Mr. Chairman and Honorable Members of the Legislative Yuan:
It is my great honor and pleasure to come here at the beginning of the Republic of China's 60s (1970s) to report on the administration at this first meeting of the 47th session of the Legislative Yuan.
Footsteps of history
The Republic's 50s, corresponding to the 1960s of the 20th century, are over. It was a highly important decade in the process of our national recovery and reconstruction. During the last 10 years:
- Famine and poverty in various parts of the world have been aggravated by the anti-humanitarian, anti-rational Communist ideology and system, which are now on the edge of bankruptcy. The Communist bloc has been ripped apart and the Iron Curtains of both East and West have been shot full of holes and placed in imminent danger.
- Free world strength has shown steady growth. Progress in science has opened up a new epoch by putting man on the moon. Economic prosperity and development have enabled men to live in progress and hopefulness.
- Chinese Communists have turned the mainland into an arena of internal struggle for political power. People there have not known a single day of peace. Economic growth has been virtually nil during the last decade with consequent disaster for the people's livelihood. The anti-Mao and anti-Communist movement of the people has been expanding day by day.
- Here on our bastion of national recovery, we have had remarkable success in our endeavors to promote construction under San Min Chu I (Dr. Sun Yat-sen's Three Principles of the People). Our national stamina has been rapidly augmented. The real growth of our Gross National Product has averaged nearly 10 per cent annually. At current prices, national income has been more than trebled. Agriculture, industry and commerce have been thriving and a sustained boom is in prospect. Chinese living all over the world are united in their support of our cause, and their Punish-Mao National Salvation sentiments have been surging higher day by day. We can say that the last decade was a turning point between success and failure. We have laid down the foundation of certain victory in our great task of national recovery.
The 60s will surely bring us to a new milestone from which we can move from past achievements to the developments of the future.
Undoubtedly there are countercurrents in the world today which threaten to impede our progress. Before we clinch our final victory, we are likely to encounter new difficulties as we come closer to the goal. However, we are convinced that the footsteps of history have crossed a new frontier. If we redouble our efforts, follow the spirit of 1911 (the year of the downfall of the Ch'ing dynasty and the birth of the Republic) and continue our efforts with intrepidity, the enemy will be vanquished. The Republic's 60s cannot be other than a decisive decade.
The Executive Yuan has submitted two written documents to your esteemed Yuan. One was on the activities of the various ministries and agencies for the period from July through December of last year; the other was on the administrative policies for the fiscal year 61 (1971-1972) beginning in July of this year and ending in June of next year. I hope we shall have the benefit of your guidance. Today I should like briefly to present some additional views on both domestic and foreign affairs and what the Executive Yuan proposes to do about them. Your further guidance is sincerely solicited.
Countercurrents of international appeasement
It is generally known that laxity seems to have affected the free world's anti-Communist struggle during the last two years. An atmosphere of negotiation instead of confrontation has been prevailing in many countries. Despite internal chaos, the Communists have not desisted from infiltration of the Middle East, the Mediterranean Sea and the Indian Ocean, Asia, Africa and Central and South America. They have positively expanded their international activities in an attempt to conceal their own crises on the one hand and to strengthen their position of confrontation on the other. Any change in tactics toward a relaxation of tensions has been superficial and aimed at softening the attitude of some countries and contributing to the rampaging counter-currents of international appeasement. This is bound to have an adverse impact on the world anti-Communist movement.
Undeniably, Asia is the main battle-ground in the free world's struggle against the Communists and their aggression and in defense of peace. The present war situations in Vietnam, Khmer and Laos all have an important bearing on the outcome of Asia's struggle against the Communists. The Vietnamization program has been carried out smoothly. Judging by troop deployments of the Communists, however, the center of the conflict in Indochina has been shifted from Vietnam to Khmer and Laos, and the situation there is becoming increasingly complicated. Whether the principle of Vietnamization call be successfully applied will be decided by the test of events. We feel the mopping-up campaign undertaken by the Allied forces in northwestern Vietnam along the Khmer and Laos borders and the Vietnamese drive against the Ho Chi Minh trail in Laos are both examples of the correct way to deal with Communist aggression.
We also believe the United States understood the connection between the security of Asia and its own long-range interests when it courageously undertook the primary responsibility for maintaining world peace and security. The United States must have recognized that regional security is the prerequisite of global security and that eradication of the Communist threat in Asia is indispensable to any assurance of world peace. We feel strongly that the United States should not heed advocacies of appeasement, lest it should repeat the historical mistake of retreat into isolation and permit the Communists to expand the scope of their aggression with impunity.
