PRESIDENT INSISTS ON MARCH 20 REFERENDUM
2004-01-15 23:13:48
Taipei, Jan. 15 (CNA) President Chen Shui-bian claimed Thursday that holding a "defensive referendum" March 20 is more important to him than his re-election.
Chen made the remarks at a press conference marking the publication of his new book titled "Believe in Taiwan: President A-bian's Report to the People," which hit bookstore shelves that day.
Re-election and holding the referendum are the two main missions he wants to accomplish on March 20, Chen said, adding that he would choose the latter if he had to make a choice.
Saying that holding a referendum and writing a new constitution are the two things left in the country's democratization process, Chen said that he hopes to accomplish at least one of them by the end of his first four-year term and that it is likely to be a referendum, which he said will deepen and cement Taiwan's democracy.
The content of the topics to be put to the referendum will be fixed and published by the Chinese New Year, which falls on Jan. 22, he announced.
Chen said that he attaches importance to opinions and concerns about the referendum from various domestic and foreign sectors, including the United States government, and that he will continue to communicate with them on the subject.
The book is Chen's second written during his presidential term. In it, he discusses the issues of peace across the Taiwan Strait, international diplomacy, national security, political reform, investment in the future, justice and the people's dignity.
(By Huang Kwang-chun)
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