Taiwan Today

This New Year's Day marks the fiftieth year of the Republic of China. Let us note that we were the first country in Asia to establish a republic. On this day we also commemorate the glorious history of Dr. Sun Yat-sen's Three People's Principles and his leadership during the first stage of our National Revolution. In the last fifty years, it was our success in the Revolution of 1911 and our subsequent victories in the North­ward Expedition and the War of Re­sistance against Japan that changed the entire outlook of Asia and laid the foundation for freedom and equality for all Asian peoples. Today, it is our struggle against international Communism that will decide the future of freedom and democracy in Asia as well as that of the welfare of the whole world. Our brethren on the Chinese mainland are still suffering from enslavement and exploitation imposed upon them by the Soviet Russian imperialists and Chinese Communists, and they are praying day and night for early de­liverance by us. Thus in commemorating the fiftieth year of our Republic, we are all charged with the responsibility of following in the footsteps of our revolutionary martyrs to perform our twofold task, namely, effecting our national recovery and delivering our people on the mainland from tyranny. Communism in China is of course part and parcel of the larger problem for Asia and the rest of the world. However, this Chinese phase consti­tutes the heart of the whole problem, and the destiny of China and that of the free world are inextri­cably linked together. Any country seeking to impair the rights and weaken the status of the Republic of China would impair and weaken its own rights and status and in the end bring harm to the rights and status of the free world as a whole. Our bastion in Kinmen, Matsu, Taiwan and Penghu occupy a pivotal position in the anti-Communist line-up of Asia. Further­more, our moral strength and the history of our revolutionary struggle provide the key to the survival of the free world. The international Communists and their fellow-travel­lers can not possibly shake this anti­-Communist bastion of the Pacific simply by trying to return to the old path of Yalta 15 years ago and by confusing the basic issue with preposterous talks about the "ques­tion of Taiwan", the "two Chinas problem", and the problem of Chinese representation in the United Nations." We are confident that so long as this bastion of the Republic of China remains firmly in our hands, the Russian and Chinese Communists can not succeed in their aggressive action in any part of Asia. For this reason, Taiwan is bound to be the first target of aggression, against which the Communists will surely concentrate all their political, mi­litary and "united front" tactics. Fellow countrymen: Since 1921 we have been standing at the forefront against the international Communists program of aggression for communization of the world, and therefore they have made us their primary objective. In the face of this conspiracy, in which external foes and internal traitors joined hands to subject us to incessant attacks, we have never shrunk from our duties or from any dangers. Instead we are determined to overcome all difficulties involved in combating Communist aggression and to complete our program of counter-offensive and national salvation, thereby to insure world peace and human freedom at the same time. Representatives of 81 Communist parties who met in Moscow recently have openly laid down a general policy line for world conquest by the Communist bloc. They brazenly boasted that "our time ... is a time of the breakdown of imperialism ... of the triumph of socialism and Com­munism on a worldwide scale." They held that today the Communist bloc has entered into the last preparatory stage prior to the "great struggle" against the democratic countries. They gave this clear-cut definition to peaceful coexistence, that is, "the coexistence of states with different social systems is a form of class struggle between socialism and capitalism." They also stated: "Peaceful coexistence does not mean conciliation of the ideolo­gies. On the contrary, it implies intensification of the struggle of the working class, of all the Communist parties, for the triumph of socialist ideas." They also betrayed the real intention in their demand for "total disarmament," which is to bind the hands and feet of the free world, to remove the latter's spiritual armor as well as retaliatory armament. They also called on the Communists the world over to act as the "two revolu­tionary hands" against the free world, by using "people's struggle," "demo­cratic reform" and "parliamentary struggle" on the on hand, and intensifying "class struggle" and "internal seizure" on the other, to force finally upon all countries the "non-peaceful transition to socialism." From our experience of 40 years of struggle against Communism, we have learned that the "total disarmament" slogan advocated by the international Communists is intended to paralyze the free world so as to achieve their aim of conquest without having to resort to force and that the "peaceful coexistence" facade is even more vicious than war in that it is capable of being more effective in demoralizing the free world and in establishing a Soviet world. Furthermore, the Moscow