Melamine and Cross-Strait Relations

Melamine and Cross-Strait Relations
United Daily News editorial (Taipei, Taiwan, ROC)
A Translation
September 25, 2008

Summary: The storm over melamine tainted powdered milk rages on. The scandal has cast doubt on the safety of a wide number of food products, and constitutes a major cross-strait incident. The shockwaves are increasingly intense. If the source of the tainted milk had not been Mainland China, had it been an outbreak of mad cow disease in the United States for example, the problem  would not have become so politicized. US beef consumption on Taiwan is limited. Therefore the impact is limited; But because the tainted milk originated in Mainland China, the issue was promptly   politicized. Everyone is a consumer of dairy products. Add the threat to children's health, and we have all the ingredients for  a "Perfect Storm."

Full Text below:

The storm over melamine tainted powdered milk  rages on. The scandal has cast doubt on the safety of a wide number  of food products, and constitutes a major cross-strait incident. The shockwaves are increasingly intense.

If the source of the tainted milk had not been Mainland China, had it been an outbreak of mad cow disease in the United States for example, the problem  would not have become so politicized. US beef consumption on Taiwan is limited. Therefore the impact is limited; But because the tainted milk originated in Mainland China, the issue was promptly  politicized. Everyone is a consumer of dairy products. Add the threat to children's health, and we have all the ingredients for  a "Perfect Storm."

We have two ways of examining the issue. One. The government's food safety crisis management ability. Two. Cross-Strait relations.

In terms of crisis management, the Department of Health initially declared that no powdered milk had been imported to Taiwan. Instead, ARATS, on the other side of the Strait, informed us that powdered milk had been imported, long ago. Clearly, the Department of Health was not on top of matters. Next, the King Car Group voluntarily submitted its products for examination, taking full responsibility for their  safety. Only then did the Department of Health  realize the extent of the problem. In short, ARATS and the King Car Group had a better handle on the situation than the government agency in charge.

Having lost the initiative, the Liu cabinet panicked. Under pressure to prevent public harm and reduce public anxiety, it proposed two extreme measures. One. It announced that everyone was eligible for a free kidney stone checkup. Some in the medical community considered this  "unnecessarily provocative." Two. It declared that all vegetable protein products, creamers, and dairy products manufactured on the Mainland would be removed from the shelves within 24 hours. The total value these products? Over one billion NT. A major controversy erupted over whether this sort of decision-making achieved  the proper balance between ensuring public safety and reducing public anxiety.

In terms of cross-Strait relations, the incident offers some interesting lessons. From the very beginning the cabinet found itself at a loss for words. By contrast, Hu Jintao blasted mainland bureaucrats as "callous and indifferent, cavalier in their attitude." Wen Jiabao accused the manufacturers of "lacking  consciences." By contrast, our cabinet's remarks were either not enough or too much. At one time only  issues such as Tibet were considered too hot to handle. Who knew tainted milk would one day rival Tibet for political sensitivity?

Premier Liu Chao-hsuan proposed sending a delegation to the mainland to "investigate." He also mentioned "demands for compensation." This also touched raw nerves on both sides. Take  so-called "plant inspections." Without private sector interaction between the import and export industries on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, officials representing the victims would find it hard to put forth even a quasi-official request. The government of the Republic of China cannot arbitrarily demand the right to inspect plants in Vietnam. By the same token, it would be hard to claim a right to inspect plants on Mainland China. Premier Liu's proposals are predicated upon a  highly unrealistic improvement in cross-Strait relations.

Regarding demands for compensation, Experts wondered who would do the negotiating. MAC and ARATS? How would the  negotiations would be conducted? Would they resemble negotiations over WTO participation? Would they resemble negotiations over the 1992 Consensus? Many problems would arise. When Premier Liu raised the issue of "plant inspections" and "demands for compensation," he may have pointed the way to long term solutions. But he also highlighted the lack of consensus and the lack of a solid legal foundation for cross-Strait interaction.

The tempest over melamine contaminated products has been a "shock to the system." It has been a test of the Liu cabinet's crisis management ability. It has also been a test of its ability to deal with cross-Strait affairs. The two sides are becoming increasingly open to each other. Civil sector frictions will become more common. If in the face of such incidents the government finds itself at a loss for words, if it does not know how to negotiate, if it is unable to weigh the pros and cons, it will be caught on the horns a dilemma.

For the Mainland authorities the melamine contamination scandal is an opportunity to engage in a major reevaluation of its political and economic system. How could such a major scandal be suppressed for over nine months? How could  a company as large as San Lu be so devoid of conscience? How could the media, with the exception of Shanghai's East China Morning Post, have remained silent? As we engage in painful soul-searching, we realize the scandal has seriously undermined Mainland China's international image. But it is also an opportunity for the Mainland authorities to reevaluate cross-Strait relations. The melamine contamination scandal occurred on Mainland China. It explains the lack of confidence in the Mainland's political and economic system. It also explains the persistent mistrust between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait.