Perspective of the anti Communist situation
Viewed from another angle, the Vietnamization program has spurred the free countries of Asia to recognize and accept their responsibility for the security and defense of the Asian and Pacific region. Although their interests do not always coincide, the Asian countries have come to have a common understanding of the Chinese Communists role in disturbing the peace of Asia and the world, of the ruthlessness of Chinese Communist tactics and of the fact that in peace or war the Asian nations share the same destiny. That is why the Asian and Pacific Council has sought, year after year, to promote regional solidarity and cooperation through constructive and concrete undertakings. This reflects a perspective in which the anti-Communist movements of Asian countries have been gradually expanding. This should provide a strong impetus in the opening up of the world anti-Communist movement.
Trends of schism, chaos and turmoil in the Communist bloc are irrevocable. Decline and final extinction of the evil Communist influence is irreversible. We can, therefore, safely say that in the current world situation the Communist bloc is losing its influence and the free countries are gaining in stature, that freedom and democracy will be maintained and that the free nations will uphold the principles of justice and peace to win the ultimate victory. For these very reasons we earnestly hope that the free world will become more positive and sincere and will draw closer together in solidarity and cooperation, thus hastening our final triumph in the anti-Communist war.
Peiping in its death throes
The Chinese Communists have come to the end of their rope and are writhing and grasping for a last straw. Let us examine their situation:
It is nearly two years since the Maoists began their so-called "party rebuilding" and "administrative rectification" in the wake of the "cultural revolution." So far they have established only 10 party committees at the provincial level in the 29 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions. In the more than 2,000 cities and counties, they have set up only 149 party committees at the county level and 6 at the special district level. Military control still prevails throughout the mainland.
The Chinese Communist programs of "rebuilding" and "rectification" are moving ever so slowly. Reasons for this include factional fragmentation, power struggle and people's uprisings. Most important of all is the bankruptcy of Communism as an ideology. Even members of the Chinese Communist Party are refusing to follow the line of Mao thought. This is a big hole in the CCP's invisible dike.
In a joint editorial on January 1, Chinese Communist papers demanded that the party "further promote the learning and practice of Mao thought in the mass movement; grasp great revolutionary criticism tightly and make the work of 'struggle-criticism-transformatian' more profound and secure; grasp tightly the 'one strike and three antis movement' (strike at counter-revolutionaries and anti-corruption, anti-extravagance and anti-speculation); seriously carry out the task of party re building and administrative: rectification; accomplish the task of youth league rebuilding and rectification; and successfully convene party congresses at local levels," etc. These summons adequately demonstrate that the Chinese Communists cannot carry out their programs of rebuilding and rectification and cannot re-establish stability. Instead, they are intensifying ideological struggle, political purges, economic pressure and the oppression of the people so as to perpetuate their tyrannical rule.
The mainland has been suffering from the effects of economic dislocations ever since the beginning of the "cultural revolution." Unable to make plans for any considerable length of time, the Chinese Communists are unable even to present an annual fiscal program. Yet the joint editorial of January 1 shamelessly lied and boasted that the third five-year plan had been "victoriously accomplished" and that "bumper crops had been harvested for nine consecutive years." In truth, the mainland economy is in bad shape. Unceasing shortages of food and clothing for the people, stricter rationing and poor export records below even those of 10 years ago are conclusive evidence of this. How can the Communists cover up their failures by idle bragging?
Although the power of party rebuilding and administrative rectification is in their hands, the Communist armed forces have internal problems of their own, including power struggle, disputes about the line of military reorganization, ideological confusion, etc. The expansion of military power, which has come to dominate all else, is a total contradiction of Mao's dictum that the party should lead the military and the party should lead politics. This new situation, where the tail wags the dog, has brought further danger to the Maoists. Development of nuclear weaponry has had little effect on the outside world but necessitates further exploitation of the mainland people. Sooner or later, a nuclear bomb will explode in the hearts of our 700 million mainland compatriots.
Most shameful of all is the passage of Mao's arrogant and ridiculous draft constitution at the second plenary session of the Ninth Congress of the CCP. Besides naming Mao as lifelong "chief of state" and "commander-in-chief" of the armed forces, the constitution lays down Mao thought as the guideline for all the work of the people, thus wiping out the basic rights of citizenship, and requires that the people must be prepared to fight against "imperialism, social imperialism and their followers." This insane and unprecedentedly ugly document, filled with murderous intentions, has exposed Mao's ruthlessness and the tyranny of his dictatorship. His uncontrolled ambitions have not been altered and the contradictions emerging from Maoist control have been deepened. With the anti-Mao, anti-Communist anger of our mainland compatriots fast reaching the boiling point, the Maoists have become apprehensive and are seeking to strengthen their domination. We can be sure that if this Maoist constitution should come into force, it would stimulate further internal struggle, stir up greater opposition from the people and hasten downfall of the regime.
