To the DPP: Liberate Yourself from Your Own Bonds

To the DPP: Liberate Yourself from Your Own Bonds
China Times Editorial (Taipei, Taiwan, China)
A Translation
April 18, 2008

At a moment when attention is focused on cross-strait relations after May 20, the Democratic Progressive Party, from top to bottom, seems intent on poor-mouthing the Boao Forum. The DPP's take on the forum departs sharply from mainstream 's consensus, and leaves the public with a powerful impression that the ruling DPP can hardly wait to resume the role of opposition party. It leaves the impression that as the two sides of the strait move toward reconciliation, the DPP is seeking emotional refuge in its familiar rhetorical framework.

If the Democratic Progressive Party's motive is merely to challenge the effectiveness of the Boao Forum, then it is perfectly justified. The problem is their rhetoric. None of it is new. All of it is old. First, Chen Shui-bian alleged that Vincent Siew was invited to this year's Boao Forum merely because Beijing wanted to draw attention away from the unrest in Tibet and the protests along the Olympic Torch Route. Chen Shui-bian even alleged that the front row where Vincent Siew sat during the opening ceremony was "Seating for Regional Governors." Annette Lu described the Boao Forum as "War of Reunification Political Theater." The DPP legislative caucus criticized the result of the Boao Forum as "Four Humiliations." In short, according to the DPP hierarchy, the forum was a complete bust.

Boao is merely a forum for friendship and dialogue. Whether it has the wherewithal to shift international attention from Tibet and the Olympic Torch Relay we leave to your common sense. The chief executives of the world's nations receive global intelligence reports every day. Yet Chen Shui-bian, in complete violation of common sense, could draw such an absurd conclusion. What is there left to say? The DPP described the seating arrangements as "Seating for Regional Governors." That was interesting. No matter how you slice it, Vincent Siew will not be Vice President for another month. One can argue endlessly about whether he should be treated as a vice president, a regional governor, or a chairman. Based on the seating arrangements for the opening ceremony or Hu Jintao's banquet table, one could arrive at two entirely different interpretations. Regional governors were hardly the only ones attending the forum. Many foreign officials and heads of state also sat in the front row or at the main table. Were they all "demoted" as well?

Another scene was even more interesting. After the closing ceremonies, a number of ruling Democratic Progressive Party Mayors and County Magistrates displayed an entirely different attitude than the Chen administration and the DPP Legislative Caucus. These local officials were concerned about getting their cut once direct flights were initiated and the floodgates to mainland tourists opened after May 20. Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu took the lead, demanding that Kaohsiung be designated the port of entry and port of departure for mainland tourists. In other words, "Southern Entry, Southern Departure." Yunlin County Magistrate Su Chi-fen announced that he would personally lead a group to the mainland to solicit tourists. Chiayi County Magistrate Chen Ming-wen wanted Bu Tai Harbor designated a port of entry for direct cross-strait flights. According to the DPP's Conventional Wisdom, these Green Camp Mayors and County Magistrates were "openly colluding with the KMT," or worse, endorsing a "One-China Market." If Siew's participation in the Boao Forum was nothing more than "War of Reunification Political Theater," if Siew's participation meant he had been "demoted" to the status of a "Regional Governor," then weren't all these Green Camp Mayors and County Magistrates publicly endorsing Siew's "demotion?"

This is hardly the greatest irony. Promoting direct flights and letting in mainland tourists has been DPP policy for some time. Now that a breakthrough has finally been achieved, isn't that tantamount to implenting DPP policy? Is the DPP determined to negate the value of the breakthrough merely because it was made by the KMT? We don't want to accuse the DPP of being "sore losers," but can't the DPP see that it is already behind the curve relative to mainstream public opinion?

Some people may conclude that the DPP's poor-mouthing of the Boao Forum is mere show. That it is playing "bad cop." That cross-strait interactions have always involved someone playing "good cop" and someone else playing "bad cop." That may be true. But is the DPP determined to play only "bad cop" forever? If so, then it is relegating itself forever to a supporting role in perpetuity. As cross-strait relations evolve rapidly, the DPP will find itself increasingly marginalized.

An ever bigger problem for the DPP is its seeming inability to liberate itself from its own rhetorical shackles. At a time when the KMT is talking about scheduling weekend charter flights and establishing mechanisms for SEF/ARATS cooperation, the DPP is still harping about "Regional Governors" and "demotion." The times they are a changing. But the Democratic Progressive Party leadershop is seeking refuge in the mental prison created by its own election rhetoric, ignoring changes to the outside world.

Following the DPP's election debacle, some party members urged debate over the party's direction, as soon as possible. But these voices have died out. The DPP kept Taiwan ideologically bound and gagged for eight years. Now the public has liberated itself from these bonds. The DPP however, persists in incarcerating itself within its own ideological prison, determined to ignore changes to the outside world.

