China and the Chinese have been ruled by feudalistic monarchies for three millennia. And even what the Chinese people had in the immediate post-1911 national revolution period was only a hollow slogan of democracy. Only a few people of that time knew the true meaning of democracy, let alone how a political party might be established to articulate and represent the interests of their followers through striving for the overall good of the people and the nation.
It was under these circumstances that Dr. Sun Yat-sen, Founding Father of the Republic of China, assigned the Kuomintang the historical responsibility of overseeing a period of "democratic tutelage" in China in the hope that this development strategy would nurture a political culture for a democratic China of the future.
The pace of this democratization has not always satisfied those who have wanted China to make bolder strides toward democracy. But when the political realities of the not so distant past are taken into consideration—including the lack of basic training in democracy among the people, the absence of a strong middle class, the continuing power struggles of the warlords, the Japanese invasion of China, and the Communist rebellion that disrupted what unity there was among the people and the nation—it would appear more a matter of necessity than choice that immediate emphasis be placed on stability rather than the force-feeding of a political concept for which neither the nation nor the people were sufficiently prepared.
And after 30-odd years of political construction in Taiwan, a new generation has emerged. It uses the knowledge of Western democracy acquired at various colleges and universities around the world as a yardstick to measure the progress and criticize the performance of the government in following the mandate of the ROC's Founding Father.
The ruling party has not been disturbed nor surprised at this, because it is just what was wanted and expected. The ROC leaders have planted the seeds of democracy for several decades and they are aware that the time has come to enjoy the fruit. This explains why the Kuomintang, as the ruling party in the ROC, has been so tolerant of opposition groups and why the current political reforms are moving so fast.
This is the Chinese way of political development, and history bears witness that it is the correct way.
The year 1986 was not only a critical turning point in the political development of the Republic of China but also a turning point in our economic system. In the past year, in an effort to show its sincerity in dealing fairly with its trading partners, the ROC has paid particular attention to overhauling its economic system to accommodate the U.S. on trade issues.
Taiwan has opened its wine and tobacco and insurance markets, restructured its tariffs to allow more foreign imports to be competitive in the ROC, and has allowed the New Taiwan dollar to appreciate in value against the U.S. dollar in an effort to reduce the American trade deficit.
Despite these efforts, the trade imbalance that concerns our political leaders still exists. But to view this trade imbalance as merely a problem of numbers is to misread the issue. As Premier Yu pointed out in his May 15 statement: "There is no way in the world for 19 million people (on Taiwan) to import as much as 250 million people can (in the U.S.)."
The fact is, on a per capita basis, Americans bought from Taiwan only $78 worth of products in 1986, compared to ROC citizens purchasing $284 worth of American goods.
Different stages of economic development in the U.S. and the ROC have contributed to the trade imbalance and, with the ROC's current level of economic development, Taiwan can supply the American market with many of the products no longer competitively advantageous for the U.S. to produce.
On the other hand, with the level of economic development in the U.S., America could supply Taiwan with the high-tech items the ROC needs most. The fact that this doesn't always happen as much as the ROC would like appears to involve considerations other than economics. In other words, it is non-economic factors that have often complicated the trade issue.
Although the trade imbalance is by no means simply a game of numbers, the Republic of China still wants to do its best to improve trade relations—and Premier Yu has announced that the ROC will continue to tear down barriers in trade to give foreign products a fair and square opportunity to compete in Taiwan markets.
The ROC has entered a new era of political and trade liberalization. And Premier Yu has made it clear that the government is playing a more responsive role at home and abroad to make Taiwan's next step along the path of democracy and economic prosperity as successful and stable for the people of the Republic of China as the starting one. —(Bih-rong Liu is an associate professor at Soochow University in Taipei).