Referendum on Taiwan's UN bid in January or March

Politics Taiwan Politics
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It’s just a shame that CSB only comes up with great ideas for referenda every 4 years.

chinapost.com.tw/latestnews/46975.htm

Referendum on Taiwan’s UN bid in January or March: Pres. Chen

Tuesday, June 19, 2007
The China Post staff

President Chen Shui-bian announced yesterday he will call a referendum alongside a nationwide election next year to help Taiwan rejoin the United Nations under that name.

He met Edwin J. Feulner, Jr., chairman of the Washington-based Heritage Foundation, at his office in the morning and told the latter preparations are being completed for holding that referendum together with one of the two elections scheduled for next January and March.

The president said the proposal for the voting, for which at least one million signatures have yet to be collected to make an agenda, will take place on January 12 alongside the legislative elections or the presidential race, which will be held on a Saturday around March 20.

Chen has to step down on May 20, and the election has to be called at least two months ahead of the inauguration of his successor, according to the Constitution.

“We’ll hold the referendum on our bid to join the United Nations under the name of Taiwan to let the whole world hear the voice of the 23 million people of Taiwan,” President Chen said.

A rally of one million will be organized in early September to call for supporting Taiwan to accede to the world body, from which the Republic of China was ousted in 1971.

The United Nations will hold its annual General Assembly in September. Taiwan will apply for accession with the UNGA when it opens.

That does not contradict Chen’s “four-no” promise, made twice in his inaugural addresses in 2000 and 2004. He pledged not to declare independence, not to change the title of the country, not to include a “two-China” doctrine in the Constitution, and not to call a referendum over issues that may change the status quo across the Taiwan Strait.

“Our bid to join the United Nations under the name of Taiwan has nothing to do with any of these promises,” President Chen declared. “We are not changing the title of the country,” he added, “for we are trying to join as Taiwan.”

The opposition alliance of the Kuomintang and the People First Party wrote off the Chen referendum as a “non-issue.”

Wu Den-yih, Kuomintang secretary-general, told the press in the afternoon the referendum is totally and absolutely unnecessary.

“All of us in Taiwan are agreed that we have to rejoin the United Nations,” Wu went on. “But,” he added, “we don’t have to apply as Taiwan.”

Though the referendum is uncalled for, Wu said, the Kuomintang wishes to get Taiwan back to the United Nations by a “flexible means.”

Taiwan tried in vain to accede to the World Health Organization under that name, Wu said. “We’re routed, with 148 members rejecting us, while those who used to support us withheld their support,” he added.

The United States and Japan used to support Taiwan’s bid to join the WHO as an observer. They opposed its accession as a full member under the name of Taiwan.

“Taiwan has to be flexible,” Wu stressed.

Huang Yi-jiao, PFP legislative caucus whip, said the United States won’t support Taipei’s bid to rejoin the United Nations as Taiwan.

Without any international support, the bid won’t make it through the General Committee, where the agenda will be set for the UNGA, Huang pointed out

“It’ll be an exercise in futility,” Huang said.

The ruling Democratic Progressive Party voiced full support for President Chen’s plan to call the referendum alongside one of next year’s two elections.

Lawmaker Ker Chien-ming, DPP legislative caucus whip, believes the referendum will help the ruling party win the two elections.

There is another referendum, Ker said. It’s about the liquidation of the Kuomintang. “That referendum to require the Kuomintang to return its ill-gotten assets to the national treasury may have to be held at the same time,” he added.

Chang Yi-chan, DPP deputy executive secretary, said the Referendum Review Commission will accept the proposal for the referendum on Taiwan’s U.N. bid on June 29.

“Then,” Chang said, “we’ll collect one million signatures in mid-September to complete the necessary endorsement, and there’ll be no problem getting it voted on in January or March at the latest.”

The Taiwan Solidarity Union, the DPP’s small ally, opposes the Chen plan to call the referendum alongside the elections.

“We support the bid to join under the name of Taiwan, but oppose the referendum being held together with either of the two elections,” said Chow Mei-li, TSU spokeswoman.

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Another question to be asked?
Does this man thinks counting ballots in a democracy is free?

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“It’s just a shame that CSB only comes up with great ideas for referenda every 4 years.”
“Does this man thinks counting ballots in a democracy is free?”
-if the KMT would return the “stolen assets”, referenda could be held daily.
True democracy, as opposed to representational democracy that we
live with (if we’re lucky).

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[quote=“ac_dropout”]Another question to be asked?
Does this man thinks counting ballots in a democracy is free?[/quote]
No, and that’s why he’s proposing the referendum be held simultaneously with the presidential elections next year. Very considerate, frugal man he is.

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How many unbiased questions will ROC citizens be forced to void this time around?

