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Published on December 31, 2007

Calling himself a pragmatic idealist, Ma, the boyish-looking former mayor of Taipei began to woo his Japanese audience when he appeared in Kyoto recently. "I want to make sure that Japan lives in peace and harmony without worrying about the Taiwan Straits. So defusing tension in the straits would be my top priority," he said. If he is elected president, Ma said he would maintain the status quo concerning China-Taiwan relations.

"No unification, no independence, and no use of force" is Ma's electoral platform, which he hopes will unseat incumbent President Chen Shui-bian of the Democratic Progressive Party next spring. This approach, he stressed, would guarantee stability and continued economic prosperity in the region. More importantly, Japan's economy depends on reducing tension in the Korean Peninsula and the Taiwan Straits.

As ties with China improve, Ma reiterated that he wants to negotiate a peace agreement with China, a comprehensive trading agreement covering land and air, as well as the island's international space. "This is not a zero-sum game, we must find common ground," he said, adding that a modus operandi must be found to enable Taiwan to participate in some form in the international community.

Taiwan's diplomatic recognition has been shrinking continuously in past decades. Now only 24 countries, mainly small states in Africa, Latin America and the Pacific Islands, have maintained diplomatic ties with Taiwan after its UN membership was terminated in 1992 and replaced by China.

China's rapid rise has won kudos from former supporters of Taiwan around the world. Taiwan's latest campaign to win membership in the UN as well as the effort to conduct a national referendum on the country's independence has already stirred China's ire. Beijing has made it clear it will not tolerate such moves.

Ma's position on China is similar to that of the Japanese government under Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda. During his visit to Beijing this weekend, Fukuda reaffirmed Japan's opposition to the planned referendum on UN membership during the presidential elections in March. US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice also opposed the plan.

It is interesting to note that Taiwanese presidential candidates are allowed to speak in various Japanese cities to woo overseas Taiwanese residing in Japan without China protesting. But Japan has turned down the visit of the Dalai Lama, the Tibetan spiritual leader, recently.

In Southeast Asia, similar actions would have caused a diplomatic uproar from China. Since August 2005, China has pressed individual Asean members to respect and implement the "one-China" policy and has constantly urged them not to support Taiwan's independence, which Asean has never backed.

As a presidential candidate from the Kuomintang Party, the main opposition party, Ma has been carefully nurturing his image and views towards China.

Since 2000, he has been hard at work campaigning to halt Taiwan from declaring independence and instead encouraging dialogue on the possibility of peaceful unification. Beijing has been talking about its readiness to use force.

As president, Ma would like to resume bilateral negotiations with China, which were halted under the leadership of Chen Shui-bian. In his introductory remarks in Kyoto, Ma pointed out that he has never failed to criticise the atrocities committed during the Tiananmen Square incident in 1988 since that fateful day. He also placed the promotion of democracy and human rights in Taiwan as one of his top priorities.

If elected president, he would pursue the so-called "Hard ROC" policy that would strengthen the island's defences against outside forces. "It is not for offensive purposes, but defensive ones," he declared. "We have to be strong and uncrackable, then we can stand firm."

Ma also visited the US, a close ally of Japan, as part of his political campaign. Japan and Taiwan have close ties since the former colonised the island for about 30 years. At the moment, older Taiwanese people still speak Japanese, he said, adding that at least 20 Taiwanese universities offer courses in the Japanese language, as well as the history and literature of the country.

Unfortunately, no potential Taiwanese leaders have paid any attention to Southeast Asia at this point, even though they need regional political support. However, expectations have faded away quickly due to closer ties between China and Asean. Taiwan has been trying to form economic ties with Asean, but so far to no avail due to opposition from China. Taiwan applied to be a sectoral dialogue partner of Asean a decade ago, but its bid has been rejected repeatedly since then.

The US and Japan are considered two of Taiwan's most important partners. In the island's view these two countries would help protect its sovereignty if and when forces are used to invade the island.

Wrapping up his presentation, Ma said he wants to turn Taiwan into a model democracy that can live harmoniously with China. "I will make Taiwan a peace-maker, not a trouble-maker," he concluded.

Kavi Chongkittavorn