The Calm and Resolute Outcry from 23 Million Taiwanese -- Striving for a
place in the U.N./The Japan Times

The Japan Times

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Striving for a place in the U.N.

By WEN-CHING CHU

Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative OfficeTokyo

(Last Monday the United Nations rejected Taiwan's latest application to
become a member of the world body). When Taiwanese President Chen
Shui-bian received a vice chancellor and a professor of Pepperdine
University on May 22, he said Taiwan had no intention of challenging the
"one China" principle. However, sticking to the "one China" principle
has by no means solved the question of how 23 million Taiwanese people
should be represented in the United Nations, since the People's Republic
of China cannot represent Taiwan.

According to a June survey of public opinion conducted by the Institute
for National Policy Research in Taiwan, 71 percent of the Taiwanese
people favor Taiwan joining the U.N. under the name "Taiwan." Meanwhile,
87 percent of the Taiwanese people perceive that Taiwan, being an
independent sovereign state, does not need to acquire any prior consent
from China to join international organizations. In addition, 77 percent
of the Taiwanese people do not agree that Taiwan is a part of the PRC.

In a democratic country like Taiwan, any important decision-making
process must take into account the will of the majority of the people.
The Taiwanese government has heard the people's voice for too long, loud
and clear, on the U.N. issue. The Taiwanese people are proud of their
democracy and firmly believe that Taiwan deserves a due place in the
U.N. Despite constant and intensified objection by the PRC, the
Taiwanese people will strive to join the U.N.

The U.N. General Assembly will convene in September. It is our hope that
the Assembly will re-examine the issue of Taiwan's representation and
include it on the assembly's agenda. We also sincerely hope that
democratic Japan will support democratic Taiwan in this regard.
The opinions expressed in this letter to the editor are the writer's own
and do not necessarily reflect the policies of The Japan Times.

The Japan Times: Sunday, July 29, 2007

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