Despite changes and chaos, the Chinese Communists have again given lip service to the "five principles of peace" and put up a smiling face in a diplomatic offensive calculated to confuse the free world and avert their own destined downfall. The fact is that the Chinese Communists will not retreat from their three-antis foreign policy (anti-American imperialism, anti-Soviet revisionism and anti-counter-revolutionaries). Their smiling face is nothing hut a united front tactic of disguise before their extinction. However, the diplomatic offensive has led some nations to believe that the Peiping regime has recovered from the after-effects of the "cultural revolution," restored stability and become more moderate. International appeasers have raised their heads again. Ignoring the freedom aspirations of the Chinese people of the mainland, they have sought to woo the Chinese Communists and to side with them. This is most unwise because it harms the causes of truth, justice and moral courage, and this is exactly what the Chinese Communists hoped would happen.
Members of the Legislative Yuan: We regret the appeasement actions of some nations. At the same time, we realize that a nation has to be self-reliant in looking after its own survival. President Chiang Kai-shek has often told us that "In statecraft, those who rely on themselves will survive but those who rely on others will fall." This is the highest line of guidance in our quest for strength. The national culture, history and tradition which we have inherited and the revolutionary spirit and strength which we have developed can never be disregarded nor undermined.
Challenge of righteous diplomacy
Though the world situation is everchanging, we are still firmly of the belief that international righteousness must be preserved and that justice must prevail. Our existing foreign policy of honoring our treaty commitments, upholding the United Nations Charter, promoting international justice and fostering international cooperation should not be changed. In the undercurrents of international appeasement, this naturally will be a severe challenge. Nevertheless, we have the determined will and persevering spirit to carryon our endeavors and to overcome these undercurrents.
We think that recent changes in the world situation have resulted from the interplay of a number of factors which in turn have contributed to the prevailing atmosphere of appeasement. After Canada, Italy and a few others established diplomatic relations with the Peiping regime, some Communist and pro-Peiping nations began to spread malicious remarks in the international arena. Confused by advocacies of appeasement or mistaken about the realities, some free world countries have come to entertain illusions about the Chinese Communists and changed their original positions. This led to our unfavorable vote with a margin of two on the substantive resolution on Chinese representation at the 25th session of the United Nations General Assembly last year. The fact that Chile and others also established relations with the Peiping regime added further to our disappointment.
Nevertheless, the Republic of China's contributions to the United Nations and our efforts on behalf of Asian peace and security are undeniable. This is why the procedural resolution defining the matter of admitting the Peiping regime and expelling the Republic of China as an important matter requiring a two-thirds majority was passed by a vote of 66 to 52 in our favor at the same UNGA session. Current developments have alerted us to the likelihood that the future will be even more difficult, but we shall stand firm, hold fast to principles and make an overall review of the situation for the protection of our rightful position and interests in the international community. We shall urge all member countries of the United Nations to realize that the question of Chinese representation is closely related to the fate of the United Nations and to peace in Asia. If the Peiping regime should ever be admitted, the spirit and letter of the United Nations Charter would be destroyed. That would not be a happy moment for the world.
Meanwhile, we can see that on the mainland the anti-Maoist and anti-Communist movement is growing stronger. The Chinese Communists are utilizing smiling diplomacy to hide their internal weaknesses and ease their crisis. This may confuse some of the free world nations for a time, but after they come into contact with the Maoists, they will discover the ugliness which lies below the surface and wake up to reality.
Naturally we are also aware that our foreign affairs must be conducted and expanded in accordance with the concept of a total national effort. From now on, we shall emphasize the coordination of political, economic, trade and cultural activities so as to augment contacts and cooperation with friendly states. We shall seek more friends and actively work for the formation of an Asian and Pacific collective security system. We shall unite Chinese all over the world and augment our international information program in order to bring forth a more favorable state of affairs.
Strenthening of armed forces to create opportunity for national recovery
Our national defense and military measures have centered on the consolidation of our bastion, intensification of combat strength and completion of preparations for national recovery and defeat of the Chinese Communists. These are the supreme objectives of our armed forces. At a time when the world situation is changing rapidly, when the internal strife of the Maoist regime is deepening and when anti-Communist uprisings on the mainland are mounting in tempo, we must maintain vigilance and mobility at peak intensity so as to be ready to act any time. All of our undertakings are aimed at creating combat strength, building an elite modern military machine and providing the capability to seize upon any opportunity for national recovery.