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I would like to know when Zhao and Wu will return the money ,too.

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wisher… do you even want to compare Zhao and Wu to the KMT? Only that old guy that was on the Standing Committee of the KMT runned away with a whole lot more than those 2. The normal KMT corruption puts to shame any big corruption from the DPP.

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mr_boogie,

That’s quite a silly position, the DPP not as corrupt as the KMT.

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They all are called “thief”.Aren’t they?

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At least the people of Taiwan can voice their opinions without fearing being persecuted under KMT rule.

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It’s not like the DPP will shut down magazine, seek payoff from large corporations, or pursue political retribution for past slights…

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It’s not about retribution, but rather, an acknowledgement of mistakes in the past. Why is it so difficult for the KMT to admit the atrocities commited by them in the past? C’mon, even OJ kinda admitted what he did in his book. :smiley:

Sorry a little OT.

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Are these people using the word “referenda” purposely trying to write bad English ? The plural is “referendums”, look it up.

“referenda” may only be acceptable, and only then, if there are multiple questions on one ballot.

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I think they should have a referendum (as long as we’re using Latin, shouldn’t we say “referendo” in the dative, etc.?) on whether China should go sodomize itself. (Or would that be considered provocative? If somebody complains, Chen could always expound on the various meanings of sodomy…)

Then, instead of a “hands across Taiwan” thing, they could all give China the finger together. Wouldn’t that look great on the cover of Time? Kind of like the Baltics just before 1992!

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Can anyone point me to the specific article in the United Nations Charter where the procedures for holding such a referendum, the criteria for determining its validity, and effect of such a valid referendum on a particular entity’s “admission application” to the UN are specified?

On a related note, over the past few years several of my friends have written to the Presidential Office here in Taiwan asking for clarifications of (1) what international treaty has confirmed that the sovereignty of the areas of “Formosa and the Pescadores” has been transferred to the Republic of China, or to the “Taiwan governing authorities,” and (2) the date and associated paperwork whereby “Formosa and the Pescadores” were formally incorporated into the Republic of China, via the provisions of Article 4 of the ROC Constitution.

They have never received any reply.

They were hoping to get a reply so that they could forward those two important pieces of information on to the United Nations for swift action on Taiwan’s “admission application” . . . . .

(Note: Isn’t this all very strange? President Chen keeps saying that the ROC on Taiwan is an independent sovereign nation, but asked to produce the relevant paperwork he always comes up empty handed.)

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What exactly is CSB fishing for here… I mean in his twisted, backwards, little mind what does he calculate the best case scenario to be?.. so they ask “the 23 million people of Taiwan” whether in their opinion the UN should accept their application under the name “Taiwan”… if we totally ignore the fact that just like last time, at the very least 11.5 million of those referendum ballots will end up ripped in pieces littering the floors of voting stations island wide, and for argument’s sake assume that all 23milllion people vote “Yes” on the referendum… so what?.. seems eerily similar to getting a class of “special needs” kindergarten children to all vote on whether they would like to live in a house made of candy canes, cake and gingerbread, maybe they’ll all vote yes, but it won’t make one iota’s difference to the unpainted concrete reality waiting for them when they get home…

“force the world to hear the voice of the 23million people of Taiwan…” :roflmao: Even if the world cared enough to listen, which time and time again has proved not the be the case, “waaaa… it’s not fair!..” is an argument unlikely to shake the UN to it’s core…

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[quote]Isn’t this all very strange? President Chen keeps saying that the ROC on Taiwan is an independent sovereign nation, but asked to produce the relevant paperwork he always comes up empty handed[/quote]What country does have paperwork to say it’s sovereign ? All the US has is a self written “declaration of independence”, and who gave it to the British in the first place ? Where the paperwork ? The UK doesn’t have a constitution at all.

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You know those prosecutors on the Sogo scandal said the exact same thing.

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‘referenda’ IS the correct plural of ‘referendum’.

‘referendums’ is an Americanised plural for people who like all plurals to end in s, but is not the correct Latin form that should apply. We see the same in ‘agendum/agenda’, and most people are more than happy to use the word ‘agenda’ without batting an eyelid.

Sorry, Matthew, but they are both valid.

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It’s nice to know Chen still has his priorities right, pushing for global warming instead of trying to stop it.
How many acres of forest will be chopped to make paper for the referendum question to be printed on? Or will Al Gore fly in a batch of recycled paper?

In the end, Taiwan’s UN problem is not about its name. The old fogeys in Beijing will never agree to Taiwan joining the UN under whatever name, so holding a referendum on this topic is a pure waste of time.
Of course, Chen is hoping it will work like the last useless referendum, mobilizing DPP supporters to go to the poll and vote for the party’s presidential candidate.