The melamine contamination scandal offers lessons for authorities on both sides of the Taiwan Strait. As cross-Strait exchanges become more frequent, the two sides will need  an equitable and mutually beneficial framework for interaction. The contaminated powdered milk scandal must not be buried beneath a mountain of "sovereignty" issues. After all, such scandals involve the health and welfare of the people. If the two sides remain trapped  in a political quagmire, they  will undermine cross-strait reconciliation.

三聚氰胺與兩岸關係
【聯合報╱社論】
2008.09.25 02:53 am

三聚氰胺風暴方興未艾。這是一件牽涉廣大的食品安全事件，且這又是一件重大的兩岸事件；相激相盪，愈演愈烈。

倘若此事不是出自中國，比如狂牛病牛肉出在美國，事件的政治因素便較小，且美國牛肉在台灣的消費族群畢竟有限，因此衝擊亦有限；但此次三聚氰胺事件出自中國，政治因素立即升高，且乳製品的消費族群又無所不在，尤其威脅兒童健康，遂演成風暴。

因此，欲觀察或評論此事，可有兩個角度：一、政府對於食品安全風暴的危機處理；二、兩岸關係。

就危機處理言，衛生署一開始竟宣稱毒奶粉未有進口，反而是由對岸海協會告知早有銷台，足見衛生署的掌握有失周密；接著，又因金車公司主動送驗，並明快表示負起社會責任，衛生署始知大勢不妙。也就是說，主管當局對情勢的掌握，非但落後於海協會，亦落後於金車公司。

先 機一失，也就陷於手忙腳亂之局，整個內閣立即須在化解危害與降低社會恐慌之間進行兩難操作，如今則採取了兩個極端的作法：一、全民可免費檢查有否腎結石， 醫界有人認為是「無謂恐慌」；二、所有含大陸製植物性蛋白質、奶精及乳製品成分的產品，一律在二十四小時內下架，總值逾十億元。這類決策是否在化解危害與 降低恐慌之間取得了較佳平衡，已成社會議論的話題。

從兩岸關係的角度來看此事發展，尤可記取教訓。內閣一開始就陷於 言詞拿捏不易的情勢，後來連胡錦濤亦嚴斥中共官僚「麻木不仁、作風漂浮」，溫家寶也指涉案廠商「沒良心」；但我們內閣的發言，卻始終有「輕不得，重不得」 的困境；原來以為，只有西藏之類的政治問題難以表態，今後自當想一想類如毒奶粉事件該當如何措辭。

劉兆玄院長主張派 團赴大陸「調查」，並謂將要「索賠」，這也觸及了兩岸的痛處。所謂「查廠」，除非是雙方進出口業者的民間互動，恐怕很難由受害國的官方及準官方片面提出此 種要求；中華民國政府不可能任意主張赴越南查廠，同樣也很難主張赴中國大陸查廠。劉揆的主張若欲實現，須對兩岸關係充滿想像。

至 於索賠求償，有專家指出，立即會觸及談判平台的問題，無論是用兩會模式談判，或透過ＷＴＯ管道談判，或用「九二共識」模式談判，恐怕均有礙難之處。因此， 劉揆將情勢升高至「查廠／索賠」的高度，一方面也許指出了解決問題的方向，但另一方面其實也揭露了兩岸在面臨此類事件時，並無一套穩定的法理共識與一個有 效的互動平台。

這次三聚氰胺風暴，對劉內閣處理食品安全危機是一震撼教育，對劉內閣處理兩岸事務更是一尖銳的刺激。 畢竟，兩岸愈來愈開放，這類涉及「民生」的糾紛也必愈來愈多；倘若政府在面對此類事件時，不知如何措辭，不知如何交涉，不知如何訂定「得／失」的標準，必 將陷於左支右絀、進退兩難之境地。

對於中共當局而言，這次三聚氰胺事件，亦是對其政經體制上大反省的時機，何以如此 大案竟能至少壓了九個月，何以三鹿如此巨商亦「沒有良心」，又何以除上海東方早報外，新聞界皆遭「封口」，在在皆應痛思猛省；當然，此一事件除了重傷中國 的國際形象，也是中共思考兩岸關係的時機，三聚氰胺這類事件發生於中國，反映了大陸不可信任的政經機制，這也許正是兩岸始終存有隔閡的主要因素。

此一事件，對兩岸當局皆當有所啟示。當兩岸的交流愈來愈頻密，必然需要一套對等互利的法制平台；不能把毒奶粉這類事件的交涉，也壓在「主權定位」的五指山下。畢竟，這類事件牽涉重大的民生關懷，倘若還陷在政治文章的泥淖之中，絕對與兩岸所努力經營的和解氛圍背道而馳。