To attain these objectives, administrative efforts have been concentrated on the following:
In building up our armed forces, emphasis has been placed on the augmenting of combined training for all three branches and on the renovation of military education; modernization of weapons and equipment and raising of the offensive and defensive capabilities of our armed forces; expansion of ordnance production in order to attain self-sufficiency; improvement of the mobilization system and the streamlining of military administration; and the cultivation of a good military tradition and elevation of the spiritual strength of the armed forces.
In preparing for eventual military operations, we have strengthened our system of material mobilization, cultivated the full potential of our military capability, improved the defenses of our base and stepped up preparations for national recovery. In addition, we have given special attention to Chinese Communist activities, have actively developed our forces and expanded our activities in the enemy's rear and have launched special warfare undertakings on the mainland.
In research and development, we have completed our plans for military build-up and perfected our systems of military strategy planning. We have carried out long-range, medium-range and short-range strategic plans so as to accelerate the modernization of our armed forces and enable them to meet the needs of any operational condition.
By joint efforts of officers and men, our armed forces have achieved marked improvement in strength, equipment, firepower, mobility and logistic support to become a first-rate and powerful force. The high morale and combat readiness of our troops provide an ironclad guarantee that we shall win the victory and succeed in national recovery.
Growth of our national strength in the last 10 years
Viewed from financial, economic and fiscal angles, our national strength has clearly shown stability and maintained a substantial rate of growth. The government has carried out four four-year economic development plans since 1953. We are now proceeding into the third year of the fifth four-year plan. The goal of these plans is to build up our national strength in order to complete the mission of national recovery at an early date. We can compare our achievements of the last 10 years (1960 to 1970) in a number of respects:
In terms of the current prices, our gross domestic product increased 3.5 times from NT$62.6 billion to NT$217.8 billion and national income rose 3.35 times from NT$50.8 billion to NT$170.4 billion. In the same period, the rate of growth on the Communist-occupied mainland has been nil.
Our per capita income increased 2.56 times from NT$4,557 to NT$11,684, equivalent to about US$292. The estimated per capita income on the mainland last year is less than a third of ours.
The average annual growth rate of agricultural production has been 5.1 per cent and of industrial production 16.2 per cent in the last 10 years. Agriculture's share of the net domestic product has decreased from 32.5 to 19.2 per cent in the last 10 years, while industry's share has increased from 24.7 to 32 per cent. This shows how our economic structure has been moving toward industrialization.
In land transportation, passenger traffic has increased by 218.45 per cent and cargo traffic by 163.58 per cent. Loadings and unloadings at ports have gone up by 362.95 per cent. At Taipei International Airport, passenger traffic has increased by 1,249.85 per cent and cargo traffic by 837.87 per cent. In postal services, delivery of letters has risen by 154.22 per cent and parcels by 189.84 per cent. In telecommunications, the number of local telephone subscribers rose by 444.06 per cent, domestic long-distance calls by 236.35 per cent and outgoing international calls by 1,783.01 per cent.
Volume of foreign trade soared about 7.3 times from US$426 million to US$3,089 million. This means that our per capita foreign trade stands at about US$213. Exports have increased faster than imports so that the balance is now favorable. The amount in our favor was US$34 million last year. Volume of the Peiping regime's foreign trade in 1970 has been estimated at US$4,200 million. Our per capita trade level was 38 times larger than Peiping's per capita figures of only US$5.60.
Financial receipts of all levels of government have gone up 4.27 times from NT$12.1 billion to NT$51.7 billion, and payments have risen 4.13 times from NT$12.1 billion to NT$50 billion.
Careful control over the execution of budgets has resulted in an annual surplus in each year since 1964.
The share of government payments in the gross national product has been maintained at between 20 and 25 per cent. The share of taxes paid by the people (including profits from the government's monopoly businesses) has been maintained at about 18 per cent. This shows that the increase in receipts and payments is to be wholly attributed to an increase in national production and is a reflection of augmented national strength.
In monetary terms, the standing of the New Taiwan Dollar has been high both at home and abroad. Domestically, the average annual increase in the index of urban wholesale prices was 1.76 per cent from 1962 to 1970. The consumer price index rose 2.75 per cent annually' in the same period. These were mild increases. Because of the stability of the currency, savings deposits soared about 12 times from NT$3,750 million to NT$45,610 million in the 10-year period.
