|
For Immediate
Release
Contact Iris
Ho @ 202.547.3686
November 15, 2007
FAPA
expresses strong disagreement with AIT Director Steve Young on
Taiwan's UN membership
On Wednesday, November 14th 2007,
the
Formosan Association for Public Affairs -- a Taiwanese-American
grassroots organization based in Washington DC -- sent a letter to
the Director of the American Institute in Taiwan, Mr. Stephen Young
-- expressing strong disagreement with statements he made,
criticizing the planned Taiwan referendum on entry in the UN under
the name "Taiwan".
In a press
conference in Taipei on November 9th 2007, Mr. Young reportedly
stated that the referendum, planned to coincide with the
presidential elections in March 2008, are “neither necessary nor
helpful”, and that “there is a price to be paid in mutual trust.”
The Association
said that the referendum is necessary for three reasons:
1) in order to
let the international community know that the Taiwanese people have
no intention of letting themselves be subdued by an authoritarian
regime in Beijing;
2) to let the
world know that the Taiwanese people want their country to be a full
and equal member in the international community, and
3) to counter the
PRC’s relentless pressure to isolate Taiwan and push it into a
corner.
In response to
Mr. Young's statement that there is a price to be paid in mutual
trust, the Association stated that the price to be paid is
"...the fact that US opposition to the referendum is severely
undermining international trust in the US government’s resolve to
stand up for human rights and democracy in the world."
The Association
added: "Your statements, and those of other US government
officials, are also undermining democracy in our homeland. We find
this totally unacceptable."
The Association
closed its letter, which was signed by its President C.T. Lee MD, by
saying that if the United States is serious about spreading
democracy around the world, "...it needs to be supportive of
– and nurture – those countries that have attained democracy through
the hard work of their citizens. Taiwan is such a country, and if
the US wants to maintain peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait,
it needs to show resolve in support of our young and fragile
democracy."
The full text
of the letter is given below.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Washington DC, November 14th
2007
Mr. Stephen Young
Director,
American Institute in Taiwan
7 Lane 134, Hsin
Yi Rd. Sec 3
TAIPEI, TAIWAN
106
Dear Mr. Young,
As an
organization of American citizens of Taiwanese descent we want to
express our strong disagreement with your statements last week about
the planned referendum in Taiwan regarding membership in the United
Nations. You said that the referendum is “neither necessary nor
helpful”, and that you think “there is a price to be paid in mutual
trust.”
Yes, there is a
price to be paid, but this price is the fact that US opposition to
the referendum is severely undermining international trust in the US
government’s resolve to stand up for human rights and democracy in
the world. Your statements, and those of other US government
officials, are also undermining democracy in our homeland. We find
this totally unacceptable.
The referendum is
necessary in order to let the international community know that the
Taiwanese people have no intention of letting themselves be subdued
by an authoritarian regime in Beijing. The referendum is necessary
to let the world know that the Taiwanese people want their country
to be a full and equal member in the international community. The
referendum is necessary to counter the PRC’s relentless pressure to
isolate Taiwan and push it into a corner.
It should be
clear to you and your colleagues that Taiwan is not threatening
China in any way: the Taiwan government has emphasized time and
again that it wants the country to live in peace with all its
neighbors, including China. However, as you well know, China is
building up its armed forces with the specific aim of attacking
Taiwan, and is threatening Taiwan with 980+ missiles.
If the United
States is serious about spreading democracy around the world, it
needs to be supportive of – and nurture – those countries that have
attained democracy through the hard work of their citizens. Taiwan
is such a country, and if the US wants to maintain peace and
stability in the Taiwan Strait, it needs to show resolve in support
of our young and fragile democracy.
Looking forward
to hearing from you,
C.T. Lee MD
President,
Formosan Association for Public Affairs
cc.
President George
W. Bush
Secretary
Condoleezza Rice |