中時電子報
中國時報 　2008.04.18
民進黨別被自己的框架鎖住了
中時社論

　就在各界忙於關注五二○之後各項兩岸議程的進度之際，民進黨從上到下一路唱衰博鰲論壇的語言，在眾多論述中顯得極為「別樹一格」，讓人很強烈的感受到這個其實還在執政的黨，已經迫不及待的想當在野黨，也迫不及待的想在這個兩岸正邁向和解之際，躲進自己所最熟悉的語言框架裡。

　如果只是為了突出立場區隔，民進黨質疑博鰲論壇的成效當然是天經地義。很可惜的就在於他們所動員的修辭，幾乎全是了無新義的選舉語言。先是陳水扁總統公開挑明博鰲論壇今年會力邀蕭萬長出席，是由於中國為了要轉移西藏問題與奧運聖火的國際視聽；陳水扁還說蕭萬長在開幕式所坐的第一排根本就是「特首席」；呂副總統則將博鰲論壇形容成是一場中共的「統戰秀」；而民進黨立院黨團則是以「四個矮化」來批判這次博鰲論壇的成果，綜合他們評論，簡言之就是「一無是處」！

　一個僅具聯誼與對話性質的博鰲論壇，究竟有無那麼大的能耐，可以轉移國際社會對西藏與奧運聖火議題的關注，是一個很基本的常識問題。一個國家元首每天所接收的全球情報資訊那麼多，能得出這般違反常識的結論，還能說什麼？至於接送機與座位安排的接待規格，被民進黨一再形容成是被「特首化」，這般的評論確實很有趣，蕭萬長不論怎麼說還有一個多月才是副總統，他此刻該被當作副總統、特首還是董事長，永遠有無窮想像的空間，譬如僅根據論壇開幕式的座位學，還是根據胡錦濤宴席主桌的座位學，就可以寫出兩篇完全不同的文章，問題只在於出席這場論壇的並不只有「特首」，還有許多國家的元首與官員，他們也有的是坐第一排，有的坐主桌，難道他們全都被「矮化」了嗎？

　另外一組相對照的畫面更有趣。博鰲論壇落幕後，由於直航與開放陸客赴台觀光的議程已確定將在五二○之後陸續啟動，若干民進黨執政的地方縣市首長，立即表現出與民進黨完全不同的態度。高雄市長陳菊率先表態希望能讓赴台的大陸觀光客從高雄「南進南出」；雲林縣長蘇治芬則要親自帶團赴大陸招商，嘉義縣長陳明文則表態爭取將布袋港列入兩岸直航的港口之一。這些綠營執政縣市首長的言行，如果依民進黨當前主流的觀點，不僅是「公開的在與國民黨唱和」，甚至是在呼應「一中市場」了！如果蕭萬長的博鰲行只是場統戰秀，是去被中共「矮化」與「特首化」，那麼這些舞著綠營旗幟的縣市長，豈不是在行動上公開為蕭萬長此行背書？

　更大矛盾還不在於此，推動直航乃至開放陸客觀光，其實早已經是民進黨規畫中的既定政策，如今終於獲得突破，不等於就是在落實民進黨的政策嗎？如果只因為這是由國民黨所促成的突破，所以才要竭盡所能降低它的正面意義？我們實在不想說這其中是否有「輸不起」的心態在作祟，但至少從民調的反應看來，民進黨難道還看不出，自己已經落在主流民意的後面了？

　有人或許會從積極層面上認為，民進黨的「唱衰」，其實是在「扮黑臉」，反正歷來在兩岸互動上，總是有人要扮白臉，有人唱黑臉嘛！話是不錯，問題是在兩岸事務上，民進黨難道只能命定的選擇扮黑臉嗎？如果真是這樣，豈不是永遠自居為配角，那麼在未來兩岸事務的快速發展上，難道不會面臨日漸被邊緣化的處境？

　更大的問題還是在於，民進黨在論述兩岸事務上似乎就是擺脫不了選舉語言的制約，當國民黨已經都將議題推進到周末包機的時程，兩岸兩會機制怎麼啟動之際，民進黨卻還是圍繞在「特首化」、「矮化」等選舉語言框架裡走不出來，換言之，不論時代正怎麼快速的向前推進，民進黨的領導層似乎只想躲在自己設定的語言框架裡，不想理會外在世界的變化了。

　大選結束後，不少民進黨內的有識之士都在呼籲，應盡快啟動路線的辯論，但這種聲音目前似乎越來越微弱了，民進黨用一套意識形態綁了台灣八年，如今民意已經選擇擺脫了這個枷鎖，但民進黨卻依舊有許多人將自己繼續鎖在裡面，完全不想理會外在世界的變化！