4 - Taiwan Under President Chen Shui-bian

Summary

Taiwan's 2000 Presidential Election

Taiwan's presidential election, held on 18 March 2000, saw the defeat of the Kuomintang (KMT) government, for the first time after fifty-five years in power, by the pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). The election race drew a field of five: the KMT's Lien Chan, the then Vice-President, and Siew Wan-chang, the then Premier; the DPP's Chen Shui-bian and Lu Hsiu-lien; independent candidates Soong Chu-yu and Chang Chao-hsiung; the New Party's Li Ao and Feng Hu-hsiang; and independent candidates Hsu Hsin-liang and Chu Hui-liang.

Though not as dominant as it was in the 1996 presidential election, the issue of cross-strait policy still remained a very significant one in the election. Its debate attracted particular attention after President Lee Teng-hui announced his “two states” theory in July 1999.

On Unification/Independence

The three front-runners in the election (Lien, Soong, and Chen) had de-emphasized the unification/independence issue, as many voters were afraid of military conflict with China. Though once a vocal advocate of Taiwan's independence, Chen Shui-bian was far less fervent in public about independence. He vowed that he would not declare Taiwan's independence (unless Beijing moved to retake Taiwan by force) and abandon the title of the Republic of China (ROC).

Nevertheless, his “Long Live Taiwan Independence!” cheer during the campaign made people suspect that his new stance was merely for political expedience. His remarks often appeared ambiguous, evasive, and self- contradictory. While vowing not to promote a referendum on Taiwan's independence, he also supported the concept of having the Taiwan people determine their own destiny. While on one occasion he promised not to write Lee's “two states” theory into the Constitution, on other occasions he advocated amending the Constitution to give legal effect to the theory. He also did not make clear any commitment to change the pro-independence clause in his Party Charter.

Soong stated that Taiwan, with security and dignity, should seek to find a mutually beneficial model for integrating with mainland China.