The foreign exchange rate remained stable during the last decade. Last year the International Monetary Fund officially recognized the rate of 40 New Taiwan Dollars to one U.S. dollar. This has raised the status of the New Taiwan Dollar in the international monetary market.
Economic growth is an index of the increase in national strength. The statistics already cited indicate the rapid increase in the nation's power and the magnitude of its accumulated strength. In the light of the past, we expect the economy of the 1970s to be as prosperous as that of the 1960s. However, we must not rest on our laurels, but must strive continuously to improve our record and further raise the level of national strength.
Overall planning of financial, economic and monetary affairs
Summit coordination conferences on financial, economic and monetary affairs have frequently carried out overall reviews of national reconstruction and studied means of reaching our goals. After considering the economic situation at home and abroad, we are of the view that special attention must be given the coordinated development of agriculture, industry and commerce from now on. We need to use exports to encourage the growth of industrial and agricultural production and put our industrial strength to work in support of agricultural modernization.
Our key efforts will be as follows:
1. To maintain a high level of economic growth. We shall continue to find ways and means to achieve rapid economic growth while maintaining the stability of commodity prices. With this objective in view, we shall study the problems involved and draft plans to balance the supply and demand of the nation's total resources and also plan for their utilization and distribution; to establish priorities and make comprehensive plans for the use and development of the capital necessary for important public installations and industrial enterprises; and to continue the strengthening of coordination between financial and monetary forces so as to encourage savings and investment and in order to promote the national economic construction movement under the principle of self-sufficiency.
2. To accelerate modernization of agriculture. Agriculture is the foundation of Taiwan's economy. In recent years, the income of farmers has not kept pace with the rapid growth of industry. The people have become less interested in farming, and this has led to an agricultural lag that has affected economic development. We shall therefore adopt aggressive measures to promote the mechanization of agriculture, improve the transportation and sale of agricultural products and strengthen the agricultural monetary system. These "measures will enable us to lower the costs of agricultural production, capital and materials, increase agricultural productivity and the income and benefits of farmers, and promote the modernization of agriculture.
3. To launch with an all-out effort the next moves in industrial development. We shall continue our vigorous march forward toward sophisticated and heavy industry; try our best to promote the development of scientific and technical research so as to assist national industry; and recommend new techniques, new methods, new products and new systems of industrial management so as to raise the quality of industrial products to international standard and strengthen our potential for competition in international markets.
4. To deal cautiously with problems of commodity prices. Although price increases are a worldwide phenomenon, the commodity prices in our country have been relatively stable in recent years. To prevent unwholesome rises, we shall continue watching the level of prices, remove obstructions so that the supply of goods can be maintained without interruption, be alert for seasonal changes and eliminate man-made monopolies so as to assure price stability despite the rapid growth of the economy.
5. To keep a watchful eye on international economic changes and trends. International economic conditions and finances underwent great changes last year. Several countries adopted anti-inflationary measures which led to economic standstill. Consequently, these countries have reduced domestic production and adopted a protectionist policy internationally. We therefore have to be careful and try to maintain a balance between economic development and stability so as to avoid breaking the connection between production and the market, to prevent economic stasis and to maintain the balanced growth of agriculture and industry. We need to watch the trends of international finance, adopt appropriate financial policies and take advantage of the international capital flow by channeling overseas Chinese and foreign investments into the economy.
Development of education and the promotion of science
Education is the foundation on which to build the nation and science the driving force to make the nation strong. Throughout the years, we have regarded the development of education and the promotion of science as priority tasks of government endeavor. To assure the renovation of education and evaluate the many important existing educational problems, the Ministry of Education convened the Fifth National Educational Conference last August. Careful, thorough study and discussion were accorded such subjects as educational policy, the academic system, development of every type of education at every level and the rehabilitation of education after recovery of the mainland. Many valuable conclusions were reached and these will serve as important points of reference in the future administration of education.
Every level of education has shown significant growth during the last 10 years. The number of schools increased from 2,961 in the 1960 academic year to 4,036 in the 1970 academic year. The number of students rose from 2,375,328 to more than 3,991,574 in the same period. Growth rate for schools was 36 per cent and for students 68 per cent.
Implementation of the nine-year program of free education is a great undertaking of concern to the whole nation. This program will be three years old as of next June and has received universal support. With constant evaluation and continued improvement, the nine-year education program has successfully reached the first of its goals. There are, of course, defects which remain to be corrected. We are drafting the second three-year plan in the light of the problems that have been faced and the lessons that have been learned, hoping that the program will be improved qualitatively and enlarged quantitatively.
