g he is not a supporter of the Taiwan independence movement and that Taiwan shouldn't pursue independence. The statement invited both praise and criticism. The repercussions it has produced will last at least until the legislative elections to be held at the end of this year. Lee shocked politicians in both the "pan-blue" and "pan-green" alliances recently by declaring he was not an advocate of Taiwan independence and defining the attempt to make the island an independent state as "dangerous." In a recent interview with Next, a top-selling weekly journal, Lee asserted that he has never supported the independence movement. "I am not an independence activist and have never advocated Taiwan independence," the magazine quoted Lee as saying.
In 1999, Lee, then president of the Republic of China, stated in an interview with a radio station in Germany that relations between Taiwan and the Chinese mainland should be considered on a state-to-state basis. Until then Lee had time and again insisted he was not a Taiwan independence advocate. The "state-to-state" contention marked the end of his alleged support of Chinese reunification.
The Kuomintang (KMT), of which he was the chairman, lost the 2000 presidential election and he was forced to step down. After he was expelled from the party, Lee openly voiced support for Taiwan independence. Under his leadership, a group of former KMT members formed the Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU). With Lee being its spiritual leader, the TSU has been regarded as a radical pro-independence party. The former president has been reputed to be the godfather of Taiwan independence.
That is mainly why the report Next published has had such a strong impact. The Next article quoted Lee as saying he has received many invitations from the mainland. If he could take a trip to the mainland, he said, he would "follow the same route that Confucius traveled while touring the various vassal states."
More incredible were the critical remarks Lee made in the interview about the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). He not only called for the dismantling of restrictions on investment and tourism from across the Taiwan Strait, but accused the DPP administration of following inconsistent policies. "Don't regard every individual from the mainland as a spy," he urged. "It is necessary to make Taiwan a shopping paradise for mainlanders." Lee, who is 84 and suffers from a heart ailment, is nevertheless still politically active and influential. The apparent about-turn in his position has become the subject of a heated debate between politicians and commentators. Many consider his remarks to be an attempt to help the TSU in the year-end parliamentary elections. One of those who hold this view is People First Party spokesman Lee Hong-chun, who dismissed Lee's comments as a gimmick to win support for the TSU in the legislative elections. In response to the interview, TSU Chairman Huang Kun-huei denied that Lee has made an about-face. He followed Lee's line of argument that Taiwan is already a sovereign, independent country so there is no need to pursue independence. Lee is known as a shrewd and unpredictable politician. He was a member of the Chinese Communist Party as a youth. In 1971, he joined the KMT and rose quickly in power. In 1984, President Chiang Ching-kuo chose him to be his vice president. In January 1988, Chiang died, and Lee immediately succeeded him as president. As head of state, Lee invited much criticism by making efforts to "indigenize" the government, filling key government positions with native politicians. Although he insisted he was in favor of Chinese reunification, he was widely seen as a separatist trying to make Taiwan an independent nation.
Now he seems to be trying to project the image as a centrist. The effort is an apparent attempt to reshape his and the TSU's images. The criticism he has received from the independence-leaning DPP these past few days came as no surprise.
Will the effort really aid the TSU politicians in the year-end elections? The answer is anyone's guess. But one thing is sure. Since he is still politically influential, those seemingly anti-independence remarks he made will make many DPP legislators uneasy.
