chen Chi-sen demanded that at least the national
territory should be defined as "Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen, and
Matsu." After an hour of arguing, DPP Chairman Yu Shyi-kun
agreed that the party should also look at the
fundamentalists' proposal.


4. (C) At the DPP forum on constitutional revision on
September 24, President Chen proposed a discussion of the
territorial issue under the precondition of maintaining the
status quo. According to Dang, President Chen was hoping to
keep the fundamentalists in line by providing them an
opportunity to vent their views. Lo Cheng-fang, deputy
director of the constitutional revision team, however, more
candidly characterized Chen's move as an attempt to divert
attention from his administration's problems. DPP moderate
New Tide legislator Hung Chi-chang told AIT bluntly that
Chen's efforts were a "misguided" and "mistaken" appeal to
independence fundamentalists.


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Looking for a Middle Ground?
--------------


5. (C) Responding to instructions from Chairman Yu after the
independence fundamentalists raised objections on September
20, party workers have now prepared draft changes to Articles
1-6 to create a full-fledged "Republic of Taiwan"
constitution, which could also be submitted to the CEC on
October 4. Realizing the extreme sensitivity of the
sovereignty issue, the party is also considering more limited
modifications to parts of the first six "sovereignty"
articles of the constitution in hopes of mollifying the
independence fundamentalists who are pushing for more
substantial changes.


6. (C) On September 27, Dang showed AIT a new draft revised
constitution in which the national name is changed to the
"Republic of Taiwan," whose territory is defined as "Taiwan,
Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu," and related islands, and which also
provides for a change in national flag. The bases for the
fundamentalists' demands are a variety of draft constitutions
prepared by independence organizations since 1994 plus some
language contained in the DPP's party charter. Dang
expressed concern that under pressure from the independence
fundamentalists the party's CEC may decide on October 4 to
send this "Republic of Taiwan" draft (which may end up having
presidential and parliamentary versions) along with the two
original non-controversial drafts to the DPP LY caucus. To
prevent this outcome, which might cause further international
friction, Dang said he was hoping to persuade the
fundamentalists to withdraw their draft in return for a
limited change in Article 4 of the Constitution, deleting
"according to its existing national boundaries" from the
phrase "The territory of the Republic of China according to
its existing national boundaries. . ." (Note: This was the
revision that Dang had initially requested our views on, but
which we declined to respond to. End Note.)


7. (C) Another proposal under consideration would change
"existing boundaries" to "current boundaries," DPP China
Department Director Lai I-chung told AIT on September 29.
Lai added that there is a "consensus" in the DPP that the
issue of territory has to be addressed. Chen Ming-tong noted
that there is also a proposal to eliminate Article 1's
reference to Sun Yat-sen's "Three Principles of the People,"
which prescribes five branches of government, in contrast to
the three branches in the proposed revised version. Chao
Hung-chang, staffer to Eugene Chao who heads the DPP
constitutional revision team, characterized this idea as a
"sop" to the independence fundamentalists.


8. (C) The DPP will be holding both high-level and
working-level meetings to work out the final details before
submitting a proposal to the CEC on October 4. DPP Chairman
Yu Shyi-kun has called for a meeting of party, government,
and legislative leaders on October 2 to work out a compromise
on the proposed revisions. Lo stressed that touching the
sovereignty-related articles directly would be too
controversial to ever gain widespread approval within the LY
and would have undesirable international implications.
According to Chang Pai-ta, another member of the
constitutional revision team, the DPP leadership this week
will have to decide between a document that serves
"propaganda" purposes and trumpets independence themes versus
one that focuses solely on changes to the system of
government and has a chance of actually passing in the LY.

Hurdles Ahead
--------------


9. (C) If the CEC endorses one or more constitutional draft
version on October 4, the proposal will probably be forwarded
to the DPP LY caucus, where legislators could request (KMT)
LY President Wang Jin-pyng to set up a special cross-party
committee to review DPP and other constitutional revision

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proposals. However, the opposition Pan-Blue would almost
certainly use its legislative majority to block the
establishment of such a committee or any other LY
consideration of a DPP draft constitution.


10. (C) Moreover, any changes to the Constitution require
three-fourths of a three-fourths quorum in the LY before they
can be put to a national referendum for final approval.
While some individual pan-Blue legislators might conceivably
be interested in changing to a parliamentary system of
government with a larger legislature as a way to save their
seats and increase their power, KMT Chairman Ma Ying-jeou,
who hopes to become president in 2008, has repeatedly
expressed firm opposition against any constitutional
revision.

Comment
--------------


11. (C) The CEC's meeting on October 4 could be a test of
strength between independence fundamentalists and moderate
reformers within the DPP over constitutional revisions that
could touch on sovereignty issues, especially the definition
of national territory. In an effort to limit international
criticism but also to mollify its independence
fundamentalists, the DPP could opt for a very limited change
to the wording on territory in Article 4 of the Constitution.
Whatever Constitutional changes the DPP proposes, they are
highly unlikely to go anywhere in a Pan-Blue-controlled
legislature that is focused now on looking for ways to
support the effort to get rid of President Chen.

Appendix: AIT Analysis of DPP September 21 Draft
Constitutional Revisions
-------------- ---


12. (C) The DPP draft revised constitution passed to AIT on
September 21 leaves the first six articles of the original
ROC constitution that deal with sovereignty issues largely
untouched, but contains several other revisions that
potentially impinge on issues of sovereignty. Putting
forward the constitutional revisions as a full package,
moreover, instead of attaching supplemental articles as done
previously, also eliminates the language in the preamble to
previous amendments that refers to their application "prior
to national unification."


13. (C) The language on sovereignty in the first six
articles of the constitution, which define national polity,
sovereignty, citizenry, territory, ethnic relations, and
national flag, remains unchanged, but almost all subsequent
references to the "Republic of China" are changed to "our
nation" (woguo). Articles 25-90 present two versions side by
side, one based on a presidential system and the other on a
parliamentary system.


14. (C) All references to areas and jurisdictions (such as
provincial governments, Mongolia, and Tibet) that imply a
concept of ROC sovereignty extending beyond Taiwan are
removed or significantly changed. These include:

-- Article 26 (National Assembly Representatives),which
stipulates that selection of representatives to the NA should
have a fixed number from "provinces, Mongolia, Tibet, various
minority nationalities in border regions, overseas Chinese,
professional and women groups," is replaced by articles on
the formation of the government.

-- Article 61 (Legislative Yuan Elections),which stipulates
the election of LY members based on proportional
representation from "provinces, Mongolia, Tibet, various
minorities nationalities in border regions, overseas Chinese,
and professional groups," is replaced with language on
proportional representation from "counties" and "indigenous
peoples" (yuanzhumin).

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-- Article 91 (Selection of Control Yuan Members),which
stipulates the selection of CY committee members from
"provinces, cities, Mongolia, Tibet, and Overseas Chinese,"
is completely removed.

-- Article 109 (Provincial Laws),which defines the limits
and purview of provincial governments to make and implement
certain laws, is replaced with "county and city" level
administrative units.
-- Section 11, (Local Government) Articles 113-18, which deal
primarily with provincial administration operations, are
expunged, as are Articles 119 (on Mongolia) and 120 (on
Tibet).

-- Article 169 (Border/Frontier Regions),which says the
country must give ample security and aid to the minority
peoples on various border regions, is replaced with language
that states the country recognizes that "Taiwan's various
indigenous peoples are the earliest inhabitants of the Taiwan
islands and their 'national rights' predate the existence of
the nation." Sub-articles specify the relationship between
the "nation" and the "indigenous peoples."
WANG