KMT to revise charter to focus on Taiwan

KMT Secretary General Wu Den-yih stressed that it is a “correct” for the party to revise the charter in the direction of “Taiwanization.”

He stressed that “Taiwanization” is not a monopoly of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party and that the majority of KMT members have a deep attachment to Taiwan.

“The direction of the planned amendment to the charter is correct, because we should love Taiwan first before we can safeguard the Republic of China,” Wu said.

As the island can neither unify with the mainland nor formally separate from it at the moment, the KMT’s best policy is to set aside the unification-independence row and focus on improving the Taiwan people’s well-being, Wu said.

But KMT spokesman Yang Tu stressed that the revision does not mean that the party would renounce its unification goal.

The party officials were responding to a report in the China Times newspaper that the KMT was “getting rid of unification” and “adding Taiwan” in a draft for amendments to the charter.

The draft was finalized by a KMT panel earlier this week and is expected to be approved by the party’s national congress slated for June 24.

In what would mark the first time that the word “Taiwan” has been written into the charter, the draft states that the KMT will advocate a belief that centers on Taiwan and the interests of its people, the report said.

The draft proposes a major change to an article — removing the unification of China as an objective of the KMT, the report noted.

The present KMT charter stipulates: “Residents on the Chinese mainland who oppose the communist system, identify with the Three Principles of the People, and are willing to strive with the KMT for the goal of national unification are considered members of the party in spirit.”

Under the draft amendment, people who do not hold ROC citizenship but who identify with the Three Principles of the People and are willing to work with the KMT for “the peace and development of the country” are considered KMT members in spirit, the report said.

The report said the proposed changes would pave the way for the KMT’s transformation into a “Taiwanized” party and set the tone for its presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou’s China policy.

Ma, saying that he had been unaware of the contents of the draft, agreed that any policy must give top priority to Taiwan and its people.

“We must defend the Republic of China on one hand, and on the other we must embrace Taiwan,” Ma said.

He also trashed speculations that he would surrender up Taiwan to China under Hong Kong’s “one country two systems” model if he became president.

The KMT spokesman, Yang, said the planned amendment to the KMT charter is designed to ensure that the party is keeping pace with mainstream values in the country.

The amendment will not involve any changes to the fundamental principles of the charter which state that the KMT adheres to the concept of constitutional democracy and to the pursuit of a “prosperous, strong and unified nation,” he said.

“The basic spirit of the charter will remain unchanged. It is totally mistaken to say that the KMT is scrapping its objective of pursuing unification,” Yang said, adding that the KMT is opposed to Taiwan independence.

KMT Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng expressed his support for revising the party charter towards a direction that the KMT should have headed long ago.

Wang said the move will signify that the KMT is transforming itself into a Taiwanized party and will be favorable to the party’s 2008 presidential campaign.

Wang said he does not think the changes will reduce the level of support of traditional KMT supporters of the party.

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