|
Dear
Member of Congress:
I write
to you today to ask for your help with the following important
issue.
In early
May Taiwan’s President Chen Shui-bian’s requested the United
States that he could transit in the United States on his way to
Costa Rica and Paraguay. Beijing immediately urged the United
States to deny President Chen’s request. Ultimately, Washington
offered no more than refueling facilities in Anchorage and/or
Hawaii - a substantial downgrade compared with previous US
transits when he was allowed to spend a few days in the country,
hold meetings and give speeches.
I believe
that we should work towards lifting all restrictions on high
level visits from Taiwan including the President. This would
have several benefits for both the United States and our friend
Taiwan. First, we would for once and for all eradicate the
necessity of complex, lengthy and, truly, humiliating-for-Taiwan
negotiations about where and when President Chen would be able
to refuel or travel in the United States. Secondly, being able
to hear first-hand from Taiwanese officials would promote a
balanced understanding of both sides of the Taiwan Strait issue
for Congress, the Administration and the American public.
Thirdly, we would reduce the ability of Beijing to politicize
our valid relations with Taiwan . Finally, and perhaps most
importantly, we would extend to the President of Taiwan --and
thus to the people of Taiwan --the respect and dignity they
deserve.
On April
6, co-chairs of the Congressional Taiwan Caucus Steve Chabot
(R-OH) and Sherrod Brown (D-OH) introduced HCR381 concluding
that: “All restrictions on visits by high-level elected and
appointed officials of Taiwan to the United States, including
the democratically elected president of Taiwan, should be
lifted.”
Please
contact Kevin Fitzpatrick at 225-2216 ( to co-sponsor this
important resolution.
It is my
sincere belief that the United States needs to do a better job
in nurturing and protecting the fragile democracy in Taiwan. We
can start doing that by communicating directly with President
Chen.
Thank you
very much for your support for Taiwan!
Sincerely,
Name
___________________________Signature
_____________________________
Address
______________________________________________________________
Date
___________________________ Phone
________________________________ |
