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OPPOSITION TO PROPOSE RESOLUTIONS ON STATUS QUO AND MAINLAND THREAT

2003-12-04 19:00:35

Taipei, Dec. 4 (CNA) The legislative caucuses of the opposition camp said on Thursday that they would propose that the Legislative Yuan pass two resolutions concerning Taiwan's status quo and the military threat of mainland China.

The Kuomintang (KMT) and the People First Party (PFP) made the announcement in an apparent attempt to block President Chen Shui-bian initiating a planned "defensive referendum."

Tseng Yung-chuan, executive director of the KMT's central policy department, said that the resolutions -- that the status quo will be maintained of an independent, sovereign Republic of China, and that mainland China should gradually withdraw its missiles targeting Taiwan, will represent the common will of the people on the island. "They will represent a statement and declaration of Taiwan people to the United States, mainland China and the Asia and Pacific countries," Tseng said.

He said that if the resolutions pass unanimously in the Legislative Yuan, then President Chen will have no need to initiate a "defensive referendum."

But if the Legislative Yuan fails to pass the resolutions, then the KMT and PFP will not rule out the possibility of the legislature initiating a referendum.

Chou Hsi-wei, the PFP's party whip in the legislature, said that the legislature is the highest representative institution of the people's will and every political party should support the resolutions to be proposed by the KMT and the PFP, which he said will "resolve the threat that the missile crisis poses to Taiwan's political scene."

Chou stressed that resolutions of the Legislative Yuan have the same effect of galvanizing the will of the people in the same way as a referendum, and mainland China's "response to the resolutions is another matter."

Chou also criticized the president's plan to initiate a referendum to protect the nation's sovereignty and to urge Beijing to withdraw its missiles targeting Taiwan as time and money consuming.

Lee Chia-chin, KMT party whip in the legislature, said that the resolutions are a way to express the voice of Taiwan people and a way to protest against Beijing and ask it to address the missile problem squarely, which he said is also helpful to restart the stalled cross-strait dialogue.

The legislature passed a referendum bill last Thursday that was largely based on the version of the opposition camp to set strict restrictions on initiating a referendum, despite the fact that the ruling Democratic Progressive Party had first advocated the legislation.

But article 17 of the referendum bill empowers the president to initiate a referendum on national security issues in the event of external threat. The threat which could trigger a defensive referendum is tacitly seen as coming from the mainland.

President Chen, addressing a rally in southern Taiwan last Sunday, said Beijing's deployment of 496 missiles aimed at Taiwan is sufficient reason for a "defensive referendum" to be called on the day of the next presidential election on March 20, 2004.

Chen's declaration has aroused serious concern that the move might provoke Beijing, which has threatened to attack Taiwan should the island move toward independence.

(By Lilian Wu)

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