(Photo by Central News Agency)
Eric Chu: Striving to Build National Unity
Born in 1961, Eric Chu (朱立倫) earned a Ph.D. in accounting from New York University in 1991. He served as a legislator from 1999 to 2001, Taoyuan County magistrate from 2001 to 2009, and vice premier from September 2009 to May 2010. Chu has been mayor of New Taipei City since December 2010 and chairman of the ruling Kuomintang (KMT) since January 2015.
Drafted by the KMT in mid-October last year, Chu entered the 2016 presidential election at a later stage than the other candidates, yet he is confident in his ability to win the January poll and chart a prosperous future for the nation. According to the party, his campaign slogan, “One Taiwan,” highlights his desire to strengthen the country by promoting unity and solidarity among the people.
Planning to place economic growth at the top of his agenda, Chu says he will work to further Taiwan’s objective of participating in regional integration initiatives such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership. “Furthermore, I will take proactive steps to improve Taiwan’s investment environment by offering more tax incentives. I will also upgrade and strengthen businesses in traditional industries. These efforts will naturally lead to growth,” he adds.
Noting that the competitiveness of a nation’s workforce plays a vital role in its economic development, Chu pledges to protect the rights of workers while improving the labor environment through new and revised laws and regulations. “At the same time, I will promote vocational education so as to boost the capabilities of Taiwan’s workforce, thereby reducing unemployment,” he states.
With regard to relations with mainland China, Chu stresses that, in line with his party’s policy, he will continue to promote the development of cross-strait ties on the basis of the “1992 Consensus,” in which both sides insist there is “one China” but agree to disagree on what this means. “Relations between Taiwan and mainland China have been more stable over the past seven years than at any other time, which demonstrates that the KMT’s cross-strait policy is working and worth continuing,” he says.
Chu indicates that the warming of relations between the two sides has enabled Taiwan to expand communication with the U.S. as well as Japan and South Korea. “During my visit to the U.S. [in mid-November last year], I brought up the subject of Taiwan’s participation in the TPP and met with positive responses,” he states. “To ensure its long-term development, the nation has to maintain its openness to the world.”
The KMT chairman also stresses that, considering its strategic location, Taiwan requires a robust national defense, noting that both the East China Sea and South China Sea are home to islets claimed by multiple parties. “So Taiwan needs a strong military in order to fulfill its goals of achieving regional peace and stability, safeguarding national security, protecting its national interests, as well as preventing conflict,” he says.
Expressing his views on regional tensions, Chu states that all parties should pursue communication and negotiation. In this regard, he highlights the East China Sea and South China Sea peace initiatives proposed by President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九). “Having won widespread approval from around the world, both are major contributions to peace in the region,” he adds.
In terms of his motivations for seeking the presidency, Chu says he decided to run over concerns about his major rival, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), who he says has been quite vague and evasive about many of her policies, such as her approach to cross-strait relations. With his party facing challenges in the upcoming general election following its defeat in nationwide local-level polls in November 2014, he states “if we fail to address the KMT’s low morale and the internal split in the party, the DPP could easily win the election [without having to be clear about its policies]. Then it’s the people who will suffer as a result.”
Confident he can revitalize the KMT and restore party unity, Chu stresses he is the best choice for the country’s highest office because of his many years of experience heading local governments, first in Taoyuan County, upgraded to the special municipality of Taoyuan in December 2014, and subsequently New Taipei City. “I have a deeper understanding of social issues, while my expertise in finance and economics means I can find the best, most practical solutions to problems,” he says. “Taiwan is facing a bottleneck in its economic development as well as a number of serious domestic issues. In light of this, the nation needs a pragmatic leader to set it on the path to a better future. It is this attribute, my pragmatism, which sets me apart from the other candidates.”
(Photo by Central News Agency)
Tsai Ing-wen: Seeking to Light Up Taiwan
Born in 1956, Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) chairs the main opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). She holds a Ph.D. in law from the London School of Economics and Political Science. A former university professor and government trade negotiator, Tsai served as minister of the Mainland Affairs Council from 2000 to 2004 and vice premier from January 2006 to May 2007. She represented the DPP in the 2012 Republic of China (ROC) presidential election.
Upon accepting her party’s nomination to run in the 2016 presidential race on April 15 last year, Tsai delivered a speech titled “Restore Confidence and Light Up Taiwan” outlining her campaign platform and vision for domestic affairs and the cross-strait relationship. As wages have regressed to the levels of 15 years ago and youth unemployment has reached 13 percent, she stated, the people of Taiwan have lost their self-confidence and younger generations have given up hope. She added that weak economic growth and an unequal distribution of wealth are impeding upward mobility. “When young people cease to dream, it becomes a nightmare for the whole country,” Tsai said. “What Taiwan needs in 2016 is not just another transfer of power between parties. The old model of governance from the previous era must also be changed.”
In addition to housing prices, food safety and land conservation, the DPP chairwoman called for comprehensive reform in areas such as bureaucratic efficiency, the education system, fiscal policy and regional development. She said that, above all, the country must establish a government that “puts the people first.”
According to Tsai, the nation must embark on a new path that “holds the people’s needs and dignity as the starting point for determining the country’s policy direction.” In terms of economic development, she advocated a model centered on innovation, employment and the equitable distribution of wealth, stating that “innovation will be the driver of economic growth, with the creation of employment opportunities being the ultimate goal of economic development, while the fruits of economic success should be shared fairly among all citizens.”
