Talk of the day — ECFA debate still raging
Focus Taiwan | 2010/03/28
Talk of the day — ECFA debate still raging
By Sofia Wu
The debate on whether Taiwan should sign an economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) with China continues to rage in local society, as the government has stepped up its efforts to gain public support for the pact and the opposition is pushing for a referendum on the proposed deal.
The following are excerpts of local newspaper reports on the issue:
China Times:
Cyrus C. Y. Chu, chairman of the Chung-hua Institution for Economic Research, delivered a speech on ECFA issues Saturday at the invitation of the Lung Ying-tai Foundation.
As far as the ECFA is concerned, Chu said, the most important point lies in its promise of closer industrial cooperation across the Taiwan Strait.
The free trade agreement is expected to lay the groundwork for industries on both sides to cooperate through mutual assistance in investment and technological development, Chu said.
With this in mind, the Taiwan government should take proactive steps to turn the ECFA’s potential disadvantages into opportunities, he suggested.
While all free trade agreements tend to have some adverse effect on certain sectors, such pacts usually benefit a country’s overall economy in the long run, Chu argued.
In the face of the opposition camp’s objection to the proposed deal, Chu said, the government should work even harder to turn any potential crisis into new business opportunities. (March 28, 2010). Liberty Times: Council of Agriculture Minister Chen Wu-hsiung and Mainland Affairs Council Deputy Chairman Liu Te-shun traveled to the southernmost county of Pingtung Saturday to brief local business and agricultural groups on the key points of the proposed ECFA with China.
The two-hour meeting, organized by the Pingtung Irrigation Association, was part of the Executive Yuan’s nationwide publicity campaign to drum up public support for the ECFA and allay misgivings about the pact’s possible adverse effects.
Representatives from the county’s agricultural, industrial and commercial sectors as well as some individual farmers attended the presentation.
Chen and Liu both focused on the anticipated positive effects on the ECFA on Taiwan’s economy and they assured farmers that the government will maintain its ban on the importation of more than 830 Chinese agricultural items, in order to protect local farmers’ interests.
Some farmers, however, expressed doubts about the likelihood of the government upholding its promise, citing the administration’s recent decision to raise health insurance premiums despite its earlier promise that it would not do so.
Several borough chiefs said they are still not clear on the contents or significance of the ECFA, despite the government’s recent publicity efforts.
Vice President Vincent Siew also went on a community outreach tour of neighboring Kaohsiung County to promote the ECFA deal.
Siew told local residents that as Taiwan is an island nation heavily reliant on external trade for its economic development, the ECFA will give Taiwan an edge in attracting foreign investors who plan to venture into the vast Chinese market.
Moreover, Siew said, China has become Taiwan’s largest trading partner, accounting for 40 percent of Taiwan’s total annual exports. Signing an ECFA with China will further boost Taiwan’s competitiveness in the Chinese market, Siew said. In the forthcoming ECFA talks, the government will endeavor to mitigate the agreement’s possible negative effects on Taiwan, he added.
Also on Saturday, the pro-independence green camp continued its campaign for a national referendum on the proposed ECFA with China.
Politicians from the opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and the Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) as well as leaders of pro-independence advocacy groups took to the streets to collect signatures for their ECFA referendum initiative.
Citing the results of a series of public opinion surveys, DPP Chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen said 60 percent to 70 percent of the public is behind the ECFA referendum drive.
"As a popularly elected head of state, President Ma Ying-jeou should respect the people’s view," Tsai said.
Meanwhile, TSU Chairman Huang Kun-huei visited a number of stands set up by his party in Taipei city and county to collect public signatures for the referendum initiative.
He told the public that the ECFA is by no means an economic issue as claimed by the Ma administration. If Taiwan signs such an agreement, he warned, its national sovereignty would be seriously damaged under Beijing’s "one China" principle.
