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Posted on 01/15/2003 11:30:44 AM PST by Enemy Of The State
Chiang's legacy not worth worship
Wednesday, Jan 15, 2003,Page 8 Monday was the 15th anniversary of the late president Chiang Ching-kuo's (ÊY½›‡ø) death. Apart from members of Chiang's family, many politicians who claim to follow in his path also went to his mausoleum and paid homage to him. Some even knelt on the floor and kowtowed.
Relatively famous politicians -- such as Lien Chan (ßB‘ð), James Soong (Ëγþè¤), Hau Pei-tsun (ºÂ°Ø´å) and Ma Ying-jeou (ñRÓ¢¾Å), among others -- believed they were commemorating Chiang's spirit of loving and building up Taiwan. The problem is, how many of them really understood the import of the remark Chiang made in his later years, "I am also a Taiwanese."
Both the pro-unification and pro-independence camps claim to love Taiwan. Some people even try to use "loving Taiwan" to manipulate public opinion, thereby confusing the public and generating a national identity problem -- a source of endless political wrangling today. We therefore must ask the various opposition parties: exactly where do you want to take Taiwan? One country, two systems? Or independent sovereignty?
Soong once defined Taiwan-China relations as "quasi-international" relations. We hope the PFP can tell us what that means exactly. Otherwise, such "creative ambiguity" can be interpreted as a political conspiracy aimed at deceiving the people of Taiwan.
Similarly, can Lien's advocacy of peaceful unification with China lead to peaceful coexistence with China in the future, without the ROC losing its independent sovereignty and without China rejecting it? The KMT continues to fudge its explanations of such key policy points. It has yet to explain them to the people of Taiwan. Without clear explanations, anyone can pay lip service to "loving Taiwan" while selling out the interests of the Taiwanese people.
Many people in Taiwan remember Chiang for his efforts in trying to develop the country, which caused the economy to soar, thereby creating an enviable economic miracle. However, Taiwan under Chiang Ching-kuo was still overshadowed by the White Terror. Many people fighting for democracy and human rights suffered great harm. Chiang assumed the presidency in 1978. The Kaohsiung Incident and the murder of former DPP chairman Lin Yi-hsiung's (ÁÖÁxÐÛ) family members occurred the next year. The murders of Chiang Nan (½ÄÏ) and Chen Wen-cheng (êÎijÉ) occurred in the 1980s. Meanwhile, Taiwan was frequently criticized by the US Congress for its human rights record.
Fortunately, Chiang tacitly allowed the establishment of a local political party two years before his death in 1988, thereby allowing Taiwan to move toward democracy. At the same time, he said he was "also a Taiwanese" and vowed not to let anyone from the Chiang family succeed him. He tried to alleviate alienation between mainlanders and local Taiwanese by appointing Taiwanese to official positions. Chiang's political moves in his later years show that he had come to understand the will of the Taiwanese people to become their own masters. He set an example himself to encourage mainlanders to identify with Taiwan and join hands to create a future for Taiwan.
What's worth remembering about Chiang is his grand political awakening in the last two years of his life. We cannot overlook historical reality and blindly worship him. Otherwise, this absurdity would be comparable to the Chinese people worshipping Mao Zedong (ëɖ|), the Korean people worshipping Park Chung-hee, or the Japanese people's worship of Tojo Hideki. This would be a big insult to the Chiang Ching-kuo that identified with Taiwan.
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