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Published on March 26, 2008

Last week's poll in Taiwan testified to two important qualities of the island nation and its people. First of all, it has a mature democracy. Secondly, the Taiwanese people are resilient and do not miss the chance to pick their leaders freely. In the Asian context, the Taiwanese democracy is the most serious. Quite often, political deliberations end up in brawls - sometimes resulting in blood and broken bones. This time, the Taiwanese have made their choice in the former Taipei mayor, Ma Yingjieu, who will become the next president of Taiwan. He will be different from the current president, Chen Sui Bien.

Taiwanese voters know what they want. For the past eight years, they have had enough of President Chen, who has been calling for a more independent Taiwan. Obviously, in the beginning, his call enjoyed very high appeal among young people, who have grown up with economic prosperity and well-being. They want to stay free and be recognised worldwide. Chen knew this and has been playing this precarious card continuously. Now it has backfired. When Chen endangered the security of Taiwan by playing with the island's nationalism and marching on the independence path, voters thought he had gone too far.  That was why the two referendums concerning the use of "Taiwan" as the country's name and the bid for a UN seat were rejected by voters. It was a big slap in Chen's face. He bet his reputation on these proposals. He was warned many times by friends and allies to abstain, but he did not listen. Washington made several stinging remarks against the Chen government, saying that these referendums were provocative and did not serve any useful purpose.

Now Taiwan can have a fresh start with Ma, especially with China. He wants to maintain the status quo with the Chinese, at least for the time being. That is good. China cannot afford to have any mishaps in the Taiwan Straits. Beijing wants to see a smooth Olympic Games. Given the situation in Tibet right now, China would actually woo Taiwan by responding positively towards Ma's plans for more direct contact and increased investment on the mainland.

The new leader is practical. He needs to ensure that Taiwan's ties with the mainland are stable, at least for the next five years. So, the issue of unification must be left aside. For the time being, the two countries could build stronger economies and ease the tension over the Taiwan Straits. This condition would also benefit the region. In the past eight years, whenever Taiwan asserted itself, China toughened its "one China" policy.

If China is more confident in its relations with Taiwan, Beijing would be more willing to allow space for the island both bilaterally and internationally. In the past, China viewed any Taiwanese diplomatic move as a zero-sum game. Apparently, that is not the case now. China's international clout has increased. There is no need for Beijing to fear that its global standing would be dented by Taiwan. As such, Asean would also benefit from the mainland's renewed confidence. After all, Taiwanese investment in Asean remains strong. Dialogue between Taiwan and these countries must also increase under Ma. It is hoped that Asean relations with Taiwan will improve further because the grouping has been cool toward the island's independence initiative for fear of upsetting the mainland. Stronger Taiwan-Asean ties need not undermine the health of the China-Asean friendship. Strong trust between the two Chinese sides is a prerequisite.

The Nation