>>
http://www.voanews.com/english/2007-06-09-voa5.cfm
>>
>> Former Taiwan Leader Defends Visit to Japan's Controversial Shrine
>> By Catherine Makino
>> Tokyo
>> 09 June 2007
>>
>> Makino report (mp3) - Download 497k
>> Listen to Makino report (mp3)
>>
>>
>> Former Taiwanese President Lee Teng-hui has concluded a controversial
>> trip to Japan by claiming Taiwan is already independent from China,
>> and rejecting Beijing's criticism of his visit to Japan's Yasukuni
>> Shrine. Catherine Makino reports from Tokyo.
>>
>>
>> Former Taiwanese President Lee Teng-hui gestures during a lecture in
>> Tokyo, 7 June 2007
>> Taiwan's former President Lee Teng-hui told reporters on Saturday that
>> Taiwan is effectively already independent, and should not worry about
>> anything China said on the matter.
>>
>> "Taiwan is already an independent country," he said. "It is natural
>> that the Taiwanese people clearly assert that Taiwan is theirs, and
>> that Taiwan is an independent county based on peace and democracy."
>>
>> One Chinese man was so angry at the claim that he threw two plastic
>> bottles at Mr. Lee at the airport as he prepared to end his private
>> trip to Japan. China claims sovereignty over Taiwan and has threatened
>> war if Taiwan ever seeks to formalize its status.
>>
>> Beijing also criticized Mr. Lee and his Japanese hosts for his visit
>> to the Yasukuni Shrine. The presence there of 14 war criminals, among
>> more than 2.5 million war dead, angers China, South Korea, and other
>> countries who see the shrine as glorifying Japan's militaristic past.
>>
>> Mr. Lee says he went to the shrine to pay respects to his brother who
>> was killed during World War II while serving with Japan's navy in the
>> Philippines.
>>
>> "The visit to pay respects to my brother is a private affair," he
>> said. "I had a longing to visit my brother since we do not have
>> single locket of his hair or a bone. I am very grateful to Yasukuni
>> shrine."
>>
>> He says it is an experience he will never forget and that it is the
>> right of countries to honor the souls of young soldiers who died
>> serving their countries.
>>
>> He rejected China's criticism of his visit, saying he believed the
>> Chinese and Koreans invented the Yasukuni problem, because they could
>> not deal with problems in their own countries.
>>
>> Mr. Lee was president of Taiwan from 1988-2000, and has long been a
>> harsh critic of Beijing.
>>
>> During his speech on Saturday Mr. Lee also said the United States is
>> now paralyzed because of the war in Iraq. He said decisions made by
>> President Bush had weakened the U.S. so that it had lost its
>> leadership role in Asia and respect in the world.
