PRO-GREEN SCHOLARS CRITIQUE MA YING-JEOU'S

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 TAIPEI 000733 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL CH TW SUBJECT: PRO-GREEN SCHOLARS CRITIQUE MA YING-JEOU'S INAUGURAL ADDRESS REF: TAIPEI 698 SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED. PLEASE PROTECT ACCORDINGLY. ¶1. (SBU) Summary: In a recent panel discussion, several leading pro-Green scholars argued that President Ma Ying-jeou's May 20 inaugural address and his approach in general are rooted in the past, turning back to KMT policies from the early 1990s (when the party was in power) to address 21st century issues. The scholars charged Ma with continuing to play partisan politics in his speech by attacking rather than giving any credit to the DPP administration. In their view, his foreign policy is confused, seeking to expand international space while simultaneously calling for a "diplomatic truce" with Beijing. They also maintained that Ma's cross-Strait approach is naive, making major concessions to Beijing up front on the assumption that the PRC will reciprocate out of simple goodwill. When major progress on fulfilling his lavish campaign promises fails to materialize in the coming months, Ma will begin to feel the heat from dissatisfied voters, the Green scholars predicted. End Summary. ¶2. (SBU) A group of leading pro-Green scholars sympathetic to the DPP analyzed KMT President Ma Ying-jeou's May 20 inaugural address and the future of Taiwan politics at a panel discussion hosted by the Taiwan Thinktank on May 21. Professor Lo Chih-cheng, Chairman of the Political Science Department at Soochow University, moderated the discussion. The four discussants were Vincent Chen (National Chengchi University),Michael Hsiao (Academia Sinica),Lai I-chung (Taiwan Thinktank),and Steven Yang (Taiwan Institute of Economic Research). The following paragraphs summarize some of the more interesting views presented during the session. Partisan Politics -------------- ¶3. (SBU) Several scholars suggested President Ma Ying-jeou has not moved beyond the highly partisan politics of the past several years despite his campaign pledges to promote political reconciliation and harmony. In his inaugural address, Ma had nothing good to say about former President Chen Shui-bian and his administration, instead implying the DPP was corrupt, incompetent, and even an impediment to democratic development. This contrasted with President Chen's 2000 and 2004 inaugural addresses, which had acknowledged KMT contributions. They maintained that Ma should have been more gracious and conciliatory, pointing to at least some of the DPP's major accomplishments, such as building the High Speed Railway. The Question of Sovereignty -------------- ¶4. (SBU) In the opinion of the scholars, Ma demeaned Taiwan's status by avoiding references to sovereignty or related concepts. For example, Ma talked about Taiwan's "external relations" without referring to "diplomacy" (waijiao),a word that implies sovereignty. In addition, he said Taiwan should strive for "dignity, autonomy, pragmatism, and flexibility." Several of the academics criticized Ma's use of the word "autonomy" rather than "sovereignty" as a sop to Beijing that degrades Taiwan's international status. In his desire to placate China, Ma showed himself naive, over-eager, and inconsistent, suggesting at one point that Taiwan must continue to expand its international space, but later saying the Taipei should reach a "truce" with Beijing over diplomatic competition. The scholars argued that this formulation sends an ambiguous message to Taiwan's allies about Taipei's commitment to maintain diplomatic relationships. ¶5. (SBU) One scholar suggested Ma's approach to foreign relations indicates a strategic realignment in Taiwan's priorities. Although Ma emphasized the importance of the U.S. as Taiwan's major security partner and promised to strengthen ties with the U.S., he made no mention of the relationship with Japan, Taiwan's other major ally. The DPP TAIPEI 00000733 002 OF 003 had focused on the U.S.-Japan-Taiwan relationship vis-a-vis China, but Ma's silence on Japan suggests he is thinking in terms of a U.S.-China-Taiwan trilateral relationship. Things Left Unsaid... -------------- ¶6. (SBU) One scholar suggested the most positive elements of Ma's speech were things he left unsaid. For example, Ma did not mention his controversial cross-Strait common market proposal, nor did he reiterate past statements suggesting that he would de-emphasize the maintenance of diplomatic relationships. He also discussed Taiwan's international relations before taking up cross-Strait affairs. Raising the issue in reverse order would have implied Taiwan's subservience to China in its external affairs. ...And Words Mistranslated -------------- ¶7. (SBU) The academics criticized the official English translation of Ma's address, arguing that it distorted the meaning of the original text at several important points. Most notably, Ma stated at one point in his speech that Taiwan is concerned for the welfare of "Chinese compatriots," a passage that reads as the "people of mainland China" in the English text. Ma also referred to those living on both sides of the Strait as belonging to "one Chinese nation," (zhonghua minzu) a phrase that is translated into English as people sharing a "common Chinese heritage." The Chinese version is notable for using words that are conciliatory toward Beijing, while the English text, aimed at the Western audience, is more neutral. Honeymoon Over? -------------- ¶8. (SBU) One academic argued that Ma's inaugural address showed he is out of touch with the views of Taiwan's people and unprepared to deal with the realities of the island's domestic and external political conditions. Ma made no mention of Taiwan identity in his speech, despite the important social trend of increasing Taiwan identity over the past eight years. Ma, who also failed to mention the need to reform the KMT in his speech, has been separating himself from the party to the greatest extent possible to protect his image. This risks exacerbating tensions within the party as factions continue to compete for influence. Ma's "honeymoon," which lasted from March 22 to his inauguration on May 20, is now over, one Green scholar concluded. Lowering Economic Expectations -------------- ¶9. (SBU) Ma's inaugural speech was short on economic policy specifics, which had been a central theme during the campaign. Some of the scholars suggested Ma now understood he had exaggerated the extent of Taiwan's economic problems during the campaign. Others observed he may now want to lower expectations, realizing his various economic programs would have only a limited effect on the economic situation. One economist suggested the Ma administration will need to take a pragmatic approach to address economic difficulties caused by weak domestic demand resulting from stagnant wages, slackening export growth due to currency appreciation, the global market downturn, and rising fuel and commodity prices. Ma's plan to spur domestic consumption through infrastructure development is generally sound, but the key will be setting priorities and financing the projects. ¶10. (SBU) Ma has given away Taiwan's bargaining leverage early on with no guarantees that Beijing will respond in kind, the Green scholars said, and he has overestimated the effect that weekend charter flights and expanding mainland tourism will have on reducing cross-Strait tension. Ma's approach to cross-Strait negotiations is predicated on acceptance of the "1992 Consensus," which has failed to result in major breakthroughs in the past owing to China's unwillingness to recognize any interpretation of "one China" TAIPEI 00000733 003 OF 003 other than its own. When cross-Strait developments fail to meet expectations in the next six months, public opinion will begin to turn on Ma, the Green scholars predicted. Comment -------------- ¶11. (SBU) These pro-Green scholars represent a significant segment of Taiwan opinion, which worries that KMT steps to enhance cross-Strait relations could compromise efforts they support to strengthen Taiwan's separate identity. Consequently, Ma's cross-Strait policies will be constrained in the coming months and years by a need to take into account the views of this important subset of the population. WANG