20040123

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US warning to Taiwan’s referendum on Jan. 23, 2004 ……

US warming to Chen's referendum

"We want to see more leadership out of Taiwan authorities on questions of defense, and turning it over to a question to the public I don't see as terribly helpful." --- senior Bush administration official

PUZZLEMENT: Bush administration officials say they are `relieved' by the wording of the questions but wonder why Chen needs a vote on matters he should decide for himself

By Charles Snyder, STAFF REPORTER IN WASHINGTON

The George W. Bush administration is "relieved" that President Chen Shui-bian decided to change the focus of his planned election-day referendum, according to administration officials. But they say they are still highly suspicious of his motives and will be watching his statements and actions closely between now and the March 20 election day.

But officials note that overall US-Taiwan relations extend far beyond the referendum issue, and describe the relationship as "very strong."

They also say that the referendum wording Chen unveiled last week appears to remove what Washington saw as the threat to the status quo in cross-strait relations contained in Chen's earlier referendum plan, which was aimed directly at China's missile buildup across the Strait.

Such a threat was Bush's main concern when he slammed Chen and his referendum plan after meeting with Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao at the White House last month.

Nevertheless, while the administration will not oppose the new wording, it will not endorse it either, said one senior US official.

The US government's response to the new referendum wording, conveyed by US officials, seems to portray an administration still worried about Chen's aims and concerned that the referendum issue could still blow up into a problem for cross-strait issues and the US-China-Taiwan triangular equation.

What comes out of one interview the Taipei Times conducted with a senior official is a range of uncertainties that Chen has not answered, and deep questioning of Chen's leadership ability in calling for a public opinion poll on issues he, as president, should decide himself.

On the first question that the planned referendum proposes to ask whether Taiwan should spend more on arms in view of the missile threat, a US official noted Washington's efforts over recent years to convince Taiwan to spend more on defense and buy the weapons Bush promised in April 2001.

"We're willing to work with them on that," the official said.

"So this strikes me more as a question of leadership, then going to the public of Taiwan to ask for its opinion of this. This requires real leadership," he said.

"There's a threat there, and it requires expending resources and making decisions in Taiwan. That's what leaders need to do.

"We want to see more leadership out of Taiwan authorities on questions of defense, and turning it over to a question to the public I don't see as terribly helpful," he said.

He said the second referendum question on resuming cross-strait talks also is matter for the leaders to decide.

"We think both sides should take steps to resume a dialogue that has been stopped for years, or in the absence of a formal dialogue, finding ways to promote peace and stability between the two sides."

Saying that the administration still has not decided what to make of the new referendum formulation, the official said, "it depends on what your standard of measurement is."

"If your standard of measurement is `Is this a normal and genuine attempt to use the referendum in a way democracies normally do to settle contentious issues?' it's not really that.

"It still remains in the category of a highly symbolic move, and it is primarily designed to promote the domestic political fortunes of one candidate," he said.

"It could have been a lot worse. So I think officially what the United States is going to say is we don't endorse any particular referendum, but it's not something that we are going to oppose. We'll write it off as Taiwan's own business and their domestic politics."

The US will judge the referendum on more than just its wording, the official said. Washington will look at it in a broader way.

"It's not just the words. It's the actions and the context that Chen and others are going to put to this. So, we'll see how he pitches things to a variety of audiences. Like a good politician, he has been known to speak to his core supporters in one way, and others in other ways," the official said.

The referendum issue is not likely to be a long-lasting irritant to US-Taiwan relations, officials say. "We've never wanted to define our relationship through the prism of a referendum. It's a more comprehensive relationship than just that," the official said.

Bush, the official said, in his rebuff to Chen's earlier referendum plan, "was clear in what he thought was going on and directed himself at what he thought the leader of Taiwan was going to do."

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On Jan. 25, 2004 ……

Ma looks to put stop to referendum

"The referendum's legal foundation, necessity and propriety are flawed." --- Ma Ying-jeou, Taipei mayor

PAN-BLUE CAMPAIGN: Ma is rallying mayors and county commissioners to boycott the March vote which he says lacks a proper legal foundation

By Fiona Lu, STAFF REPORTER

Despite having said the Lunar New Year holidays were not a time for politics, Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou confirmed yesterday that he would coordinate a joint declaration to thwart the referendum pledged by President Chen Shui-bian.

Ma, also secretary-general of the blue camp's campaign headquarters, said he would convene a meeting of pan-blue mayors and county commissioners tomorrow to discuss the referendum, scheduled for March 20.

According to Ma, the blue-camp leaders will issue a joint proclamation urging Chen to call off the referendum, which has been called "illegal" by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the People First Party (PFP).

Ma said the 14 pan-blue local-government leaders would also seek to invalidate the referendum by encouraging constituents to abstain from voting. The referendum would be considered invalid if less than half of the electorate takes part.

"The referendum's legal foundation, necessity and propriety are flawed," Ma said. "Since commissioners and mayors of local governments are co-sponsors of the referendum, we need to discuss a response."

Ma said public officials have a duty to listen to doubts about the plan.

He made the remark while visiting a temple in Taipei County.

Ma went to Taipei County to seek support for pan-blue presidential candidates KMT Chairman Lien Chan and PFP Chairman James Soong.

Wu Nai-jen, head of the Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP) campaign headquarters, denounced Ma's plan, saying it would pose problems for local officials' subordinates who would be handling the vote.

"Those subordinates taking charge of the referendum in local governments are civil servants obligated to help the electorate. The elected leaders from the pan-blue parties who consider boycotting the ballot collection make it difficult for their subordinate to carry out their duty," Wu said.

The planned boycott makes a mockery of a system based on law and order, he said.

He reminded local government officials to be aware of their responsibilities.

A boycott would go beyond the local officials' jurisdiction, Wu said. He said interpreting the legality of the referendum was not the duty of county commissioners and mayors but belongs to the Council of Grand Justices.

"The elected officials should keep in mind that they are not authorized to do whatever they like just because they were elected as commissioners or mayors," Wu said.

The blue camp, however, said the referendum would be an abuse of power by Chen.

Soong said the law allows the president to initiate a referendum only when the country is in an emergency situation or faces an imminent threat to its sovereignty from external forces.

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