Congressional Record—Senate S283
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January 22, 1996 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S283 forgotten and I will do whatever I can has bullied the Philippines over contested is- power to a collection of reformers who them- to ensure the days of the back-alley lands in the South China Sea, twice con- selves squandered the chance for real change. abortion, a virtual death sentence for ducted missile tests in the waters off Tai- Today the LDP is back in a cynical misalli- women, remain a tragic thing of the wan, resumed irresponsible weapons trans- ance with its nemesis, the socialists, whom fers and imposed its own choice as the re- it hopes to shortly expel. past. Let today remind us that, for now incarnated Panchen Lama, the second most When does that leave us? With the Bur- at least, the law is on our side. important religious figure in Tibet. Mean- mese, or the Indonesian generals, or perhaps I urge President Clinton to join us while, as The Times’s Patrick Tyler reports, Thailand, where politicians are so corrupt today in commemorating this land- influential military commanders have begun they stay out of jail? mark anniversary. And I respectfully pushing for military action against Taiwan Reading the Mainland press, Taiwan’s re- request that he deliver on his promise and turned to confrontational rhetoric cent peaceful, multiparty elections never to veto H.R. 1833. The women of this against the United States. happened. No mention—the dog that didn’t country are counting on him to do Washington has minimized these provo- bark. A decade ago, the phrase ‘‘Taiwanese what is right. I know he will not let us cations, setting them in the larger perspec- democracy’’ would have been rightly dis- tive of China’s encouraging economic re- down.∑ missed as an oxymoron, though compared to forms and Washington’s hopes for political Mao’s mainland, the island republic was f liberalization. That was the same logic that widely seen as an economic miracle. led the Administration, early last year, to CHINA’S CHALLENGE TO Ironically, it is this economic strength abandon its efforts to link trade privileges today—$100 billion in hard currency reserves WASHINGTON for China to Beijing’s record on human and America’s ninth-largest trading part- ∑ Mr. SIMON. Mr. President, the New rights, arguing that anything that helped ner—that has obscured Taiwan’s political China’s booming economy would ultimately York Times had an excellent editorial evolution. The late Generalissimo Chiang titled ‘‘China’s Challenge to Wash- advance political freedom as well. It is working out that way. The 19 months Kai-shek’s Kuomingtang single-party rule, ington.’’ was replaced by his son and successor Chiang There is a reluctance to be forceful since that policy change have been marked by a serious deterioration in China’s respon- Ching-kuo, who created a supportive envi- with China on the issue of human siveness on human rights and other issues. ronment for democratic pluralism before he rights. Discouragingly, this seems to be happening died in 1988. Martial law was lifted, opposi- When I say ‘‘forceful,’’ I do not mean not simply because a new generation of lead- tion parties were legalized, press restrictions the use of force, but the willingness to ers is maneuvering to succeed the failing were eliminated and it was agreed that stand forthright for what this country Deng Xiaoping. Nationalist military officers Chiang’s successor would not be a member of are steadily gaining political influence, and the family or even a transplanted main- should stand for. lander. Instead President Lee Teng-hui is a We turn a cold shoulder to our the two top civilian leaders, President Jiang Zimen and Prime Minister Li Peng, seem native Taiwanese so far determined to fur- friends in Taiwan, where they have a ther reform by supporting younger, Taiwan- multiparty system, and seem to quake committed advocates of political repression. That suggests the newly belligerent policies born politicians as leaders of the KMT. every time China is unhappy with may not be just a transitional phase, or a something someone says or does. sign or insecurity in the leadership group, as In the last eight years, three legislative As the editorial suggests, we should some China scholars in the West have said. elections have been held, each time with ‘‘respond far more sharply to Wei The Clinton Administration, having done slowly shrinking KMT majorities. The old Jingsheng’s sentence.’’ all it reasonably could to smooth relations, National Assembly dominated by KMT geri- I am pleased to back this administra- including an October meeting between Presi- atrics has been mercifully stripped of its tion when they are right, as in Bosnia, dents Clinton and Jiang, now needs to recog- powers. Direct presidential elections will be but I also believe that we should be nize that a less indulgent policy is required held for the first time in Chinese history much stronger in setting forth our be- to encourage more responsible behavior by next March. China. The first step is to respond far more liefs as far as the abuses in China. I ask Literally nowhere in Asia, except Taiwan, sharply to Wei Jingsheng’s sentence, begin- has a ruling party allowed itself to be that the editorial from the New York ning with a concerted diplomatic drive to eclipsed. Nowhere has the attack on political Times be printed in the RECORD after condemn China before the United Nations corruption been so singleminded as it is in my remarks. Human Rights Commission next March. U.N. Taiwan. Vote fraud, unlike Thailand and Along the same line, Stefan Halper, condemnation would be an international em- Korea, has been almost eliminated. Vote host of NETE television’s ‘‘Worldwise’’ barrassment for China, one it desperately buying in the recent Dec. 2 poll has been re- and a former White House and State wants to avoid. duced to rural areas and to a level that Department official, recently had an Another step is to oppose non-humani- would boggle the minds of most Japanese op-ed piece in the Washington Times tarian World Bank loans to China, as already and Thai voters. provided for under United States law. Some At present, the KMT holds a six-seat ma- titled ‘‘Taiwan’s Unheralded Political Administration officials also want to con- Evolution,’’ which I ask to be printed jority in the legislature. Sessions will con- sider human rights issues in judging China’s tinue to be raucous, often undignified—not in the RECORD following my remarks application to join the new World Trade Or- unlike the 19th century U.S. Congress or for and after the New York Times edi- ganization, even though that is likely to that matter Congress today, recall the torial. bring objections from other W.T.O. members. Moran-Hunter fight a few weeks ago—but so The reality is democracy has grown The Administration still refuses to recon- what? The opposition has strengthened as and is thriving in Taiwan, and we sider the simpler, more obvious step of re- the exhausted Nationalists confront the re- should recognize that in our policies. storing a link between trade and human ality of an increasingly pluralist Taiwan. rights. In this critically important diplo- The material follows: Though Democratic politics is often a mat- matic game, the United States may no ter of shades of ugly, the alternatives in CHINA’S CHALLENGE TO WASHINGTON longer be able to deny itself the leverage Asia—both left and right—are vastly less at- If the United States intends to develop a that link could bring. tractive. Why the, despite Taiwan’s effort, relationship of mutual respect with China, it [From the Washington Times, Dec. 13, 1995] must defend its interests as vigorously as has it’s progress been ignored? Are American TAIWAN’S UNHERALDED POLITICAL EVOLUTION Beijing does. Now is the time, for China has interests served by recognizing and nur- shown a dangerous new bellicosity in mat- (By Stefan Halper) turing democratic growth—or has some ters from human rights to military threats. In an era that believes America’s future blend of security and mercantile priorities Last week Beijing again showed its con- lies in Asia, what is the Asian democratic cast our lot with the Mainland? The Clinton tempt for the rights of Chinese citizens by model? Singapore and Malaysia are single administration, still struggling with this convicting Wei Jingsheng of sedition and party states refreshed a bit by economic Wilson-Rossevelt policy cleavage, has said sentencing him to 14 years in prison. The ac- freedom. Hong Kong, still a colony, has late- nothing on the subject, even while embar- tivities the court cited included organizing ly been given a measure of self-government— rassing itself before and after Lee Teng-hui’s art exhibitions to benefit democracy and which Americans of 1770 would have summer address at Cornell, his alma mater. writing articles that advocated Tibet’s inde- scorned—only to be swallowed whole by the Yet in the hall of mirrors that passes for pendence. This heavy-handed muzzling of the not-so-democratic People’s Republic of Taiwan’s politics, the Nationalist Party- country’s leading dissenter is a measure of China in little more than 18 months. South KMT reflects its belief in ‘‘One China’’ while the Chinese belief that America and other Korea? It’s dominated by a government the opposition New Party, with 13.5 percent Western countries will not make them pay a party whose last president is now up on of the vote, is even more forceful on the sub- diplomatic or economic price for the abuse of charges of stealing $600 million—give or take ject.