declaration assigned a special role to the Chinese Communists who are to coordinate all infiltration and subversion activi­ties in the anti-imperialist struggle in Asia, Africa and Latin America. This has further pointed up the fact that the Chinese Communists constitute a more dangerous menace to the free world than the Russian Com­munists. As is generally known, the world's troubles and the rampancy of Communism today have stemmed directly from the Communist seizure of the Chinese mainland over a decade ago, rather than the handiwork of the Communist fatherland - Soviet Russia alone. We should realize that with the fall of the Chinese mainland, the free world has lost its protective shield in the Western Pacific. In less than one year after this had happened Korea was invaded and war was on. Scarcely had a ceasefire been arranged in Korea before another war broke out in Vietnam. Then followed a series of Communist infiltration and subversion activities in areas stretching from Southeast Asia to the Middle East, and from Africa to Latin America, to plunge the world into more troubles and greater confusions day after day. As I pointed out long ago, aggression of the Chinese Communists has its base on the Chinese mainland from which branch off two bloody roads. One starts from East Asia and detours around Europe by way of the Middle East and Africa, while the other, beginning from the pacific and going by way of Central and South America, is aimed at knocking direct­ly at the gate of North America. Thus their tentacles are reaching toward every corner of the world to infiltrate and to attack. That our bastion in the Taiwan Straits constitutes the main pillar in these turbulent currents and has been recognized as such by the whole world is an undeniable fact. The declaration issued at the end of the recent Moscow conference said: "The people's revolution in China dealt a crushing blow at the positions of imperialism in Asia and con­tributed in great measure to the balance of world forces changing in favor of socialism .... It exerted a tremendous influence on the peoples, especially those of Asia, Africa and Latin America." This appraisal of the Chinese Communists' contribution to the world Communist movement after their unlawful seizure of the mainland is a confession by the Communist bloc of its guilt. Therefore, if the Chi­nese Communists who are the source of evils are not thoroughly eradicated in time, not only our compatriots on the mainland will remain en­slaved, and revolts in Aiia, Africa and Latin America will continue unchecked, but the whole world will have neither security nor peace. Today the United States, the leader of the world's anti-Commun­ist forces, already feels the serious threat at its very door. The free world is indeed facing a time of crisis and crucial test. Fortunately, the world today is no longer the same as it was 12 years ago. The free nations and their peo­ples today have a much better knowledge of the evils and conspiracies of the Communists than they did 12 years ago. We believe that the free world is keenly aware of the treacheries and brutalities of the Communists as a result of the series of events from the Yalta Conference of 15 years ago to last year's abortive Paris summit meeting and their consequences, and will not be trapped again in the future by the illusion of peaceful coexistence and the Communists' threat of force. The slogans of "democratic league", "coalition government", "land reform" and "agricultural cooperatives" with which the Communists lured our brethren on the mainland into slavery 12 years ago can no longer have the same magic today. Moreover, the substance and strength of the Communist bloc are not as stable and united as they were then. Above all, the Chinese Communists today are in an utmost confusion, being subjected to numerous pressures and stresses, military, economic, and social. The longing of people on the Chinese mainland for the National Government to return and their hatred for the Communists have combined to create a critical state of affairs for the Communists. The lat­ter, therefore, are actually sitting on the top of a volcano, which may erupt at any moment to engulf them in flames. Fellow countrymen and mem­bers of the armed forces: Since the publication of the Communists' de­claration in December, it is generally recognized in the world that this is the greatest danger to the future of mankind. For us, this also is the year in which we should take our destiny in hand to decide whether our nation is going to prosper or to per­ish, to succeed or to fail in our na­tional endeavors. What we are counting on today are our national sense of righteousness, our indomit­able revolutionary spirit and a world sense of justice. The faith and de­termination on the part of the entire armed forces and civilian population in free China in our counter offen­sive for national recovery, and the patriotic strength as demonstrated by our compatriots on the mainland in their anti-Communist movement are the determinants of the outcome. These are the assurances of victory we hold in our own hands. Now the people of the world have come to realize that a local and false peace can not prevent a total war, but it is our further belief that a local and righteous war can win a total peace. We also