In quantitative terms, the last three years has seen the number of primary school pupils rise from 2,348,218 in the academic year 1967 (the year before implementation of the nine-year program) to 2,445,405 in academic 1970. The percentage of school-age children attending primary schools rose from 97.52 to 98.01 during the same period. The number of primary school graduates enrolled in junior middle schools (including supplementary institutions of the same level) rose from 221,460 in the 1967 academic year to 296,252 in the 1970 academic year. Percentage of eligible students attending junior middle schools climbed from 62.29 to 79.81 in the same period. ".
These figures indicate that there is increase in both primary and junior high school enrollment. We anticipate that primary school attendance will rise by 0.2 per cent and junior middle school enrollment by 2 per cent annually until the goal of education for all is attained.
Qualitative improvement of the last three years has included the strengthening of normal education, training of teachers and the guidance and encouragement of primary and junior middle school teachers to take advanced courses so as to raise the quality of teachers. We also have improved effectiveness in teaching by revising primary school and junior middle school textbooks, enlarging their library facilities and renovating method, of teaching. These efforts will become the core of the second three-year plan. Emphasis has been placed on the abolition of morning and afternoon split sessions at primary schools and the overall improvement of facilities at both primary and junior middle schools so as to expand the fruits of nine-year free education.
Plans have been made to assure the continued schooling or employment of the first graduating class of the nine-year program. Success or failure in this regard will amount to a test of the nine-year program. We expect that 66 per cent of the junior middle school graduates of this year will continue their schooling while 34 per cent will seek employment. The ratio will be 68:32 next year and 70:30 the year after next. It is to be hoped that plans and arrangements for guidance will receive cooperation and support from all quarters so that implementation will proceed smoothly, goals will be attained and the aim of extending free education and raising the level of knowledge and talent will be satisfactorily accomplished.
The purpose of our science development program is to establish a modern nation based on the Three Principles of the People. The expansion of scientific techniques should therefore be coordinated with the needs of national construction. Consequently, the first stage of our twelve-year science expansion program has stressed the development of scientific techniques, science education and science research as our three principal objectives.
With these goals in mind and taking the long-range view, we have expanded the facilities of science education, cultivated science talent and encouraged natural sciences, biological sciences, humanities and social sciences during the last three years so as to strengthen national scientific foundations. At the same time, in order to coordinate with construction efforts in other fields, we have promoted applied research and development. Pure science requires continuity of implementation before there will be any concrete results. Applied science is more costly but the results are more readily discerned. Although there may be differences in priority, neither should be neglected.
As a result of the needs of national construction, our emphasis on basic science research has expanded to include engineering and applied science. The latter sphere includes industry, communications, agriculture, the peaceful uses of atomic energy, national defense and medical and public health studies. A good start has been made in most of these. Additionally, there are such special projects as maritime research, specialized industry, meteorology, seismology, experiments with ship models and electronic sciences. All of these are being actively carried out.
The Sino-American program of cooperation in science and technology has made progress toward a close, sincere and coordinated relationship. Programs for exchange of science personnel, joint research and bilateral seminars are progressing satisfactorily.
To assure that the advance of science meets the nation's requirements more effectively, these goals have been set:
- Further elevation of the standards of academic research.
- High priority for research in applied sciences.
- Strengthening of research and development of new branches of science.
- Improvement of science teaching in primary and middle schools.
- Improvement of research in the humanities and social sciences.
The government is devising concrete measures for the effective execution of these plans in order to avoid the malpractice of formalism.
Development of science is the main guiding force in accelerating the modernization of the nation. We are confident that our realistic efforts will eventually help us attain our objectives.
Renovation of judicial administration
Basic functions of the judiciary are to safeguard the rights and interests of the people and to maintain law and order. In recent years there has been an earnest expectation of improvement in judicial morals. Members of your esteemed Yuan have expressed their deep concern about this matter in their interpellations. Therefore, in the process of overall administrative improvement, we have given priority attention to judicial morals and share your view that government by law will become effective only when judicial affairs are above reproach.
We are making a thorough review of judicial operations in order to bring about various improvements. Measures now being taken to renovate the judiciary are merely the beginning. We are determined to continue our endeavors until a new prospect of judicial morals is in sight.
At the outset, a sound judicial personnel system will be set up to recruit new blood and replace the old. Judicial examination and training will be improved to raise the quality of personnel. Terms of office will be enforced for ranking officers. Promotions and transfers and replacements will be made on the basis of open evaluation so that justice and reason will prevail in personnel administration and the right man will be placed in the right position.
