THE DIRECTOR'S FAREWELL CALL ON FORMER PRESIDENT

C O N F I D E N T I A L TAIPEI 000790

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/30/2019
TAGS: PGOV PINR TW CH JA
SUBJECT: THE DIRECTOR'S FAREWELL CALL ON FORMER PRESIDENT
LEE TENG-HUI

Classified By: The Director for reasons 1.4(b/d)


1. (C) Summary. Improvements in Taiwan-China relations have
come at the expense of Taiwan's traditionally close relations
with the United States and other partners, and of the
island's long-term viability as a sovereign state, Lee
Teng-hui warned the Director during his June 26 farewell call
on the former President. Ultimately, Lee said, maintaining
the status quo would best serve Taiwan's interests. Lee
criticized the extended pre-trial incarceration of his
successor, Chen Shui-bian, while also attacking what he
labelled Chen's "imperial" tendencies. End Summary.


2. (C) On June 26, the Director paid a farewell call on
former Lee Teng-hui, Taiwan's first democratically-elected
President (and, as Lee observed, the first
democratically-elected President in the 5,000-year history of
Chinese civilization). Although the 86 year-old politician
is recovering from pneumonia, he expressed optimism that he
will return to a relatively active schedule now dominated by
golf and family. The pro-independence Taiwan Solidarity
Union party Lee founded in 2001 after being expelled from the
KMT is essentially moribund, but the former President remains
interested in Taiwan politics and international relations.

Ma's China Policy Hurting Taiwan's Other Ties
--------------


3. (C) Lee criticized President Ma Ying-jeou for pursuing a
cross-Strait policy that has both weakened Taiwan's standing
with its traditional partners and its long-term ability to
stand up to PRC bullying. Ma's efforts to reduce tensions
with China, Lee asserted, had damaged Taipei's standing with
Tokyo and Washington. The Director responded that Washington
is comfortable with the direction and pace of cross-Strait
ties. The Director asked Lee whether the recent comment by
Masaki Saito, Japan's chief representative in Taipei, that
Taiwan's legal status is "still unresolved" was a signal of
official Japanese concern about the Ma administration's
policies. (Note: This controversy stems from the 1951 Treaty
of San Francisco, in which Japan relinquished any claim to
its former colony without specifying which country would
assume sovereignty over the island.) Lee, who grew up
speaking Japanese and still maintains close ties with
officials and scholars in Tokyo, said Japan believes the cold
shoulder the Ma administration has give Saito since his April
remarks is "unfriendly," but did not suggest that Saito's
remarks reflect broader Japanese dissatisfaction with Ma's
China policy.


4. (C) More urgently, Lee said, Ma's policy of deepening
Taiwan's economic integration with China will make the island
overly dependent on the PRC. Ultimately, Lee said, Taiwan
must look after its own interests. If it is too beholden to
China, its sovereignty is in danger. For now, he argued,
maintaining the status quo is the only policy that can
protect Taiwan's status and interests.

Chen: Guilty but Unfairly Detained
--------------


5. (C) The pre-trial detention of former President Chen
Shui-bian (now entering its seventh month) is "crazy" and
"unreasonable," Lee said. If released, Chen would not flee
Taiwan and continuing to hold him is bad for Taiwan's
democracy, its international image and for the status of the
office. Nevertheless, Lee said, Chen clearly was guilty of
serious crimes. At the heart of the issue, is China's
imperial system. Chen saw himself as above the laws that
restrict the President from using state funds for personal
reasons or from "raiding" funds allocated for offices under
the purview of the Premier. Lee added that Ma also suffered
from this failing, saying that the current President "doesn't
understand the common man."

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


6. (C) Now more of an historical figure than an influential
political player, Lee's observations about Taiwan political
life and, particularly, Taiwan's relations with Japan,
nevertheless retain some value. There is no small amount of
irony to his comments about the imperiousness of his two
successors, however. Within the KMT circles that elevated
Lee to the top of Taiwan's political system, Lee's desire to
handpick Lien Chan as his successor is widely seen as the
reason James Soong left the party in 2000, splitting the KMT
vote and giving DPP candidate Chen Shui-bian the victory.
YOUNG