In order to promote thorough reforms in domestic affairs, Tsai said, the country will require a peaceful, stable external environment, especially with regard to relations across the Taiwan Strait. Insisting that cross-strait ties are neither solely between the Kuomintang (KMT) and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) nor will they become solely between the DPP and CCP, she said her party will promote the enactment of an oversight law in order to establish a comprehensive framework for subsequent talks between Taiwan and mainland China. “With regard to the cross-strait agreements that are currently under negotiation or review, when we return to government they will be monitored on a case-by-case basis in accordance with the oversight legislation,” Tsai remarked. Thus, interactions with the mainland will be guided toward a more sustainable, democratic track based solidly on the will of the people, she added.
While outlining her approach toward cross-strait relations, the DPP chair reiterated that the party’s basic principle for managing ties between the two sides is to maintain the status quo. “When changes of government have become a normalized part of Taiwan’s democracy, cross-strait relations must always be in accordance with the public will no matter who governs in the future,” she said. “Therefore, the next president must take up the mission of normalizing cross-strait relations by taking them beyond the KMT-CCP framework.”
Tsai again articulated her position of maintaining the status quo when she delivered a speech on June 3 last year at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C. “If elected president, I will push for the peaceful and stable development of cross-strait relations in accordance with the will of the Taiwanese people and the existing ROC constitutional order,” she stated. “The two sides of the Taiwan Strait should treasure and secure the accumulated outcomes of more than 20 years of negotiations and exchanges. These accumulated outcomes will serve as the firm basis of my efforts to further the peaceful and stable development of cross-strait relations.”
Expressing her views on national defense, the presidential candidate indicated that, in order for Taiwan to be a reliable partner on regional security, the nation must commit to proper investment in a credible deterrence. “In light of the increasing military and security threat that Taiwan faces, developing asymmetric capabilities that involve enhanced military relations with friendly forces, well-trained military personnel in a modern force structure, and acquisition of necessary defense equipment are essential components of our deterrent strategy,” Tsai said. In addition, she pledged to promote greater spending on indigenous defense programs, including research and development, in order to meet the nation’s long-term defense needs. Eventually, she added, such investments would prove beneficial to both national defense and the economy.
(Photo courtesy of People First Party)
James Soong: Charting a Middle Path
James Soong (宋楚瑜) was born in 1942. He earned a Ph.D. in political science at Georgetown University and has held a number of senior government posts, including personal secretary to the Republic of China (ROC) president, director-general of the Government Information Office (GIO) and government spokesman, as well as Taiwan provincial governor. He founded and chairs the People First Party (PFP).
When announcing his intention to contest the 2016 presidential election on Aug. 6 last year, Soong pledged to free the nation from a vicious cycle of partisan politics. “Over the last two decades, Taiwan’s democratic progress has been stuck in a rut, plagued by the shadow of authoritarianism and cutthroat competition between conflicting ideologies,” he said at a press conference. “We need a coalition administration to implement realistic policies by finding common ground and shared understanding. The winner-take-all politics of the past must be eliminated.”
According to Soong, seeking cross-party cooperation on sharing power will be at the top of his agenda if he emerges victorious in the January poll. He hopes to distinguish himself from the candidates put forward by the two major political parties—Eric Chu (朱立倫) of the ruling Kuomintang or blue camp, and Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) of the opposition Democratic Progressive Party or green camp—by charting a course that bridges the blue-green divide, or say, a middle path. “I hope that the public can alter their mindset and ‘go beyond the blue and green’ to elect the most capable and experienced candidate,” he states.
Soong began his political career in 1974 as a secretary to then-Premier Chiang Ching-kuo (蔣經國), later serving as secretary to the president when Chiang assumed the nation’s highest office. He rose to prominence while serving as director-general of the GIO, dissolved in May 2012 as part of a government restructuring program, between 1979 and 1984.
As head of the Taiwan Provincial Government—streamlined in 1998, with most of its functions transferred to the Executive Yuan—from 1994 to 1998, Soong says he visited cities and counties across the island and promoted numerous public works projects. “What Taiwan needs is someone with experience and resolve at the helm, someone capable of offering practical solutions to the tough challenges at home and abroad,” he states. “My proven track record in dealing with external affairs and administering more than 80 percent of the population and land area of Taiwan are the main things that distinguish me from the other candidates.”
With regard to his approach toward mainland China, Soong says his policy is based on the principle of maintaining cross-strait peace. “Under the framework of the ROC Constitution, we can seek to expand interactions, enabling people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait to enjoy the benefits of peace,” he remarks.
Besides allowing the participation of different political parties, Soong says that the formation of any agreement or conclusion on ordinary cross-strait affairs needs to be sent to the Legislative Yuan for screening and approval, while critical issues such as those involving political positioning must be decided by citizens through a referendum.
The PFP chairman says in recent years he has often heard people commenting now that cross-strait tensions have eased, Taiwan could slim down its military. However, he cautions against such a move. “History has told us, ‘no national defense, no diplomatic success,’” he states. “No agreement, no matter how good it is, can guarantee peace.”
A strong military, Soong emphasizes, is a nation’s last but also its most important line of defense. “A wealthy family will hire security guards. Likewise, when a country’s economy is faring well, there is a greater need for it to build up a strong national defense to protect the lives and property of its people,” he adds. “Moreover, Taiwan is strategically located at the center of East Asia, which is a hotly contested spot. We must have the military capability to safeguard the country’s national security.”
Over the years, a lack of management skills, improper organizational restructuring and selfish departmentalism have led to low efficiency in public administration, Soong says. He cites recent food safety scandals in Taiwan, stating that supervision of food production, distribution and marketing involves a number of government agencies at both the local and national levels, but that due to a lack of leadership and interministerial and interdepartmental coordination, the issue of food safety remains unresolved.
“We need a government with strong leadership that can take the relationship between the central and local authorities to a new level so that it can be the solution to our problems, rather than the cause,” Soong says. “It’s my hope that the Taiwanese people can give me an opportunity to serve them and take action to transform the nation.”