When conducting trials and prosecutions, judicial personnel are required to exert themselves to the utmost to avoid partiality, mistaken accusations or excessive leniency. Cases must be dealt with promptly to assure efficiency and serve the convenience of the people. Measures to evaluate the handling of cases by judges and prosecutors have been undertaken so as to assure the practical enforcement and success of judicial renovation. We have requested conclusion at the earliest possible time of important criminal cases still pending in the courts. In the case of crimes which endanger the legal protections of the state and society, public prosecutors of various levels are being required to redouble their efforts to induce witnesses to come forward voluntarily so that those guilty of serious crimes may be apprehended. Offenders uncovered in this way will be given severe penalties by the courts so as to suppress wrong-doing and protect the interests of those who abide by law.
To assist in the reform of imprisoned offenders, every effort will be made to spur their repentance and effect their rehabilitation; this is to say that the prisoner will come to feel he is being reformed rather than punished. For these reasons, we have expanded the vocational training of prisoners and adopted such other measures as religious instruction to serve the ends of reformation. We are investigating and classifying prisoners and accumulating complete files in order to further reformatory education. Habitual, hardened criminals are subjected to correction and reformation on an individual basis. Renovation of facilities for detention and confinement will be undertaken. All measures are aimed at helping offenders rehabilitate themselves.
We believe that the vast majority of the members of the judicial staff are honest, impartial and independent. However, it is undeniable that a few are guilty of contravening judicial morals. We have made up our minds to get rid of all such bad elements. We will continuously be vigilant. Severe punishment according to the law will follow immediately upon apprehension of dishonest judicial personnel. We are also stepping up investigation of those who interfere with the orderly procedures of justice and shall see to their punishment We shall strengthen the rights and responsibilities of judicial executives in carrying out their duty to supervise subordinates within the framework of the system of judicial administration. Continuous and strict evaluation will be made so as to assure the improvement of judicial morals.
Although advances have been made in the improvement of judicial administration, we have a great deal more to do in the effort to attain our ideal objective. National security and the rights and interests of our citizenry depend on our continued progress.
Promotion of social construction
New social problems are inevitable in the course of economic development. To prevent or reduce such problems, the government promulgated the Social Policy of the People's Livelihood in April, 1965. A social construction program for Taiwan, formulated in keeping with this policy, has now entered the third year of its second phase.
Our social construction emphasizes promotion of social welfare, development and utilization of manpower, extension of community development, acceleration of land utilization and improvement of public health so we can gradually build a social security system and effectively promote the welfare of all the people.
Social welfare programs have made good progress in recent years, including enlargement of labor insurance coverage, development of the welfare program for employees and workers, promotion of workers' security, social relief, medical care for the poor and other welfare services. Here let me cite one example. Following your passage of the revised Statute Governing Labor Insurance, the number of units covered had risen to 8,622 and the number of workers to 939,359 as of last December. If the average size of a worker's family is four persons, beneficiaries number 3,800,000 or more than 25 per cent of the population of Taiwan. This is obviously an immense contribution to social security.
In the development of manpower, we are placing emphasis on the improvement of quality. With this in mind, a draft law for eugenics and maternal and child health will soon be completed for submission to your esteemed Yuan for consideration. Our attention is also directed to the maximum utilization of manpower resources. We are following the established guidelines of providing employment assistance to create more job opportunities, increasing workers' skills and augmenting cooperation between industries and schools. Hopefully these efforts will meet the needs of economic and social development. We have recently conducted a sample census of population and residences in Taiwan and on the offshore islands and the data collected will serve as an important reference in the development of manpower resources.
A total of 978 communities has been established in Taiwan during the last two years. Groundwork for 14 demonstration communities and 39 general communities has been completed in Taipei. We shall develop more communities and, at the same time, bring about coordination between community development and local self-government. This will help the people to help themselves and contribute to local public construction. The community development program thus will have a positive mission to perform in overall national development.
In the promotion of land utilization and the planning of an overall program for equalization of land rights, the first phase has been completed with government assessment of land values and declaration of land values by owners. The land involved last year amounted to more than 80,000 hectares, far more than the approximately 60,000 hectares dealt with during the previous 10 years. Work on the second phase will begin after the Statute for the Equalization of Land Rights is revised. Overall implementation of the land-to-the-tiller program was partially completed with survey of public farmlands available for purchase. The survey covered more than 25,000 hectares. Land values were declared for the public distribution of about 9,000 hectares. Work on farm land consolidation also continues. In the future, we shall place more emphasis on the uses of land so as to increase benefits from natural resources.
