MEDIA REACTION: U.S.-TAIWAN RELATIONS

UNCLAS AIT TAIPEI 000548 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 Summary: Taiwan's major Chinese-language dailies focused Thursday, May 7 news coverage on the soaring Taiwan stock market index Wednesday and on Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) Chairman P. K. Chiang, who tendered his resignation Monday. In terms of editorials and commentaries, an op-ed in the mass-circulation "Apple Daily" pointed out three challenges that confront DPP Chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen, who is now visiting Washington, D.C. End summary. "Challenges Posed to Tsai Ing-wen's U.S. Visit" Liu Shih-chung, a visiting fellow at the Washington-based Center for Northeast Asian Policy Studies of the Brookings Institution, opined in the mass-circulation "Apple Daily" [circulation: 520,000] (5/6): "DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen is conducting her second trip to Washington, D. C. since she took the chairmanship. ... How Tsai can [present a different perspective to] convince the Obama Administration, which strongly approves of [Taiwan President] Ma Ying-jeou's cross-Strait policy, will be the greatest challenge for Tsai's visit this time. Undoubtedly, restrained by the economic crisis at home and various new initiatives in foreign affairs abroad, the mainstream mindset of the Obama Administration at the current stage is established on three major perceptions, namely, no news is good news; continued dialogue defuses tension; and Ma is unlikely to act in a way which will betray Taiwan. ... "As a result, Tsai has several significant tasks during her trip to the United States. First, [Tsai should] criticize and disparage Ma as well as convince [the United States] with reasons. ...Tsai should make arguments to prove that there are risks, and Ma's push to sign an Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA) with China is based on wishful thinking. [Tsai should also prove that there are] political calculations behind Beijing's 'consensus' to Taiwan's participation in the 'World Health Assembly' in May. [Tsai] also needs to urge the United States to continue paying attention to Taiwan's equal rights to participate in the WHA and not allow Beijing to decide Taiwan's qualification to participate [in the WHA] on a year-by-year basis. "The second [task] is on the issue of checks and balances of democracy and the people's supervision. Tsai should let the United States understand that the theme of the parade mobilized by the DPP scheduled on May 17 is not just to defend Taiwan's sovereignty. [The parade] is actually to reflect the general resentment of Taiwan's different social strata against the Ma Administration's poor performance one year after coming into the office. ... Tsai should also let the United States understand that, in addition to defending [Taiwan's] sovereignty, what the DPP firmly insists on more than anything else is that the Taiwan people should be allowed to make decisions on significant cross-Strait policies. After all, the more than forty percent of the vote that belongs to the Green camp still deserve the United States' high consideration. "The third [task] is the transforming the DPP and warming up relations between Taiwan and the United States. ... It is necessary for Tsai to resume the establishment of a DPP office in Washington started in 1999 and appoint mid-generation's elites in foreign affairs (such as Hsiao Bi-khim) to be the DPP's representative to the United States, so as to reinforce [the DPP's] publicity in the United States and policy communication." YOUNG