believe that only when we Chinese people have overthrown the Communist puppet regime, delivered our suffering compatriots on the mainland from tyranny, and restored freedom to them, can the world be saved from the holocaust of a nuclear war. This is because our counter­ offensive stems from a righteous cause imbued with an invincible spirit, and serves as a psychological nuclear war against the Chinese Communists. No nuclear weapon alone can solve the troubles of the world that have been caused by Communism. The only decisive force that can smash the Chinese Communists is our national moral strength, plus our faith in the Three People's Principles. Our compatriots on the mainland have blended their strong faith with their warm blood to produce numerous psychological "neutrons" against the Communist tyrant. These "neutrons" need only be bombarded to activity by our national spirit to win a total victory and this can come sooner than any nuclear warfare. Did not the Com­munist conference declare after the meeting in Moscow that "our time ... is a time of the breakdown of imperialism... a time of the triumph of socialism and Communism on a worldwide scales?" We Chinese as a whole believe and hereby declare that this is a year of the total breakdown of Communism and the Chinese Com­munist regime, a year of triumph of our National Revolution and the Three People's Principles. Fellow countrymen: Revolutionary wars are always decided by whichever side has the whole-hearted support of the people, and never by such cri­teria as the size of territory and the largeness of forces. Furthermore, victory in a revolutionary war can only be based on the faith which the revolutionaries have in their cause and not on chance or external conditions. A revolutionary must, therefore, maintain his faith in the principles for which he is fighting, and must never give up the struggle until victory is won. Our National Revolution today has entered upon a new era pregnant with new opportunities, and we must all hold steadfast to our national cause, recapture the pioneering spirit displayed during the Revolution of 1911, pool our strength and act in unison in order to create a new atmosphere of national renaissance and recon­struction, an atmosphere of vitality and industry. The cultivation of this new atmosphere should be based on our national cultural and ethical traditions. Each of us should develop a sense of duty to carryon and to be worthy of our national heritage. This is the foundation of psychological reconstruction for national recovery. This will enable us to move forward to fulfill the mission in the third stage of our National Revolution—that of opposing Communism and resisting Soviet Russian impe­rialism. Fellow countrymen: On our bas­tion of Taiwan, Kinmen and Matsu, we have, through the unremitting efforts jointly exerted by our civil­ians and military personnel alike, successfully carried out a number of basic reforms and over-all construction programs during the past ten years. All these not only provide a new political and economic life of freedom and happiness to the people on this anti-Communist bastion, but also serve as a guaranty of our forthcoming success in national recovery and reconstruction. Today, we must enter into this new era with unparalleled confidence and matchless optimism. We must be prepared to answer the call of mobilization and battle with the same zest for progress that we have de­monstrated in the past ten years, and march on until we clinch the final victory. The Father of our Republic admonished our people to exert all their might and main in order to create new and glorious vistas for the world. Now is the time for us to augment all our potentialities and multiply our resources so as to add luster to our nation in the eyes of the world. Fellow countrymen: All ideological and political tests and trials of daily life that mankind has ex­perienced have testified to us that the Communist ideology is contradictory to the trends of history and is the root of all evils. Only our Three People's Principles which stand for national independence, democracy and social well-being, are in conformity with the natural law, and enjoy the support of the people. After 50 years of severe trials, we have acutely come to realize that only through the implementation of the Three People's Principles can we defeat all external aggressions and internal chaos, and only thus can we regain our national independence, lib­erty and equality. Furthermore, dur­ing the past 50 years, in peace or in war, in glory or in humiliation, we have stood firmly on the frontline guarding the free world against Communism and Soviet Russian imperialism by upholding the Three People's Principles and grasping the "rudder of history" in Asia. It is our task today to free all our compatriots on the mainland from their sufferings, to recover our homeland, and to eradicate the last obstacle to the implementation of our Three Peoples Principles—the Communist puppet regime—and to rebuild a new China of Three People's Principles so as to gladden the Father of our Republic and our revolutionary martyrs in Heaven. Now let us join in the cheers of the day: Victory in our counter-offensive for national recovery! Long live the Three People's Pr­inciples! Long live the Republic of China!