President Chen: referendum an important step
in Taiwan's democratic development
July 30, 2003
In a teleconference with participants in the 30th Annual Meeting of
World Federation of Taiwanese Associations, President Chen Shui-bian
said July 27 that the Taiwan government will definitely hold a referendum
on the fourth nuclear power plant and other major public policy issues
on or before the presidential elections scheduled for March 20, 2004.
This will be the first time in history, he said, that the Taiwan people
can have the final say on major public policy issues, and it is an extremely
important step in the deepening and consolidation of the democracy in
Taiwan following the first transfer of political power three years ago.
Recently, over 500,000 people in Hong Kong took to the streets to protest the enactment of Article 23 of the Basic Law, which would have limited freedom of speech and run contrary to the spirit of democracy. The president said, the people of Hong Kong have awoken to the fact that only by insisting on a free and democratic way of life can they maintain a basis for sustained prosperity in Hong Kong. Additionally, he said, after reflecting on the situation in Hong Kong and the People's Republic of China's (PRC) heavy-handed treatment of Taiwan in the World Health Organization, we cannot but think that the "one country" part of "one country, two systems" is real but that the "two systems" part is fake. The one country that we see in this formula is the PRC. The two systems are "authoritarianism" and "oppression," he said, adding that this is in the opposite direction of Taiwan's political and economic development.
While the PRC's "one country, two systems" approach loses all credibility in Hong Kong, damaging the democracy and human rights of the Hong Kong people, Taiwan's democracy will take a big step forward by holding a referendum, he said.