To improve public health, the Organic Statute Governing the Directorate of Health, Executive Yuan, has been approved by your esteemed Yuan. This directorate will be established in the near future to take charge of the public health administration of the entire nation. We then shall be able to exercise improved control over narcotics, pharmaceuticals and foodstuffs, promote research and development in herbal medicine, prevent water and air pollution and improve environmental sanitation.
Our social construction aims at developing a social life characterized by prosperity, progress, good manners, happiness and harmony. Under the Principle of the People's Livelihood, the fruits of economic growth will be made available to all the people.
Control and evaluation of administrative operations and administrative renovation
We realize that sound and progressive public administration is essential in the solving of developmental problems and in implementing the solutions. Improvement of administrative efficiency is therefore our first concern and the main goal of administrative renovation. Since the establishment of the Research, Development and Evaluation Committee under the Executive Yuan, we have made considerable progress in improving political and economic efficiency and in implementing measures for the public convenience. Especially important is the establishment of the control and evaluation system for administrative operations.
This system is based on the principle of three administrative steps (planning, execution and evaluation) to be found in the practice of other countries and on theories and methods of modern management. Business administration, especially, has been a source from which to choose those public administration, measures which are appropriate to our own system of control and evaluation. Such undertakings assure that planning, execution and evaluation will be molded into a tightly knit system of administrative control. During the process of administrative operations we shall be able to make occasional analyses and reviews and carry out occasional research and development.
We have decided on an experimental stage so as to assure the smooth implementation of this new system. This will provide experience, allow for adaptation of the new concepts and prepare the way for overall enforcement of the system. In fiscal 1970, review was conducted on 516 subjects in various ministries and agencies and provincial and municipal governments for the implementation of follow-up control measures. Of the 516 subjects, 26 of various types were chosen to test the new system. Results of control and evaluation indicated that except for a few subjects with special problems, most were able to complete their programs and reach the desired goal on schedule and within the limit of the funds made available. Special attention was given to those subjects which fell behind schedule. Problems were discovered at an early stage and corrective measures taken.
Because the experiment was effective, overall implementation of this new system was started last July. We expect that this new system of public administration will raise the level of administrative efficiency and live up to our expectations for overall renovation.
In this connection, I should like to report that we have made further progress in our continued improvement of personnel administration. Since 1969, when your esteemed Yuan promptly passed revision of the various laws pertaining to job classification, until January of this year, 552 government agencies had formally implemented job classification in six groups. We expect this program will be implemented in all administrative agencies before convocation of the next session of your esteemed Yuan. In the enforcement of examination for employment and of retirement, we also have attained substantial results. In the last three years, the number of persons placed in employment through examination has exceeded 10,000 and number of those retired has reached nearly 8,000. Compared with previous years, there have been sharp increases in new blood and the number of those retiring.
Honorable members of the Legislative Yuan: International developments today remain centered in Asia. With opposition to Communism growing a-pace in the Asian region, timely recovery of our mainland is the key to the whole situation.
During the last few years, all administrative efforts of the government have been directed toward strengthening of our preparations for mainland recovery and national reconstruction. Huge forward strides have been taken. The changing world situation has only made us intensify our vigilance. We know we must objectively observe the cause and effect of international developments and subjectively step up our own efforts for national reconstruction. We must accelerate our defense preparations so that we may terminate Chinese Communist tyranny and achieve the goal of liberating our compatriots on the Chinese mainland at an early date.
The Executive Yuan's administrative policy for the fiscal year 61 (1971-1972), formulated on the basis of our past accomplishments and after a careful analysis of both domestic and international situations and in recognition of the relative priorities of the nation's needs, will emphasize:
- Overall implementation of political renovation.
- Augmentation of diplomatic efforts.
- Mobilization of manpower and material resources.
- Furtherance of economic expansion.
- Development of science and technology education.
- Encouragement of cultural renaissance.
- Further build-up of the armed forces and strengthening of mobilization preparations so as to assure the success of national recovery.
On January 1, President Chiang Kai-shek told our people: "The Republic of China's decade of the 60s (1970s) will be an epoch for the realization of freedom, justice and peace. We shall create a new era for China." Keeping this in mind, we must all redouble our efforts to meet the requirements of combat through national reconstruction and to accelerate national reconstruction by applying the spirit of combat. Our aim is to bring about another era like that which witnessed the Revolution of 1911.
I thank all members of your esteemed Yuan and seek your advice and counsel.